BY: Terrence McKenzie
Whether you're a business, chemistry, math, or physics major, making presentations will be an important part of your career and it is very important that you are able to make great presentations. Charts are very important when displaying data and information when making a presentation. The use of charts allows one to visualize different data sets in a graphical view. The use of graphs aids the general understanding of the data that is being displayed. Charts show patterns and relations between data. As the data used to make the chart is changed/updated, the corresponding chart is automatically updated.
I use to believe that converting data to different charts was such an easy concept that everyone understood how to do it, but I quickly found this untrue during my first internship. Some of the younger professionals at the company didn't understand how much of an asset having organized and comprehensible charts to accompany their presentations were. Many people would just spit out numbers and patterns without any visual representations. This would lose the attention of the audience and therefore, the audience would miss the overall purpose of the presentation.
The link below further discusses the importance of charts when making presentations as well as a detailed discussion of when to use each type of chart.
http://aaude.org/system/files/documents/public/strategy-institute-handout-final.pdf
In order to have a successful chart, you must know the message you want to convey to your audience, as this dictates the type of chart you will use. You must choose a style catered to your data and purpose. Next, you must choose a good color scheme that will grab your audience's attention, but not distract them. Lastly, you should review your chart and make final revisions.
Aesthetics can be make or break in someones presentation. I think being able to show your boss or potential investor organized charts with useful data has the ability to better influence how one interprets information. Charts allow people to see how exactly their money is being spent. It organizes the data in a way that is much easier on the eyes. Instead of looking at long sheets of number charts and graphs effectively summarize this information.
ReplyDeleteMr. Clagette I agree with your position. It is in everyone's best interest to have a presentation that articulates itself with little explanation. Charts allow the audience to have a visual representation, which is crucial to today's changing business environment.
DeleteThis article caught my eye because I have recently internalized this lesson. I presented an idea for an app at school and my peers would keep stressing the point of visuals in practice. Once I implemented visuals into the presentation it improved the overall flow and communication. I think this is a good point to take away in general. It could be used as a personal learning tool as well, especially in areas like statistics, accounting, chemistry, and much more.
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Terrence! It's almost funny how shallow people are. It is argued that the average adult has a lower attention span than a goldfish (average: 8 seconds)! As we are an up-and-coming "instant gratification" generation, the use of visuals in a presentation will become more and more significant as years go on and technology advances. Maybe a segment on presenting visuals effectively in microsoft powerpoint/ prezi in this class would be helpful in light of this growing reality...
ReplyDeleteMore on our attention span and how our brain takes in information:
http://blog.videofruit.com/if-quicksprout/
I believe charts are interesting. It was funny if you watch the show the boondocks. In one episode "The Chicken Flu" they made fun of CNN. An outbreak in chicken arose and they claimed that millions of fatalities had occurred. Because the chart was on the screen so many people believed the words the anchor was saying. It later turned out that there was no Flu outbreak and it was just salmonella. It just goes to show you how gullible we are and how much we trust the information when its presented with charts and statistics. In my opinion, it is both a good and bad thing.
ReplyDeleteMarch 31st post