Have you ever seen your co-worker’s eyes glaze over while discussing the latest report you created? Do you find that you’re interrupted or ignored whenever you have something to present?
It’s possible that your data isn’t the problem. Maybe it’s your presentation that needs work.
Today’s top Business analysts aren’t just great with numbers and data; they’re great with presentations. They know how to take their Information and package it in a way that engages their teams.
Here’s why having math skills alone won’t cut it in the world of business intelligence, and why being able to tell stories is equally important.
There’s no doubt that more companies are starting to see the value in business analysis and data management. More than 75 percent of enterprises believe that big data analysis has the power to change the way they do business, and 53 percent say making their business decisions more data-driven is one of their top goals today, Louis Columbus writes on Forbes.
However, investing in big data is only the first part of the equation. The second (and arguably harder) part is creating a culture driven by data.
Lisa Morgan talks about this second half of the equation in InformationWeek. Despite the fact that investment in businesses intelligence and analytics tools is increasing, organizations aren’t necessarily getting the most out of them to make better business decisions. This is either because the BI team isn’t able to visualize and tell a story that can motivate change, or management isn’t taking steps for change after they receive new Information.
The solution to both of these problems lies in training: Not only do BI teams need to be trained on the analytics tools the company has invested in, but they also need to learn how to weave them into a narrative.
Brent Dykes, director of data strategy at Domo, says people only hear statistics — but they feel stories.
Despite this, Dykes has found that universities are failing to teach students to present data in a way that moves others to action. Today’s graduates are leaving with strong mathematics and data manipulation skills, but they’re faltering in the “last mile” of presentation.
While this might not immediately affect their hiring prospects, storytelling is becoming a crucial skill to lobby for additional resources and get noticed by the company.
“No matter what your functional area of expertise may be, learning to write well and confidently present your ideas will set you apart,” Joe Staples writes at Fast Company.
Think about the hundreds of emails the average CEO receives daily and the dozens of presentation they sit through. If you can’t articulate the information you find in an interesting and memorable way, then you won’t get noticed and will struggle to enact change within your organization.
To understand why data alone isn’t enough for business analysts to excel, you have to understand how the human brain works.
“If you think about most big topics, people are not persuaded by logic,” writes Dr. Rob Yeung, author of How to Stand Out: Proven Tactics for Getting Noticed. “Most people in the Western world know that smoking cigarettes is bad for you and understand the principles of weight loss. But that’s not enough to motivate them to change. People do not listen to facts. You need an emotional angle.”
Furthermore, neuroscientists have found that people who cannot process emotions struggle to make decisions, proving that emotional pull plays a role in our decision-making.
You might find that these emotions are the main barriers to changing minds, especially if it means a higher-level manager needs to set aside their pride and admit they were wrong. In this case, you’re not only using storytelling to sell your data, but you’re using human traits like empathy and understanding.
