Data Story: Part 1

We use statistics, data, and trend to decrease cognitive loads to our audience, but unfortunately, they all forgotten! In a shape of even visualization, they never been remembered for a long run. This is the place where our story telling journey begins! If you compare statistics vs stories, only 5% individuals’ stories remembered, and for stories 63%! That’s the insane difference!?

What to do for making a better story from data? What is required for it?

Analyzing raw data and trend can give us idea about what to do or what not but bridging those insights together and prepare a story that we want to tell the audience is important. Inside data we may find many information and trend but to resolve a problem or to find an opportunity we must focus on the main stories and should show the relevant information. This will make the targeted audience focus on the story.?

Three level of decisions we made from data: discreate, operational and strategic.?Those decisions can be made from a single data story, discrete decision can be made by stopping or starting something based on a visualization or trend, making decision on continuing something that’s going in a right way for the organization. For operational decisions, decision makers can see the performance trend in daily, weekly, or monthly, yearly basis and can take decision for their operation. Finally strategic decision can make by synchronizing information in different sources to determine a productive future. Basically, bigger decisions that has bigger impact or change on organization like buying a competitor, launching new product or service etc.

As business leaders are making thousands of decisions every day, sometimes they made decisions even without the data. Anticipating the future means making decisions on something unknown and we must make those decisions by historical data. To minimize the risk of mislead strong creative thinking and problem abilities is important for shaping up recommendations.

To communicate with data, we need to sort out the people who will be involved with the decision-making process. Normally top managements make the ultimate decision, so we need to prepare a story in way that can serve a quick and clear scenario. Executives are busy, so we need to respect their time while presenting something to them. Another point is we must maintain a style that they prefer, tailoring your style to their preferred way is important.?

To keep a healthy financial ecosystem, executives are always under incredible pressure to perform. They measure things on Money, Market and Exposure. So we must know how to connect our stories to their area of interests. Stories should have purpose and result should be connected to the growth.

1.?????With the presentation sides, ensure you have details slide documents.

2.????Always keep Sigle page recommendation. This must be well structured and well written.

3.????For a conversation, think through the key points you need to make and structure the discussion well.

While presenting something in front of executive you may interrupt by the audience as they immediately start seeing pros and cons. Accept the interruption as they have deep business knowledge on their business and they can swiftly assess information and challenge on it. From this point you must be expose your ideas with proper and right data to explain it good.