Data Analytics: Effective Methods for Presenting Results

If you are a manager who receives the results of any data analyst’s work to help with your decision-making, this book is for you. Anyone playing a role in the field of analytics can benefit from this book as well.

In the two decades the editors of this book spent teaching and consulting in the field of analytics, they noticed a critical shortcoming in the communication abilities of many analytics professionals. Specifically, analysts have difficulty in articulating in business terms what their analyses showed and what actionable recommendations were made. When analysts made presentations, they tended to lapse into the technicalities of mathematical procedures, rather than focusing on the strategic and tactical impact and meaning of their work. As analytics has become more mainstream and widespread in organizations, this problem has grown more acute.

Data Analytics: Effective Methods for Presenting Results tackles this issue. The editors have used their experience as presenters and audience members who have become lost during presentation. Over the years, they experimented with different ways of presenting analytics work to make a more compelling case to top managers. They have discovered tried and true methods for improving presentations, which they share. The book also presents insights from other analysts and managers who share their own experiences. It is truly a collection of experiences and insight from academics and professionals involved with analytics.

The book is not a primer on how to draw the most beautiful charts and graphs or about how to perform any specific kind of analysis. Rather, it shares the experiences of professionals in various industries about how they present their analytics results effectively. They tell their stories on how to win over audiences. The book spans multiple functional areas within a business, and in some cases, it discusses how to adapt presentations to the needs of audiences at different levels of management.

Subhashish Samaddar, PhD, Certified Analytics Professional (CAP®), is a professor of business analytics and operations management in the managerial sciences department of the J. Mack Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia, where he was the founding academic director of MS analytics program. He served on the INFORMS' team that created the CAP certification examination administered globally and coedited its first guide book. An internationally reputed and multiple award-winning researcher, teacher, and speaker, he specializes in business analytics, operations and organizational knowledge management, and decision­ making. A veteran of more than 25 years and a consultant in analytics, he has helped many U.S. organizations-Fortune 100, privately held and governmental agencies-with their analytical needs. He currently teaches business analytics and research methods to undergraduates, MBA and executive master's and doctoral students, and corporate clients.

Satish Nargundkar, PhD, is a professor of business analytics in the J. Mack Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University, Atlanta. Over the past three decades, he has helped large and small companies improve their decision-making through analytics. A recipient of multiple awards for teaching and research, he has over 25 years of experience in the areas of analytics, process improvement, and decision support. His research interests are multidisciplinary and include supply chain management, quantitative methods, and the improvement of teaching methods. He is passion­ ate about excellence in teaching and is sought after as an instructor in executive programs. In his spare time, he enjoys reading, traveling, and photography, and is an instructor in martial arts.