The Holistics handbook for business users

Everything a business user can do in one place. See what each capability is for and how it works, so new users get the full picture and seasoned users find what they've missed.

Getting answers quickly

Instead of hunting through dashboards, ask a question in plain language. Holistics surfaces trusted dashboards, charts, and answers, and can explain how to use the platform as you go.

Start with Ask AI

First-time users2 min

Ask a business question and get a trusted chart or dashboard back.

View full guide

1. Open Ask AI.
2. Type your question in plain language.
3. Review the suggested chart or dashboard.
4. Open the related report to explore further.

Share an Ask AI Conversation

Collaborators2 min

Send an AI-assisted analysis to a colleague with a link.

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1. Open the conversation.
2. Copy the share link.
3. Send it to teammates inside your company.

Ask Follow-Up Questions

All users2 min

Clarify a metric, trend, or spike from the chart itself.

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1. Open the chart or AI result.
2. Open the AI side panel.
3. Ask your follow-up question.
4. Read the explanation.

Summarize a Dashboard with AI

All users3 min

Get a plain-language summary of what a dashboard is showing.

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1. Open a dashboard.
2. Select the widgets you care about.
3. Ask AI to summarize them.
4. Review the summary.

Ask AI Across Widgets with Your Org's Context

All users3 min

Select several widgets, ask one question across them, and get an answer shaped by your organization's own context and preferences, not generic guesses.

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1. Open a dashboard and select the widgets you want to analyze together.
2. Ask AI a question that spans those widgets.
3. AI answers using your organization's custom context, terminology, and response preferences.
4. Review the insight and ask follow-ups to go deeper.

Interact with AI-Generated Charts

All users3 min

Hover, filter, and drill into an AI result instead of reading a static chart.

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1. Review the AI-generated chart.
2. Hover or click to inspect values.
3. Open the report.
4. Filter or drill into the data.

Use Holistics from Your Own AI Interface

Teams with IT support4 min

Connect Holistics to your chat or command-line tools via MCP.

View full guide

1. Identify the internal AI interface you want answers in.
2. Ask your data or IT team whether Holistics can be connected.
3. Define what types of questions to support.
4. Test responses with governed data access.

Exploring dashboards & reports

Go beyond a static answer. Filter, cross-filter, and slice a dashboard down to the view you need.

Filter a Dashboard or Report

All users3 min

Narrow results by time, region, segment, or product, even by hidden fields.

View full guide

1. Open a dashboard or report.
2. Add or edit a filter.
3. Pick the field and value.
4. Apply and review the result.

Filter by a Relative Date or Time

All users3 min

Filter on moving windows like the last 7 days, this month, or year to date. The view stays current without editing the date each time.

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1. Open a dashboard or report and add or edit a date filter.
2. Choose a relative option such as last N days, this month, or year to date.
3. Set the unit and range for the window.
4. Apply and review the result, which updates automatically as time moves on.

Cross-Filter a Dashboard

All users3 min

Click a chart to filter every related chart on the dashboard at once.

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1. Open a dashboard with cross-filtering enabled.
2. Click a value or segment in any chart.
3. Watch the other charts filter to match.
4. Click again to clear the cross-filter.

Filter to Top or Bottom N

All users3 min

Show only the highest or lowest N records, applied after your other filters.

View full guide

1. Open a report in exploration mode.
2. Add a top/bottom N filter on the metric.
3. Set N and the ranking direction.
4. Apply and review the ranked result.

Drill Through to Another Dashboard

All users3 min

Jump from a summary view to a related detail dashboard.

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1. Click the metric, row, or record.
2. Pick the drill-through destination.
3. Continue analysis in the destination dashboard.

Refresh Data to the Latest

All users2 min

Pull the newest numbers when data has been added since the dashboard last loaded. Refresh a whole dashboard or a single widget on demand.

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1. Click Refresh to see when the results were last cached.
2. To refresh everything, choose Refresh Now next to the dashboard title.
3. To refresh just one chart, open the widget's more-options menu and refresh it.
4. Wait for the query to rerun and the latest numbers to load.

KPI Metric Sheets

Executives3 min

See the same set of key KPIs side by side across different time aggregations (day, week, month, quarter, year) in one compact view that updates automatically.

View full guide

1. Open a dashboard with a metric sheet, or add one from the chart selector.
2. Pick the KPIs you want to track in a single view.
3. Choose the time aggregations to compare across, such as month, quarter, and year.
4. Read the latest numbers, which refresh automatically as new data lands.

Understand the Context Behind Your Data

All users3 min

See what each metric and field actually means, straight from the definitions your BI team maintains, so you read every number with the right context.

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1. Open a dashboard and hover the info icon on any widget to read its definition.
2. Review the metric's meaning and context, written by the BI team.
3. Open a dataset to build your own report and see the same definitions inline.
4. Rely on these centralized definitions to interpret every number consistently.

Uncover the who and why behind a number

Drill into any number until a pattern jumps out, then open the records behind the spike to see the actual customers and orders. In Holistics every metric works this way by default, with no drill paths to pre-build.

Drill Down into a Metric

All users3 min

Slice a number open dimension by dimension, until the pattern driving it stands out.

View full guide

1. Click a metric or chart segment.
2. Choose a drill-down dimension.
3. Review the breakdown.
4. Keep drilling as needed.

View Underlying Data

All users3 min

See the exact records behind a number, so a spike becomes the named customers or orders that caused it.

View full guide

1. Click the metric or chart element.
2. Choose "view underlying data".
3. Inspect the record-level table.
4. Export only if permitted.

Creating & saving your own analysis

Safe self-service. Customize, save, and share your own analysis without touching official dashboards.

Explore a Report

Self-service users4 min

Adjust dimensions and measures for your own analysis.

View full guide

1. Open the report.
2. Enter exploration mode.
3. Add or remove fields.
4. Save to your personal workspace if useful.

Share a Live Exploration Link

All users2 min

Share your exploration without saving it first. The URL updates as you tweak fields, and a colleague opens the exact view you're looking at.

View full guide

1. Open a report and enter exploration mode.
2. Add, edit, or remove fields and filters. The URL updates as you go.
3. Copy the URL straight from your browser.
4. Send it to a teammate so they open the same view.

Create a Dashboard from a Dataset

Self-service users3 min

Spin up a brand-new dashboard straight from a dataset you already have access to.

1. Open a dataset you have access to.
2. Create a new dashboard from it.
3. Add the fields and charts you want to show.
4. Save the dashboard to your workspace.

Get to Know Canvas Dashboards

All users3 min

Learn the building blocks, and place filters and content anywhere you like.

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1. Open a canvas dashboard.
2. Learn the key parts: visualization blocks, text blocks, and filters.
3. Drag components anywhere on the canvas.
4. Place filters anywhere on the canvas, not only at the top.

Find Your Way Around the Visualization Interface

All users3 min

Know where the chart selector, Configure panel, and toolbar actions live.

View full guide

1. Pick a chart type from the chart selector.
2. Open the Configure panel to set fields and options.
3. Use the toolbar for Analyze, Ask AI, filters, and sort.
4. Run to preview your result.

Customize Your Dashboard Editor

Self-service users3 min

Set your default layout preferences for the editor, like whether widgets can overlap and how content is trimmed, so every dashboard you build starts the way you lay things out.

View full guide

1. Open a dashboard in edit mode.
2. Open the editing preferences in the authoring panel.
3. Set defaults like widget overlap and content trimming.
4. Save so the editor opens the way you like next time.

Save to Personal Workspace

Self-service users2 min

Keep your own version of an analysis, privately.

View full guide

1. Finish your exploration.
2. Click save.
3. Choose your personal workspace.
4. Name the report clearly.

Share a Report Internally

Collaborators3 min

Let teammates see your saved analysis with the right access.

View full guide

1. Open the saved report.
2. Click share.
3. Choose users or groups.
4. Confirm the access settings.

Auto-Sync a Report to Google Sheets

All users3 min

Keep a Google Sheet in step with a Holistics report, refreshed on a schedule, so the numbers your team works with in Sheets are always current.

View full guide

1. Open the report or dashboard you want to sync.
2. Set up a Google Sheets schedule and connect your Google account.
3. Pick the destination sheet and how often it should refresh.
4. Save, then check that the sheet updates on schedule.

Export to CSV or Excel

All users2 min

Continue analysis offline, where permitted.

View full guide

1. Open the report.
2. Click export.
3. Choose CSV or Excel.
4. Download the file.

Build calculations, conditions & analytic functions

Add calculated fields with a point-and-click builder or with AI, layer in advanced filter conditions, apply prebuilt analytic functions like period-over-period and trend lines, or package a repeatable analysis as a governed AI skill.

Create Advanced Nested Conditions

Power users5 min

Combine AND/OR grouped filters without SQL.

View full guide

1. Open a report in exploration mode.
2. Add a filter condition.
3. Group conditions together.
4. Combine AND and OR logic, then apply.

Create Period-over-Period Comparisons

Self-service users4 min

Compare current vs previous period in a few clicks.

View full guide

1. Open a report in exploration mode.
2. Click the metric you want to analyze.
3. Choose period-over-period comparison.
4. Select the comparison period.

Create a Running Total

Self-service users3 min

Accumulate a metric across a dimension, like running revenue by month.

View full guide

1. Open a report in exploration mode.
2. Click the metric.
3. Choose running total.
4. Pick the dimension to accumulate across.

Add Moving Calculations

Self-service users3 min

Smooth noisy trends with moving averages and measure change over time.

View full guide

1. Open a report in exploration mode.
2. Click the metric.
3. Choose a moving calculation, such as a moving average.
4. Review the smoothed trend.

Show Percent of Total

Self-service users3 min

Convert a metric into contribution percentages.

View full guide

1. Open a report in exploration mode.
2. Click the metric.
3. Choose percent of total.
4. Review the updated calculation.

Add a Trend Line

Self-service users2 min

Overlay a trend line to see the direction behind the data points.

View full guide

1. Open a chart in exploration mode.
2. Open the analytic functions menu.
3. Add a trend line.
4. Pick the trend line type if needed.

Add a Reference Line

Self-service users2 min

Mark a target, average, or threshold line on a chart.

View full guide

1. Open a chart in exploration mode.
2. Open the analytic functions menu.
3. Add a reference line.
4. Set the value or field it should mark.

Suggest Organization-Specific AI Skills

Power users4 min

Package a repeated analytical workflow as a reusable, governed AI skill.

View full guide

1. Identify a repeated workflow or question.
2. Describe what the AI skill should help with.
3. Share examples with your data team to build and govern it.
4. Help test whether the skill produces useful results.

Design & style your dashboard

Make your dashboards clear, branded, and great to look at.

Add Conditional Formatting

All users3 min

Highlight values that cross a threshold.

View full guide

1. Open the report.
2. Choose conditional formatting.
3. Define the threshold.
4. Pick the style and save.

Wrap Content & Set Custom Labels

All users3 min

Tidy tables by wrapping header or cell text and renaming fields with custom labels.

View full guide

1. Open a table visualization's style settings.
2. Turn on text wrapping for headers or cells.
3. Set a custom label to rename a field.
4. Save the styling.

Change Colors & Style

All users3 min

Restyle a chart or table with your own colors and formatting.

View full guide

1. Select the chart or table.
2. Open its style settings.
3. Change colors, fonts, and borders.
4. Save your changes.

Use Custom Charts

Power users4 min

Go beyond the built-in charts with open-source visualizations.

View full guide

1. Open a report and add a custom chart.
2. Paste or adapt a visualization spec.
3. Map your fields into the chart.
4. Save it to your dashboard.

Build Dynamic Content Blocks

Power users5 min

Create rich blocks like KPI cards, heatmaps, and metric trees from templates.

View full guide

1. Browse the template gallery for a starting point.
2. Add a Visualization block and choose the Markdown type.
3. Map your data fields into the template.
4. Adjust the design to taste.

Build Rich Layouts with HTML & CSS

Power users5 min

Design branded, web-app-like dashboard themes and layouts.

View full guide

1. Open the Theme Builder Sandbox.
2. Pick a pre-built theme, generate one with AI, or start from scratch.
3. Customize colors, spacing, and layout in the live GUI editor.
4. Copy the generated theme into Holistics, or send it to your data team to apply.

Deliver, share & act on data

Get data and insights out of Holistics, delivered to inboxes and channels, shared with external viewers, or used to trigger action in other systems. Most of these are set up with your data team. Need more access to do them yourself? Ask your data team.

Set Up Alerts

All users3 min

Be notified through email, Slack, or a webhook when a metric crosses a threshold.

View full guide

1. Pick the metric to monitor.
2. Define the alert condition or threshold.
3. Choose the channel (email, Slack, or webhook).
4. Ask your data team to set it up.

Schedule Report Delivery

All users3 min

Have recurring reports delivered automatically to where your team already works, from email and Slack to Google Sheets and SFTP.

View full guide

1. Pick the report or dashboard to send.
2. Choose the delivery schedule.
3. Pick the destination and recipients.
4. Ask your data team to set it up.

Create Shareable Links

All users3 min

Share selected reports with people outside Holistics, safely.

View full guide

1. Pick the report or dashboard to share.
2. Define the external audience.
3. Set permission control and optional password protection.
4. Ask your data team to create the link.

Set Up Product Actions

All users3 min

Trigger an operational workflow directly from a report.

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1. Pick the report or record where the action should appear.
2. Describe the action users should trigger.
3. Name the destination system or workflow.
4. Ask your data team to set it up.