INTERNAL DASHBOARDS

Australian businesses with Xero on one screen and HubSpot on another are looking at half the picture on each — a connected dashboard shows revenue, pipeline, and marketing spend in one view aligned to the Australian financial year

Connect Xero, HubSpot, and your ad platforms into a single live dashboard configured for July-to-June. Stop reconciling two systems at the monthly leadership meeting.

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This is for you if

Accounting practices, law firms, and management consulting businesses tracking billable hours, staff utilisation rate, work-in-progress, and debtor days need a leadership dashboard that connects timesheet data, billing data, and receivables in one view. These businesses currently track timesheets in Deputy, Harvest, or a practice management system, invoice through Xero, and reconcile the two manually at the end of each month to calculate utilisation and realised billing rate. A connected dashboard that pulls from both systems gives the managing partner a daily view of utilisation by staff member, WIP by client, and debtor days by account without the monthly reconciliation process.

Builders, civil contractors, and project-based construction companies tracking project WIP, cost-to-complete, variations claimed versus approved, and subcontractor payment schedules need a project dashboard that connects to the project management system and accounting software. WIP figures are required for progress billing and bank reporting. Most Australian construction businesses are currently updating WIP in a spreadsheet maintained by the project manager and reconciling it with Xero at month end. A live dashboard connected to the project management system and Xero gives the director a WIP figure that is current to the week, not the month, and eliminates the spreadsheet reconciliation.

Retailers and online sellers managing sales across Shopify, Amazon AU, and physical locations need a daily sales dashboard that shows revenue by channel, gross margin by product category, and inventory turn rate across all channels in a single view. These businesses currently pull separate reports from each sales platform and combine them in a spreadsheet to get a blended picture. A Looker Studio or Power BI dashboard connected to Shopify, Amazon Seller Central, and the POS system gives the owner a daily channel comparison without the manual consolidation.

Medical centres, physiotherapy clinics, dental practices, and allied health businesses tracking appointment utilisation, cancellation rate, billing per practitioner, and Medicare and private health insurance claim reconciliation need a practice performance dashboard. These businesses are typically managing appointment data in a practice management system (Best Practice, Cliniko, or similar) and billing data in Xero, with no live view connecting both. A dashboard that connects appointment outcomes to billing results gives the practice owner a view of revenue per practitioner, claim denial rate by payer, and utilisation by appointment type without manually cross-referencing two separate systems.

What's broken

Australian FY configured as January in the dashboard

The single most common configuration error in Australian business dashboards is a financial year that starts in January rather than July. When this is not corrected, year-to-date revenue charts show a mid-year dip in June-July that is actually the start of a new financial year rather than a genuine performance decline. Prior-year comparisons are misaligned because the periods being compared do not match. Month-on-month trend lines produce misleading results for any metric tracked against an annual budget. Every dashboard built for an Australian business needs the financial year start date configured to July 1 from the beginning. Many out-of-the-box Power BI and Looker Studio templates default to January and the configuration is not corrected because the person building the dashboard does not know to check it.

Xero and HubSpot data not in the same view

Australian businesses with Xero for accounting and HubSpot for CRM are producing a combined revenue-and-pipeline view only for the monthly leadership meeting, assembled manually from two separate system exports in a spreadsheet. The Xero side shows revenue recognised in the period. The HubSpot side shows pipeline value and close rates. Combining them manually takes between two and four hours of someone's time every month. A Power BI connector to Xero and a HubSpot connector for Power BI or Looker Studio creates the combined view permanently. The pipeline coverage ratio (pipeline value divided by revenue target) becomes a live metric visible every day, not a figure calculated once a month for the leadership meeting.

Construction WIP not tracked in a live dashboard

Australian construction businesses are tracking work-in-progress in a spreadsheet updated weekly by the project manager and reconciled with Xero at month end for progress billing and bank reporting purposes. The WIP figure presented in the bank reporting pack is typically two to four weeks behind the actual project status. When variations are approved, when subcontractor invoices arrive, and when milestone completions are certified, the WIP figure changes. A dashboard that connects the project management system (Procore, Buildxact, or a custom project tracking tool) to Xero gives the director a WIP figure that reflects the current week's project status, not the figure the project manager entered into the spreadsheet last Friday. For construction businesses with bank facilities tied to WIP reporting, having an accurate current figure changes the quality of the conversations with the bank.

No staff utilisation dashboard for professional services

Australian accounting firms, consulting practices, and other professional services businesses with billable staff are tracking timesheets in a system (Deputy, Harvest, Xero Projects, or a practice management platform) but have no dashboard showing utilisation rate, billable versus non-billable hour split, and revenue per staff member. Partners and principals are making capacity decisions and hiring decisions without a clear view of whether current staff are at 60 percent utilisation or 90 percent utilisation. The timesheet data exists in the system. The billing data exists in Xero. The gap is that no one has connected them into a utilisation view that updates daily. Leadership decisions about whether to hire, whether to take on new clients, and which staff members are under-allocated are all improved by a live utilisation dashboard.

What we engineer

Run a data source inventory specific to the Australian stack

We start with a data source inventory specific to the Australian business's technology stack. For most Australian SMEs this means Xero, a CRM (HubSpot or Salesforce), a timesheet or project management system, and one or more ad platforms. We document the connection method available for each source. Xero connects to Power BI via the Xero connector and to Looker Studio via third-party connectors. HubSpot connects to both Power BI and Looker Studio via native and third-party connectors. We confirm which data is available via API and which requires a scheduled export, and we design the pipeline accordingly.

Configure the Australian financial year from the start

We configure the Australian financial year from the start. Every dashboard we build for an Australian business has the financial year start date set to July 1. Year-to-date calculations, prior-year comparisons, and month-on-month trend lines are all aligned to the July-to-June financial year before any data is displayed. This is not an optional configuration step — it is the baseline that makes every subsequent analysis accurate.

Design the reporting structure for the business's audience levels

We design the reporting structure for the business's audience levels. The leadership view shows the metrics the managing director or CEO needs for weekly and monthly decision-making: revenue versus target, pipeline coverage ratio, gross margin by division, debtor days, and key operational KPIs. The management view shows the metrics department heads need to run their teams: utilisation by staff member, project cost versus budget, sales activity and conversion rates. The operations view shows the metrics team leaders need to manage daily work: open tasks, upcoming deadlines, and threshold alerts.

Build the connected data model

We build the connected data model. For Power BI this means connecting each data source via its API connector, building the data model with the correct relationships between tables (linking invoices to projects, linking timesheet entries to staff members, linking ad spend to revenue periods), and creating calculated measures for the KPIs the business tracks. For Looker Studio this means connecting each data source and creating blended data sources where metrics from different systems need to appear in the same chart.

Build the dashboard views and configure alerts

We build the dashboard views, configure KPI scorecards aligned to the Australian financial year, and set up any operational alert thresholds. For professional services firms this means a utilisation scorecard with a target line at the firm's billable hour target. For construction companies this means a WIP table with variation tracking and a cost-to-complete column. For retail businesses this means a channel comparison with daily sales by channel and a rolling gross margin by product category. We configure the specific metrics the business actually manages, not a generic template.

Deliver with documentation and support

We deliver the dashboard with documentation covering the data pipeline, the calculated measures, and the financial year configuration. We conduct a handover session with the team, walk through each view and its intended audience, and provide 30 days of support for adjustments.

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What changes

Before
After
Before The single most common configuration error in Australian business dashboards is a financial year that starts in January rather than July. When this is not corrected, year-to-date revenue charts show a mid-year dip in June-July that is actually the start of a new financial year rather than a genuine performance decline. Prior-year comparisons are misaligned because the periods being compared do not match. Month-on-month trend lines produce misleading results for any metric tracked against an annual budget. Every dashboard built for an Australian business needs the financial year start date configured to July 1 from the beginning. Many out-of-the-box Power BI and Looker Studio templates default to January and the configuration is not corrected because the person building the dashboard does not know to check it.
After The monthly leadership meeting starts with everyone looking at the same view rather than spending the first hour reconciling Xero data against HubSpot data. The combined revenue-and-pipeline dashboard is available every day, configured to the Australian financial year, and does not require any manual preparation before the meeting.
Before Australian businesses with Xero for accounting and HubSpot for CRM are producing a combined revenue-and-pipeline view only for the monthly leadership meeting, assembled manually from two separate system exports in a spreadsheet. The Xero side shows revenue recognised in the period. The HubSpot side shows pipeline value and close rates. Combining them manually takes between two and four hours of someone's time every month. A Power BI connector to Xero and a HubSpot connector for Power BI or Looker Studio creates the combined view permanently. The pipeline coverage ratio (pipeline value divided by revenue target) becomes a live metric visible every day, not a figure calculated once a month for the leadership meeting.
After Construction directors have a WIP figure that reflects the current week's project status rather than a figure that is two to four weeks behind. Progress billing conversations with clients and reporting conversations with banks are supported by a figure that is current, not estimated.
Before Australian construction businesses are tracking work-in-progress in a spreadsheet updated weekly by the project manager and reconciled with Xero at month end for progress billing and bank reporting purposes. The WIP figure presented in the bank reporting pack is typically two to four weeks behind the actual project status. When variations are approved, when subcontractor invoices arrive, and when milestone completions are certified, the WIP figure changes. A dashboard that connects the project management system (Procore, Buildxact, or a custom project tracking tool) to Xero gives the director a WIP figure that reflects the current week's project status, not the figure the project manager entered into the spreadsheet last Friday. For construction businesses with bank facilities tied to WIP reporting, having an accurate current figure changes the quality of the conversations with the bank.
After Professional services firms have a live utilisation rate for every billable staff member. Hiring decisions, capacity planning conversations, and client intake decisions are made with a clear view of whether current capacity is 60 percent utilised or 90 percent utilised, rather than estimates from memory or a monthly timesheet summary.
Before Australian accounting firms, consulting practices, and other professional services businesses with billable staff are tracking timesheets in a system (Deputy, Harvest, Xero Projects, or a practice management platform) but have no dashboard showing utilisation rate, billable versus non-billable hour split, and revenue per staff member. Partners and principals are making capacity decisions and hiring decisions without a clear view of whether current staff are at 60 percent utilisation or 90 percent utilisation. The timesheet data exists in the system. The billing data exists in Xero. The gap is that no one has connected them into a utilisation view that updates daily. Leadership decisions about whether to hire, whether to take on new clients, and which staff members are under-allocated are all improved by a live utilisation dashboard.
After Retail and e-commerce businesses have a daily channel comparison showing revenue, margin, and sell-through rate across Shopify, Amazon AU, and physical locations. Decisions about inventory allocation, promotional spend, and channel investment are based on daily performance data rather than a weekly report compiled on Monday morning.
How it works

  1. 01

    Technology stack audit.

    We document the Australian business's full technology stack — Xero, CRM, timesheet and project management systems, ad platforms, and any other data sources. We identify the API connection method or export format available for each system and note any Xero connector configuration requirements.

  2. 02

    Australian FY configuration confirmation.

    Before any dashboard design work begins, we confirm that the financial year start date will be configured to July 1 and document how this configuration will be applied in the chosen dashboard tool (Power BI fiscal year settings, Looker Studio date dimension configuration, or calculated field approach in the data model).

  3. 03

    Audience and KPI mapping.

    We work with leadership, management, and department heads to map the reporting requirements for each audience level. We document the specific KPIs, the calculation method for each, the source system that holds the underlying data, and the decision each KPI is intended to support.

  4. 04

    Data pipeline build and validation.

    We build the connections from each source system to the dashboard tool, construct the data model with correct table relationships and calculated measures, and validate every KPI figure against the source system. Revenue figures are checked against Xero. Utilisation calculations are checked against timesheet exports. Pipeline values are checked against HubSpot.

  5. 05

    Dashboard design and FY alignment check.

    We build the dashboard views for each audience level, configure KPI scorecards and trend charts, and run a final financial year alignment check to confirm that all year-to-date calculations, prior-year comparisons, and month-on-month trends are displaying correctly against the July-to-June year.

  6. 06

    Handover, documentation, and support.

    We deliver the live dashboard with written documentation, conduct a team walkthrough session, and provide 30 days of support covering questions, adjustments, and any data feed issues that arise during the initial live operation period.

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Common questions

Frequently asked questions about Internal Dashboards

How do I connect Xero and HubSpot in a single Power BI or Looker Studio dashboard for an Australian business?

Xero connects to Power BI via the official Xero connector available in Power BI's Get Data menu, which requires an active Xero subscription and OAuth authentication. HubSpot connects to Power BI via the HubSpot connector available in Power BI's marketplace. In Looker Studio, Xero connection requires a third-party connector (Windsor.ai, Supermetrics, or similar) while HubSpot has a native Looker Studio connector. Once both sources are connected, you build a data model that links CRM pipeline data to revenue data using shared identifiers (company name, deal stage date, or a custom field that maps HubSpot deals to Xero invoice clients). The combined view is then available in a single dashboard with both revenue and pipeline visible in the same period comparison.

How do I configure the Australian financial year (July to June) correctly in Power BI or Looker Studio?

In Power BI, the fiscal year start month is configured in the model view under date table settings. Set the fiscal year start month to July (month 7). All date hierarchy fields in Power BI then automatically calculate year-to-date, fiscal quarter, and fiscal year based on the July start. In Looker Studio, the financial year configuration is applied either by creating a calculated field that assigns a fiscal year label based on the calendar month (months 7-12 belong to FY starting that year; months 1-6 belong to FY starting the previous year) or by configuring a custom date range in each chart. For any Australian business dashboard, confirm the FY configuration before presenting any year-to-date or prior-year comparison figures to leadership.

How do I build a construction WIP dashboard that connects to a project management system for an Australian builder?

A construction WIP dashboard requires three data inputs: the contract value of each active project, the total costs incurred to date (from Xero or the construction accounting system), and the percentage completion assessed by the project manager or certifier. WIP is calculated as the contract value multiplied by the completion percentage, less amounts billed to date. If the project management system (Procore, Buildxact, or a spreadsheet) can export project data including contract value, completion percentage, and billed amounts, this data is connected to Power BI or Looker Studio and the WIP calculation is built as a calculated measure. The dashboard then shows each active project with its contract value, cost to date, completion percentage, assessed WIP, and the variance between assessed WIP and billed position. Variation tracking is added as a separate table showing approved versus claimed variations by project.

How do I build a staff utilisation and billable hours dashboard for an Australian professional services firm?

A staff utilisation dashboard requires timesheet data showing hours worked by each staff member broken down by billable and non-billable category, and a target hours figure for each staff member (typically the firm's standard billable hours target for a full-time employee). Utilisation rate is calculated as billable hours divided by total available hours (or total hours worked, depending on the firm's preferred calculation). If timesheet data is in Harvest, Deputy, or Xero Projects, the timesheet export is connected to Power BI or Looker Studio. A calculated measure produces utilisation rate per staff member per period. The dashboard shows a utilisation leaderboard, a trend line over the last 13 weeks, and a flag for staff members whose utilisation has fallen below a threshold for two or more consecutive weeks.

What is the best dashboard tool for an Australian SME — Power BI, Looker Studio, or Tableau?

For Australian SMEs already using Google Workspace and Google Ads, Looker Studio is the most practical starting point because it is free and connects natively to Google products without additional connectors. For businesses requiring more complex data modelling, multiple large data sources, or role-based access control, Power BI is the better choice at approximately $14 AUD per user per month. Tableau is more commonly used in larger Australian enterprises with dedicated analytics teams and has a higher cost and steeper learning curve than either Power BI or Looker Studio. Most Australian SMEs are best served by starting with Looker Studio if the primary need is connecting Xero and ad platform data, and moving to Power BI if the data model becomes complex enough that Looker Studio's blended data source approach is creating limitations.

Our team

The people behind the work

Not a black box. Real specialists you can call, with their names on the work.

Niraj Raut

Niraj Raut

Founder — Ecommerce SEO
Keshab Joshi

Keshab Joshi

PPC Expert
Hawrry Bhattarai

Hawrry Bhattarai

Google Ads Expert
Arogya Rijal

Arogya Rijal

SaaS SEO Expert
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Start here

Your Xero account, HubSpot CRM, and ad platforms already contain the performance data your leadership team needs. The gap is not the data — it is a connected, Australian-financial-year-aligned view that is available every morning without anyone compiling it. We build that connection, configure it for the July-to-June year, and design it for the people who will use it every day. If you want to understand what a connected dashboard would look like for your business before committing to a build, start with a diagnostic conversation.

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