What is UAT?
After the dashboard is completely developed and has been approved in
QA tests, the final stage, before releasing a dashboard, will be to request a key end-user to perform User Acceptance Test. The approval of the dashboard will give the green light for the designer to publish the dashboard in the production environment.
Who should be performing the testing?
There can be different people performing these tests, depending on the use case that is being addressed.
For Direct use cases - UAT can be performed by the internal user requesting the dashboard, or a chosen team member from the targeted team.
For OEM use cases - UAT will ideally be performed by power end-users at the customer side. Ideally more than one user, to get the different perspectives. These power end-users should be people we have established good communication with that can bring the valuable end-user point of view and insights.
If for various reasons, it is preferred not to expose the dashboards to customers until they are officially released, the UAT can also be performed by an internal person. This person should fully understand the needs and points of view of the end-user on the customer side that will be using the dashboard (such as Product Manager, Account Manager, etc.).
Where to start?
At the very beginning!
Go back to the initial requirement for the dashboard. This can be the dashboard planning document, or any other format chosen to use.
Why have we created this dashboard? What was the goal? What needs will it be filling? What answers is it supposed to provide?
When having that in mind - this is the time to start testing the dashboard to make sure it meets the requirements and will actually be valuable.
What should be tested?
The UAT is essentially a signoff of the dashboard, telling the designer that the dashboard is up to expectations both in content, functionality, and dashboard structure.
In terms of content:
- The KPIs are as expected/requested and are accurately answering the business questions defined at the beginning of the process
- The granularity of the data is relevant and sufficient for the user to understand the information and the insights the dashboard has to offer
- The dashboard is relevant for the user and has interesting information presented. It tells a clear story and the pieces of information are laid in a comprehensible way
In terms of Functionality:
- The Performance of the dashboard is acceptable
- The user understands how to use the dashboards and is satisfied with the behavior that is enabled
In terms of the dashboard structure:
- The Dashboard layout makes sense and represents a reasonable flow of analysis
- The widgets types are suitable for the type of data that is presented in them. The widgets are clear and the user understands what the axes stand for, what are the units of measure, legend, etc.
- The dashboard is appealing
- The colors of the dashboard and widgets are easy on the eye and serving the purpose of the dashboard
- The dashboard layout, number of widgets and colors are not overwhelming
- Important KPIs are emphasized through their location in the dashboard or highlight colors
Once the user signoffs on the dashboard, the dashboard is counted as Production-Ready and can be published to end-user according to business considerations.
