Design

5 min read

One highlighted series: how we draw charts

Grey for context, one colour for the number that matters, and axes that start where the data does. The rules behind every chart in Sinclair.

By June Park

Chart illustration for One highlighted series: how we draw charts

Grey for context, one colour for the number that matters, and axes that start where the data does. The rules behind every chart in Sinclair.

Start with the question

Before anyone opens a dashboard, write down the question in one sentence and who will act on the answer. Most disagreements about numbers are disagreements about the question.

Write the rule down

A metric is a rule plus a source. When the rule lives in one place, with an owner and a version, the same number shows up on every dashboard, in every report and in the board pack.

What we do at Sinclair

We keep a short list of certified metrics, review changes like code, and send one report every Monday. Everything else is exploration, and exploration is allowed to be messy.

If you want the template we use for metric definitions, reply to any of our emails and we will send it over.

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