Dashboards

Structure of a dashboard

Almost without exception, Agile projects use dashboards to provide insight into the progress and the amount of work in progress. As a rule, such dashboards consist of columns representing the different steps in the life cycle of work items in iterations, releases, or the entire project. Each work item is displayed in a single column. Once the status of a work item changes, it’s moved to the appropriate column on the dashboard.

For most projects, the dashboard consists of sticky notes on a wall, one work item per note. Often, different colors are used for different types of work items. Yellow for user stories, green for tasks, and pink for bugs. Many teams also mention the points assigned to the work item on the note. Some teams also indicate which person(s) is currently working on the work item. Stand-ups, in general, are held in front of the dashboard. Or the other way around, the location of the dashboard depends on the place where the stand-up occurs.