BUS612: Data-Driven Communications

Communication of analysis results with visualizations is a key component of the Data Analysis Lifecycle. Each step in the lifecycle must be performed correctly for the visualizations to have meaning and lead to good decisions. Understanding the steps that lead to creating visualizations is critical to the project's success. Watch this video to learn the 6-step process and its role in its success.

Market research is a discipline that relies on an analysis process to communicate the results of its various types of research. Read this article to explore how the market research process is executed and how the reporting function is structured.

Big Data gives organizations unprecedented opportunities to tap into their data to mine valuable business intelligence. Read this study to learn how businesses can utilize this analytics framework to analyze consumers' product preferences, leading to more effective marketing and production strategies.

Analyzing Big Data can create significant advantages for an organization because it enables the discovery of patterns and correlations in datasets. This paper discusses the state of Big Data management with a particular focus on data modeling and data analytics.

Read this article on how start-up companies use business intelligence systems to make decisions. It presents the objectives of using business intelligence, what companies need to use it successfully, and its applications in a start-up, beginning the data collection/gathering and ending with data presentation.

Watch this as you work through the unit and prepare to take the final exam.

You can also download the presentation slides so you can make notes.

We also recommend that you review this Study Guide before taking the Unit 1 Assessment.

Analytics is the discovery, interpretation, and communication of meaningful patterns in data. Read this article to examine the different types of analytics, their uses, and inherent challenges in the use of analytics.

Watch this video to learn the stages of analytics development and the types of questions that you can answer at each stage. When you finish, choose an industry and identify a question you can answer in each stage.

Quantitative data represents items that can be counted or measured in numerical terms. Read this article to learn different types of quantitative research, the steps involved in performing the research, and the expected outcomes of quantitative methodologies.

Qualitative data represents items that describe or categorize attributes. Read this article to learn different types of qualitative research, the steps involved in performing the research, and the expected outcomes of qualitative methodologies.

Qualitative and quantitative data have distinct characteristics. Read this article and pay attention to how the chart differentiates quantitative and qualitative data. Then, answer the example questions to evaluate your ability to recognize these differences.

Read this article to further examine the differences between quantitative and qualitative data.

Watch this video on qualitative and quantitative data. Pay attention to the approaches to each type of data and the researcher's role in recognizing quantitative and qualitative data.

Watch this video on qualitative and quantitative research. Can you identify the characteristics of qualitative and quantitative data?

Our personal and professional daily decisions are based on data from many sources. Businesses have been tapping into this resource for years to determine everything from who will most likely buy a product to who they should hire. Watch this video to explore how a culture of data helps organizations make more informed and more accurate decisions to utilize their resources better.

Sociologists have used qualitative research methods to conduct research and obtain data to explain, predict or control an aspect of social reality. These research methods are increasingly being used in the business world to examine and explain consumer behavior and other social interactions that may impact a business. Read this article to explore the goals, sources, and primary methods used in qualitative research.

Understanding the data is the first step in analyzing the data. The mean, mode, and median are easy tools to better understand what's in the data. Read this article which defines mean, mode and median and shows how they are calculated.

Frequency is the number of times an event or a value occurs in a dataset. A frequency table lists each item and the number of times the item appears. Read this module on frequency, frequency tables, and the levels of measurement (nominal, ordinal, interval, and ratio scales). Pay attention to each frequency table exercise. After each exercise, use the definitions to identify and explain its level of measurement.

Watch this video on collecting data into frequency tables. Focus on how to collect, tally, and display data. Take notes and use what you learned to answer each question in the video.

Watch this as you work through the unit and prepare to take the final exam.

You can also download the presentation slides so you can make notes.

We also recommend that you review this Study Guide before taking the Unit 2 Assessment.

The primary goal of data visualization is to communicate information clearly and effectively. It helps users analyze and reason about data and evidence and makes complex data more accessible, understandable, and usable. Read this article to learn how to make more compelling graphics and visualizations.

Data visualization is a lot more than drawing graphic displays to show data. It requires choosing the right graphic for the audience type to deliver the right message in a readily understandable way. In this article, you will learn why data visualization has become so important and how to use it to deliver your message effectively.

Watch this video to learn how to choose the appropriate graphic presentation. Take notes on the recommendations given that support using each type of presentation. Remember, your ability to apply the correct graph or chart improves business presentations and enhances the data-driven decision-making process.

For visualizations to be the most effective, they have to be data-driven, clear and accurate, and free of items that may distract the viewer from the message. Watch this video to learn best practices covering all of these different caveats.

Interactive visualizations enable the viewer or presenter to drill down into the available data to provide additional insights. Watch this video to see how this is utilized to examine U.S. refugee demographics.

We can use visualizations to analyze a variety of information graphically. Watch this video to explore how this presenter uses visualizations to analyze his work schedule, where he eats, and other regularly occurring practices.

Summarizing Big Data using visualizations can be very challenging. Read this article to discover how you can apply the capabilities of Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality to the field of Big Data Visualization.

Data visualization is not an end goal. It is part of the process of gathering, formatting, and analyzing data to create information. Overlooking this process is not advised. Read this article to learn how utilizing the wrong visualization or visualization tool could lead to misleading or incorrect conclusions from the data.

Watch this as you work through the unit and prepare to take the final exam.

You can also download the presentation slides so you can make notes.

We also recommend that you review this Study Guide before taking the Unit 3 Assessment.

Read this article on visual aids. Pay attention to the purpose, emphasis, support, and clarity section. Take notes of techniques to improve presentations using clarity and simplicity. Also, focus on how to prepare visual aids.

Read this article to learn how to paste, insert, and link charts in Microsoft Word and Powerpoint products and complete the Skills Refresher for each tool. Now you know to assess data using levels of measurement, frequency distribution, and frequency tables. Remember, graphic presentations (visual aids) are equally essential for proving effective business presentations. Use the visual aid criteria in this unit to provide straightforward and easy-to-read business presentations.

Once the data is collected, it is important to summarize and present it in a way that will be meaningful to the audience. Read this article to learn how to present and summarize data graphically and numerically.

We've all been in meetings where the presenter used ineffective visualizations. Watch this video to learn how to iterate, experiment, and explore to make visualizations to effectively exploit the human visual system's power.

Many free tools are available online to help clean data, identify patterns, or just create a data visualization. Finding the right tool for your need and skill level can be difficult. Click through the various categories on the left and review the visualization tools sites each one presents. View several of the sites presented to learn the wide variety of free data visualization tools available for you to use for a particular requirement.

Watch this video to explore the process of taking survey data and creating compelling visualizations by iterating and experimenting with various display methods.

After collecting data, you need to figure out the best way to present that data meaningfully. How to present the data depends on the type of data and the story you are trying to tell using that data. Read this article to learn some of the different ways to present data based on the type of data being presented.

Watch this video to learn what to look for to make visualizations more effective.

Watch this as you work through the unit and prepare to take the final exam.

You can also download the presentation slides so you can make notes.

We also recommend that you review this Study Guide before taking the Unit 4 Assessment.

Using data as a source can help with your research project's information needs. It can help you learn more background information, answer research questions, and give context. Read this article to learn how to obtain data for your research, evaluate its credibility, visualize it, and use it properly. Be sure to watch the video and complete the three short activities.

You can use data visualizations in multiple disciplines to report data outcomes. Read this article to learn how a cross-disciplinary course composed of computer science, marine science, and art majors collaborate on a digital project to educate the public on ecological issues.

Good visualizations don't happen by accident. The user/creator must take a systematic approach to creating credible and effective visualizations. Watch this video to systematically think about visualizations and how to reason between different visualization design choices.

Storytelling has always been an effective way of conveying information and knowledge. In the field of visualization, storytelling is rapidly gaining momentum and evolving cutting-edge techniques that enhance understanding as storytellers are integrating more complex visualizations into their narratives. Read this article to explore the survey of storytelling literature in visualization and present an overview of the common and important elements in storytelling visualization.

Well-crafted data visualizations present data in easily understood images. When done well, they also enable the viewer to quickly perceive insights they may have missed if presented in summary tables and spreadsheets. Watch this video to learn how visualizations can take complex information and present it clearly, expertly, and precisely to an audience.

Narrative charts are another form of data visualization. They combine the best of data visualizations with storytelling and historical or fictional tales. Read this article and watch each video to learn how the author has portrayed these tales as compelling visualizations.

Watch this as you work through the unit and prepare to take the final exam.

You can also download the presentation slides so you can make notes.

Data visualizations have uses far beyond charts and graphs. It can have a role in products by helping us understand customers, design marketing efforts, communicate with team members, and develop products. Watch this video to explore how you can use data visualizations in these areas.

Watch this video to explore the best practices with telling visual stories with data.

Data visualization has been around for a long time. With the advent of better software, faster processors, and cheaper memory, it has become easier to create and iterate visualizations. With this power comes responsibility. This article explores why, more than ever, it is essential to develop good visualizations that clearly articulate the point the analyst is trying to make. While reading the article, think about the best and the worst presentations you've seen and determine what about them generated your strong feelings either way. Based on this article, what was it that the presenter did well or could have improved on?

The most effective storytelling helps the audience reach the right conclusion and take the appropriate action. This article provides an example of how data is used to tell a story about reducing global sea ice. Do you believe the author was successful in telling their story? What would you have done differently?

Watch this video to explore best practices for including data in your presentations. Some tips include choosing the correct type of chart, using the right colors to help your point stand out, and the finishing touches that will help your visual resonate with your audience.

Read this continuation of the previous article to explore the uses of storytelling and see some techniques that can help you persuade people to action.

Watch this video to view a presentation created using storytelling best practices.

With the explosion in visualizations, dashboards have become a prevalent tool for organizations to manage their business. Dashboards typically focus on high-level performance metrics that provide key indicators to alert managers when action is needed. Watch this video to learn how to create effective dashboards and what should and should not be included on a dashboard.

Data visualizations have become so ubiquitous that they became a necessary tool in the COVID-19 pandemic. Terms like "flatten the curve" were introduced and presented as dashboards in newspapers, TV news, and online. Read this article and learn how simple visualizations had a significant effect during the pandemic.

Watch this as you work through the unit and prepare to take the final exam.

You can also download the presentation slides so you can make notes.

We also recommend that you review this Study Guide before taking the Unit 6 Assessment.