Dashboard Driven Development
Fri Mar 21 2025
The only dev methodology that forces developers to actually care about business needs.
What the hell is DbDD?
Dashboard-Driven Development (DbDD) is the revolutionary (and totally serious) approach where development starts from admin dashboards. We first build dashboards with key metrics, and only then develop the features necessary to populate those dashboards with real data.
Why? Because developers hate empty dashboards. That unbearable feeling of seeing a bunch of zeros will drive them to build the damn features. Business needs will be naturally enforced by devs’ own desire to see real numbers.
How it works:
- Build the dashboard first. Pretend like everything already exists.
- Feel the pain of an empty dashboard. Seriously, it looks pathetic.
- Develop the missing features. You don’t want to look at that void anymore.
- Watch the numbers rise. Feels good, huh?
- Profit. You just tricked yourself into shipping something actually useful.
Real-World Example:
Let’s say we need a comment system.
- We create a dashboard showing “Total Comments Left” and “Top Commenters”.
- Realize there’s literally nothing there.
- Build a commenting service out of sheer shame.
- Hook it up to the dashboard.
- Bask in the glory of seeing numbers go up.
Why DbDD Works
- Developers love graphs. Even useless ones. Making them useful is just a bonus.
- Numbers create pressure. No one wants to stare at a dashboard showing “0 users”.
- Forces real business alignment. If it’s not worth tracking, is it even worth building?
- Shifts dev mindset from “abstract tasks” to “visible impact”. Seeing numbers move = instant dopamine hit.
Applying DbDD
1. Identify Core Metrics
What actually matters for the product? User activity? Engagement? AI completions? Figure out what needs tracking.
2. Build the Dashboard
Make it look real. Put some fake placeholder numbers if you have to. Trick yourself into thinking the feature exists.
3. Feel the Shame
You and your team now stare at a dashboard full of nothing. The horror.
4. Develop Until the Dashboard is Satisfied
Now you’re forced to build the backend, frontend, and all the missing logic just to make the numbers move.