Communicating data for decision-making doesn’t just require business understanding and technical knowledge; it also requires courage.
Count how many times the number 3 appears in the first image.
And now count again in the second image.
This exercise was originally designed to illustrate the importance of accessibility.
Our brain is cognitively efficient and receives a clear message that some data is more important than others, so it ignores the numbers in grey.
This is how data should be presented for decision-making: emphasize only what is important.
But then I asked: "What if I'm wrong?"
What if I emphasize a certain piece of data that is not important to the audience?
What if I present data to management and don't interpret it correctly? Maybe they want to see something else, differently?
Because of the fear of making a mistake, we might prefer to present data without any message or story, letting the audience choose whatever story they want.
So, I decided to add another grey 3, one that we don’t see and put it on the table - clear and proud.
We have two options:
Either we dump all the data without choosing what’s important, without recommendations, without a message, minimizing the risk of making a mistake.
Or
We decide on the interesting story we want to tell, bring recommendations, be proactive, drive action, and influence - and probably we will make mistakes.
You can't make data accessible without making mistakes.
That’s how it is.
No big deal.
Count how many times the number 3 appears
And now?
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