If you’ve ever built dashboards, you’ve heard these requests.

Not once.
Not twice.
But over and over again.

These requests show up in almost every company regardless of tool, industry, or team.

Here are 11 dashboard requests every data analyst gets repeatedly, and what they really mean.

1. “Can You Add One More Metric?”

This usually means:

• Someone just thought of a new question
• Scope is quietly expanding

This is how dashboards turn into cluttered reports.

2. “Can This Update in Real Time?”

Often asked without considering:

• Data latency
• Infrastructure costs
• Actual business need

Most teams don’t need real-time, they need timely.

3. “Can You Break This Down by Region / Team / Product?”

This is a classic.

It signals:

• Curiosity
• Or lack of clarity in the original design

Drill-downs exist for a reason.

4. “Can You Make It Look More Executive?”

This usually means:

• Fewer charts
• Bigger numbers
• Less noise

Executives want clarity, not decoration.

5. “Why Doesn’t This Match Excel?”

The most painful request.

Common causes:

• Different filters
• Different definitions
• Excel errors

Dashboards expose data inconsistencies Excel hides.

6. “Can We Export This to Excel?”

Despite the dashboard.

Despite automation.

Excel is still the comfort zone for many teams.

7. “Can You Add a Filter for Everything?”

Unlimited filters sound powerful until users don’t know what they’re looking at anymore.

Too many filters = confusion.

8. “Can You Show This for Last Year Too?”

This turns:

• A snapshot dashboard
  into
• A time-series analysis tool

Good request but requires proper context.

9. “Can This Be Automated?”

Often asked after the dashboard is live.

Automation affects:

• Data pipelines
• Refresh schedules
• Error handling

Not just the dashboard layer.

10. “Can You Explain This Chart in the Meeting?”

This means:

• The chart isn’t self-explanatory
• Or the audience isn’t data-literate

Dashboards should explain themselves.

11. “Can You Just Fix It Quickly?”

The most dangerous request.

“Quick” often hides:

• Undefined requirements
• No testing time

Quick fixes create long-term problems.

What These Requests Really Tell You

Most dashboard requests are not technical.

They’re about:

• Trust
• Clarity
• Decision-making

Understanding why someone asks matters more than what they ask.

Common Analyst Mistakes

• Saying yes to everything
• Overloading dashboards
• Skipping requirement clarification
• Designing for everyone instead of the user

How Smart Analysts Handle Repeated Requests

• Ask clarifying questions
• Set dashboard boundaries
• Document metric definitions
• Educate stakeholders

This turns repeated requests into better dashboards.

If you’re getting these requests, you’re not failing.

You’re doing real analytics work.

Great analysts don’t just build dashboards, they manage expectations and decisions.

FAQs