Data Presentation for Business: How to make great charts

Name: Data Presentation for Business: How to make great charts
Rating: 3.7 (67 reviews)

Learn how data visualizations can bring order or offer insight and recognize when they are used to deceive and mislead.

Created byNicolae Urs

Last updated 3/2016

English

What you'll learn

understand how charts, maps and graphs are created
present insights to others through charts and graphs
improve your data presentation skills
know how to draw attention to specific parts of their datasets
know what chart is best for which type of data
avoid making the most common mistakes when creating data visualizations
recognize charts that try to deceive
acquire the basic terminology of data visualization

Course content

6 sections • 24 lectures • 1h 17m total length

Welcome to the course1:07
I’ll go over the broad topics we’ll cover in the course. I’ll also touch on why the course will help participants, and what they’ll get out of it once they’ve completed it.

Introduction to the section0:43
I’ll go over what we’ll cover in this section
A little bit of history4:01
I will show famous graphs, talk about the evolution of charts and infographics and why some of them are so influential.
What is data actually?4:00

I will talk about where you can find data and what data actually means.
Data visualizations: art, craft, science?2:51
I will talk about the different views in which visualization experts see the field and I will offer my own view on the matter.
Chart junk3:30

I will discuss the urge of some designers to add graphic elements to charts in an effort to ”beautify” them and why this approach is usually not a good one

Data-to-ink ratio6:17

Using the conceptual framework of Edward Tufte, I will explain what the concept means and how can it be applied in real life, and also when a little ornamentation is not such a bad thing after all

Section conclusion1:06

I will summarize what you have learned in this section.
What is data visualization - Quiz

Introduction to the section0:47
I’ll go over what we’ll cover in this section.
Color4:55

I will show you how you can use color to draw attention to data
Size1:48

I will show you how you can use the chart element's size to draw attention to data
Position2:33

I will show you how you can use the chart element's position to draw attention to data
Section conclusion1:24

I will summarize what you have learned in this section.
How to draw attention to the data - Quiz

Introduction to the section0:50
I’ll go over what we’ll cover in this section.
Chart elements6:46
I will talk about the elements that make up a chart and their importance in delivering the correct information to the viewer.
Chart types - Part 17:08

I will discuss the most important chart types and their uses
Chart types - Part 26:31

This is the second part of the discussion about the most common types of charts and for what types of datasets are they most suited for.
Software for creating data visualizations6:47
In this lesson we will learn about the most widely used computer programs that can help us put togheter our data visualizations.
Section conclusion1:06

I will summarize what you have learned in this section
We have the data. Now what?

Introduction to the section1:00

I’ll go over what we’ll cover in this section.
Common mistakes5:55

I will go through the most common mistakes that appear when charts are created.
Lying with data3:43

I will show how charts can be used to transmit false information, how data can be distorted and how you can recognize this malicious visualizations.
Section conclusion0:59

I will summarize what you have learned in this section.
What not to do - Quiz

Requirements

The only necessary prerequisite is basic use of computers and office software.
It will help if you have Microsoft Excel installed, we have an exercise in Lecture 7.
A lot of suplemental materials are available in webpages, so internet connection when taking this course is recommended.

Description

We are surrounded by data. We work with numbers every day. How can we understand them and how can we show trends, correlations or insights to other people?

The solution is putting those numbers into visual form. This ability is one of the most sought-after skills on the job market, because the amount of data that needs to be sorted, analyzed and understood is increasing at formidable rate.

Learn how to correctly use charts and graphs to make sense of data.

how charts come together,
how to draw attention to your data,
what graph is best for what type of data,
how to avoid the mistakes almost everybody makes,
how to avoid being misled by malicious charts.

Take the first steps in learning a new language

Using data visualizations to see patterns, uncover hidden trends and put numbers into an easy to understand visual form is a skill that is useful in any job. There is no need for prior experience and the terminology will be explained in the course.

Content and overview

When you enroll in this course you will get access to almost 2 hours of video lectures and a wealth of supplemental materials. You can complete the course in 2 or 3 hours, if you just watch the videos and take the quizzes, but you can also spend days reading and practicing what we discuss in the course, or anything in between. At the end of each of the main 4 sections there is a quiz, to help you remember what you have learned .

At the end of this course you will be able to understand how statistical data can be put into visual form, how you can extract meaning from spreadsheets and how to recognize when someone is trying to lie to you with pretty charts.

Who this course is for:

This course is meant for anybody with an interest in making sense of the numbers we encounter in every aspect of our life, but especially for people that work with spreadsheets for a living and want to see patterns and trends more easily and to learn how to present those insights to others. If you want to make the most of the statistical data of every kind that you encounter at work or at home, this course is for you.
This course is probably not for you if you are a graphic designer or have extended knowledge about charts, maps and infographics.

Data Presentation for Business: How to make great charts

What you'll learn

Explore related topics

Course content

Introduction to the course1 lecture • 1min

What is data visualization7 lectures • 22min

How to draw attention to data5 lectures • 11min

We have the data. Now what?6 lectures • 29min

What not to do4 lectures • 12min

In the end1 lecture • 2min

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: