Visuals Overview

Overview

In Expertise Insights, reports are known as visuals. You add one or more visuals to sheets in an analysis, then publish the analysis as a dashboard. 

Measures and dimensions are the building blocks for visuals.

• Measures—Measures are the numerical values used in visuals, and are often aggregated by dimensions. Measures are the what of reporting. In Kantata, measures are values such as fees, actual hours, expense amounts, etc.
• Dimensions—Dimensions are the qualitative values used in visuals, such as text or date fields. Measures are the how of reporting. In Kantata, dimensions are values such as projects, users, roles, etc.

To access the Expertise Insights visual editor:

1. In the left navigation, hover over Insights, then select Dashboards Home.
2. Select Analyses from the left menu, then select an analysis from the list.
3. Select a visual in the canvas.

Visual Editor User Interface

The key components of the visual editor are as follows:

1. Visuals panel
2. Visual options in the canvas
3. Properties panel

1. Visuals Panel

The Visuals panel appears on the left side of the analysis editor and provides options to change the visual type, add or remove fields, configure fields, and more. The available options differ based on the visual type. Select a visual in the canvas to open the Visuals panel or select the Visualize icon in the toolbar to show or hide the panel.

Below the visual type are the sections where you add measures and dimensions, known as field wells. The sections shown here differ based on the selected visual type. The color coding of the fields in the Data panel and the sections in the Visuals panel help you identify where fields should be added:

• Orange is for measures, i.e. numerical values
• Blue is for dimensions, i.e. text fields

Some of the actions you can take from the Visuals panel include:

• Add, remove, and replace the fields in a visual
• Change the type of a visual
• Change how measures are aggregated (e.g. display a sum, average, count, maximum, median, minimum, etc.)
• Change the display format of measures 
• Change the display format of dimensions (e.g. changing date formats or displaying custom text for null values)
• Change the sort order of dimensions

2. Visual Options in the Canvas

When you select a visual in the canvas, options appear to the upper-right of the visual. Some options appear for all visuals, while others are specific to a visual type.

The following options appear for most visual types:

• Edit with Q—Edit the visual with AI.
• Format visual—Opens the Properties panel to the right, where you can format and style various aspects of the visual. The available options differ based on the visual type.
• Maximize—Makes the visual take up the entire canvas, allowing you to see details better. This is a temporary view and does not change the size of the visual or hide other visuals.
• More menu
  • View summary data—Opens a modal with a tabular view of the data.
  • Export to CSV / Export to Excel—Downloads a CSV or Excel export of the visual.
  • Duplicate visual to—Allows you to clone the visual to any sheet in the analysis.
  • Actions—Opens the Actions tab of the Properties panel to the right, where you can configure interactions for a visual, such as filtering another visual when a user clicks on an element or opening another sheet or a specific URL when a user clicks on the visual.
  • Delete—Removes the visual from the analysis.

When a visual in the canvas is selected, you can resize the visual or move it.

3. Properties Panel

The Properties panel appears to the right when you select the Format visual icon for a visual. The following tabs appear within the Properties panel:

• Visual tab—The options in this tab allow you to configure settings for the visual, such as display settings, x-axis and y-axis settings, legends, data labels, conditional formatting, and more. The available options differ based on the visual type.
• Interactions tab—The options in this tab allow you to add interactive functionality to a visual.
  • Reader Customization—Available for tables and pivot tables, this section allows you to configure additional fields for the table to allow dashboard viewers to add fields to their view of the table without affecting the published version of the dashboard. See the How to Configure Table Customizations for Dashboard Viewers section for more information.
  • Actions—This section allows you to configure interactions for a visual, such as filtering another visual when a user clicks on an element or opening another sheet or a specific URL when a user clicks on the visual.
  • Tooltips—Tooltips are small popovers that appear as you hover your cursor over elements in a visual. See the How to Configure a Tooltip for a Visual section for more information.

Visual Types and Visual Elements

The following visual types are available in Expertise Insights:

• Autograph—Autograph lets Expertise Insights choose the best visual type for you as you add data.
• Bar charts
  • Horizontal bar charts
  • Horizontal stacked bar charts
  • Vertical bar charts
  • Vertical stacked bar charts
  • Horizontal stacked 100% bar charts
  • Vertical stacked 100% bar charts
• Box plots
• Combo charts
  • Clustered bar combo charts
  • Stacked bar combo charts
• Custom visual content
• Donut charts
• Funnel charts
• Gauge charts
• Heat maps
• Highcharts
• Histograms
• Insights
• KPIs
• Layer maps
• Line charts
  • Area line charts
  • Stacked area line charts
• Maps and geospatial charts
  • Filled maps
• Pie charts
• Pivot tables
• Radar charts
• Sankey diagrams
• Scatter plots
• Tables
• Tree maps
• Waterfall charts
• Word clouds

For detailed information on the visual types, see the Visual types external article.

The following visual elements can also be added to analyses and dashboards:

• Custom content—Allows you to embed webpages and online videos, forms, and images.
• Images—Allows you to upload images from your computer.
• Text boxes—Allows you to add text, such as headers, descriptions, and links. Text elements can be styled.

How to Create a Visual (Report)

1. In the analysis editor, select the Visualize icon in the toolbar. The Visuals panel opens to the left.
2. Select the arrow beside the Add button in the Visuals panel.

3. In the drop-down menu that appears, select a visual type.

   Note: Select AutoGraph to have Expertise Insights select the best visual type based on the fields you add.
4. Select the Datasets icon in the toolbar. The Data panel opens to the left.
5. You can add fields to the visual in the following ways:
   1. Drag and drop fields from the Data panel into a section in the Visuals panel.

   2. Select the More icon for a field in the Data panel, then select Add to visual in the menu that appears.

      TIP

      The field colors help you understand where fields should be added. Match the field color to the sections in the Visuals panel.

      • Orange is for measures, i.e. numerical values.
      • Blue is for dimensions, i.e. text fields

      If you selected the AutoGraph visual type, the visual type automatically updates as you add or remove fields from the visual.

6. To rename the visual, double click the title at the top of the visual, enter a new name in the Edit title modal that opens, then select Save.
7. To configure options for the visual, hover over the visual, then select the Format visual icon to the upper-right of the visual. The Properties panel opens to the right. See the How to Configure a Visual section in this article for more information.
8. Additional options are available via the More icon to the upper-right of the visual. 
9. To resize or move the visual, see the How to Resize and Move Visuals and Visual Elements section in this article.

How to Create and Edit a Visual with AI

1. To create a new visual with AI, first select Add in the Visuals panel, then select a visual type. To edit an existing visual with AI, proceed to the next step.
2. Hover over the visual.
3. Select the Edit with Q icon to the upper-right of the visual. The Edit visual popover opens. 
4. Describe how you would like to modify the visual.
5. Select Apply.
6. The visual updates.
7. To undo the changes, select Undo.
8. To provide feedback, select the Thumbs up or Thumbs down icon.

How to Configure a Visual

You can configure a visual to customize things like the display settings, x-axis and y-axis options, legend, data labels, conditional formatting, colors, and more. The available options differ based on the visual type.

1. In the analysis editor, hover over the visual you would like to configure.
2. Select the Format visual icon to the upper-right of the visual. The Properties panel opens to the right.
3. Configure options in the Visual tab. The visual updates in the canvas as you make changes.

How to Add and Remove Fields from a Visual

1. In the analysis editor, select the visual.
2. If the Visuals and Data panels are not already open to the left, select the Visualize and Datasets icons in the toolbar to open the panels.
3. The Visuals panel lists the fields that are currently in the selected visual.
4. You can add fields to the visual in the following ways:
   1. Drag and drop fields from the Data panel into a section in the Visuals panel.
   2. Select the More icon for a field in the Data panel, then select Add to visual in the menu that appears.
5. You can remove fields from the visual in the following ways:
   1. Drag and drop fields from the Visuals panel to the Data panel.
   2. Select the More icon for a field in the Visuals panel, then select Remove in the menu that appears.

How to Add a Filter to a Visual

1. In the analysis editor, select the visual you would like to filter.
2. Select the Filter icon in the toolbar at the top. The Filters panel opens to the left.
3. Select Add in the Filters panel.
4. In the drop-down menu that appears, select a field to filter the visual by. 
5. The filter is added to the Filters panel, with an Only this visual tag that indicates that the filter is applied to the selected visual only.
6. Select the More icon for the filter, then select Edit.
7. For dimension fields, configure the following options:
   • Filter type
   • Filter condition
   • Values—Specific values to filter the visual by.
8. For measure fields, configure the following options:
   • Aggregation
   • Filter condition
   • Use parameters
   • Enter a value
   • Null options
9. Select the Add filter condition button to configure multiple filters that are applied with OR logic.
10. Select Apply. The filter is applied and the visual updates in the canvas.

How to Clone a Visual or Visual Element

To clone a visual or visual element to the same analysis:

1. In the analysis editor, select the visual or visual element.
2. Select the More icon to the upper-right of the visual or visual element.
3. In the More menu, select Duplicate visual to… or Duplicate [visual element] to….
4. Select a sheet in the sub-menu. 
5. The view updates to display the duplicated visual or visual element.

To clone a visual or visual element to a different analysis:

1. Open the analysis you would like to clone a visual or visual element to.
2. In the analysis editor, select the sheet you would like to clone the visual or visual element to.
3. In the menu at the top, select File > Import.
4. In the Find source to insert from modal that opens, select the analysis or dashboard that contains the visual or visual element you would like to duplicate.
5. Select Load.
6. Select the sheet that contains the visual or visual element you would like to duplicate.
7. Check the checkbox to the upper-right of the visual or visual element.
8. Select Import. The visual or visual element is added to the analysis.

How to Resize and Move Visuals and Visual Elements

To resize a visual or visual element:

1. In the analysis editor, select the visual or visual element you would like to resize. 
   The element is highlighted with a bold outline and 9 boxes appear at the corners and edges.
2. Use the 9 boxes at the corners and edges to resize the element.

To move a visual or visual element:

1. In the analysis editor, select the visual in the canvas. The element is highlighted with a bold outline.
2. Hover your cursor over an edge until the cursor changes to a Move icon. 
3. Drag and drop the visual to a new area in the canvas. 
   A dotted box will appear as you drag and drop to show where the visual will be placed once you drop it.

How to Add a Drill-Down to a Visual

You can configure drill-downs to allow users to break down the data in a visual in different ways or at different levels. For example, you can create a visual that displays fees by project role, then allow users to drill down by user name.

1. In the analysis editor, select a visual.
2. If the Visuals and Data panels are not already open to the left, select the Visualize and Datasets icons in the toolbar to open the panels.

3. Drag a field from the Data panel to one of the sections in the Visuals panel—typically a section that contains dimensions (denoted by a blue background for the fields in that section).
   If you are hovering over the correct section, a Add drill-down layer tooltip will appear below the field that you’re dragging. If you do not see this tag, the drill-down will not be added successfully.

   Tip: Refer to this external article for information on which sections to add a field to as a drill-down layer for each supported visual type.
4. Once you see the Add drill-down layer tooltip, drop the field in that section.
5. The visual updates in the canvas. Hover over the visual in the canvas and Drill up and Drill down icons will now appear to the upper-right of the visual.

How to Format Measures (Numerical Fields)

You can format fields to show or hide decimal places, show or hide separators, change currency symbols, and more. For conditional formatting, see the How to Add Conditional Formatting section.

1. Open the analysis editor.
2. To format a field in all the visuals:
   1. In the Data panel to the left, hover over the field.
   2. Select the More icon for the field. A menu appears.
3. To format a field for a specific visual only:
   1. Select a visual in the canvas.
   2. In the Visuals panel to the left, select the More icon for the field. A menu appears.
4. Select the Show as menu option and select how to display the values:
   • Number
   • Currency
   • Percent
5. Select the Format menu option and select an option for displaying the values. The available options differ based on the Show as selection. The most common separators, decimal places, and currency symbols are available to select.
   1. You can select the More formatting options menu option within Format to access more options and format the field further, including decimal places, how to display negatives, and how to display null values.

How to Add Conditional Formatting

Conditional formatting can be added to tables, pivot tables, KPIs, and gauge charts.

1. In the analysis editor, hover over the visual.
2. Select the More icon to the upper-right of the visual.
3. Select Conditional formatting. The Conditional formatting panel opens to the right.
4. For tables and pivot tables:
   1. Select the Select a column button.
   2. Select the field you would like to apply conditional formatting to.
   3. Select one of the options and configure the settings:
      • Add background color
      • Add text color
      • Add icon
5. For KPIs:
   1. Select one of the options and configure the settings for the Comparison value:
      • Add text color
      • Add icon
   2. Select one of the options and configure the settings for the Actual value:
      • Add text color
      • Add icon
6. For gauge charts:
   1. Select one of the options and configure the settings for the Primary value:
      • Add text color
      • Add icon
   2. Select one of the options and configure the settings for the Arc:
      • Add foreground color
7. Select Apply. The visual updates.

How to Configure a Tooltip for a Visual

When viewing a dashboard, hovering your cursor over any area of most visual types will show additional details in a tooltip. For example, when you hover over a single bar on a bar chart, information about that specific bar displays in a tooltip. You can configure tooltips for visuals and change the information shown in the tooltip or change the tooltip type.

1. In the analysis editor, hover over the visual.
2. Select the Format visual icon to the upper-right of the visual. The Properties panel opens to the right.
3. Select the Interactions tab.
4. Toggle the Tooltip option to the On position.
5. Expand the Tooltip section.
6. Select the tooltip Type: 
   • Basic tooltip
   • Detailed tooltip
   • Sheet tooltip—Allows you to add detailed breakdowns without requiring users to navigate to a different sheet. See the external article for more information about sheet tooltips.
7. For a Detailed tooltip, configure the following options:
   1. Primary value as title—Activate this option to display the primary measure or dimension as a title in the tooltip.
   2. Aggregations—Activate this option to include the aggregation type at the end of the field name in the tooltip (e.g. Fees (Average) ). This option helps viewers understand which calculation is being displayed in the tooltip.
   3. Fields—Select the More icon for a field to access the following options:
      • Edit
      • Move up / Move down
      • Delete
      • Hide
   4. Add field—Select the Add field button to add more fields to the tooltip.
8. For a Sheet tooltip, select Create sheet tooltip and configure the tooltip visual. See the external article for more information about configuring sheet tooltips.

You can test the tooltip while in the analysis editor. Hover over an element in the visual in the canvas and the tooltip will appear.

How to Configure a Visual to Filter Another Visual

You can configure an interaction where clicking on an element in one visual—such as a bar graph or table cell—filters the data in other visuals.

1. In the analysis editor, hover over the visual you would like to filter other visuals.
2. Select the Format visual icon to the upper-right of the visual. The Properties panel opens to the right.
3. Select the Interactions tab.
4. Expand the Actions section.
5. Select Add action.
6. Enter an Action name.
7. For Activation, select the interaction that will filter the other visuals:
   • Select—When the visual is clicked on.
   • Menu—When the action is selected in the visual’s context menu. If this option is selected, the Action name will be visible to dashboard viewers in the visual’s context menu.
8. In Action type, select Filter action.
9. In Filter scope, select the fields that should be used to filter other visuals:
   • All fields
   • Selected fields—Check the specific fields that should be used to filter other visuals.
10. In Target visuals, select which visuals should be filtered:
    • All visuals
    • Select visuals—Check the specific visuals that should be filtered.
11. Select Save. The filter action is added.

You can test the filter action while in the analysis editor. Click on an element in the visual in the canvas. If you selected Menu activation, select the action name in the context menu that opens. The data in the target visuals should be filtered.

How to Configure a Visual to Open Another Sheet

You can configure a visual to open another sheet when it is clicked on or when an option is selected in the visual’s context menu.

1. In the analysis editor, hover over a visual.
2. Select the Format visual icon to the upper-right of the visual. The Properties panel opens to the right.
3. Select the Interactions tab.
4. Expand the Actions section.
5. Select Add action.
6. Enter an Action name.
7. For Activation, select the interaction that will filter the other visuals:
   • Select—When the visual is clicked on.
   • Menu—When the action is selected in the visual’s context menu. If this option is selected, the Action name will be visible to dashboard viewers in the visual’s context menu.
8. In Action type, select Navigation action.
9. In Target sheet, select the sheet that you would like to open when the visual is clicked on.
10. Select Save. The action is added.

You can test the navigation action while in the analysis editor. Click on the visual in the canvas. If you selected Menu activation, select the action name in the context menu that opens. The target sheet should open.

How to Add Sums, Averages, and Other Aggregations to a Table

1. In the analysis editor, select the table.
2. Select the Format visual icon to the upper-right of the visual. The Properties panel opens to the right.
3. In the Visual tab of the Properties panel, activate totals in one of the following ways:
   • For a regular table: Toggle Totals to the On position. 
   • For a pivot table: Expand the Total section, then toggle Rows and/or Columns to the On position.
4. Configure options in the Totals section:
   • Pin totals—Check this option to freeze the aggregation row.
   • Position—Select whether to display the aggregation row at the Top or Bottom of the table.
   • Label—Enter a label for the aggregation row.
   • Text—Configure style options for the aggregation row, including Text styling, Background, and Borders. Adding styling can make the aggregation row stand out in the table.
5. In the Visuals panel to the left, select the More icon for a measure field.
6. In the menu that appears, hover over Total or Totals and choose the type of aggregation to apply for that measure:
   • Default
   • Sum
   • Average
   • Max
   • Min

How to Configure Table Customizations for Dashboard Viewers

You can configure additional fields for a table to allow dashboard viewers to add fields to their view of the table without affecting the published version of the dashboard.

1. In the analysis editor, hover over a table.
2. Select the Format visual icon to the upper-right of the visual. The Properties panel opens to the right.
3. Select the Interactions tab.
4. Toggle the Reader Customization option to the On position.
5. Expand the Reader Customization section.
6. Select the Manage fields button.
7. In the menu that appears, check additional fields.
8. Select Save.