Lessons Learnt Dashboard

settings

How to Use the AED Lessons Learnt Dashboard

This guide covers accessing the dashboard, reading lesson cards, adding a new lesson, and saving your work.

Contents 1. Getting access 2. Reading the dashboard 3. Method A — Add a lesson directly (in-browser form) 4. Method B — Add a lesson via Excel import 5. Saving and exporting 6. Field reference

1. Getting access

The dashboard is password-protected. On your first visit you will see an unlock screen. Enter the access password provided by your manager or the dashboard owner.

💡 Tip: Once you unlock the dashboard, your browser remembers the session. You will not be prompted again on the same device unless you clear your browser data.

2. Reading the dashboard

Lesson cards

Each lesson is shown as a card. The card contains:

Filtering and searching

Use the left sidebar to narrow results. Each dropdown filters by a single field. The Search box at the top matches free text across all fields simultaneously. Use Clear filters to reset everything.

💡 Tip: Results count (e.g. 3 of 47 lessons) updates live as you apply filters.

3. Method A — Add a lesson directly (in-browser form)

Best when you want to log a single lesson quickly without opening Excel.

⌨️ In-browser form

  1. Click + Add Lesson in the toolbar.
  2. Fill in the form. Fields marked * are required — the form will not submit without them.
  3. Use the dropdowns for controlled-vocabulary fields (Year, State, Category, etc.). Only values from the approved taxonomy are accepted.
  4. Leave Date Logged blank to auto-fill today's date.
  5. Click Add Lesson. The new lesson appears in the dashboard immediately.
  6. Important: the lesson exists only in this browser session. Click 💾 Export all and save the downloaded file to OneDrive before closing the tab.
⚠️ Data is not saved automatically. Lessons added via the form live in browser memory only. If you close or refresh the tab without exporting, those lessons will be lost. Always export after adding lessons.

4. Method B — Add a lesson via Excel import

Best for bulk entry, offline work, or when multiple people are contributing lessons before a periodic upload.

📊 Excel import

  1. Download the template: click 📋 Template in the toolbar (or Templates in the nav).
  2. Open the downloaded file in Excel. Read the Instructions sheet before entering data.
  3. Enter one lesson per row in the Lessons sheet. Column headers must not be renamed or reordered.
  4. For controlled-vocabulary fields, use only values from the Lookups sheet. Unrecognised values will generate a warning on import.
  5. Save the file (keep it as .xlsx).
  6. Back in the dashboard, click 📂 Load file and select your file.
  7. The dashboard validates the file automatically:
    • Rows missing required fields (Title, Description, Lesson) are excluded and listed in a banner.
    • Rows with unrecognised vocabulary values are loaded but flagged with a warning.
  8. Review any warnings, then click 💾 Export all to save the combined dataset back to OneDrive.
💡 Tip: The master lessons.xlsx on OneDrive is the single source of truth. When multiple people are contributing, have each person fill their rows into a copy of the template, then merge their rows into the master before loading.

5. Saving and exporting

Export all (full dataset)

Click 💾 Export all in the toolbar. This downloads a dated .xlsx file containing all lessons currently shown on the dashboard, plus the full taxonomy (Lookups sheet) and instructions. Save this file to the shared OneDrive folder — it becomes the master for the next session.

Download template (blank)

Click 📋 Template in the toolbar (or Templates in the nav). This downloads a blank workbook with the correct headers and taxonomy pre-filled. Use this as the starting point for new contributors — not for saving existing data.

Recommended workflow

  1. At the start of a session: load the current master lessons.xlsx from OneDrive.
  2. Add lessons via the form or by loading a pre-filled template from a contributor.
  3. When done: Export all → save the downloaded file back to OneDrive, replacing the previous master.

6. Field reference

The dashboard uses 19 fields. The table below shows which are required, how they are entered, and any special rules.

Field Required Input type Notes
Title Required Free text One-line summary of the lesson event
Project Name Free text The project where the lesson occurred
Year Dropdown Year the lesson occurred
State Dropdown Australian state/territory
Project Lifecycle Type Dropdown Origination / Tender / Delivery / CPS / As Builts
Design Stage Dropdown N/A valid — select N/A if no design stage applies
Project Category Dropdown Energy / Water / Transport / Urban & Social
Project Subcategory Dropdown Specific infrastructure type within the category
Design Discipline Dropdown Primary discipline affected
Main Origin Dropdown Root cause category (e.g. Scope changes, Coordination issues)
Main Impact Dropdown Primary consequence (e.g. Rework required, Safety impact)
Type of Lesson Dropdown e.g. Technical issue, Process improvement, Best practice
Stakeholders Involved Dropdown N/A valid — use N/A if no external stakeholders were involved
Affected Documents Dropdown Document types affected (Reports, Drawings, Models, etc.)
Description Required Free text Factual account of what happened. Be specific — include numbers, timelines, systems, and parties involved where relevant.
Lesson Required Free text The single key takeaway. What should not be repeated, or what should always be done?
Recommendation Free text Actionable suggestion for future projects. Focus on what to do differently, not just what happened.
Logged By Free text Your name or initials — helps with follow-up questions
Date Logged Date picker Format: YYYY-MM-DD. Auto-fills to today if left blank.
💡 Writing good lessons: The most useful lessons are specific. Avoid vague entries like "Communication was poor." Instead: "Client comments arrived from four separate representatives with conflicting direction — no single authorised channel had been agreed at kick-off." Specific descriptions help future teams recognise the same situation and act on the recommendation.