Troy Palanca World Information Architecture Day 2016 Manila, Philippines

1. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
MANILA

2. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
A THOUSAND STORIES
HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE

3. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
ABOUT ME
TROY JAMES PALANCA
Data Blogger Jumbo Dumbo Thoughts
City Operations Uber
Past:

4. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
WHAT THIS TALK WILL BE ABOUT
• Why data needs design and designers
• How data shapes policy and business goals differently
• Data storytelling and visualization
• Why the country needs you to “do” data

5. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
ON DATA

6. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
This was my undergraduate
thesis. I was very proud of it.
But then I realized, no one, even
one of my thesis advisers, was
reading it.
This was not their fault.
People are not obliged to read
your work - no matter how
“brilliant” you think it is.
WHY VISUALIZE?

7. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
ON DATA
It’s easy to think about
data as just numbers
on a spreadsheet.

8. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
ON DATA
“It’s not just a bucket of
numbers. There are
stories in that bucket.
There’s meaning, truth,
and beauty.”
Nathan Yau, Visualize This

9. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
ON DATA SCHOOLS DATASET
Each row is a
story
Each column defines
elements of that story
What is this school called?
How far do the students
have to travel to get to
school?
How many students have lost their
opportunities at education in the
last year?

10. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
ON DATA A single story on Culiat Elementary
School in Quezon City
ADD CONTEXT
How bad is Culiat in relation to its peers?
EXPAND THE SCOPE
How about the entire school system?
FIND (POSSIBLE) CAUSE
Why are Metro Manila schools so overcrowded?

11. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
ON DATA
A picture is
worth a
thousand
words
(literally)

12. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
ON DATA
A tweet can say a lot about how a business is run

13. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
ON DATA
But how about
thousands of
tweets?

14. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
WHY DATA
DISCOVERY INCLUSIVENESS TRUST

15. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
WHY DATA
DISCOVERY INCLUSIVENESS TRUST
Comparing votes for winning
candidate and voter turnout for
the 2004 elections results in a
surprising discovery

16. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
WHY DATA
DISCOVERY INCLUSIVENESS TRUST
While we worry about
capacity issues in the
capital, schools are
emptying out in
Mindanao

17. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
WHY DATA
DISCOVERY INCLUSIVENESS TRUST
Showing more data builds
trust in your arguments

18. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
SPEAKING WITH DATA

19. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
DATA
STORYTELLIN
G
1 Define the leading role (the row)
2 Define the elements of your story (the column)
3 Collect the data
4 Tell the story
5 Visualize the story

20. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
TELLING AND VISUALIZING THE STORYANALYSIS
DESCRIPTIVE
Information that is
processed in some way to
show a specific subset of
data
EXPLORATORY
Display or description of all
factual information available
INFERENTIAL / PREDICTIVE
Conclusions about a greater truth arrived at
through computation or analysis of the data
MEDIUM
Interactive visualizations
Dashboards
Charts, graphs, plots
Dashboards
Reports
Statistical models
Predictions
Journal articles
LESS CONTROL
HIGHER TRUST
MORE CONTROL
LESS TRUST

21. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
WHY VISUALIZE?
1. VISUALIZATION
BUILDS TRUST AS
VIEWERS SEE THE
LOGICAL
PROCESS
UNFOLD

22. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
WHY VISUALIZE?
2. VISUALIZATION KEEPS
THE ABSTRACTION TO A
MINIMUM

23. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
WHY VISUALIZE?
3. VISUALIZATION
FACILITATES
INFORMATION
INGESTION

24. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
THE GRAMMAR OF GRAPHICS
COORDINATE SYSTEMS GEOMETRIES AESTHETICS+ +
The canvas The paintbrushes The colors
Cartesian
Coordinates
Polar
Coordinates
Map
Coordinates
Points
Columns/
Bars
Lines/Arcs/
Paths
Color
Size
Width
Shape
Position on the
coordinates

25. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
THE GRAMMAR OF GRAPHICS
1 dimensional coordinate
plane
Arcs and Text Labels
Arc Width = Passenger Volume
Arc Color = Direction
Text Label = MRT Station
+
+

26. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
THE GRAMMAR OF GRAPHICS
Paired cartesian coordinate
planes
Bars, text labels, animation
Bar height = number of people
Bar position = age bracket
Bar color = gender
Movement = time
+
+

27. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
THE GRAMMAR OF GRAPHICS
1 Each aesthetic must map to a data value
(no hanging aesthetics, coloring for the heck of it)
2 Approximate reality as close as possible
(use a map for coordinate data, lines for walking paths, points for locations)
3
Information density <> Information volume
(Density is good because it builds trust in the data without adding complexity,
volume is bad because it doesn’t add value and just clutters informations)

28. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
SOME EXAMPLES

29. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
RAW DATA: ELECTIONS DATA
Rows: Each city/
municipality’s voting
relationship with a
particular candidate
Columns: What
municipality voted
for which candidate
for what position
and by how many
votes?

30. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
EXPLORATORY ANALYSIS
Story Visualization
Jejomar Binay won
179,375 votes in Makati
as Vice Presidential
Candidate in 2010.

31. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS
Story
Visualization
It seems that Joseph Estrada was well liked in
parts of the country, but not at all popular in others,
causing a high variance in his vote percentage.

32. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
INFERENTIAL ANALYSIS
Story Visualization
Voters were most
divided between
Aquino, Estrada, Villar,
and Teodoro.

33. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
RAW DATA: WB FINANCIAL INCLUSION SURVEY
Rows: A household
Columns: What are
their demographics
and the financial
products they use?

34. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
EXPLORATORY ANALYSIS
Story
23.6% of Filipino
households have an
account at a financial
institution

35. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS
Story
Having a formal bank
account is negatively
correlated with taking loans
from families and friends
INFERENTIAL ANALYSIS
Story
There is a strong divide
between the formal and
informal sectors

36. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
PREDICTIVE ANALYSIS
Story
Households with low
income and education
levels are most likely
to be Mattress Savers
or Community
Borrowers.

37. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
HARNESSING THE
COLLECTIVE WITH DATA

38. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
Filipinos have a problem with scale.

39. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
THE WINDOW
An alternative
explanation to ‘ningas
cogon’
Most organizations do very well
when they are small
Once organizations begin to
reach a ‘critical mass’ -
dysfunction starts to set in
Idea-generating intuition must
now take the backseat to
critical/analytical thought
Look at my dad’s rad bike.

40. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
Singapore
Malaysia
Indonesia
Thailand
Vietnam
Philippines
Little Kingdoms
Source: Annual Reports, Philippine Stock Exchange
Some of the largest ASEAN banks

41. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
Regionalism
Resistance
to change
Bureaucracy and
unnecessary
process
Patronage
politics
Corruption
“Little
kingdoms”

42. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
DATA
PROVIDES THE
CUSTOMS
VISUALIZATION
DASHBOARD

43. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
Information architecture, as applied to data, is
key to informing decision-making.
Designing the display of data is a distinct skill
from data analysis.
We need more people who know how to
communicate data than analyze it.

44. 01
WORLD IA DAY 2016 A THOUSAND STORES: HOW TO GET FROM RAW DATA TO A COMPELLING NARRATIVE
THANK YOU!
QUESTIONS?
PLEASE CONTACT:
TROY JAMES PALANCA
BLOGGER AT JUMBO DUMBO THOUGHTS, CITY OPS AT UBER
TJPALANCA@ME.COM | @TJPALANCA | TJPALANCA.COM