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Data visualization influences how users consume information

Information Management Special Reports, July 14, 2009, Robert Kearse

In today's organizations, one of upper management's main goals is to maintain a steady process that provides decision-makers with access to critical business information aligned with corporate objectives. Success in any organization hinges on proper access to this information - not as an annual, quarterly, monthly or even weekly event; but as an ongoing, consistent and standard process that allows information to be readily available to decision-makers on demand. Dashboards and scorecards provide organizations with the ability to monitor performance in relation to goals, obtain status information and identify trends using straightforward metrics or key performance indicators. Business intelligence the skills, technologies, applications and practices that are used to help an organization acquire a more thorough understanding of its commercial context - can provide a historical and a current and predictive view of business operations. When BI implementations fail to convey or inform a decision-maker because the information presented is unclear, it leads to additional time spent getting insight into performance - or even to an incorrect decision made because of an inaccurate interpretation of data.

Common pitfalls can be avoided when designing and deploying a BI solution; likewise, key concepts should be used within a BI user interface to help make a user's experience more productive. By avoiding these pitfalls and following the recommended design principles, an organization can design a BI solution that will deliver a visual environment abounding with information. This information should be able to be easily interpreted while also providing KPIs, status checks and trends relating to organizational objectives and strategies. A well-designed BI interface enables management to interpret considerable amounts of information in a short time to make business decisions promptly and with confidence.

Pitfall #1: Too Much BI Information Presented

Pitfall #2: Ineffective Use of Measurements

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