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What are some important things that a person should keep in mind before sending/preparing any report/project?
- Thread starter pedie
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Blade Hunter
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- Mar 13, 2008
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I have always said that you have about 8 seconds to get someones interest visualy. Remember this when presenting data, make it so that in 8 seconds they know exactly what they are looking at. Tables should be concise and bordered with bold headings. Charts should contain thick lines and bright colours (not so bright that they see spots after staring at it) with just enough textual information on them to see what it is at a glance without over crowding.
One thing I usually do is have a summary table at the start, that should get peoples attention then multiple drill levels on seperate tabs so people can find exactly what they want quickly.
In short, make it nice to look at and easy to understand.
One thing I usually do is have a summary table at the start, that should get peoples attention then multiple drill levels on seperate tabs so people can find exactly what they want quickly.
In short, make it nice to look at and easy to understand.
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Great topic, something non technical for once 
I do a lot of reports and presentations and I get mixed messages and sometimes question wonder if I was too detailed or not as detailed...
What I have learned, the more data points the more quesitons are asked and this can lead to more work! but at the same time I find it providing more valuable insight in the end. But of course you need to be careful, showing too many data points some people may not get it.
I stick with the rules of 3, 3 topics/subjects, 3 bullet points and that seems to open a lot of interactivity. Also stating to your audience you will take them through "3" areas of interest and reaffirming the 3 areas it seems to stick in their minds and they can follow easier.
When doing charts, keep it clean and basic. I always get rid of the background lines, depending on your audience I keep the color theme consistent with the business or audience I am presenting to. I never use animation or any fancy graphics which could draw away from what I am showing.
3 bullet points about the data, short and crisp. Let the audience ask the questions but of course elaborate on your bullet points, try not to be a slide reader.
I have a six sigma and Itil background, but I find it difficult to communcate these points to folks that are not well versed in data or these methods, so I avoid them other than using variance and standard devation.
I think a simple bar or pie chart tells the story in very clear picture. Also anything complex or detailed I embed a file so they can look at the details later, it also supports your data points.
When using MS Office, use the option to check your "private" data and remove it before sending. You wouldn't want the Author, Location last saved, Manager, tags etc.. or other company/personal info getting out.
I do a lot of reports and presentations and I get mixed messages and sometimes question wonder if I was too detailed or not as detailed...
What I have learned, the more data points the more quesitons are asked and this can lead to more work! but at the same time I find it providing more valuable insight in the end. But of course you need to be careful, showing too many data points some people may not get it.
I stick with the rules of 3, 3 topics/subjects, 3 bullet points and that seems to open a lot of interactivity. Also stating to your audience you will take them through "3" areas of interest and reaffirming the 3 areas it seems to stick in their minds and they can follow easier.
When doing charts, keep it clean and basic. I always get rid of the background lines, depending on your audience I keep the color theme consistent with the business or audience I am presenting to. I never use animation or any fancy graphics which could draw away from what I am showing.
3 bullet points about the data, short and crisp. Let the audience ask the questions but of course elaborate on your bullet points, try not to be a slide reader.
I have a six sigma and Itil background, but I find it difficult to communcate these points to folks that are not well versed in data or these methods, so I avoid them other than using variance and standard devation.
I think a simple bar or pie chart tells the story in very clear picture. Also anything complex or detailed I embed a file so they can look at the details later, it also supports your data points.
When using MS Office, use the option to check your "private" data and remove it before sending. You wouldn't want the Author, Location last saved, Manager, tags etc.. or other company/personal info getting out.
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pedie
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PCride, thanks alot for your very usefull peice of advice...
if you're 6sigma guy i would love to learn more about 6sigma too
.
Too many reports goes out everyday and sometimes i dont see the point for it and also doesnt even know if they are even actually checking it...that is how & why i came up with this topic...
Sending out too many information and also complicated graphs also bring back many question which eats up time to educate them and so on....all like you've said...
Thanks said.
if you're 6sigma guy i would love to learn more about 6sigma too
. Too many reports goes out everyday and sometimes i dont see the point for it and also doesnt even know if they are even actually checking it...that is how & why i came up with this topic...
Sending out too many information and also complicated graphs also bring back many question which eats up time to educate them and so on....all like you've said...
Thanks said.
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