Graphs with nil data return errors in Dashboard - Solutions?

Richard Heath

I've set up a Document Suite that contains a number of Dashboards/Reports/Register that is deployed to our users when a new Project commences. Some of the Dashboards contains Graph widgets that are sourced from other sheets. As the source sheets are empty at project conception, the graphs typically return errors. To overcome this, I pre-populate some of the source sheets with low value numbers to elimiate the error. This seems counter-intuitive and against good reporting principles. As an example, the dummy data ends up in the dashboard looking like this;

But if I remove the values ($1 / $0.10c etc) from the source sheet it looks like this;

The source data hasn't been changed, it is just zero dollars. The source data is a helper sheet that looks like this;

Can anyone suggest any way that I can have the Dashboard Widgets return Zero Dollars or blank results in lieu of the Error Icon? Do I need to insert a IFERROR before my SUMIFS function?

I would rather deploy the workspace knowing that the Dashboards are free of abnormalities like the above and present in a professional manner.

Thanks for you help,

Richard.

Richard Heath

Hi Stefan,

Thanks for your response. Unfortunately, our PM's commence inputting data into various finance registers once a projects starts, with the data feeding back to the Dashboards - hence why they need to start at $0.

It would just be nice for the % graphs to display no data in lieu of the error symbol (to me the current outcome suggests a problem with the system rather than the equations equalling $0.)

I'll have a look at bar graphs, but the type of data I'm choosing to display works better with %.

Regards,

Richard.

Stefan

Hi Richard,

I think the problem is, that Pie and donut charts do not display zero values. Documented here:

https://help.smartsheet.com/articles/2476691-compare-live-data-with-a-chart#charttype

So you could switch to bar graphs.

If that is not an option and not knowing your process.... Would it be possible to get the missing values before rolling out and have them linked into you project sheets from e.g. an intake sheet?

Hope this helps

Stefan

Richard Heath

Hi Stefan,

Thanks for your response. Unfortunately, our PM's commence inputting data into various finance registers once a projects starts, with the data feeding back to the Dashboards - hence why they need to start at $0.

It would just be nice for the % graphs to display no data in lieu of the error symbol (to me the current outcome suggests a problem with the system rather than the equations equalling $0.)

I'll have a look at bar graphs, but the type of data I'm choosing to display works better with %.

Regards,

Richard.