Reports & Dashboards Basics

Reports & dashboards basics

Reports answer questions about your data, and dashboards put those answers on a single screen. A report starts from a report type, which defines the objects and fields available — for example "Opportunities" or "Accounts with Contacts". You then add columns, apply filters to narrow the rows, and choose a format. The four formats are Tabular (a simple list), Summary (grouped with subtotals), Matrix (grouped by rows and columns), and Joined (multiple blocks side by side).

Grouping is where reports become powerful. Group opportunities by Stage to see how many sit in each phase, or by Owner to compare reps. Add a summary field like Sum of Amount and you instantly have pipeline value per stage. Filters can be simple field filters, date ranges like "this quarter", or cross filters such as "accounts with at least one open case". Save the report into a folder so others with access can reuse it.

A dashboard is a collection of components, each backed by a source report. You choose a visualisation per component — bar, line, donut, gauge, metric, or table — and arrange them on a grid. Because every component points at a saved report, clicking through takes the viewer to the underlying rows. Dashboards refresh on demand or on a schedule, and a running user setting controls whose data permissions the dashboard respects.

A practical first build: create a Summary report of Opportunities grouped by Stage with Sum of Amount, save it, then create a dashboard with a bar chart component pointing at that report and a metric component showing total pipeline. That's a real, useful sales view in about ten minutes and it uses only clicks. Reporting is often where new admins deliver their first visible win. Next, we automate a process so the data keeps itself tidy.