1 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Competitive
Analysis Techniques Choosing the right visual tools for CI and
decision-making
Slide 2
2 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 This presentation
shall help the audience understand the value of visualisation tools
and methods towards world class competitive intelligence. Examples
used will show the importance of choosing the right tools for
specific analysis techniques or business requirements. Main thrust
and focus of the presentation After this presentation, competitive
intelligence practitioners should gain or benefit: Tools: Choose
the most appropriate visualisation tools available to assist in
decision making and how to adapt depending on the decision maker or
audience Examples: Identify what can be drawn or expanded from
different visualisation tools Guide on how to evaluate and
critically compare the pros and the cons of different visualisation
tools used for analysis Three specific take- aways audience can be
guaranteed to get from this session Objectives of the
presentation
Slide 3
3 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Fundamental rules
for good visualizationChoosing the right visualization tool Key
mistakes to avoidSome powerful visualizations Outline of the
presentation
Slide 4
4 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 FUNDAMENTAL RULES
FOR GOOD VISUALIZATION
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5 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Rule No.1: Know
your target audience and customize accordingly When compiling a
report, it is always critical to know your audience and what will
this information be used for Are you talking to: your senior
executive management (strategic level), your middle management
(tactical level) or the general workforce (operational level
employees)? Are you attending: a financial workshop, a sales
conference, an engineering seminar? Visualization Think about the
message that you are trying to convey Don't try to do everything
with one visualization Emphasize what you are trying to say to the
audience, and don't bury the key messages in a mass of detail
Different audiences may need different visualizations Different
people want to see different things Use thorough labelling when
needed but remember that the graphic should speak for itself
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6 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Rule No.2:
Accurately represent the data "The representation of numbers as
physically measured on the surface of the graphic itself should be
directly proportional to the numerical quantities represented"
Clear, detailed and thorough labelling should be used. Write out
explanations of the data on the graphic itself, and label important
events in the data. The visualization should show the underlying
data without distortion.
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7 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Rule No.3: Keep it
clear "The purpose of visualization is insight, not pictures"
(Schneiderman) The graphic should focus on the message(s) for the
audience, and all visual clutter kept to a minimum Remove
unnecessary non-data related information ("will this visualization
suffer any loss of meaning or impact for the audience if this
element is taken out?")
Slide 8
8 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 CHOOSING THE RIGHT
VISUALIZATION
Slide 9
9 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Bar chart One
parameter (value, can be positive or negative, but ideally not to
much spread between values, no rule of what a reasonable spread
would be) Allows for comparison amongst a limited number of
categories (regions in this example) Ideal in situations with a
limited number of data points per category
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10 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Line chart One
parameter (amounts, can be positive or negative, but ideally not to
much spread between values, no rule of what a reasonable would be)
Not ideal for comparing many categories, as the chart would get
quickly crowded Preferable for many data points per category
Slide 11
11 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Pie chart Dont
put too many items in a pie chart Alphabetical order does not help.
Ideal, from largest to smallest Put % if you know the full value,
otherwise put both One parameter (market share, breakdown of a
population/sample) Limited amount of categories Static information
(at instant t)
Slide 12
12 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Pie, stacked bar
or area charts Market share, breakdown of a population/sample
Stacked bar charts are better for larger number of categories or
for indicators composed of sub- indicators. Pie-charts are not
useful for comparing between data values.
Slide 13
13 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Pie, stacked bar
or area charts For small number of data points, stacked bar charts
are fine For information with many data points per category
(historical trend), an area chart is probably the better option
(see next slide)
Slide 14
14 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Pie, stacked bar
or area charts
Slide 15
15 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Double axis
mapping To avoid situations of group think and misperceptions, the
parameters need to backed up by solid evidence/facts
Slide 16
16 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Bubble map
Distance to 2012 emissions target by individual manufacturer
Slide 17
17 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Physical
competition mapping (market coverage)
Slide 18
18 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Heat map A heat
map can tell you a lot about your competition Just make sure to
have the right parameters.
Slide 19
19 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Heat map
Slide 20
20 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Heat map World
Map: Mobile phone use (2006, in percentage of the population)
Slide 21
21 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Spider web/Radar
chart (multi parameter approach, with values)
Slide 22
22 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 KEY MISTAKES TO
AVOID
Slide 23
23 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Lack of proper or
measurable metrics For such slide to be helpful, the right metrics
need to be chosen and measurable
Slide 24
24 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Overseeing better
metrics If the main issue is to highlight growth over a period, it
is difficult to assess and compare the growth for each of the
competitors. A separate Average Growth Rate or CAGR bar graph or a
additional CAGR line chart could help
Slide 25
25 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Not keeping the
zero (or baseline) on the axis scale or not setting the base at
zero
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26 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Using line charts
where data is only available for a small number of timepoints
Slide 27
27 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Using 3D where
not necessary
Slide 28
28 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Choosing the
wrong colours/patterns
Slide 29
29 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Things to keep in
mind before implementing visualization Help the audience think
about the important message(s) from the data, rather than other
details such as methodology Avoid distorting what the data have to
say Present many numbers in a small space - but also emphasize the
important numbers Make large data sets coherent, and encourage the
audience to compare different pieces of data Reveal the data at
several levels of detail, from a broad overview to the fine
structure. "The Visual Display of Quantitative Information" Edward
Tufte
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30 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 SOME POWERFUL
VISUALIZATIONS
Slide 31
31 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Combined bubble
& bar chart
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32 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Sophisticated pie
chart
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33 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Double layered
bubble map & bar chart
Slide 34
34 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Multiple-layered
pie chart
Slide 35
35 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 Combined heat map
& bubble chart
Slide 36
36 SCIP Africa Summit | October 13 - 15, 2014 References The
Economist The Guardian BP Global Wind Energy Council Cummins Google
Images Improving Visualisation.org Contact details Christian Ndomba
Senior Market Intelligence Specialist Cummins Power Generation