“The greatest value of a picture is when it forces us to notice what we never expected to see.” – John Tukey

Businesses that want to make the most of their data often struggle with managing large volumes of information. Even though there’s a lot of data available, many organizations find it challenging to uncover valuable insights, which means that a lot of data remains unused. This lack of actionable intelligence hampers strategic decision-making and inhibits business growth.

The key is to use effective data visualization. By converting raw data into clear, visual formats, businesses can easily spot trends and outliers and make well-informed decisions. Data visualization tools and techniques offer the clarity needed to transform complex data sets into actionable insights, ultimately improving decision-making processes and driving business success. This article explores how using data visualization can assist businesses in overcoming the challenges of data overload and tapping into the full potential of their information.

Understanding the Power of Data Visualization

Data visualization refers to the graphical representation of information and data. Using visual elements like charts, graphs, and maps, data visualization tools provide an accessible way to see and understand trends, outliers, and patterns in data. This approach makes complex data more comprehensible, allowing users to grasp intricate details quickly and effectively.

Data visualization is pivotal in business analytics because it transforms complex data sets into a visual format that is easier to interpret. For executives, clear and concise data visualizations facilitate quicker decision-making, enhance communication, and support the identification of actionable insights. This ability to present data visually is essential for driving informed strategies and achieving business objectives.

Key Data Visualization Tools for Business Leaders

With the increasing volume and complexity of data, effective analytic dashboards and data visualization tools are essential for interpreting information accurately and efficiently. These tools help make data more accessible, understandable, and usable for strategic decision-making.

When it comes to top tools for business analytics, Tableau stands out for its robust visualization capabilities. It allows users to create various interactive and shareable dashboards, making it easier for stakeholders to interpret complex data. Microsoft Power BI is another excellent option, integrating seamlessly with other Microsoft products and offering real-time dashboard updates. AWS QuickSight, a scalable, serverless, embeddable, machine learning-powered business intelligence service, is also noteworthy for its versatility and power.

Integrating these tools into business systems significantly enhances visualization capabilities. Executives benefit from real-time insights, enabling them to make informed, data-driven decisions quickly. These tools’ advanced analytics features, such as predictive analytics and machine learning, further drive business intelligence. This combination of real-time data and advanced analytics helps organizations uncover deeper insights, spot trends, and respond proactively to market changes.

Techniques to Maximize the Impact of Data Visualization

Maximizing the impact of data visualization involves selecting the proper techniques to present information clearly and effectively. Effective visualization techniques can transform complex data sets into easily understandable visuals, aiding in better decision-making and communication. By choosing the appropriate method, businesses can ensure that their data is seen, comprehended, and utilized effectively.

Among the most effective visualization techniques are:

Dashboards: Centralize key metrics and KPIs for quick, at-a-glance updates. Dashboards provide a comprehensive view of critical data points, allowing executives to monitor real-time performance and make swift decisions.
Infographics: Combine graphics and data to tell a compelling story. They are beneficial for summarizing complex data in a visually appealing and easily digestible format.
Interactive Charts: Allow users to engage with the data, customize their views, and explore different aspects of the information.

Selecting the appropriate visualization technique depends on the data type and the intended audience. For instance, dashboards are ideal for real-time monitoring and operational decision-making. Infographics are perfect for presenting summaries of complex data to stakeholders in a visually engaging manner. Interactive charts are beneficial for detailed data analysis, enabling users to dive deeper into specific data sets.

By aligning the visualization method with the audience’s needs and the data’s nature, businesses can enhance the clarity and effectiveness of their data presentations.

Spotting Trends with Advanced Data Analysis Tools

Advanced tools can be essential for identifying trends and patterns not immediately apparent in raw data. These tools offer sophisticated capabilities that enhance the depth and accuracy of data analysis, enabling businesses to gain more nuanced insights.

Key advanced tools include:

Microsoft Azure Machine Learning: Offers robust machine learning capabilities to identify trends and patterns, allowing businesses to predict future outcomes and make data-driven decisions.
AWS SageMaker: Simplifies the process of building, training, and deploying machine learning models, making advanced analytics more accessible and efficient for organizations.

Businesses can uncover deeper insights by integrating AI and machine learning with data visualization tools. For example, predictive models can forecast future trends, enabling proactive decision-making. This integration allows companies to go beyond surface-level analysis and understand the underlying factors driving their data, leading to more informed and strategic decisions.

Latest Trends in Data Visualization

Current data visualization trends are revolutionizing how businesses interpret and utilize their data. Augmented analytics, for instance, enhances data analytics with AI and machine learning, making insights more accessible and actionable. This trend is making it easier for non-technical users to harness the power of advanced analytics.

Another significant trend is storytelling with data, which uses narrative techniques to make data more relatable and engaging. This approach helps stakeholders understand the context and significance of the data, leading to more informed decision-making. According to Gartner, “By 2025, data stories will be the most widespread way of consuming analytics, and 75% of stories will be automatically generated using augmented analytics techniques”. By crafting narratives around data, businesses can effectively communicate complex information in a way that is both compelling and easy to grasp.

Looking ahead, future data visualization technologies will likely focus on more advanced AI integrations, offering even more precise and actionable insights. As AI technology continues to evolve, we can expect visualization tools to become even more intuitive, providing real-time, automated insights and predictions. These advancements will further empower businesses to leverage their data for strategic advantage.

12 Ways to Enhance Decision-Making with Data Visualization

From real-time dashboards to predictive analytics, various visualization techniques can help you gain deeper insights, spot trends, and make more informed decisions. The following are 12 essential ways to enhance decision-making with data visualization, highlighting the tools you can use and their benefits.

1. Utilizing Real-Time Dashboards

Tools: Microsoft Power BI, AWS QuickSight, Tableau
Benefit: Real-time dashboards enable quick decision-making by integrating real-time data and displaying KPIs and metrics relevant to business operations.

By providing an at-a-glance performance overview, executives can monitor critical data and respond to changes swiftly. According to one study by IDC, businesses that use real-time analytics are five times more likely to make timely decisions. Read about 6 Creative Ways to Use Business Intelligence Dashboards.

2. Implementing Predictive Analytics

Tools: Microsoft Azure Machine Learning, AWS SageMaker, IBM SPSS Statistics
Benefit: Predictive analytics uses models to forecast future trends, allowing for proactive rather than reactive strategies.

By anticipating potential outcomes, businesses can make informed decisions that position them ahead of market shifts. This forward-thinking approach mitigates risks and capitalizes on emerging opportunities, ensuring sustained growth and competitive advantage.

3. Geographic Mapping

Tools: Microsoft Power BI (with ArcGIS), Google Maps API, Tableau
Benefit: Geographic mapping visualizes geographic data to identify regional performance patterns and market opportunities. This technique helps businesses understand spatial relationships and regional trends, aiding in strategic planning and resource allocation.

By pinpointing areas of high performance and identifying underperforming regions, companies can tailor their strategies to optimize market potential and drive targeted growth.

4. Comparative Analysis

Tools: Tableau, Microsoft Excel, AWS QuickSight
Benefit: Comparative analysis employs side-by-side comparisons of data sets to spot trends and anomalies. This method allows businesses to evaluate performance across different periods, business units, or other categories, identifying areas for improvement or investment.

By clearly visualizing differences and similarities, companies can make more informed decisions and adjust strategies to enhance overall performance.

5. Trend Lines in Time Series Data

Tools: Tableau, Microsoft Power BI, Google Charts
Benefit: Trend lines in time series data identify growth, declines, and cyclical patterns over specified periods.

By visualizing these trends, businesses can better understand historical performance and predict future outcomes. This insight helps in strategic planning, allowing companies to proactively capitalize on growth opportunities and address potential downturns. According to a study by McKinsey, organizations that effectively use time series analysis can improve forecasting accuracy by up to 20%.

6. Correlation Analysis

Tools: R (with ggplot2), Python (with Matplotlib), Microsoft Excel
Benefit: Correlation analysis uses scatter plots to find correlations between variables impacting business outcomes.

By visualizing the relationships between different data points, businesses can identify key factors that influence performance. Understanding these correlations helps make data-driven decisions that optimize strategies and improve overall results. For example, uncovering a solid correlation between marketing spend and sales growth can lead to more effective budget allocations.

7. Hierarchical Tree Structures

Tools: D3.js, Microsoft Power BI, AWS QuickSight
Benefit: Hierarchical tree structures break down complex data into digestible and actionable pieces. This visualization technique organizes data in a hierarchical format, making it easier to understand relationships and dependencies within the dataset.

By simplifying complex information, hierarchical tree structures enable businesses to identify key insights and make informed decisions quickly. This method is beneficial for analyzing organizational structures, project plans, or any data set with multiple levels of detail.

8. Using Animated Visualizations

Tools: Tableau, Microsoft Power BI, Google Data Studio
Benefit: Animated visualizations show changes over time, making dynamic data easier to understand.

By animating data points, trends, and patterns become more apparent, allowing users to grasp the evolution of data at a glance. This technique is especially useful for presentations and reports, as it engages the audience and enhances the storytelling aspect of the data. Animated visualizations can reveal insights that static charts might miss, providing a clearer picture of how data evolves and impacts business outcomes.

9. Incorporating User-Interaction Features

Tools: Tableau, QlikView, Microsoft Power BI
Benefit: User-interaction features allow users to explore data subsets and view relevant information.

By incorporating interactive elements into visualizations, businesses can enable users to drill down into specific data points, customize their views, and uncover insights tailored to their needs. This interactive approach enhances engagement and makes data analysis more accessible, ensuring users can find and focus on the most relevant information for their decision-making processes.

10. Performance Scorecards

Tools: Microsoft Power BI, Tableau, SAP BusinessObjects
Benefit: Performance scorecards provide a quick overview of the organization’s health and achievements against goals.

By compiling key performance indicators (KPIs) and metrics into a single, easy-to-read format, scorecards allow executives to monitor progress and identify areas needing attention. This comprehensive view helps ensure that strategic objectives are met and facilitates timely adjustments to improve overall performance.

11. Utilizing Dashboards for Benchmarking

Tools: Tableau, Microsoft Power BI, AWS QuickSight
Benefit: Dashboards for benchmarking include industry benchmarks or competitor data to gauge performance.

By comparing your company’s metrics against external standards, you can identify strengths, weaknesses, and areas for improvement. This benchmarking process provides valuable context, helping businesses understand their competitive position and make data-driven decisions to enhance performance and achieve strategic goals.

12. Storytelling with Data

Tools: Tableau, Microsoft Power BI, Adobe Analytics
Benefit: Storytelling with data crafts narratives around data, making complex data relatable and persuasive to stakeholders.

By using a series of visualizations to tell a cohesive story, businesses can highlight key insights, trends, and outcomes engagingly. This approach helps communicate the significance of the data, making it easier for stakeholders to understand and act on the information presented. Effective data storytelling can drive better decision-making and foster a deeper connection with the data.

Implementing Data Visualization in Your Organization

The first step is to assess your current data needs by evaluating the existing data landscape and identifying areas for improvement. This assessment helps pinpoint gaps and opportunities in your data strategy. Next, choose the right tools that align with your business needs and goals. Selecting the appropriate data visualization tools ensures that you have the capabilities required to transform raw data into actionable insights. Training your team is also crucial; ensure they are proficient in using these tools to maximize their effectiveness. Continuous learning and skill development will help your team stay updated with the latest features and best practices.

Integrating data visualization into an organization can present several challenges, but these can be effectively managed with the right strategies. One common challenge is resistance to change. Employees may hesitate to adopt new tools and processes, hindering implementation.

To overcome this, it’s important to demonstrate the value of data visualization through pilot projects and success stories that highlight tangible benefits. Another challenge is ensuring data quality. Inaccurate or incomplete data can undermine visualization efforts. At WCI, we help businesses overcome challenges and seamlessly integrate data visualization into a business’s operations, providing comprehensive training and support. This approach ensures that your data visualization efforts are effective, impactful, and aligned with your business objectives.

Transform Your Decision-Making with Data Visualization

Data visualization is a powerful tool that can revolutionize how businesses make decisions. By leveraging the right tools and techniques, executives can uncover insights, spot trends, and drive informed strategies. Effective data visualization enables organizations to translate complex data into actionable intelligence, enhancing operational efficiency and strategic planning.

Ready to take your data visualization to the next level? Get a Free On-Site BI Architect Session with WCI today and unlock the full potential of your data for strategic growth and informed decision-making.

Do you ever feel like you’re struggling to make the most of your business intelligence tools? Or is your data scattered across different systems, making it hard to gain actionable insights? In today’s data-driven business environment, these issues are common. Many organizations are dealing with overwhelming data sources, poor data quality, and a need for more skilled personnel to interpret the data effectively.

Business Intelligence (BI) is crucial in turning your data into valuable insights that drive strategic, profitable decisions. BI tools can combine different data sets, visualize trends, and offer real-time updates. However, these tools require the right expertise to fully harness their potential.

The BI Consultant is at the heart of this transformation. A professional dedicated to helping organizations make data-driven decisions through advanced analytics and interactive dashboards, BI Consultants bridge the gap between complex data and actionable business strategies, ensuring your organization leverages data effectively.

But what exactly does a BI Consultant do? Let’s dive into their key responsibilities and the impact they can have on your business.

What is a BI Consultant?

A BI consultant uses business intelligence technologies to collect, analyze, and interpret data. Their main objective is to assist organizations in enhancing their business operations by offering valuable insights from various data sources. These insights empower companies (like yours) to make informed decisions.

By transforming complex data into actionable intelligence, BI Consultants empower businesses to optimize their processes, identify new opportunities, and mitigate risks. Their expertise ensures that companies can navigate the complexities of modern data landscapes and achieve sustainable growth.

Key Responsibilities of a BI Consultant

It is important to understand the key responsibilities of a BI Consultant in order to appreciate the value they bring to an organization. BI Consultants play a vital role in transforming data into strategic assets that drive business success. Here’s a breakdown of their primary responsibilities:

1. Data Analysis and Interpretation

BI Consultants collect and analyze vast amounts of data to identify trends and patterns. They help turn this data into actionable insights that can be used to improve various aspects of business operations.

2. Developing BI Solutions

BI Consultants design and implement BI tools and systems tailored to the specific needs of their clients. This includes customizing BI solutions to ensure they align with the client’s business goals and requirements.

3. Reporting and Visualization

Specializing in data visualization, dashboards, and reports is a core component of a BI Consultant. These visualizations help stakeholders understand complex data and make it easier to communicate findings across the organization.

4. Strategic Planning and Decision Support

BI Consultants assist clients in strategic planning by providing data-driven recommendations. They support decision-making processes by delivering insights that are critical for long-term business success.

5. Training and Support

Educating client staff on how to use BI tools and best practices is essential. BI Consultants offer ongoing support and maintenance to ensure the continued effectiveness of BI systems.

By implementing tailored BI solutions and providing continuous support, BI Consultants help companies maintain a competitive edge in today’s data-driven marketplace.

Impact of BI Consultants on Organizations

One thing that’s clear is that sound decision-making is key to long-term profitability and success. BI Consultants significantly enhance decision-making processes within organizations by providing valuable insights derived from comprehensive data analysis. For example, a company can use BI analysis to identify market trends and adjust its strategies accordingly, resulting in more informed and timely decisions. According to a study by Forrester, data-driven companies are 8.5 times more likely to be profitable year-over-year than those that rely on intuition. This level of informed decision-making allows businesses to anticipate market shifts and respond proactively, giving them a distinct advantage.

Moreover, BI solutions streamline operations and reduce costs by optimizing business processes. Automated reporting tools, for instance, can save significant time and resources that would otherwise be spent on manual data analysis. The McKinsey Global Institute reports that companies using data effectively can improve their productivity by up to 25%. This operational efficiency translates into reduced costs and improved bottom-line performance, enabling companies to allocate resources more effectively and focus on strategic initiatives.

Utilizing business intelligence (BI) for market analysis is crucial for businesses to stay ahead of the competition by uncovering new opportunities and addressing potential risks. BI Consultants provide the insights needed to stay ahead of competitors, turning data into a strategic asset. Additionally, BI Consultants foster a data-driven culture within organizations, encouraging employees at all levels to use data as a foundation for their actions. This cultural shift leads to more consistent and effective outcomes as data becomes central to decision-making processes.

One example of this impact is seen in our work with a Fortune 500 real estate investment management company. We developed customized BI solutions that enhanced data-driven decision-making, resulting in significant financial growth and improved operational efficiency. By transforming complex data into actionable intelligence, our BI Consultants empower businesses to optimize their processes, identify new opportunities, and mitigate risks. Our expertise ensures that companies can navigate the complexities of modern data landscapes and achieve sustainable growth.

Why Choose WCI Data Solutions for BI Consulting?

At WCI Data Solutions, we offer a wide range of business intelligence consulting services designed to meet the unique needs of each client. With a proven track record of success, we have helped numerous organizations achieve their business goals through data-driven decision-making. Our expertise in developing customized BI solutions, combined with our commitment to ongoing training and support, makes us the ideal partner for any organization looking to harness the power of business intelligence. By working with WCI, businesses can leverage tailored BI solutions that drive performance and growth, ensuring they stay competitive in today’s data-driven marketplace.

For more information on how our Business Intelligence Consulting services can benefit your organization, visit our Business Intelligence Consulting page.

FAQs

What can a BI Consultant do for my business?

BI Consultants help improve business operations by providing valuable insights from data analysis, designing customized BI solutions, and offering strategic decision support. At WCI, we enable businesses to make informed decisions, optimize processes, and uncover new opportunities through effective data management and analysis. Learn 3 Easy Ways to Maximize Data Management and Business Intelligence Success

How do BI Consultants help in strategic planning?

BI Consultants provide data-driven recommendations and insights that inform long-term business strategies and support decision-making processes. They analyze market trends, customer behavior, and internal performance metrics to help businesses identify opportunities, mitigate risks, and set actionable goals aligned with overall business objectives. This approach ensures that strategic planning is grounded in accurate data and comprehensive analysis, leading to more effective and sustainable growth. Request a Discover Meeting Today

What are the benefits of hiring a BI Consultant?

Hiring a BI Consultant brings several benefits, including improved decision-making, increased operational efficiency, competitive advantage, and fostering a data-driven culture within the organization. With their expertise, businesses can leverage data to drive performance, stay ahead of competitors, and make strategic decisions with confidence. This not only enhances productivity but also positions the company to respond proactively to market changes and opportunities. Read 5 Questions To Ask When Choosing a Business Intelligence Consulting Firm

In today’s increasingly data-driven world, it’s more important than ever to have accessible ways to view and understand data and leverage it to make informed business decisions. Business analytics and data visualization provide insights into how things have historically played out, possibilities for new scenarios, and much more.

It’s no surprise businesses today have gravitated toward wanting to understand and leverage data visualization capabilities as an efficient way to help make sense of business-critical information and large sets of complex data at scale. Across all industries, business leaders today understand the importance of data and how to use it to its fullest potential – with the help of analytic dashboards and data visualization tools.

In this post, we’re breaking down analytics dashboards, data visualization, what each is, their advantages, and how they can impact your business in significant ways. Let’s dive in!

Why is data visualization important?

Business intelligence aims to collect and turn data into actionable information that fulfills operational and strategic objectives and supports a person’s decision-making. Why is it important? Because it helps people see, interact with, and better understand their organization’s data. Whether simple or complex, effective visualization and BI tools can bring everyone together on the same page, regardless of their expertise with data or daily interaction with these numbers.

Not only is the actual data necessary, but the ways BI display them are just as crucial. According to MIT, 90% of information transmitted to the brain is visual. This means that the better we can represent complex numbers like big data, the easier it becomes for all stakeholders and employees to understand. Data visualization ultimately helps provide more people who use BI tools and analytics solutions with a familiar, engaging, interactive way to absorb information at a glance and understand the insights hidden beneath the numbers.

These data visualization tools and processes provide a quick and effective way to communicate and share information in an easy-to-read manner using visual information.

See data visualization services offered by WCI >>>

What is a data visualization dashboard?

Power BI Dashboard Example

Data visualization, also known as data exploration or Business Intelligence (BI), is often referred to as dashboarding. The data visualization industry has garnered much attention over recent years because of the easy-to-understand format in which complex data is delivered. Dashboards, in turn, present this complex data in an easy-to-interpret format.

These dashboards allow those viewing them to easily track, analyze, and display KPIs, metrics, and critical data points. A good dashboard helps both technical and non-technical users understand and interpret business intelligence to make more informed business decisions. They can actively participate in the analytics process by compiling data, visualizing trends or occurrences, and uncovering an objective view of performance metrics that can be immediately understood.

As BI has become a priority in the past decade, analytics solutions increasingly support newer options to visualize complex data sets and realize effective data visualization. Today, there are many types of data visualization to show and represent data in a more engaging way, with the exact output dependent on the analytics solution in question.

Make data easier to understand for all
Increase accessibility and collaboration on data points
Create quick overviews of complex numbers

The benefits of using BI dashboards

For many organizations, multiple tools are used to track KPIs and metrics, such as marketing platforms, email platforms, and CRM tools. Monitoring and analyzing the data from each tool individually takes a lot of time and effort to compile. It’s often disjointed and hard to put together, too.

The solution? A data visualization dashboard with a graphical representation of your data.

Dashboards are used for data visualization so that users can glimpse a bird’s eye view of the data from each of their business platforms in one centralized location, gaining the ability to understand what it means for the business quickly. Businesses can also drill down deeper into any aspect of the data with a few clicks. This is great for specific departments to compare year-over KPIs, projections, and more.

Who is Analytics Dashboards and Data Visualization for?

Analytics dashboards and data visualization can be helpful in many different industries and uses. Many in these fields utilize data visualization for business operations and data-driven decision-making:

Financial services
Healthcare
Life sciences
Manufacturing
Media and communications
Public and social impact
Retail and consumer goods
Technology
Transportation
Education
And more

Whether it’s a sales department manager in a media company wanting to make their quarterly KPI report more engaging for executives or a C-suite in finance using visualizations to represent their total investments, data visualization is equally essential.

How Do I Get Started With a Data Visualization Consultation?

Getting started is fast and easy with the experts at WCI.

Start with a Free On-site Discovery Session — During the discovery session, you will meet with a senior data analytics consultant from WCI and share your data challenges and goals with us.
Next, we Review the Proposed Solutions — After the session, we’ll summarize, evaluate, and provide a list of data management solutions and a project outline custom to you.
After that, we start the Solution Development Process — After the agreement is signed, WCI and your team work together to develop the right solution that meets your project goals and supports your business.
Lastly, we move into Training and Support — This is a key stage of our solution and crucial to your data.

Is your business leveraging data to its fullest potential?

Find out by spending half a day with someone who knows data management and can help you answer this question.

At WCI, our data visualization consultants help businesses organize, optimize, and analyze their business data in ways that help them make informed and profitable data-driven decisions. We help you tie together business data from your entire company to better inform and discover opportunities.

Start your data visualization journey today with WCI

Your data speaks volumes in today’s data-driven business landscape – that’s likely why 98% of executives agree it’s essential to increase data analysis (G2) in their organization. It holds immense value, driving decision-making processes and shaping strategic initiatives. However, while executives understand the importance of data literacy, many frontline employees express skepticism about the accuracy and reliability of the data they encounter daily.

Jump to: Checklist – Choosing the Right Data Management Consultant >>>

Despite the widespread recognition of data’s critical role in business success, only a fraction of frontline workers truly trust the data they work with. This disparity highlights the urgent need for organizations to ensure the authenticity and reliability of their data sources. Investing in reliable data management consultants is essential for confidently and accurately steering businesses toward their goals.

_{According to a survey by HBR, 9 out of 10 business leaders emphasize the importance of data literacy for success.}

By harnessing the power of reliable data, organizations can make informed decisions, drive innovation, and achieve their business objectives seamlessly. Explore our guide for businesses seeking data management consultants to learn more about unleashing the full potential of your data.

Ensure You Understand Your Data Management Needs

Embarking on the journey to optimize your data management begins with a simple yet crucial step: understanding your current practices and identifying areas for improvement.

By assessing your data handling, storage, and analysis methods, you lay the foundation for a more efficient and effective data management strategy.

Get Started by Identifying Your Requirements

Start by conducting a self-assessment of your current data management practices. Evaluate how your organization collects, stores, processes, and analyzes data. Identify any bottlenecks, inefficiencies, or gaps in your existing processes. This introspection will help you gain insight into your current data practices and prepare you to engage in meaningful discussions with industry professionals.

Evaluate Where You’re Starting

As you assess your data management practices, pay close attention to any gaps or opportunities for improvement. Take a ‘snapshot’ of your current organization and ask yourself these questions:

Are there areas where your organization needs more expertise or resources?
Are there inefficiencies in your data workflows that could be streamlined for better performance?
Have you identified Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that Matter?

By self-assessing these gaps, opportunities, and milestones you can pinpoint areas where intervention is needed and prioritize initiatives for improvement.

Assess Where You Want To Go

Setting clear objectives is also essential for guiding your data management strategy. Define what success looks like for your organization in terms of data management:

Are you aiming to enhance data security and compliance measures?
Improve data accuracy and reliability?
Enhance data visualization and analytics capabilities?

Setting specific, measurable objectives will provide direction and focus as you optimize your data management processes.

READ: 4 Things You Need to Change About Your Data Strategy

Unlock The Full Potential Of Your Data

Remember, understanding and optimizing your data management needs is just the beginning. While self-assessment is valuable, it’s equally important to approach the process with open hands and a willingness to learn. Engage with industry professionals and data management experts who can offer guidance and expertise tailored to your organization’s unique needs. Together, you can collaboratively develop a data management strategy that drives success and unlocks the full potential of your data assets.

Establish Criteria For Your Ideal Data Management Consultant

Selecting the right data management consultant for your organization requires careful consideration of various factors to ensure alignment with your specific needs and objectives. As you consider the right data management advisors for your business, keep in mind these skills that you’ll want to look for in a partner:

Hard Skills

Expertise and Specialization: Look for analytics consultants with proven proficiency in critical areas of data management, such as data modeling, database design, integration, and analytics. Prioritize candidates with relevant certifications or practical experience aligned with your organization’s requirements.
Industry-Specific Experience: Evaluate consultants based on their familiarity with industry regulations, data standards, and best practices. For example, healthcare organizations should seek consultants well-versed in HIPAA compliance, while finance-related businesses benefit from expertise in regulatory requirements specific to their sector.
Data Security Expertise: Data security is paramount. Choose a consultant with a solid background in data protection, encryption technologies, and risk management strategies. Ensure they can address your security concerns effectively and safeguard sensitive information.

Soft Skills

Communication Skills: Effective communication is critical for translating technical concepts into layperson’s terms and ensuring project requirements are understood by all stakeholders. Seek consultants who excel in articulating complex ideas and fostering open dialogue. Presentation skills are desirable.
Problem-Solving Abilities: Look for consultants with strong analytical skills and a proactive approach to identifying and addressing data management challenges and opportunities. They should be adept at devising creative solutions and optimizing data processes.
Adaptability: Prioritize consultants willing to learn and adapt to new tools and practices in the ever-evolving data landscape. Their ability to stay updated ensures your strategies remain relevant and practical.
Team Compatibility: Assess analytics consultants based on their ability to integrate seamlessly with your existing team. Look for individuals who demonstrate empathy, understanding, and a collaborative mindset to foster a harmonious working environment.

Reputation

Client Testimonials and References: Seek feedback from previous clients to gauge the consultant’s effectiveness, reliability, and customer experience. Testimonials can also offer insight into their working style and project success.
Professional Accolades: Consider any awards, certifications, or recognitions received by the consultant, indicating their professional standing and expertise.
Online Presence and Thought Leadership: Evaluate their online presence, including published articles, blog posts, and participation in industry forums, which reflect their commitment to sharing knowledge and staying updated.
Ethical Standards: Choose a consultant who upholds professional ethics and data management best practices, ensuring confidentiality and integrity in handling data.

Considering these criteria, you can confidently select a data management consultant who meets your organization’s needs and contributes to its success.

Ask The Right Questions

Now that you know what to look for in your candidate, it’s time to talk with your potential data management experts. Asking the right questions will help you better gauge who is the right fit for you from the qualified candidates.

What is the cost model? Is it based on time and materials or a fixed fee?
What is the timeframe for the engagement? And what are the expected deliverables from the management service provider?
What are the phases (discovery, solution development, testing, etc.) to expect during the engagement? What is the duration of each phase?
Does the project require ongoing maintenance and support? Who will be responsible for this?

Establish A Selection Process

You’ll likely end up with a few potential consultants who feel like they could work well with your team. The final step before deciding is getting proposals and formal interviews set up with these teams. Here is what we recommend:

Request for Proposal (RFP) Process: As you get farther along in your selection process, you’ll want to start gathering proposals from your top candidates – and ensuring you have a process for this can streamline efforts. We recommend creating an outline you can share with consultants that details what services you need and invite them to submit a proposal based on those.
Interviewing Candidates: You’ll also want to schedule formal interviews with your candidates to ask them any outstanding questions and assess their expertise and compatibility. During this interview, you’ll have the opportunity to see how each consultant interacts and their approach to collaboration.
Evaluating Proposals: Once you receive back the proposals, you’ll need to compare one to the next. But how? We recommend considering key factors like strategy and approach to data management, overall cost, and services scoped for your business.

Make the Final Decision

Once you’ve received proposals from data management advisors and compared costs and strategies, it’s time to decide. While cost is important, conducting a thorough cost vs. value analysis is crucial. Look beyond the price tag and consider the value each consultant will bring to your organization. Evaluate their expertise, industry-specific experience, and ability to address your unique needs and challenges.

Additionally, consider starting with a trial project or evaluation phase to assess the data management experts’ effectiveness before committing to a long-term contract. This initial step allows you to gauge their capabilities firsthand and ensure they fit your organization’s data management needs. By prioritizing value and exploring trial projects, you can make a confident decision that aligns with your organization’s objectives.

The WCI Approach To Helping You Understand Your Data

Leading a client through a data management implementation is not just about orchestrating technology; it’s about guiding them on a transformation journey, ensuring their data becomes a strategic asset, unlocking insights, driving innovation, and ultimately empowering informed decision-making to fuel their success in a data-driven world.

Are you ready to take your data management consulting to the next level with technical expertise that supports your business goals? Connect with our experts to learn more.

Checklist – Choosing the Right Data Management Consultant

Download Checklist

Understanding Your Data Management Needs

Conduct a self-assessment of current data management practices.
Identify bottlenecks, inefficiencies, or gaps in data collection, storage, processing, and analysis.
Evaluate areas requiring more expertise or resources.
Set clear objectives for data management improvement (e.g., enhance data security, improve accuracy, enhance analytics capabilities).

Establishing Criteria for Your Ideal Data Management Consultant

Hard Skills

Expertise in data modeling, database design, integration, and analytics.
Industry-specific experience and knowledge of regulations.
Strong background in data security and protection technologies.

Soft Skills

Excellent communication skills for translating technical concepts.
Problem-solving abilities and creative thinking.
Adaptability to new tools and practices in data management.
Compatibility with your existing team for a collaborative work environment.

Reputation

Check for client testimonials and references.
Look for professional accolades, certifications, or recognitions.
Evaluate their online presence, thought leadership (articles, blog posts, industry forums).
Ensure they adhere to professional ethics and best practices in data management.

Asking the Right Questions

Inquire about the cost model (time/materials vs. fixed fee).
Ask about the engagement timeframe and deliverables.
Understand the project phases (discovery, solution development, testing, etc.) and their durations.
Discuss ongoing maintenance and support responsibilities.

Establishing a Selection Process

Initiate a Request for Proposal (RFP) process for gathering proposals.
Schedule formal interviews with potential consultants.
Evaluate proposals based on strategy, cost, and scoped services.

Making the Final Decision

Conduct a cost vs. value analysis, prioritizing value each consultant brings.
Consider starting with a trial project to assess compatibility and effectiveness.
Make an informed decision based on expertise, experience, and ability to meet your needs.

Taking Your Data Management to the Next Level

Engage with experts to transform your data into a strategic asset.
Explore ways to unlock insights, drive innovation, and empower informed decision-making.

In the ever-evolving landscape of cloud computing, choosing the right platform for your business’s data management needs is critical. Microsoft Azure, a prominent cloud service player, offers a compelling suite of tools and services for cloud data management. But is it the right fit for your organization?

Learn more as we delve into the pros and cons of Azure for cloud data management, providing valuable insights to help you make an informed choice that aligns with your business objectives.

What is Azure?

Microsoft Azure is a versatile cloud computing platform developed by Microsoft, renowned for its widespread adoption across the industry. As a robust cloud service for businesses of all sizes, Azure offers a comprehensive range of computing, storage, databases, networking, and more services.

With its global network of data centers, Azure services enable organizations to build, deploy, and manage applications and services in a highly scalable and secure environment, making it a go-to choice for businesses seeking reliable cloud solutions to fuel their digital transformation journeys.

Why Consider Azure for Cloud Data Management? (The Pros)

Scalability and Flexibility

One of the key advantages of considering Azure for cloud data management is its exceptional scalability and flexibility. Microsoft Azure services empower businesses to effortlessly scale their resources up or down in response to changing demand, ensuring optimal performance without overprovisioning. This dynamic scaling capability enhances efficiency and translates into significant cost savings by eliminating the need for constant, costly infrastructure adjustments.

With Azure’s flexible approach, organizations can seamlessly adapt to evolving data requirements, maintaining a competitive edge in an ever-changing landscape.

Global Reach and Availability

Another compelling reason to consider Azure for cloud data management is its impressive global reach and availability. Azure boasts an expansive network of data centers strategically positioned worldwide, enabling businesses to serve their customers and users with unparalleled speed and reliability. This widespread presence minimizes latency, ensuring that data and applications are accessible swiftly from virtually anywhere on the globe.

This translates to improved performance and enhanced reliability for global enterprises, fostering a seamless and responsive user experience. Azure’s global infrastructure empowers businesses to expand their reach effortlessly, capturing new markets and maintaining a competitive edge in today’s interconnected world.

You can store and recover vital company data.

When it comes to storing and recovering vital data, Azure excels as a cloud computing platform. At its core, Azure offers robust data storage solutions that allow businesses to store their critical information on Azure’s online servers securely. Its adaptability to cater to your specific business needs sets Azure’s cloud services apart.

With Azure’s storage capabilities, you can choose from various options such as Blob Storage, File Storage, and Azure SQL Database, tailoring your data storage strategy to align perfectly with your requirements. This flexibility allows you to decide when and how you access your data, ensuring that it suits your business’s operational and cost considerations.

Comprehensive Security Features

Azure’s commitment to security is a fundamental reason businesses turn to it for their private cloud data management needs. Azure provides a multi-layered security approach encompassing encryption, identity management, threat detection, and regulatory compliance, ensuring comprehensive protection for your data.

Encryption

Azure employs encryption at rest and in transit to safeguard data. Data stored in Azure is automatically encrypted, and Azure Key Vault allows you to manage and control access to encryption keys. This ensures that the data remains unreadable even if unauthorized access occurs without the proper encryption keys.

Identity Management

Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) is a robust identity and access management solution that enables businesses to manage user identities and control access to resources. Multi-factor authentication and conditional access policies add an extra layer of security to verify user identities and ensure that only authorized individuals can access sensitive data.

Threat Detection

Azure Security Center provides advanced threat detection and protection. It continuously monitors your Azure resources, detects potential threats and vulnerabilities, and offers recommendations for remediation. It can even help you respond to security incidents effectively.

Regulatory Compliance

Azure offers a wide range of compliance certifications, including GDPR, HIPAA, SOC 2, and more. These certifications demonstrate Azure’s adherence to industry-specific regulations, making it easier for businesses to meet compliance requirements without the need for extensive, costly audits. Azure also provides compliance guides and tools to help businesses understand and implement compliance controls.

Cost-Effective Solutions

Cloud migration service providers require a much smaller investment when developing and maintaining your IT infrastructure. With a cloud environment such as Azure, you do not need to cover hardware and maintenance costs. Instead, you only pay for what you use and when you use it.

Advanced Analytics and AI Capabilities

Azure offers a rich ecosystem of tools and services for data analytics, machine learning, and artificial intelligence (AI), empowering businesses to extract valuable insights from their data and make data-driven decisions.

Here are some key capabilities and examples of how businesses can leverage them:

Azure Synapse Analytics: This powerful analytics service allows businesses to analyze large volumes of data in real time. For example, an e-commerce company can use Synapse Analytics to analyze customer behavior data to identify trends, optimize product recommendations, and enhance the customer shopping experience.
Azure Machine Learning: Azure provides a comprehensive platform for building, training, and deploying machine learning models. In healthcare, organizations can leverage Azure Machine Learning to develop predictive models that identify patient readmission risks, helping hospitals allocate resources more efficiently and improve patient outcomes.
Azure Databricks: Businesses can use Databricks to process big data and perform advanced analytics. For instance, a financial institution can use Databricks to detect fraudulent transactions by analyzing large datasets for unusual patterns or anomalies.
Azure Data Factory: This service simplifies data integration and transformation processes. A manufacturing company can use Data Factory to consolidate data from various sources, perform data cleansing, and create a unified, reliable dataset for better production planning and optimization.

Considerations and Potential Drawbacks (The Cons)

Learning Curve

Transitioning to Azure does come with its set of challenges. One significant consideration is the potential need for staff training, particularly for those who may not be familiar with the platform. This learning curve can be a hurdle for organizations aiming to make a seamless migration to Azure.

Azure Consultants

As a trusted partner in your cloud journey, WCI can play a pivotal role in helping your organization overcome this obstacle. By offering comprehensive training programs and resources tailored to Azure, WCI can equip your staff with the knowledge and skills to navigate and utilize the Azure environment effectively. This support ensures that your team is prepared to maximize the benefits of Azure while minimizing any disruptions during the migration process.

It’s also important to note that Azure’s complexity requires expertise and ongoing management to ensure all components work harmoniously. This means that businesses may need to invest in or partner with professionals who possess Azure-specific skills to configure, optimize, and secure their Azure deployments. This expertise is crucial to maintain your cloud infrastructure’s stability, security, and efficiency over time.

Requires Ongoing Management Or Azure Data Platform Consulting

While Azure allows you to lower costs for purchasing hardware and locally maintaining infrastructure, it still needs you to handle data management. It does not assist in managing cloud-based data centers, so you will still need to hire people who know how to use Microsoft Azure and can handle server monitoring and patching.

Migrating to Azure

Partnering with WCI as your trusted experts in Azure Consulting helps you navigate the complexities of the Azure platform and unlock the full potential of cloud technology for your business. Learn more about our tailored Azure solutions, training, and ongoing support to ensure a seamless experience. Focus on what matters most—driving innovation and growth.

Get Started Today

The experts at WCI can help your organization determine if Microsoft Azure is the right cloud solution for your business or if other hybrid solutions would better suit you. Learn more about the pros and cons of using Microsoft Azure by requesting a free consultation today!

Choose WCI as your strategic ally in the Azure journey, and let us empower your business for success in the cloud era.

In the world of business marketing, data is everywhere and should be leveraged in all plans and strategies. From customer data and trends to industry benchmarks and more, these different data points and sources allow businesses to understand better where they are and create a plan for where they want to be. While capturing as much information as possible can be tempting, you won’t get far without the right strategies to properly understand and effectively use this data.

Brands often struggle to use data meaningfully if data isn’t structured for analysis or if no marketing data-driven strategy is in place. Reviewing data alone does not lead to actionable insight or usable roadmaps for a company’s next steps. And while it requires analysis to become information and further context to become insight, together, it can tell a compelling story that can lead to strategic change.

With the right tools, people, and support in place, this can be a reality for your business.

3 Components of a Data-Driven Strategy

Marketing analytics is the practice of using data to evaluate the effectiveness and success of marketing activities. That data must be collected, analyzed, and reported to understand how it fits the overarching business strategy and goals. This data can also be used to measure the effectiveness of marketing campaigns, track customer behavior, optimize marketing strategies, and more.

Tracking key metrics and analyzing the data can identify trends and patterns that indicate what’s working and what’s not in any industry. You can then use this information to tweak your marketing strategy and achieve better results. But you must develop a solid marketing analytics strategy to improve your marketing effectiveness. This will allow you to collect accurate and timely data, analyze it for insights, and take action based on those insights.

1. Data insight

A successful data strategy transforms a company’s data into informative insights and financial gains — but it shouldn’t stop with simple reports and charts. If you want to make effective decisions for your business, big data analytics must be considered in everything you do. This is where marketing analytics comes in.

Without data insights to create meaningful conclusions, businesses’ guesses of what customers want, how they will grow, and so much more is simply that – a guess. Data insights allow you to see trends, predict future patterns, understand your customers, and paint a larger picture of your business. Data also allows you to track progress and adjust accordingly, so you always know what tweaks and changes within the company are impacting your bottom line.

2. Data management

Once you have the data insights, you have to collect and manage them somewhere. Having a data analytics and business intelligence expert on your team can help you know what to do with this information, but that in-house person doesn’t exist for many businesses. Cue a data management consultant partner you can trust.

Working with a consulting partner to help you leverage the power of your data is crucial in getting the most out of all of the customer marks you’re collecting. And with security a top concern for many businesses, storing that data safely is just as important as gathering it.

At WCI, we help businesses organize, optimize, and analyze their data to make more informed and profitable data-driven decisions. Learn more about how WCI works with companies to manage, collect, and store data.

3. Team Enablement

You have the data. You’ve stored the data. Now you’re ready to analyze and share the findings with your team. When used effectively, data can unleash new potential for any business. But what happens when your team can’t access or interpret it? Your data is only valuable when technical expertise can use it to improve your organization and profit.

Team enablement is part of our process at WCI, as we walk teams through training sessions that help them get the most out of sharing their data and analytics in one centralized place. Vital training for you and your team helps ensure the technology you’re using gets adopted into your workflow and you get the most out of your new solution and data findings.

Building a Data-Driven Strategy

A data strategy is paramount to success and must be implemented to maximize your business intelligence. With a marketing strategy that considers data and how to use it, organizing can drive more leads, discover better opportunities, make smarter decisions, create a better company culture, provide more value to customers and employees, and so much more. These insights can completely transform the way a business operates for the better.

Feel Empowered to make Data-Driven Decisions

You can leverage analytics in your overall marketing strategy and business growth plans by compiling your data and an experienced team of experts who know how to make the most of it.

At WCI, we are data management consultants that help businesses organize, optimize, and analyze their business data to make more informed and profitable data-driven decisions. In addition, we help you better tie together business data from your entire company to stay better informed and discover opportunities. Get a free on-site discovery session with our team today. Click here to see other clients that WCI has helped.

As organizations continue to adopt agile and lean methodologies, business intelligence has become a critical component in optimizing data management strategies that provide valuable insights for informed decision-making.

In today’s world, very few organizations aren’t leveraging the power of agile and lean methods within some of their software development teams. Not only is agile popular amongst IT departments it’s being applied, but agile is being incorporated into all aspects of many businesses. This trend began in 2001 and has steadily grown since then.

Data Management is a crucial process component, and it promotes a pragmatic, streamlined approach to data management that fits into the rest of an IT process. Consequently, there is a need to optimize a Data Management strategy within the overall workflow of organizational processes. Disciplined Agile Data Management does just that evolutionarily and collaboratively, offering concrete data management strategies that provide the right data to the right people at the right time.

What is an agile mindset?

At the basic level, Agile refers to continuous and incremental improvement through small and frequent releases. The term Agile data is commonly associated with software development as a project management methodology and breaks down large projects into weekly “sprints.”

Rather than forming a business intelligence strategy that you plan to roll out in six months, an agile approach would break down those 6 months’ worth of work and organize them into weekly lists of tasks to build on. These short increments are often referred to as sprints.

An agile mindset allows for constant feedback from your business staff and creates shorter development cycles. If one aspect is not meeting the business need, it can be identified and remedied quickly before spending too much time and effort on something that doesn’t work. If you use an agile approach, the collaboration will be at the core of your team’s work to ensure the deliverables are met. As a result, you’ll be able to see results quickly and gain momentum in your overall business intelligence strategy versus other traditional approaches.

An agile data mindset emphasizes the following:

Open collaboration, both within the product team and with stakeholders
Rapid iteration that delivers small incremental usable items of value
Continuous inspection and improvement to improve the team’s velocity over time
Empowering the department team to self-manage

Key Factors in Adopting an agile mindset for BI

1. Keep your eyes on the big picture

You may have an immediate problem that you need to solve and want to use BI to get there. This may work as a short-term solution. However, you may also find that you put a lot of time and energy into addressing one issue, only to find that it will not help with future problems.

Part of your business intelligence strategy should focus on solutions that can answer many questions over time. In addition, your business intelligence should be adaptable as your company grows and goals change.

Most importantly, your business intelligence should align with your overall business strategy. Whether you are looking to improve operations, increase sales, or provide more efficient service to your customers, your business intelligence analytics should be able to identify the relevant data for your goals.

2. Involve the right people

No matter the size of your business intelligence team, you need to involve a group willing to put changes into practice.

Your team should include several roles:

People who are experts at using tools to retrieve and display data
People with the right insights to interpret the data
People who can support the organization by putting the data into practice

Your organization may need training across multiple departments. Your business staff has to understand that the data will help them make better business decisions. If you maintain a strong relationship between your business staff and your business intelligence team, you will have the most success from your business intelligence strategy.

Depending on the size of your organization, some of these roles may overlap, or you may also find that you need outside business intelligence consulting.

3. Identify the pain points

You may have business staff that already know what data they need to make informed decisions within their departments. They may be manually compiling data in Excel or preparing reports independently. Unless this is brought to the attention of the business intelligence team, no improvements can be made. The BI team should talk with leaders within each department and find out what questions exist today and how BI solutions can help.

If the “workarounds” that staff use are needed for their jobs or part of overall company goals, they should be implemented into the BI strategy. These one-off methods can be replaced with more robust analytics and reporting.

Successful implement and optimize BI Solutions

Incorporating agile into your organization’s practice may sound challenging, but getting started may be easier than you think. The first step is reviewing your current process and identifying how to break down large projects into smaller ones. Next, review the team and roles that support each task and begin scheduling weekly meetings to keep everyone on the same page.

As each project progresses, an agile approach allows you the flexibility to adjust, change course, and optimize at all stages as you need. Export support can also help make agile a reality for your team.

Get the right business intelligence experts in your corner

Our team of BI experts at WCI will design and develop systems to help you leverage the power of your data:

Stay proactive using real-time data
Empower your team with easy-to-use dashboards
Access your data anywhere with mobile intelligence solutions
Make smarter decisions with predictive data models
Stay productive with fewer interruptions and quicker answers
All on the best platforms and technology for you (including cloud business intelligence on AWS, Azure, Power BI, and more…)

Get started today

WCI is a business intelligence consulting company with a team of experts based 100% in the USA. If you’re ready to implement agile and begin working smarter, WCI is here to help. Talk with our experts today to learn more.

Data is the most powerful tool a business can use to assess how its performance is doing, predict upcoming trends, and benchmark goals for the future. Business intelligence dashboards help companies interpret this often complex data and use it to forward their business.

While dashboards make it easy for a company to visualize its data by displaying metrics, graphs, gauges, maps, percentages, and comparisons of all the information streaming in and out of the company, being creative with how one leverages these numbers can be a challenge. By viewing data in new and innovative ways, companies can better understand where they stand and how to improve certain areas of the business.

We’re sharing 6 ways you can get started in this department.

1. Monitor metrics and KPIs from different departments

By using BI dashboards to assess metrics and KPIs across your entire business, you can better understand where opportunities for improvement exist. Siloed data can be hard to connect to other departments – but BI helps you see how everything is connected and plays into different areas.

Better understand the entire lifecycle of products, customer journeys, and more from start to finish with BI dashboards and connect the dots across all departments. Not only does your business better understand its customers and products, but you can cultivate more collaboration within your company in the same breath.

2. Use interactive filters

Interactive dashboards ensure the analysis experience is as efficient and intuitive as possible for anyone interpreting data. Static dashboards are no longer efficient to use. When building interactive dashboards, always keep interactivity in mind. This can be achieved using various filters that make your data easier to navigate and view.

Some common interactivity filters that you may want to try include the following:

Drill-downs: A drill-down filter allows you to visualize lower levels of hierarchical data all in one chart. The value of drill-downs lies in the fact that you don’t need to overcrowd your dashboards to get a more detailed view; you can do everything in one single chart.
Drill-through: Similar to a drill-down, a drill-through filter allows you to visualize additional, more detailed views about a specific KPI. The difference is that a drill-through will show you the additional data in a pop-up instead of the same chart.
Click-to-filter: Another useful filter to enhance interactivity is the click-to-filter. As its name suggests, to use this filter, all you need to do is click on a specific graph, and the entire dashboard will be filtered based on it. Applying it lets you explore your data and instantly extract deeper understandings.

The Linking feature allows you to use elements within a report (a table or chart) to act as input controls for a selection performed in another component (a table, chart, or the entire report). In addition, you can specify whether one or all of the element dimensions will be used as selectors.

3. Explore demographics and trends

Demographics and trends can be critical in simplifying complex data using charts, maps, infographics, and graphs. These visual data representations of things you may not immediately notice are that strictly numbers and text reports can be highly revealing. As a result, it becomes easier to detect trends, patterns, and data relations essential for decision-making. Leverage this real-time data to unveil actionable insights and visually represent trends that can change how your company is doing things for the better.

4. Use storytelling

While storytelling is a powerful best practice any business can use, regardless of industry or sector, it is particularly helpful when interpreting data. A compelling narrative will capture your audience’s attention and break down your findings in an inspirational and digestible way. In addition, storytelling with BI can show you new information about your customers and community you didn’t already know.

This approach will result in increased success across the board. Not only can you see trends and patterns within your data, but storytelling using a larger narrative can paint the big picture, which may help you visualize larger metrics, set long-term goals, and more.

5. Make data part of your everyday workflow

Creating a culture of using data and making decisions solely based on it will strongly encourage employees to use advanced BI solutions daily. Spreading data culture will help workers be aware of – and understand – BI products and their features. And they are then more likely to use these products effectively every day.

A company can also appoint a specific team to play the role of early adopters who can later share their knowledge and experiences with their peers on forums and in training. Announcing a successful BI project may also kindle other teams’ enthusiasm for new data solutions. Setting up a website for communication purposes can inform the rest of the staff and be part of a training program to help get them started with their BI-powered projects.

6. See a different perspective and discover new insights

Business intelligence dashboards come in different forms and cover various topics based on your industry. With an increasing number of chart types and more and more data being visualized, the possibilities of how the data can be displayed and the stories they can tell us are virtually endless. Finding a system that works for your needs and abilities is key.

Start getting creative with your data

At WCI, our business intelligence consulting helps companies organize, optimize, and analyze their business data to make more informed and profitable data-driven decisions. If you’re ready to tie together business data from your entire company to inform you better and discover opportunities, we’re here to help.

Get started today with our experts.