Top Tips for Turning Information into Insights

Top Tips for Turning Information into InsightsMarcy PhelpsPhelps Researchwww.PhelpsResearch.comDecember 11, 2013

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Information is a commodity!

Can you be replaced?www.PhelpsResearch.com3Age when theres an abundance of information - not a scarcityNot good enough that you have access to information they dont3

Our clients are drowning in information!www.PhelpsResearch.com45

DIY Researchwww.PhelpsResearch.com

Whats Your Value?6Whats your value?

7Show your value through your deliverablesThrough clear, effective, communication of the information,7Information Insightswww.PhelpsResearch.com8Dont just deliver information8www.PhelpsResearch.com9Stay toward the top if this hierarchyMore simply turning information into insights9Info AnalystPatternsInformation flowComparisonsRelationshipsFormat for usabilitySo what?www.PhelpsResearch.com10Not sure why the A-word is so scary to info prosChunkingDiscover/Telling a storyTurnthe a-ha moment of I know what this means to mean in the grand scheme of things. it into something people can understand and USE10Where do I start?

11These are tips I learned almost a journey after one experience the notebook on the shelfTo now still learning What Im still learning

Need tools need tools for analysis and tools for action5 tips with some suggestions for simple, low-cost ways to turn information into insights

11#1 Start with the basics

www.PhelpsResearch.com12Listen and learnReference interviewInformational interviewsProject follow-up

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www.PhelpsResearch.comListen to your usersRamp up your reference interview

13$64,000 QuestionHow will the information be used?14www.PhelpsResearch.comUnderstanding the information user most valuable class in my MLIS programHelps with deciding format PP, Charts, raw data?

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Include a cover letter16#2 KISS (Keep it short & simple)

www.PhelpsResearch.com17Avoid a data dump!17Linda Cooper exerciseWhy are you including this in the report?(In 1-2 sentences)

www.PhelpsResearch.com181 or 2 sentencesIs it necessary/do I understand the project?18

Executive SummaryOne pageAddress questions/summarize answersInclude links to more infoAdd your observations

19One-page top-level summaryAlso, (very) briefly describe your observations about issues or trends that came out of your research.

19Article summariesIs Hulu a stolen idea? Arbitration to decideLos Angeles TimesJuly 09, 2010|Meg JamesA Los Angeles County judge on Thursday referred to arbitration the case of a Canadian engineer who contends that NBC Universal stole his idea and business strategy to launch Hulu, the website that shows TV programs and movies.20www.PhelpsResearch.comHelp them decide if they need to read the full articleJeff Zuckerberg example my value wasnt necessarily from the amount/quality

20#3 A picture is wortha lot!

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22Add meaning to [boring] numbers

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Create a dashboard24Tools for charts/graphsExcel Chart WizardChartGizmo.comGoogle Developers Chart Wizard (http://snipurl.com/27mnhv5)DIYChart.comwww.PhelpsResearch.com25www.PhelpsResearch.com26Concepts Diagrams

www.PhelpsResearch.com27Tools for diagramsSmartArt (Excel, Word, PowerPoint)Gliffy.comMicrosoft Visio (http://snipurl.com/27mnn39) SmartDraw.comOmniGraffle for Mac (http://snipurl.com/27mnmt8)www.PhelpsResearch.com28Data Maps

www.PhelpsResearch.com29Shaded area map29www.PhelpsResearch.com30

Pushpin mapTools for data mapsMicrosoft MapPoint (http://snipurl.com/27mniz8)Google Fusion Tables (http://snipurl.com/27mnk8r)Click2Map.comMapland (www.softill.com)SmartDraw.comwww.PhelpsResearch.com31Visualization Tools for Turning Information Into Insights, Online, Sept/Oct 2012, http://snipurl.com/289v0eg

Choosing the Right Graphic http://snipurl.com/289v0jewww.PhelpsResearch.com32

Wordle.netwww.PhelpsResearch.com33

Compare Matrix34

Create a timelinewww.PhelpsResearch.com35Include imagessearch.usa.govFlickr.com advanced search (snipurl.com/256ipl)Google Images advanced search (snipurl.com/256igw)iStock.com36

www.PhelpsResearch.comFrom Cindy Shamel36#4 Bring in the power tools

www.PhelpsResearch.com37Data mining

www.PhelpsResearch.com38Also, exploring best practices in number of employees or key executives

The following data was gathered through the Hoover's database. Revenues were calculated by adding the annual sales of all businesses that met the search criteria.Please note that there are limitations to this data. Any information about privately-held companies should never be considered exact. This is strictly self-reported, and not all companies report revenues.This spreadsheet represents an analysis of Hoover's records for private companies in your desired revenue range that have headquarters or a single location in the selected counties. I also limited my searching to companies that indicated the selected NAICS codes were their primary codes only (this ruled out some companies related only slightly to these industries).In light of these limitations, the data comes from one source D&B records available through Hoover's so it does provide a general apples-to-apples comparison of these industry sectors.

38Analysis frameworksSWOTPEST AnalysisTimeline AnalysisPorters Four CornersEarly Warning Systems

www.PhelpsResearch.com39Political factors. These include government regulations such as employment laws, environmental regulations and tax policy. Other political factors are trade restrictions and political stability. Economicfactors. These affect the cost of capital and purchasing power of an organisation. Economic factors include economic growth, interest rates, inflation and currency exchange rates. Socialfactors. These impact on the consumers need and the potential market size for an organisations goods and services. Social factors include population growth, age demographics and attitudes towards health. Technological factors. These influence barriers to entry, make or buy decisions and investment in innovation, such as automation, investment incentives and the rate of technological change.

Developed by Michael Porter, the four corners analysis is a useful tool for analysing competitors. It emphasises that the objective of competitive analysis should always be on generating insights into the future.

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Swot - 4041

Business and Competitive Analysis: Effective Application of New and Classic Methods, by Craig Fleisher & Babette Bensoussan

Strategic Analysis Tools: Topic Gateway Series No. 34, Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, http://snipurl.com/289ulko

www.PhelpsResearch.com4242Using insightsFAQsIssue briefsPowerPointCheat sheetsInclude on intranet, create portal www.PhelpsResearch.com43#5 Create a report toolkitTemplates Word, PPWord StylesChart galleryMap galleryBranded!

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power toolsShow examples?

Also, cheat sheet for common types of research44There is a simple way to package information that, under the right circumstances, can make it irresistible. All you have to do is find it.

Malcolm GladwellThe Tipping Point45www.PhelpsResearch.comFortunately, not that hard for librarians and other info pros45Thank you!

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