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Using Summary Type Results Dashboard

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Molly
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This article explains how to use Summary-type Results Dashboards to display data from multiple assessments on a single dashboard, including creating the dashboard, setting assessment filters on merge strings, and building cross-assessment views.

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What is a Summary-Type Results Dashboard?

Results Dashboards in Brilliant Assessments come in four types: Individual, Cohort, Assessment, and Summary. Each type determines what level of data the dashboard displays. For a full overview of all dashboard types and how to build them, see Building and Deploying Results Dashboards.

The Summary type is the most flexible. Unlike the other three types, a Summary dashboard is not tied to any specific assessment, cohort, or individual. Instead, you control what data appears by setting Assessment, Cohort, or Response filters directly on each merge string within the dashboard.

This means a single Summary dashboard can display data from multiple different assessments side by side - each tile can pull from a different assessment.

When to Use This Dashboard Type

A Summary-type dashboard is the right choice when you need flexibility across assessments. Common use cases include:

  • Response status overview across assessments - See completion rates for multiple assessments in one view. Especially useful for assessors who need to quickly see which responses are ready to be assessed across all their assessments.
  • Quick view of all respondent results - Display individual scores for all participants of an assessment without needing to create a cohort or group them formally. Useful when you just want a snapshot of how everyone scored.
  • Multi-assessment executive dashboard - Combine key metrics from several assessments on one page for a management overview.
  • Assessor workflow dashboard - If you use the Assessor functionality, a Summary dashboard lets assessors see at a glance which responses across any assessment are in "Ready to Assess" status.

Step 1: Create the Summary Dashboard

  1. Go to Assessment Manager > Results in the left menu.
  2. Click Add Dashboard.
  3. Enter a Name and Title.
  4. Under Type, select Summary.
  5. Click Save.

Note: Unlike Assessment, Cohort, or Individual types, no additional dropdown appears when you select Summary. This is because Summary dashboards are not linked to a specific assessment - you define the data source per merge string using filters (covered in the next step).

Step 2: Add Content and Set Assessment Filters

This is the workflow that is unique to Summary dashboards. Every merge string in a Summary dashboard should have an Assessment, Cohort, or Response filter set so the system knows which data to display. Follow these steps carefully:

  1. Add a container and tile to your dashboard as normal.
  2. Type or paste your merge string into the tile content area. For example: {BarMulti[SplitType=R Label=Y]}
  3. Click Save on the tile.
  4. Re-open the tile for editing.
  5. Highlight/select the merge string text.
  6. The filter panel will appear on the right side of the editor, showing:
    • Assessment - select which assessment this merge string should pull data from.
    • Cohort - optionally narrow to a specific cohort.
    • Response - optionally narrow to a specific response.
  7. Select the desired Assessment from the dropdown (e.g., "DISC").
  8. The system will automatically insert the assessment's numeric ID into the merge string (e.g., AssessmentNo=1234).
  9. Click Save again.

Important:

  • Every merge string in a Summary dashboard must have an Assessment (or Cohort or Response) filter set. Without it, the system does not know which data to display.
  • You must save first, then re-edit and highlight the merge string to see the filter panel. It will not appear on first entry.
  • Different tiles within the same dashboard can reference different assessments. This is the power of Summary type - Tile 1 might show Leadership data (AssessmentNo=1234), while Tile 2 shows DISC data (AssessmentNo=4321).

Example A: Response Status Overview Across Assessments

This example shows a Summary dashboard with four tiles, each displaying the response status for a different assessment: Leadership, Team Performance, CyberSecurity, and Leadership 360. Each tile uses a horizontal stacked bar chart with response status colors (Completed, Started, Not Started, Assessed).

Each tile has a different AssessmentNo= in its merge string, so each pulls data from a different assessment.

Merge string used:

{BarMultiHorizontal[ResponseStatus=All BarSize=25 Metric=Count AssessmentNo=1234]}

Parameter What It Does
ResponseStatus=All Shows all status types (Completed, Started, Not Started, Assessed)
BarSize=25 Controls the bar thickness (25 pixels)
Metric=Count Shows actual count of responses rather than percentages
AssessmentNo=1234 Links this chart to a specific assessment (set via the filter dropdown)

Use Case: Assessor Workflow

This layout is especially useful for assessors. If your platform uses the Assessor functionality, assessors can see at a glance which assessments have responses in "Assessed" or ready-to-assess status, without navigating into each assessment individually.

Example B: Individual Respondent Results for a Single Assessment

This example shows all individual respondents' scores for the DISC assessment, displayed as a bar chart where each bar is a different respondent. This is useful when you want to quickly compare all participants' results without creating a cohort or formal grouping.

Merge string used:

{BarMulti[SplitType=R Label=Y AssessmentNo=4321]}

Parameter What It Does
SplitType=R Splits the chart by individual response (each respondent gets their own bar)
Label=Y Displays the score label on each bar
AssessmentNo=4321 Links this chart to the DISC assessment

FAQs & Troubleshooting

Use the questions below to troubleshoot common issues with Summary-type Results Dashboards.

+ My merge string shows no data / is blank.

Every merge string in a Summary dashboard must have an Assessment, Cohort, or Response filter set. Re-open the tile for editing, highlight the merge string text, and check whether AssessmentNo= (or similar) is present in the merge string. If not, follow the steps in Step 2: Add Content and Set Assessment Filters to set the filter. Also check that the Test Data filter is not active - Summary dashboards default to showing Test Response data. Remove "Test Response" from the Test Data filter button to view your actual data.

+ I can't see the filter options under Merge Manager panel when I click on my merge string.

You must save the tile first, then re-open it for editing. Highlight the merge string text, and the filter options will appear on the right side of the editor. The filter field does not appear when you first type the merge string into a new tile.

+ Can I show data from multiple assessments in one merge string?

No. Each merge string can only reference one assessment. To show multiple assessments, use separate merge string, each with its own AssessmentNo= value. This is the standard pattern - for example, the Response Status Overview in Example A uses four separate tiles, one per assessment.

+ What's the difference between a Summary dashboard and an Assessment dashboard?

An Assessment dashboard is linked to one specific assessment and automatically scopes all data to that assessment. A Summary dashboard has no default scope - you manually set the assessment (or cohort/response) filter on each merge string. This gives you the flexibility to mix data from different assessments on one dashboard.

+ Can I use a Summary dashboard as a landing page?

Yes. Follow these two steps:

  1. Go to Results > Edit Result and check the Published checkbox. This makes the dashboard available as a landing page option.
  2. Go to Users, edit the user account, and set the Default Landing Page to your Summary dashboard. This is useful for creating assessor workflow dashboards or multi-assessment overviews.

If you have any questions, please get in touch with our Customer Success Team: Support@brilliantassessments.com

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