It’s crowded out here

We have a grove of pine trees nestled along the side of our house. It’s a mixture of red and white pines that are native to this part of the country. We love the pines, our boys have a tree fort in the midst of the grove and they provide a great playground.

I never want a single one to die or fall down.

But I recently walked the trees with an arborist and his main recommendation was this: Cut a bunch of them down.

Intentionally cut down the trees you love.

Why?

“They are clustered too close together and competing for resources with each other. The canopy of the smaller ones will never make it high enough to get the sunlight needed to thrive”.

So he talked me through a plan to remove a portion of the trees. Focusing mainly on the smaller thin ones. Over time, thinning the pine grove will create a much better environment for the remaining trees to grow stronger and healthier.

The same with your data.

The reports, dashboards, and bar charts your team produces are plentiful. The dozens (hundreds?) of reports your team delivers might be one of your favorite parts of your job. After all, data visualized is data realized right?

But it’s time to thin the number of reports. They are competing for resources with each other. Choking each other out. The little used ones never have a chance of reaching the surface of someone's attention.

Your stakeholder’s attention is too precious to overwhelm them. Sifting through dozens of dashboards. Choking out in all the noise.

But thinning the forest (deleting reports) can lead to a much healthier environment. A place where the strongest analytics can thrive. Where insights have the resources and attention they need to offer value. A place where business users don’t get lost in a crowded forest.

And sometimes all you need is an outside voice to say - “you need to cut some of those down”.

I’m here,

Sawyer

from ​The Data Shop