10.3 Insights, Visual Dashboards & Business Metrics

10.3 Insights, Visual Dashboards & Business Metrics

CSA Exam Focus: Modern Pega Infinity architectures (such as Constellation and Theme Cosmos) emphasize low-code, self-service data exploration. On the Certified Pega System Architect exam, candidates must understand how Insights in App Studio empower business stakeholders to explore data without writing technical queries, how to select appropriate chart visualizations (Donut, Bar, Line, Trend), how to construct operational dashboards with templates and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), how to manage Public versus Private Insights, and how to choose between Dev Studio Report Definitions and App Studio Insights.

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Modern Low-Code Reporting: Pega Insights (Explore Data)

In modern Pega applications, operational reporting has evolved from static developer-authored queries into dynamic, low-code Insights. Located under the Explore Data landing page in App Studio and User Portals, Insights provide business architects, operational managers, and citizen developers with an intuitive, self-service analytics workspace.

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|                         PEGA EXPLORE DATA & INSIGHTS CANVAS                       |
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| [Data Object Picker] : Select Case Type (Dispute, Loan, Onboarding) or Data Type  |
| [Interactive Canvas] : - Drag-and-drop column selection and reordering            |
|                        - Interactive column-level filtering (Status, Date, Dept)  |
|                        - Multi-level grouping (Group by Stage, Priority, Team)    |
|                        - Instant aggregate calculations (Sum, Average, Count)     |
| [Visual Studio]      : Toggle between Tabular Data View and Interactive Charts   |
| [Publish & Share]    : Save as Personal Bookmark or Publish Publicly to Teams     |
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The Relationship Between Insights and Report Definitions

While Insights present a modern, codeless user interface, they do not replace the Pega query engine. Under the hood, every Insight is powered by a Report Definition rule.

• When an author configures filters, groupings, or columns in Explore Data, Pega automatically translates those visual actions into Report Definition metadata.
• If an author converts an existing Report Definition into an Insight, Pega surfaces the query results on the interactive canvas, allowing users to pivot, sort, and visualize data without altering the underlying base rule.

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Interactive Visualizations & Chart Types

Insights allow users to switch seamlessly from a tabular data grid into an interactive visual chart. Selecting the appropriate chart visualization depends on the analytical objective and the nature of the data:

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|                             INSIGHT VISUALIZATION MATRIX                          |
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| [Donut / Pie Chart]     | [Bar / Column Chart]     | [Line / Trend Chart]         |
| Categorical Proportions | Discrete Comparisons     | Temporal Progression         |
| - Open cases by status  | - Case volume by team    | - Daily case intake volume   |
| - Payouts by claim type | - Loan totals by branch  | - SLA compliance over time   |
| - Small category sets   | - Horizontal for labels  | - Historical trend analysis  |
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1. Donut / Pie Charts (Part-to-Whole Relationships)

• Best Used For: Displaying categorical percentage distributions across a small number of discrete segments (typically 2 to 6 categories).
• Operational Examples: Open cases by Status (New: 45%, In-Progress: 35%, Escalated: 20%), or claim approvals versus rejections.
• Design Guideline: Avoid donut charts if the categorical property contains more than 7 unique values, as slices become too thin to read.

2. Bar and Column Charts (Discrete Category Comparisons)

• Best Used For: Comparing quantitative values (sums, counts, averages) across distinct categories.
• Column Charts (Vertical): Ideal for comparing volume across discrete categories with short labels (e.g., total disputes handled across 4 regional operating centers).
• Bar Charts (Horizontal): Highly effective when category labels are lengthy (e.g., grouping by full customer service representative name or detailed rejection reason codes).
• Stacked Bar Charts: Visualizes sub-segment contributions within major categories (e.g., total loan volume per branch stacked by loan product type).

3. Line and Trend Charts (Continuous Time-Series)

• Best Used For: Tracking continuous metrics, velocity, and seasonal patterns across chronological time intervals.
• Operational Examples: Daily incoming case volume over the past 90 days, average claim resolution days per month, or SLA deadline breach trends week-over-week.
• Design Guideline: Line charts clearly highlight velocity shifts, seasonal surges, and operational bottlenecks before they destabilize service levels.

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Dashboard Design: Templates, Widgets & Operational KPIs

Operational Dashboards are centralized landing pages in user portals that consolidate critical metrics, work backlogs, and analytical charts for specific user personas (such as Team Leads, Branch Managers, or Claims Executives).

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|                    OPERATIONAL DASHBOARD COMPONENT HIERARCHY                      |
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| 1. DASHBOARD TEMPLATE : Predefined structural grid (e.g., 2-Column Split 70/30).  |
| 2. KPI SUMMARY CARDS  : High-impact single-number metrics placed at top banner.   |
| 3. INSIGHT WIDGETS    : Visual charts and tabular reports embedded in grid slots. |
| 4. OPERATIONAL QUEUES : Worklist and Work Queue backlog shortcuts.                |
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1. Dashboard Templates

Dashboards are built upon responsive Dashboard Templates that establish the multi-column layout of the portal landing page:

• 1-Column Layout: Full-width presentation, ideal for wide data tables or detailed audit logs.
• 2-Column (50/50 Split): Balanced side-by-side comparison (e.g., incoming volume chart on the left, team work queue on the right).
• 2-Column (70/30 Split): Dominant operational view on the left with secondary quick actions or metric summaries on the right.
• 3-Column Layout: Dense operational control centers for executive oversight.

2. Widgets

A Widget is a self-contained visual component embedded into a slot within a dashboard template. Pega supports several widget types:

• Insight Widgets: Renders interactive Donut, Bar, or Line charts configured in Explore Data.
• Report Definition Widgets: Displays traditional summarized or list reports.
• Worklist / Work Queue Widgets: Shows real-time pending assignments awaiting action by the current user or their department.

3. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

KPI Cards are prominent visual badges positioned at the top of an operational dashboard to communicate real-time organizational health at a glance:

• Single-Metric Focus: Displays a single critical numerical value alongside a directional trend indicator (e.g., Active Disputes: 142, Avg Cycle Time: 3.4 Days, SLA Compliance: 96.2%).
• Immediate Focus: Enables managers to assess operational risk within 3 seconds of logging into the portal.

Core Operational Metrics Tracked on CSA Dashboards

• Open Cases by Stage / Status: Identifies which stage in the case lifecycle is accumulating work and creating operational bottlenecks.
• SLA Compliance & Urgency: Identifies assignments nearing their Goal or Deadline thresholds, allowing leads to reassign work before breaches occur.
• Team Backlog & Work Distribution: Visualizes workload distribution across individual operators and team work queues to prevent operator burnout.

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Public vs. Private Insights: Governance and Sharing

To prevent portal clutter while encouraging ad-hoc exploration, Pega enforces strict Insight Governance by distinguishing between Private and Public scopes.

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|                      PRIVATE INSIGHTS VS. PUBLIC INSIGHTS                         |
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| ATTRIBUTE          | PRIVATE INSIGHTS               | PUBLIC INSIGHTS             |
| :----------------- | :----------------------------- | :-------------------------- |
| **Visibility**     | Creator only (Personal sandbox)| All users in team / role    |
| **Storage**        | User's personal operator state | Application shared ruleset  |
| **Creation Right** | Standard application operators | Authorized publishers only  |
| **Use Case**       | Ad-hoc personal tracking       | Standard enterprise metrics |
| **Dashboard Use**  | Personal portal landing page   | Team and executive portals  |
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Private Insights

• When an individual operator creates and saves a customized view in Explore Data, it is stored by default as a Private Insight.
• Private insights function as personal bookmarks. They are visible solely to the user who created them and appear in their personal "My Insights" catalog.
• They allow caseworkers to customize their daily workflows without altering reporting standards for other team members.

Public Insights

• A Public Insight is published for shared consumption across teams, access groups, or entire business divisions.
• Governance Control: Publishing a Public Insight requires specific authorization (Publish Insights privilege / pxCanPublishInsight). This prevents application bloat and ensures that metrics presented to leadership are standardized and vetted.
• Once published, public insights can be added to shared dashboard templates by portal authors.

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Exporting and Scheduling Reports

Enterprise stakeholders frequently require operational reports outside the Pega user portal:

• Exporting Options: Both Report Definitions and Insights support immediate on-demand data export to Microsoft Excel (.xlsx), CSV, or formatted PDF documents. Pega preserves column formatting, headers, and calculation summaries during export.
• Scheduled Reporting: System architects can schedule Report Definitions to execute automatically on recurring schedules (daily, weekly, or monthly) using background platform automation. The engine generates the formatted report and emails it as an attachment to an administrative distribution list.

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Comparison: Dev Studio Report Definitions vs. App Studio Insights

| Feature / Dimension | Traditional Report Definitions (Dev Studio) | Modern Insights (App Studio) | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | | Target User Persona | System Architects & Technical Developers | Business Architects, Managers, Citizen Developers | | Authoring Environment | Dev Studio Rule Form (Rule-Obj-Report-Definition) | App Studio & User Portals (Explore Data) | | Relational Query Complexity | Supports complex multi-table joins, sub-reports, Declare Index joins, and custom SQL functions | Best suited for single case/data types with pre-established Association rules | | Ad-Hoc Visual Flexibility | Requires opening and checking out the rule to modify columns or charts | Instant drag-and-drop column pivoting, interactive filtering, and chart toggling | | Chart Types Supported | Standard Pega legacy charting components | Modern interactive HTML5 charts (Donut, Bar, Line, Trend) | | Governance Lifecycle | Formal ruleset versioning, checkout, and deployment pipeline packaging | Published dynamically as Private or Public Insights without locking rulesets | | Underlying Architecture | The fundamental query rule engine of PRPC | Visual presentation layer powered under the hood by Report Definitions |

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Where Insights Appear: Dashboards, Landing Pages & Full Page Case Views

The '25 blueprint asks for the relationship between insights, dashboards, the Dashboards landing page, portal landing pages, and full page case views. They form a containment chain, and the exam tests whether you can place each one.

Reading the chain in one sentence: you author an insight on the Explore Data landing page, group insights into a dashboard, reach dashboards through the Dashboards landing page, embed insights on any portal landing page, and view case-scoped content on a full page case view.

The Judgment the Exam Tests

• A manager who wants to monitor team throughput needs a dashboard of insights, reached from the Dashboards landing page.
• A caseworker who wants operational content on their entry screen needs insights placed on a portal landing page such as Home.
• A user who wants to understand one case needs the full page case view, not a dashboard.

If a scenario describes someone creating a chart from application data for the first time, the answer is the Explore Data landing page — that is where insights are authored.