Design Stories: Discussing data viz with designer Nadieh Bremer
According to a ReCode article published earlier this year, we’ve “reached the tipping point in big data.”
Zeros and ones make up the fabric of our experiences. We now have massive amounts of data at our disposal. In fact, we’re drowning in data, causing a shift in industries and the work that can be done with this new information.
As a result, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to present data in a way that stands out from the mass of competing data streams. To find the hidden insights within the overflowing sum of data. Humans are highly visual creatures. In an environment filled with strong sensory stimuli, companies are on the hunt for techniques to help them turn dull and monotonous data into something useable and understandable.
Enter visual data design.
One of the best ways to get your message across is to use visualization to quickly draw attention to the key messages. By presenting data visually, it’s also possible to uncover surprising patterns and observations that wouldn’t be apparent from looking at stats alone.
From enterprises to startups, companies are using data visualization to turn their data into a compelling story. Leading the pack of these forward-thinking brands is payment solution Adyen, with some of the best designers in the business.
So I sat down with award-winning, visual data designer Nadieh Bremer to discuss visual information and how she transformed boring bank data into something better.
From deep space to design
With a Masters degree in Astronomy, design may not be the first thing that comes to mind for someone who studied the cosmos. But even the world’s most recognized space agency understands the importances of visualization.
With its Scientific Visualization Studio, NASA uses visualization and images to provide a greater understanding of Earth and space research. And for Nadieh, it wasn’t that big of a leap from one science to the next. Unfortunately, this type of visualization is a relatively new discipline.
“After my Masters, I knew I wanted to do something more tangible. Sadly, as there isn’t anything directly related to Astronomy in the world of business, I began working as a data scientist for Deloitte.
For data scientists, data visualization skills are extremely useful. As such, Nadieh spent her time devoted to learning this new craft — from understanding practices to learning to code in order to create the visuals she needed.
It was after this time that Adyen approached her.
Having fallen completely in love with data viz, Nadieh was only interested in switching companies if she could focus on data visualization.
Accounting artistry
A picture may be worth a thousand words, but data visualization is worth much more.
Finance departments are awash with data, but it tends to be all over the place — from spreadsheets to databases to budgeting systems to tracking fraudulent charges.
Recently Nadieh worked on Adyen’s ShopperDNA — a program of advanced linking algorithms that tracks fraudsters even as they change devices, networks, and identities. The goal of the ShopperDNA algorithm is to identify, link, and cluster transactions.
The Shopper DNA is a visualization developed to show Adyen’s clients how transaction are combined into a single shopper using a myriad of cards or addresses. An underlying algorithm looks at the overlap between the details provided by the shopper during checkout and uses weights to see to which shopper the transaction belongs.
But not everyone is fluent in the language of finance. As such, data visualization is a critical tool in the industry. That’s where data visualization comes in handy.
In Adyen’s ShopperDNA, merchants can view visualizations of ShopperDNA networks. These are particularly useful in the context of manual review.
“The visualization makes it a lot easier for a human to understand this total network belonging to a single shopper and with more experience with the visual, people are able to make the decision of fraud or not in just seconds by looking at the visual structure.”
More to data visualization than meets the eye
It’s a common misconception that the most important part of a visualization is how attractive it is. While that is an important aspect, that’s not the point of data viz.
Visualizations have one basic purpose — to bring order to chaos. By allowing users to quickly read and understand multiple attributes of a particular issue, topic or data point, data viz makes the unfathomable fathomable.
Being able to effectively convey your data through images rather than words makes your message that much easier to understand and in turn, gives you a greater chance at making an impact with your work.
But like all things, if you don’t have passion behind the craft, if you’re not dedicated to telling the story correctly, you can have the most beautiful visualization… but it’s a flop.
As Nadieh explains, data visualization fails when “people aren’t thinking of the form of their data. You can’t force charts to work without thinking of the goal or what people should be learning.”
The power of personal
Data visualization isn’t just a science, it’s a well-practiced art. And like other forms of art, data viz is subjective.
Nadieh is often approached by clients who need her to create various charts and graphs based on their data. But as a designer, how does she present herself through her creations?
Well, like any good content, it comes down to the purpose of the piece.
“There are so many kinds of data it merely depends on the needs. If it’s more for uses on a daily basis, clients know best what they need while I know best how to make it clear. But if it’s more creative, then it’s driven more by my personal preference. You have to understand if you’re creating for art or information.”
But personal preference expands beyond just a client’s needs and wants.
Nadieh (and her creative partner Shirley Wu) are currently exploring their creativity while experimenting with new data viz tools and techniques.
This collaboration — Datasketches.es — is exemplifies personality. By creating data visualizations separately, the pair (and their followers) can see how the women approach each monthly topic — how the information is presented and diverges into different ideas based upon personal preference.
The future of data viz
If content is king then analytics is its faithful council.
As time progresses and big data becomes more mainstream, data visualization will only become that much more necessary.
While the basic principles of effective data viz won’t change, increases in technology and cognitive frameworks will propel data to new heights and uses.
“Big data and data analytics will be more influential and gain in popularity. That will lead to more people using data viz, both via newspapers and online, in order to digest this information.”
As the world becomes increasingly interconnected and information becomes interdependent, opportunities to generate value through data visualization will only increase.
