Communicating with Data

Chapter 8. Implementation Strategies for Your Workplace

Now that you can put together compelling data visualizations that communicate your points clearly and effectively, you might expect this would be where the book ends. Now, though, we’re going to look at how to use the products of your labor in your workplace. This is the “people” side of things. How can you make the most of your work and advocate for its importance? How should you justify your choices? This chapter and the next will take you through some challenges you can expect when working with different teams, departments, organizations, and industries, all with different needs and approaches. If you’re aware of differing opinions and possibilities, you’ll be better prepared to deliver what is required.

No data visualization is ever perfect. Your work can always be changed, tweaked, or adjusted based on the stakeholders’ design, as well as analytical or subject-matter expertise. Therefore, do not expect many hard dos and don’ts—just a better understanding of where to strike the balance.

The challenges we will cover include the following:

Tables versus pretty pictures

Attitudes toward the use of visualization techniques to demonstrate stories in data

Static versus interactive

How interactive your analytical products can be before the audience might start to miss key messages

Centralized versus decentralized teams

How centralized data teams and assets pose different challenges than a more decentralized model

Live versus ...