ARM Dashboard Revamp
One command centre for rental property managers, where every number opens the screen behind it.
PROBLEM
Managers opened five modules to answer four daily questions.
SOLUTION
One role-aware dashboard of 13 cards, each drilling into the records behind it.
IMPACT
One screen for the daily overview · 13 drill-downs · 13 tracked events.
From a status page to a command centre.
KEY TAKEAWAYA dashboard rebuilt around the questions managers ask every morning.
ARM is ADDA’s rental management product for landlords and property managers. Its old dashboard showed data that rarely led to action, so the day still started by opening Units, Contracts, Income Tracker, Helpdesk and Move-In trackers one by one. This revamp turned the dashboard into a role-aware command centre with drill-down on every metric.
MY RESPONSIBILITIES
- →Shaped the scope doc and metric list with PM and stakeholders
- →Defined each card: what it answers, its formula and where it drills to
- →Designed the dashboard, quick actions and every card state
- →Planned phasing, analytics events and release notes
Simple questions took five modules to answer.
KEY TAKEAWAYThe data was in ARM. The answers took five modules.
How many units are vacant right now? Which contracts expire soon? How much rent is still pending? What needs my approval today? Each answer lived in a different module, behind its own filters and reports.
“How many units are vacant right now?”
→ Units & Users
“Which contracts are expiring soon?”
→ Contracts › Reports
“How much rent is still pending?”
→ Income Tracker
“What needs my approval today?”
→ 5 different modules
Managers lost time jumping between screens, renewals and bounced cheques slipped through, and decisions waited on someone reading a report.
Eight pains from the FS.
KEY TAKEAWAYEight pains, one cause: no single place to look.
P1Too many screens for simple informationUnits, Contracts and Tenant lists opened separately just for a morning overview.
P2No snapshot of occupancyAnswering “how many units are vacant?” meant checking tenant lists by hand.
P3Renewals easy to missExpiring contracts were found through filtered reports, so some slipped through.
P4No view of collectionsRent collected vs pending needed income reports and manual reading.
P5Cheque actions missedCheques due for deposit or bounced sat inside Cheque Management.
P6Approvals scatteredHelpdesk, forms, POs, PRs and move-ins each lived in a different module.
P7Move-ins planned blindAccess cards and parking were prepared from manually reviewed forms.
P8Service, sentiment and adoption hiddenTop complaints, happiness and app usage were buried in separate reports.
What success looks like.
KEY TAKEAWAYSuccess = see it, click it, act on it.
USER GOALS
- →Answer the daily questions on one screen
- →Go from any number to the records behind it
- →Spot risk early: expiries, bounces, escalations
BUSINESS GOALS
- →Cut navigation across ARM modules
- →A role-aware command centre for office staff
- →Measure what managers actually click
1 screen
instead of 5+ modules for a daily overview
13 cards
every one a drill-down to its module
13 events
tracked to learn which insights get used
Written from the manager’s desk.
KEY TAKEAWAYStraight from the FS, one per card.
STORY 01
As a Property Manager, I want to see total, occupied and vacant units, so that I can monitor occupancy without opening multiple pages.
STORY 02
As a Property Manager, I want to view contracts expired or expiring in 30, 60 and 90 days, so that I can renew early and reduce vacancies.
STORY 03
As a Property Manager, I want to view rent collected vs balance for recent months, so that I can track payment performance.
STORY 04
As a Property Manager, I want to see cheques in hand, due for deposit and bounced, so that financial actions happen on time.
STORY 05
As a Property Manager, I want to see every approval waiting on me in one list, so that I never miss a helpdesk, form, PO, PR or move-in.
STORY 06
As a Property Manager, I want to see helpdesk top categories, happiness and app usage, so that I spot service problems and adoption gaps early.
Three people, one screen.
KEY TAKEAWAYThree roles, one shared command centre.
AAhmed
Property Manager
Property Manager
Runs several rental buildings; reports to owners on occupancy and rent.
- →Wants a morning overview
- →Answers owner questions fast
FFatima
Leasing & Operations Coordinator
Leasing & Operations Coordinator
Owns renewals, approvals and service follow-ups.
- →Must not miss expiring contracts
- →Approves across many modules
RRavi
Finance Executive
Finance Executive
Tracks rent cheques and collections.
- →Needs deposit and bounce alerts
- →Wants collection trends
What we learned.
KEY TAKEAWAYLead with the four daily questions.
Scope document & reviews
Which metrics earn a place on the dashboard
Stakeholder sessions
Meeting notes with product leadership
ACM dashboard reference
What already worked on the community side
Persona use cases
Nine real situations from the FS, mapped to cards
INSIGHT 1
Managers ask the same four questions daily
Vacancy, expiries, pending rent and approvals lead the layout.
INSIGHT 2
A number needs a next step
Every card drills into the module, with filters already applied.
INSIGHT 3
Direction matters more than decimals
Green, red and yellow trend pills show if things are improving.
INSIGHT 4
Ship only what the data supports
Profitability trend and happiness details wait for their reports.
REFERENCE: ACM DASHBOARD DRILL-DOWNThe community product already linked its income card to a collection report. ARM extends that pattern to every card.
Where it fits in ARM.
KEY TAKEAWAYOne dashboard, drilling into the modules that already exist.
WHERE IT LIVES
ARM ADDAs › Dashboard
Units › Units & Users › Unit’s Master Report (moderators)
Contracts › Expired contracts · Contracts master data
Income Tracker › Member Income · Cheque Management
Expense Tracker › Purchase Workflow · Move-In tracker · Helpdesk Tracker
BUSINESS RULES
- →Occupancy = units with tenants ÷ total units × 100
- →Expiring counts include today; Overdue = already expired
- →Collections show the current and two previous months
- →Avg. Unit Profitability = average of (income − expense) ÷ income per unit
- →App usage bands: ≤20%, ≤40%, ≤60%, ≤80% and above
- →Visible to Office Staff in ARM ADDAs only
The hard parts.
KEY TAKEAWAYThirteen metrics, and every one must go somewhere.
01
Thirteen metrics, one calm screen
A hierarchy where occupancy and money lead, service and engagement follow.
02
Every card must go somewhere
Drill-downs had to land on screens that exist today, with filters applied.
03
Role-aware redirects
Moderators land on master reports; others on the first relevant record.
04
Honest phasing
Hide what isn’t ready rather than show a number nobody can explain.
05
Trend semantics
One rule for green, red and yellow across occupancy, profitability and happiness.
How I got there.
KEY TAKEAWAYDefine each metric before drawing it.
01
Scope
Metrics worth a place
02
Use cases
Nine persona situations
03
Define
Formula per card
04
Map
Drill-down per metric
05
Wireframe
Layout & hierarchy
06
Design
Hi-fi with all states
07
Measure
13 analytics events
08
Release
Notes & phasing
PHASED, ON PURPOSEThe 6-month profitability trend was cut for launch.The P&L report couldn’t yet give a date range, so the card shows “Overall” until it can.
Eight areas, mapped to the pains.
KEY TAKEAWAYEight areas, each traceable to a pain point.
TAP ANY CARD ON THE DASHBOARD
{{cur.t}}
ANSWERS
“{{cur.q}}”
HOW IT’S COUNTED
{{cur.d}}
CLICK TAKES YOU TO
→ {{cur.p}}
{{selNum}} / 14
FEATURE 01Scale at a glance, actions one click awayBuildings, tenants and contracts as clickable chips, plus Quick Actions to post an announcement, raise a helpdesk request or reserve an amenity.fixes P1
FEATURE 02Occupancy without opening a listOccupied, vacant and vacant-with-contracts units, and an occupancy rate with a year-on-year trend pill.fixes P1fixes P2
FEATURE 03Renewals before they slipOverdue contracts in red, and expiries in the next 30, 60 and 90 days, each opening the contracts report.fixes P3
FEATURE 04Money: collections and chequesCollected vs balance for three months, and cheques in hand, due for deposit and bounced, all clickable.fixes P4fixes P5
FEATURE 05Every approval in one listHelpdesk requests, community forms, POs, PRs and move-ins waiting on me, each opening its approval queue.fixes P6
FEATURE 06Move-ins you can prepare forExpected move-ins this week and next, and today’s list by building and unit.fixes P7
FEATURE 07Service, sentiment and adoptionTop five helpdesk categories with open and escalated counts, the Happiness Meter, and an app-usage gauge with Send Invite.fixes P8
FEATURE 08Visitor trends, week on weekThis week vs last week, opening the Incident Investigator in ADDA Gatekeeper.fixes P8
Edge cases, handled.
KEY TAKEAWAYRoles, phasing and missing reports all have an answer.
✓Moderator vs office staff
Unit cards open the master report for moderators, the first unit for others.
Unit cards open the master report for moderators, the first unit for others.
✓Profitability trend
Shown as “Overall” for now, until the P&L report supports date ranges.
Shown as “Overall” for now, until the P&L report supports date ranges.
✓Happiness details
Phase 1 hides “View Details” and centres the card; phase 2 adds the report.
Phase 1 hides “View Details” and centres the card; phase 2 adds the report.
✓Occupancy report not built yet
Links to the unit occupancy report until the landlord report ships.
Links to the unit occupancy report until the landlord report ships.
✓No change in a trend
Shown in yellow, not green or red.
Shown in yellow, not green or red.
✓Expiring vs future contracts
Expiring excludes contracts already renewed into a future term.
Expiring excludes contracts already renewed into a future term.
✓App usage colour
The gauge changes colour by band, from red to green.
The gauge changes colour by band, from red to green.
✓Empty top categories
Only categories with requests appear in the top five.
Only categories with requests appear in the top five.
Impact and what’s next.
KEY TAKEAWAYFrom five modules to one screen of next steps.
1 screen
answers the four daily questions
13
clickable cards, insight to action
13
analytics events to guide phase 2
WHAT I LEARNED
- →A dashboard is a list of next steps
- →Every number needs a home to drill into
- →Phase honestly: hide what you can’t explain
NEXT STEPS
- →Unit-wise P&L with date ranges, then the profitability trend
- →Happiness Meter report and “View Details”
- →Role-based layouts for owners and finance