The Five Benefits of Data Visualization

What is (big) Data Visualization?

Data visualization is a graphical representation of data and information. By using visual elements such as graphs, charts and maps, (Big) Data visualization tools can provide an approachable way to foresee and understand trends and patterns in data. They help us to group and organize data based on categories and themes, making it easier to break down and understand. In the world of (Big) Data, data visualization tools and technologies are crucial to analyze large amounts of information in order to make data driven decisions.
 

1. Unlocking key values
   First of all, data visualization ensures that key values can be unlocked from massive sets of data. Large amounts of data in particular can be overwhelming and difficult to wrap our heads around. Data visualization helps with this by making the key values of the data clear and easily visible. This makes it easy to understand and interpret for everyone in the organization.
   
   
2. Identify patterns
   Second, data visualization unlocks previously invisible patterns. These emergent properties in the data can generate valuable insights that could not have been discovered before. Visualization allows business users to recognize relationships and patterns between data, and also gives it greater meaning. By exploring these patterns, users can focus on specific areas that need attention, and determine the importance of these areas to move their business forward.
   
   
3. Easy to understand
   The aim is to tell a good story by translating the data into a form that is easy to understand for everyone. Useful information is highlighted and the noise is eliminated from the data.
   
   
4. More attractive and user engaged
   This attractiveness is achieved by using visually appealing ways of presenting data and adhering to design best practices. Next level visualizations present data sensibly by using the most appropriate chart and formatting options. In addition, elegant transitions facilitate an attractive and smooth way of moving between different points in the storyline of a visualization. This will increase a user's engagement with the visualization, thus facilitating quick interpretation and understanding. As a result, the message resonates strongly with the audience.
   
   However, it is not as simple as taking the data and placing it in a graph and making it look better. It's a balance between form and function. A plain graph can be boring and fail to make a point; the most impressive visualization could distract from the data or it could speak volumes. It is important to realize that visuals and data have to work together to convey a message.
   
   
5. Display complex relationships
   Standard visuals, such as bar charts or line graphs, are often not sufficient when presenting complex relationships. A dataset with over a million distinct data points, for example, can hardly ever be presented in a standard manner. In that case, a visual that allows for interactive hierarchies and exploration is a much better option. The interactivity of a data visualization can facilitate next level data exploration that matches a user's specific needs.

One of the major challenges of data visualization is that many organizations do not have the in house knowledge or capacity to extract the data they have and visualize it in a clear way. The result is that it becomes hard to see correlations and relationships that are not already known, whereas that is the primary benefit of effective data visualization.

How can we, as Deloitte, help you with Data Visualization?

To ensure that organizations do not miss out on opportunities derived from these insights, our service offering Technology Operate gives you a solution. Technology Operate is part of Deloitte's service line, Business Process Solutions (BPS). BPS has IT, financial, accounting/reporting and project management experts. This gives us a better understanding of your organization’s situation and enables us to find the best solution for your business. Our Technology Operate team has experience in interpreting (Big) Data into standardized and structured reports in the form of visually appealing, easily usable and interactive dashboards. These dashboards can process real time data, making sure your organization’s insights remain accurate and relevant.

Our Technology Operate experts will make sure that the way the data is visualized clearly reflects the purpose of the underlying insights. We believe this to be a prime element of a good dashboard. For example, a graph that is perfect for discovering correlations often proves insufficient to signal trends and vice versa. Our expertise in data visualization results in an ideal tool that gives you proper insight into your organization’s most relevant management information. These insights also lend themselves perfectly to commercial purposes, such as sales pitches, due to their visual attractiveness.

Would you like to know more about what Technology Operate can do for you? Click here.