Create a Research Dashboard In 3 Steps
How to Create a Research Dashboard
A research management dashboard is a web-based tool that provides researchers and organizations with a centralized view of key metrics, helping them track studies, manage data collection, and collaborate efficiently.
It serves as a real-time hub for monitoring everything from research projects and data analysis to publications and team collaboration.
Essential Features for a Research Dashboard
A research dashboard should include key features that enable efficient management of studies, data, and research team collaboration.
One of the most important features is user authentication and profile management. A secure login system with multi-factor authentication ensures that your dashboard is protected from unauthorized access. Researchers, data analysts, and stakeholders should be able to create and manage profiles, update personal details, and track their respective research contributions.
The dashboard should provide tools for managing research projects, tracking milestones, and overseeing data collection processes. For instance, features for managing research workflows, setting deadlines for study phases, and monitoring experiment or survey progress are essential. Visual tools, such as project timelines and data analysis charts, help researchers keep track of study progress and outcomes.
Data management tools are critical, allowing researchers to store, organize, and analyze large datasets while maintaining data integrity. Integration with calendar systems helps research teams stay organized and on track with submission deadlines, grant applications, and publication schedules.
The dashboard should support document sharing, such as research papers, datasets, and progress reports, with version control to ensure accurate collaboration. Integration with tools like Slack, Microsoft Teams, or Dropbox enhances communication and streamlines document sharing across teams and collaborators.
These features form the core of a functional research management dashboard, but you can always expand based on your organization’s needs.
Build or Buy Your Research Dashboard
When it comes to implementing a research dashboard, organizations often face the decision of whether to build a custom solution or purchase an off-the-shelf product.
Building a custom dashboard using Five gives you the flexibility to tailor the system to your organization’s specific needs, ensuring it integrates with your existing research infrastructure and aligns with your workflows. This customization allows for more relevant, study-specific workflows, whether you’re managing multiple ongoing research projects or collaborating on long-term studies.
With Five, you not only build a dashboard but also gain access to expert support, helping you develop the perfect research solution for your needs. We collaborate with you in a co-development approach, ensuring your system is built to your precise requirements without unnecessary features or complexities.
Visit our Hire An Expert page to learn more about our co-development approach.
Building also gives you full control over your data, eliminating concerns about security or third-party access, which is essential for organizations managing sensitive research data and intellectual property.
In contrast, buying an off-the-shelf dashboard may seem quicker but often comes with limitations, high licensing fees, restricted customization, and the potential inability to scale as your research projects grow. These costs can quickly add up, making a custom solution more cost-effective in the long run.
With Five, you can build a research management dashboard that’s affordable, fast to implement, and fully customized to your needs.
Creating a Research Dashboard Made Easy
In the past, creating a custom research dashboard required extensive coding skills, leading to higher costs and time-consuming processes.
Today, dashboard builders like Five make this process easier and more collaborative.
With Five, you don’t need advanced coding knowledge or months of development time. You can co-develop and launch a fully functional research management dashboard with our support, making it more efficient and tailored to your specific research requirements.
Five provides an intuitive interface for setting up dashboards, allowing you to focus on managing studies, data, and publications rather than technical details.
With Five, you can:
- Set up your dashboard in minutes with our research management template.
- Create a user-friendly, login-protected web interface for managing your research projects.
- Easily import your existing research data, so you can get started immediately.
Get free access to Five here and start building your research management dashboard today.
The Five team has a team of experts ready to assist you. So, if you ever feel like you’re in over your head, don’t worry, our expert developers are here to help you. And yes, we promise not to charge you an arm and a leg or leave you with a system that only we understand. To get a consultation visit this page “Hire An Expert.”
How to Create a Research Dashboard
So how can you create a research management dashboard from scratch using Five, and what are some prerequisites you should consider?
Step 1. Access Five
If you haven’t already, sign up for free access to Five. We offer a free 14-day trial with no credit card required. Depending on the complexity of your dashboard and the amount of data you need to store, you will eventually need a paid plan.
Step 2: List Out Dashboard Attributes
Start by compiling a list of all the attributes relevant to your research dashboard. Consider what matters most: project management, data analysis, study milestones, and publication tracking.
Here are some essential attributes typically included in a research dashboard:
- User authentication and profile management (researchers, data analysts, and collaborators)
- Research project tracking and status indicators
- Data collection tools and analysis dashboards
- Document sharing and management (research papers, datasets, progress reports)
- Task management for study phases and deadlines
- Communication tools for team collaboration
- Budget and grant tracking
- Visual dashboards with data charts, study timelines, and metrics
Follow our YouTube tutorial for a step-by-step guide, covering everything from database modeling to previewing your completed research dashboard.
The tutorial also shows how to assign different SQL data types to your table fields and use Five’s database modeler to visualize your schema. Once your database tables are set, you can quickly turn them into fully functional forms with just a few clicks.
Step 3: Launch Your Research Dashboard Online
Once your research dashboard’s database is set up and defined, you can begin adding the necessary data.
With Five, you can easily upload CSV files into your SQL database or manually enter research project data. Just ensure the columns in your CSV file match the fields in your database, and you’re ready to go.
You can also create a user-friendly web-based interface for your dashboard, featuring tools for adding or editing research projects, charts for visualizing data, and options to generate PDF reports for stakeholders or publications.
Or if you’re struggling with development, contact one of our development experts.
Conclusion: Building a Research Dashboard
A well-designed research dashboard is crucial for any organization aiming to improve research efficiency, collaboration, and data management.
With modern tools like Five, developing a custom dashboard has become simpler and more accessible than ever. You can tailor the dashboard to your unique research needs, from data collection to publication tracking, without the overhead of expensive developers or generic off-the-shelf solutions.
