Death by Dashboard: Why SaaS Teams Are Data-Rich but Insight-Poor

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Welcome to the 140th edition of The Growth Elements Newsletter. Every Monday and sometimes on Thursday, I write an essay on growth metrics & experiments and business case studies.

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Most SaaS teams don’t suffer from a lack of data.
They suffer from a lack of judgment.

Dashboards promise clarity, but typically deliver noise.
Teams stare at endless charts, metrics, and funnels, yet fail to make clearer, faster decisions.

They have data, not insight.
Visibility, not velocity.

Why Dashboards Fail:

[1] Vanity Metrics vs Actionable Metrics
Dashboards often show easy metrics (DAUs, pageviews, impressions) instead of hard truths (activation rate, pipeline velocity, channel-level CAC).

[2] Lagging vs Leading Indicators
Most metrics show past performance. However, SaaS operators require metrics that predict next month’s outcomes, including churn risk, activation velocity, and expansion intent.

[3] Information Overload
20+ metrics per dashboard means zero action. Humans can’t prioritise 20 metrics at once.

How Operators Build Insight-Rich Dashboards:

Here's what we build and I recommend:

Every dashboard metric should drive action or answer a key GTM question.

What Works in Practice:

• The Weekly Dashboard Reset:
  Every Monday, reset to only the top 3 metrics for that week.

• Real-Time Slack Alerts:
  Metrics are only valuable if they trigger immediate action. Integrate critical metrics into Slack alerts for fast team response.

• “Kill Metrics” Quarterly Review:
  Each quarter, remove metrics no one acted on in the last 90 days.

Final Operator Takeaway:

Dashboards should simplify, not overwhelm.
Metrics must guide immediate next steps.

Data isn’t leverage.
Insight is.

If your dashboard doesn’t directly inform this week’s GTM decision-making,
You don’t have a dashboard. You have decoration.

That's it for today's article! I hope you found this essay insightful.

Wishing you a productive week ahead!

I always appreciate you reading.

Thanks,
Chintankumar Maisuria