Guddu Singh Reflection of Design Tool Application

Challenge and Selection:

I was working on a project and needed to communicate the magnitude of the discrepancy  between men and women in consulting. I needed to show how gender representation numbers  change over time as you progress into the higher levels of consulting. This was going to do into a  powerpoint deck that later made the case for offering unique networking opportunities for  women. I knew that, in order for the Ask later to be strongest, the audience really needed to feel  the disparity that exists at the highest levels of consulting.

I was deciding between using visualization and story-telling as a means of really connecting with  the audience and making this part of the presentation impactful. Ultimately, I decided to focus on  the Visualization tool. I chose this for a couple reasons: firstly, I thought of the saying “a picture  speaks a thousand words.” I knew that if people saw not just the numbers but the numbers  reflected in visual form, that would be more impactful. Secondly, I this tools is one I am less  comfortable with, so this also felt like a prime opportunity or practice.

Application and Approach

I ended up taking the data in Microsoft excel and spent time thinking about different ways to  visualize the data. I ended up deciding to start with showing a pie that starts out showing 50%  men and 50% women at entry level roles. I then removed respective parts of the pie as we moved  up the ranks to finally leave just 17% of the Partners were women. At the same time, the portion  of the pie that represented men keeps growing at each level up the ranks. So we start out with  parity and end up showing how the disparity looks by the end.

Insights and Future Application/Approach

I learned that the more I am able to communicate with visuals, the better the message lands with  an audience. This might sound like a really obvious point to many, but my default has always  been to use words to convey points. This exercise pushed me to invest my time in trying  something different and it was really powerful. I also realized, while I was playing around with  different visualizations, that it matters a lot HOW I choose to visualize something. I think the  most effective visualization will also be the most elegant in that the “takeaway” is clear. There  should not be confusion about what an audience member should take away.

I think I want to keep practicing and I want to collaborate with a partner in the future so that  there are different perspectives in the design phase. It also helps to think of the end goal, the  thing I want to communicate.


Guddu Singh Reflection of Design Tool Application Challenge and Selection : I was working on a project and needed to communicate the magnitude of the discrepancy between men and women in consulting . I needed to show how gender representation numbers change over time as you progress into the higher levels of consulting . This was going to do into a powerpoint deck that later made the case for offering unique networking opportunities for women . I knew that , in order for the Ask later to be strongest , the audience really needed to feel the disparity that exists at the highest levels of consulting . I was deciding between using visualization and story - telling as a means of really connecting with the audience and making this part of the presentation impactful . Ultimately , I decided to focus on the Visualization tool . I chose this for a couple reasons : firstly , I thought of the saying “ a picture speaks a thousand words . ” I knew that if people saw not just the numbers but the numbers reflected in visual form , that would be more impactful . Secondly , I this tools is one I am less comfortable with , so this also felt like a prime opportunity or practice . Application and Approach I ended up taking the data in Microsoft excel and spent time thinking about different ways to visualize the data . I ended up deciding to start with showing a pie that starts out showing 50 % men and 50 % women at entry level roles . I then removed respective parts of the pie as we moved up the ranks to finally leave just 17 % of the Partners were women . At the same time , the portion of the pie that represented men keeps growing at each level up the ranks . So we start out with parity and end up showing how the disparity looks by the end . Insights and Future Application / Approach I learned that the more I am able to communicate with visuals , the better the message lands with an audience . This might sound like a really obvious point to many , but my default has always been to use words to convey points . This exercise pushed me to invest my time in trying something different and it was really powerful . I also realized , while I was playing around with different visualizations , that it matters a lot HOW I choose to visualize something . I think the most effective visualization will also be the most elegant in that the “ takeaway ” is clear . There should not be confusion about what an audience member should take away . I think I want to keep practicing and I want to collaborate with a partner in the future so that there are different perspectives in the design phase . It also helps to think of the end goal , the thing I want to communicate .