Expand Hierarchy in a Dashboard using Tableau Software – video Skill Pill

In Tableau when you say drilldown, hierarchies come to mind. Hierarchies are a great way for us to control the aggregation of a sheet. But when working in a Dashboard we sometimes want to expand hierarchies across multiple sheets. To achieve this we can use Parameters in Tableau to drive our level of aggregation. Watch btProvider video:

In order to expand a hierarchy across multiple sheets, using Parameters in Tableau, please follow these steps:

Step 1: Connect to data

1. In Tableau Desktop, connect to Superstore sample data provided by Tableau.

Step 2: Create the Parameter and Calculated fields

1. Click on the arrow on the right side of the Dimensions title in the left part of the screen.
2. Select Create Parameter.
3. Name the Parameter Hierarchy Level.
4. Select Data type as String.
5. Select Allowed Values as List.
6. Fill the list with the levels of your Hierarchy, in our case it will be: Category, Sub-Category and Segment.
7. Under Analysis->Create Calculated Field.
8. Name the Calculated Field as Subcategory_P.
9. Write the formula: IF [Hierarchy Level]=’Sub-Category’ or [Hierarchy Level]=’Segment’ then [Sub-Category] else ” END.
10. Under Analysis->Create Calculated Field, from Tableau interface, business intelligence software for data reporting and visualisation.
11. Name the Calculated Field as Segment_P.
12. Write the formula: IF [Hierarchy Level]=’Segment’ then [Segment] else ” END.

Step 3: Create the Visualizations and Dashboard

1. Create a Sheet called Profit.
2. Drag Category, Sub-Category_P and Segment_P to Rows.
3. Drag Profit to Columns, Color and Label.
4. Right click Hierarchy Level from the Parameters window and select Show Parameter Control.
5. Create a Sheet called Sales.
6. Drag Category, Sub-Category_P and Segment_P to Text.
7. Drag Sales to Color, Size and Label, using Tableau Server, Online or Desktop software, for quantitative and qualitative data analysis.
8. Create a Dashboard.
9. Drag the Profit and Sales sheets to the Dashboard.
10. Begin adjusting the level of aggregation in the hierarchy by using the Parameter, Hierarchy Level.

By Alexandru Stancescu
 

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