Data helps organizations gain valuable insights into customers, employees, products and markets, but there is a limit to what databases and charts can do on their own. Answers to organizational problems or opportunities don’t just organically spring from algorithms—they need communicators to translate the information into compelling stories. It is data stories that ultimately bring about action and change. Applying simple story techniques to data, transforms the data from making sense to also making meaning. Adding meaning helps audiences understand the data and drives real change for business. Easy, right?

The Toronto Raptors announced that they have promoted data analyst Brittni Donaldson to assistant coach following the Raptors’ first ever NBA championship in 2019. This makes Donaldson one of ten women to join the NBA coaching staff and a growing number of data analysts to take a forefront position in the sport. In a phone interview with the Sioux City Journal, Donaldson states, ““My role is to help the coaching staff make better decisions with the data we have available. It’s been really fun. I help out with scouting reports, player evaluations and roster construction. I’ve also had opportunities to be on court a little bit to help out with player development.” Blake Murphy commends this decision. Upon hearing the news the Raptors reporter tweeted, “Brittni is incredibly smart and was already working directly with players a lot. Important to have extension of analytics department in versatile connector role.”

From one-person business to multinationals, big data is changing the way companies operate for the better. With the increase in the amount of data originating from different sources due to the advancement of technology, companies are now deploying different innovative approaches for analyzing and extracting different useful data sets. The ability of businesses to access valuable and organized data offers them an edge and ensures long term returns. It makes it easy to make decisions which would otherwise be hard using conventional methods.

Manufacturing facilities are complex operations. By manufacturing standards, some of the “newer” plants are over 25 years old. It is also quite common that a plant built for one specific purpose years ago is used today by a different manufacturer making different products. Adding to the complexity, no two manufacturing plants in the world are identical. They are all different shapes, sizes, and in different locations. Heating and cooling systems at a plant in the California desert will react differently compared to a plant in Calgary, Canada.