---
title: "Custom Research Dashboard"
slug: "custom-research-dashboard-1"
updated: 2026-05-11T18:17:40Z
published: 2026-05-11T18:17:40Z
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://knowledge.technolutions.net/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Custom Research Dashboard

Create a custom dashboard to display key information on the Overview section of the Research tab.

Like other dashboards, this dashboard leverages the **Query**tool to design the dashboard and retrieve the information to be displayed.

![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/cd8ea7a6-07f3-4846-a554-627ac016d3e3/Images/Documentation/image-QGYYXP29.png)

#### Try a Slate example 💼

Copy this [Suitcase](/docs/suitcase-import) ID and paste it in **Database → Suitcase Import**to import a pre-made example research dashboard:

```SuitcaseID
d56f5087-0c85-448e-8443-42b7f5b44cf3:slate-advancement-showcase
```

> [!WARNING]
> 📝 Note
> 
> This dashboard assumes certain data points already exist in your database, like *Research Sources* or *Philanthropic Interests*. If you use different names or entities, you may need to adjust the joins and merge fields.

## Creating the query

To create the research dashboard query:

1. Go to **Queries / Reports**
2. Select **New Query.**
3. Configure the following settings:
  - **Name:** Enter a name for the dashboard query, like `Research Custom Dashboard`.
  - **User:** Select a user to be associated with the query, or leave blank to default to the current user
  - **Realm:** Optionally place the query in a [realm](/v1/docs/controlling-access-to-query-using-realms).
  - **Sharing:** Select to make this dashboard visible to other users.
  - **Folder:** System
  - **Type:** Configurable Joins
  - **Category:** Record*.*
  - **Base:** Select the base to which this dashboard should apply. If the dashboard should appear for person records, select *Person;*if the dashboard is intended for dataset records, select the appropriate dataset.
  - **System Key:** Dashboard Research 📝 The system key will only appear after selecting the *System*folder. ![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/cd8ea7a6-07f3-4846-a554-627ac016d3e3/Images/Documentation/Research Dashboard Query.png)
4. Select **Save.**
5. Select **Edit Query.**
6. Add **exports** for each data element to be returned as merge fields in the dashboard.
7. Rename each export to remove spaces or special characters.
8. Optionally add **Filters**to your dashboard query. The dashboard displays only records that meet the filter criteria. 💡 To conditionally display information on a dashboard, use [Liquid Markup and an Existence Export](/v1/docs/advanced-liquid-markup).

# Customizing the research dashboard

To modify the appearance of the research dashboard:

1. Navigate to the query that was created and select **Edit Dashboard.**
2. Using the WYSIWYG (what-you-see-is-what-you-get) editor, design the dashboard as desired. To leverage the exports referenced within the query, add the name of the export between two curly brackets, such as: `{{most-recent-estimated-capacity}}`.