Introduction

The Tree view is a powerful new way to explore and visualise hierarchical relationships in your data. Whether you're analysing reporting lines in an organisation, breaking down product categories or mapping regional distributions, the Tree view helps uncover hierarchy, context and connection.

It supports two distinct network configurations:

• Grouped Network: Build a tree using a sequence of groupings to split your data hierarchically - for example:
  Location -> Department -> Employee name
• Linked Network: Define a directed relationship between two fields to create an organisational structure or dependency chain - such as:
  Manager > Employee

To demonstrate these capabilities, we'll use a custom dataset inspired by the Office (US) TV show. Each record in the dataset represents a Dunder Mifflin employee, with fields including Employee Name, Superior Name, Role, Department, Salary and Location. The dataset and dashboard download are available at the end of this article - don't worry, Creed's included, even if we still don't know what he does!

The dataset and the report are both available to download at the end of this article.

Grouped network: Structure by splits

Grouped networks let you define a hierarchy by configuring one or more split groupings. Each split represents a level in the tree.

Configuration walkthrough

To create a Grouped Tree:

1. Add a new Tree view
2. Open the Network settings
3. Under Network Type select Grouped.
4. Add the following splits:
   • Location
   • Department
   • Employee name

Next, lets tweak the appearance of the tree:

• Node options -> Colour
  Colour by: Location (singleton)
• Link Options -> Weight
  Weight by: Mean (Salary)
• Tooltip options
  Add: Role (Singleton), Salary (mean), Fun Fact (Singleton)

What we see

The grouped network shows us a breakdown of how employees are distributed across locations and departments:

• NYC appears at the top with the highest average salaries, fitting for Legal and Corporate roles.
• Scranton's sales team - Stanley, Phylilis, Jim and Dwight is grouped under Sales.
• Hovering over an employee node reveals tooltips: role, salary the the kind of fun facts that might worry Toby.

Other use cases

Grouped networks work beautifully for:

• Product category breakdowns
• University course structures
• Regional asset distributions
• Festival or event lineups

In short, if your data can be split, you can use a Grouped tree view to do it.

Linked network: Visualise relationships

Linked networks allow define a parent -> child relationship between any two fields. This is perfect for organisation charts, ownership structures or task dependencies.

Configuration Walkthrough

To build a Linked Tree of Funder Mifflin's reporting lines:

1. Add a new Tree view
2. Open Network Settings
3. Under Network Type select Linked
4. Configure:
   • Link field 1: Superior Name
   • Link field 2: Employee Name
   • Link Direction: Link Field 1 -> Link Field 2
   • Node identifier: Link field 2

Next we will apply some styling:

• Node Options -> Colour
  Colour by Salary (Mean)
• Node Shape: Circle.
• Node Label: Position Right.

What we see

This configuration transforms your flat dataset into an organisation chart:

• David Wallace sits proudly at the top (as CFO)
• Down the chain: Jan Levinson, Michael Scott, and eventually the entire Scranton crew
• Each node can be hovered for detail or clicked to brush inside the other dashboard views

Other use cases

Linked networks are ideal for:

• IT system dependencies
• Supply chain relationships
• Task or product breakdowns
• Biological or taxonomical trees

Unlike Grouped networks, Linked requires a defined relationship in your data - each record must specify a parent-child link.

Styling and interactivity

The Tree view offers rich customisation to fit your data and aesthetic.

Node options

• Colour: By value, split or measure.
• Shape (box, circle etc.)
• Size based on a measure (e.g. salary, headcount)
• Label position (above, below, left, right)
• Outline width and radius
• Tooltip with key metadata

Interactivity

By default clicking on a node selects and brushes inside other dashboard views.

You can switch to Expand/Collapse mode, allowing you to interactively open and close branches.  You can also set an Initial expansion level to declutter large trees. This is especially useful for:

• Deep product taxonomies
• Multi-layer organisation structures
• Any dataset with more than 3 levels

Link options

• Colour links based on a measure
• Define link weight (e.g. thickness = salary or record count)
• Add link labels
• Configure link tooltips for added context

Switching between layouts

The Tree view is part of a family of network views, and you can seamlessly switch between them while keeping your network configuration:

• Sankey view. Best for directional flows or resource distribution.
• Dependency wheel. Ideal for circular structures and system relationships.

Summary

The Tree view opens up new ways to explore your data's structure, hierarchy and flow. Whether you're building a traditional organisation chart, visualising a festival lineup, or trying to figure out who reports to Creed, the Tree view brings clarity and interactivity to your analysis.

So the next time you're wondering where Dunder Mifflin spends the most on paper, fire up the Tree view - it's everything Omniscope does best (only with added branches).

As always we would love to hear your feedback, and see how your using the tree view.