Data gives you actionable insights into customer behavior. It helps you optimize business processes and develop customer-centric objectives. Moreover, according to a Harvard Business Review survey, data-driven companies are likely to be more profitable and efficient.
Well-structured data makes it easy for you to identify trends or outliers and make better data-driven decisions. However, data in organizations is often fragmented. Dealing with big data also means dealing with data permissions. Lastly, data collection and analysis are time-consuming and repetitive processes.
A customer relationship management or CRM dashboard is a critical growth driver. But how does it impact your organization? What do you need to consider when setting up a CRM dashboard?
This guide explores how to optimize your business using a CRM dashboard and explains how to set up a CRM dashboard.
What is a CRM dashboard?
A CRM dashboard is your team’s command center for sales and customer data. Instead of digging through spreadsheets or multiple tools, it consolidates every key metric and activity into one visual, real-time view. You can see pipeline health, active deals, revenue forecasts, lead sources, win rates, and rep performance—all updating automatically as records change.
Dashboards translate raw sales data into charts, graphs, and tables that make patterns easier to spot. Filters by time period, product line, sales rep, or region allow you and sales managers to drill into exactly what matters, helping you make faster, more informed decisions.
Role in managing customer relationships and data
Beyond displaying metrics, a CRM dashboard acts as a strategic tool for improving customer relationships. By surfacing timely insights into customer behaviors, preferences, and engagement history, it empowers teams to identify high-value prospects and deliver consistent, personalized interactions.
It also helps streamline operations—automating data collection, syncing updates from across your sales process, and giving you a live view of your pipeline. This makes it easier to address inefficiencies, respond quickly to changes, and uncover new opportunities for growth.
Benefits of CRM dashboards
1. Enhanced data visualization and insights
CRM dashboards turn complex data into clear visuals, revealing patterns that may be missed in raw datasets—such as outliers, anomalies, or performance gaps. Visual data also supports faster, more strategic decision-making. Instead of combing through spreadsheets, you can instantly understand what’s happening across your business.
2. Real-time updates for timely decision-making
Unlike spreadsheets, CRM dashboard software can update data in real time. This equips sales representatives and project managers with fresh data while they’re on the frontline.
3. Improved customer service and retention
A CRM dashboard lets you focus on what matters most: your customers. With accessible, easy-to-digest customer data and data-backed predictions, you're in a better position to make customer-centric decisions.
4. Boosted team collaboration
A CRM dashboard streamlines workflows. A centralized database ensures team members can access and share information, regardless of device. This enhances communication and drives agile collaboration, which helps you develop better sales tactics.
Platforms like Lark combine CRM dashboards with communication, automation, and productivity tools—making it easier to act on insights, align sales and marketing efforts, focus on lead generation, and drive results across your organization.
CRM dashboard examples
Here are some common CRM dashboard examples, plus templates to help you build what you need.
1. Sales Performance Dashboard
Purpose: Track how your sales team is performing against goals.
Common metrics:
Total revenue closed vs. target
Win rate percentage
Average deal size
Pipeline value by stage
Sales by product, territory, or rep
Use case: A sales manager reviews this dashboard daily to spot individual sales team members who need coaching or deals that are stuck.
Template: Easily convert this Sales Summary template to display common sales performance metrics.
2. Pipeline Health Dashboard
Purpose: Monitor the flow of deals through each stage of the pipeline.
Common metrics:
Number of deals in each stage
Stage-to-stage conversion rates
Average time spent per stage
Aging deals (overdue or stagnant)
Use case: Helps identify bottlenecks—e.g., too many deals stalling at the proposal stage.
Template: Start with this Sales Tracker template and add the metrics and data you wish to display.
3. Lead Management Dashboard
Purpose: Keep track of new and existing leads to ensure timely follow-up.
Common metrics:
Number of new leads added this week/month
Lead source breakdown (e.g., web form, event, referral)
AI lead scores or priority rankings
Follow-up status and overdue leads
Use case: A rep starts their day with this dashboard to decide which leads to call first.
Template: Try this Client Relationship Management template, which includes a basic dashboard where you can add your metrics.
4. Revenue Forecasting Dashboard
Purpose: Predict future sales based on current opportunities, trends, and relevant data points.
Common metrics:
Weighted pipeline value (based on probability)
Forecasted revenue by month or quarter
Historical vs. projected performance
Deal closing probability per rep or territory
Use case: Sales and marketing teams can use this to make budgeting and staffing decisions based on financial performance.
Template: Easily modify this Sales Management System template to display revenue metrics you're aiming to achieve.
What to consider when creating a CRM dashboard
Say you're working with different teams across your organization, from sales to customer service. How do you create a customer relationship dashboard that aligns with each team's needs, preferences, and goals? When creating a custom CRM dashboard, keep these pointers in mind.
1. Choose which KPIs to display
Avoid displaying too many metrics on your CRM dashboard. This can bury key signals at first glance, and you may end up overlooking metrics with a higher impact.
Instead, prioritize customizing your CRM dashboard so that it aligns with your changing needs. Doing so ensures you focus on the necessary information and metrics.
When deciding on which Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to display, focus on those that can help you better understand your customers, such as:
Combine these customer-centric KPIs with internal KPIs like financial and productivity metrics. Make sure your chosen KPIs are actionable. This means that they're aligned with your business objectives and are linked to actions to facilitate follow-throughs. Alternatively, consider displaying OKRs.
2. Determine your crucial sales goals and methods
In a CRM Talk podcast episode, Sam Biardo (Technology Advisors) and Steve Chipman (CRM Switch) talked about one of the biggest drivers for CRM implementation. Businesses implement CRM systems because they want to see what's coming down the pipeline.
Knowing your goals and objectives helps you identify crucial indicators for your dashboard. As your sales goals evolve, you can always change the indicators displayed.
3. Consider your CRM dashboard's appearance
Consistency in your choice of visualization options lets you showcase the relationship between related metrics more effectively. Apply hierarchy in your dashboard. For example, if you have an important chart you want to emphasize, place it in a prominent space in your dashboard or enlarge it.
4. Ensure your CRM dashboard is understandable
Create a user-friendly CRM dashboard that's easy to access and understand, allowing you and your team to make the most of your data insights. Customizable templates can help you create dashboards that meet your specific needs.
How to create a CRM dashboard
Ready to build your own CRM dashboard? Sign up for Lark and watch the video above for a step-by-step walkthrough, or jumpstart your process with one of Lark's free CRM dashboard templates. Whether you’re starting fresh or customizing a template, follow these key steps below to create a dashboard tailored to your business needs.
1. Define your business goals
Before you begin designing your dashboard, take a moment to clarify your objectives. Ask yourself:
Who is the CRM dashboard for?
What decisions will it support?
Will it be used to monitor a system or track specific goals?
Consider your sales processes, customer segments, and team structure. For example, if you manage multiple sales pipelines, you may want to create separate dashboards for each group.
Finally, double-check your data sources and confirm what content should appear on your dashboard.
2. Customize your dashboard with blocks
Lark Base makes it easy to build visually engaging dashboards using drag-and-drop blocks. These blocks help tell the story behind your data with clarity and precision.
To customize your dashboard:
Click “Add Block” in your base dashboard.
Choose from charts, word clouds, tables, buttons, and more.
Configure the data source, range, filters, and visual layout.
Each block gives you more control over how information is displayed, so you can highlight what matters most. For more detailed steps, visit: Use dashboards in Base
3. Set permissions to protect sensitive data
Lark Base offers advanced permissions management so you can control access at both the table and dashboard levels.
For example:
Limit dashboard visibility to specific teams (such as leadership or sales).
Prevent edits while still allowing data views.
Keep sensitive customer or revenue data protected.
This ensures teams only see what's relevant to them, while maintaining data security.
4. Connect with Lark's superapp
Your CRM dashboard doesn't exist in a vacuum; it's right at the heart of the Lark platform, and Lark makes it easy to connect your dashboard with everyday collaboration tools:
Automate your work
Use automations to trigger real-time alerts when important changes happen, such as:
A deal moving to the next stage in the sales funnel
New customer feedback being logged
A critical KPI crossing a threshold
No more chasing updates—your team will receive reminders in their chats when changes happen or when action is required.
Share insights in documents
Embed charts or entire dashboards into Lark Docs to create reports and summaries.
Collaborate with comments, edits, and highlights
Share reports with teams or leadership
Build alignment around key insights and trends
Present live in Lark Meetings
Use screen sharing to walk through your CRM dashboard in real time:
Highlight key metrics during team calls
Annotate or zoom in on specific sections
Foster alignment across remote or distributed teams
5. Train your team
A dashboard is only effective if your team knows how to use it. Make training part of the rollout.
After training your team during video calls or in-person workshops, use Lark Minutes to:
Convert training sessions into searchable transcripts
Add subtitles and highlight key takeaways
Create shareable clips for onboarding or reference
This helps ensure your team can adopt and use the dashboard confidently, without extra meetings.
6. Monitor and optimize regularly
Your CRM dashboard should evolve with your business. Schedule regular check-ins to review its effectiveness.
Are the right metrics being tracked?
Are teams using the dashboard as intended?
Are new KPIs or key results needed?
Adjust as needed to keep your dashboard aligned with your goals.
Ready to get started?
Use a free CRM dashboard template or start from scratch in Lark Base. With real-time updates, customizable blocks, and full connection to the Lark ecosystem, your CRM dashboard becomes more than a report—it becomes a daily driver of impact.
The best CRM and dashboard software
Whether you're managing a small sales team or running operations across multiple departments, Lark offers a next-gen, all-in-one management solution that adapts to the way your business works, at a fraction of the cost of traditional tools. By combining CRM, workflow automation, AI insights, real-time dashboards, and mobile-first collaboration in one intuitive platform, Lark helps teams simplify their tech stack, cut manual work, and focus on growth.
No-code all-in-one CRM management
From leads to post-sales, Lark's built-in messenger, approval feature, and customizable business system let you manage accounts, contacts, quotations, and deals without touching a line of code. Sales teams can adapt their CRM structure in minutes—no developers required.
Build dynamic pipelines tailored to your products or services
Create custom views for sales reps, regions, or business units
Apply role-based permissions to control data visibility
Set real-time bot notifications for warm leads or upcoming meetings
Everything stays in one place, so your team can move deals forward without switching tools.
And that’s not all, whether you need video conferencing for pitches, calendars for scheduling appointments, or document editing for writing up contracts, Lark keeps everything together—so your team can get the job done without having to switch tools.
Workflow automation
Manual processes slow teams down. Lark helps you automate routine sales tasks so your reps can focus on building relationships.
Trigger smart alerts when deals move stages, tasks are overdue, or meetings are scheduled
Automatically assign follow-ups or next steps to the right rep
Submit sales requests like quotes or discounts without the back-and-forth
Start a group chat instantly if something gets stuck—no email ping-pong
Automation in Lark is easy to set up with just a few clicks. Your team stays aligned, responsive, and efficient.
AI native integration
Lark gives you access to advanced AI tools that work behind the scenes to prepare, prioritize, and guide every interaction. Without extra tools or integrations, Lark’s AI organizes all the public and contextual information you need about an account, so your team can act faster and with more precision.
Auto-generate information such as the company size, industry, decision-makers, and other relevant context the moment a lead enters your system.
Rank leads and opportunities based on conversion likelihood, so reps spend time where it matters most.
AI suggests personalized call scripts, objection-handling tips, and recommended follow-ups to keep deals moving.
Turn lengthy conversations into concise, searchable summaries for faster alignment across the team.
With Lark’s AI, every rep gets an intelligent assistant—helping your team qualify faster, personalize every touchpoint, and close more deals with confidence.
Real-time dashboards
Earlier, we touched on dashboards, but here’s why they truly shine in Lark’s business system software, Lark Base. With real-time dashboards, every update in your CRM, lead scores, or pipeline data appears instantly, giving your team the clarity to act without delay.
See deal movement, stage changes, and bottlenecks the moment they happen.
Analyze win rates, deal velocity, and activity levels by rep, region, or product line.
Project revenue and targets using fresh, continuously updated data, not last week’s numbers.
From conversion rates to time-in-stage, your metrics refresh automatically as deals progress.
Send scheduled digests or share dashboards in meetings for on-the-spot decisions.
Fully customizable with drag-and-drop charts, metrics, and filters, these dashboards make sure every team—sales, leadership, or operations—sees exactly what they need to stay on track.
Mobile CRM
Whether you’re in the office, at a client site, or working remotely, Lark’s dedicated mobile experience keeps you connected, informed, and ready to act. Every core CRM feature—plus your dashboards and workflows—is optimized for mobile, so you never have to wait until you’re back at your desk to move deals forward.
Log calls, visits, or deal updates in seconds to capture important details on the spot, while they’re fresh.
Access CRM records, dashboards, and tasks from your phone.
Get push notifications for key actions or reminders.
Join meetings or reply to comments on the go.
It’s the full power of your CRM—right in your pocket, giving your team the agility to respond faster, close deals sooner, and keep momentum wherever work happens.
Affordable for growing teams
All the tools you need to build your CRM dashboards are available on Lark’s free plan, alongside essential tools like chat, calendars, document editing, and more. This means your team can start automating workflows, managing data, and streamlining approvals—without spending a dime.
For even more power, Lark’s Pro plan offers advanced features for just $12 per user per month. You’ll get unlimited message history, 15TB of storage, 50,000 automated Base workflows per month, video conferencing, and more.
What makes the Pro plan especially valuable is its ability to replace multiple third-party tools, helping your business cut costs. For example, a team of 100 using Slack, Zoom, and Notion could save over $25,200 per year by switching to Lark.
Conclusion
Data allows organizations to adapt and respond. The best CRM dashboards empower you by transforming data into actionable insights. With Lark as your productivity superapp, it's easier than ever to digitize operations, gain deeper insights, and scale your business.
By choosing Lark for your CRM dashboard, you benefit from seamless integration with existing workflows, key features that support customer retention and new leads, and real-time data that instantly reflects changes across your team. This all-in-one solution not only streamlines collaboration but also supports informed decisions and improves overall sales performance, making it the best tool for driving your organization’s success.
FAQs
What's the best CRM software for creating dashboards?
Lark is a strong choice for teams looking to build visually appealing dashboards that surface critical information. Unlike other popular tools, Lark makes it easy to track sales activity, monitor your sales funnel, and keep teams aligned in one integrated workspace.
How to track sales KPIs using a CRM dashboard?
Use CRM software to track progress on key metrics like sales performance, lead conversions, and marketing efforts. A well-designed CRM dashboard provides reporting tools and valuable insights that help sales reps monitor the sales cycle, optimize sales strategy, engagement metrics, and eliminate repetitive tasks.
What does CRM stand for?
CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management. It helps businesses improve sales performance by managing customer data, tracking interactions, and aligning sales teams with marketing efforts, such as marketing campaigns.
What are the four types of dashboards?
The four types are strategic, operational, analytical, and tactical dashboards. Each helps track progress, optimize sales strategy, and support decisions using CRM data and reporting tools.
Can you make a dashboard in Excel?
Yes, you can create dashboards in Excel to visualize KPIs, track sales performance, and analyze marketing efforts. However, if you want a sales CRM dashboard, CRM software offers more automation and reduces repetitive tasks.
What is a KPI dashboard?
A KPI dashboard visualizes key performance indicators to help sales reps and managers track progress, assess the sales cycle, and adjust strategies using valuable insights and reporting tools.
