Chapter 9: Visuals Are Thinking Tools

Chapter 9: Visuals Are Thinking Tools

Video: Building Better Slide Decks: 9 Practical Rules for Professional, Visual Case Presentations

Video: How to Make Financials and Implementation Visual in Your Case Deck

Visuals are not decoration. They are thinking tools. The right visual can make a complicated idea obvious. The wrong visual can make a simple idea confusing.

• That means chart selection should not begin with: "What kind of chart would look good here?"
• It should begin with: "What do we need the audience to see?"

Once you know the answer, choose the visual that makes that relationship easiest to understand.

Start With the Relationship

Imagine your analysis shows that three customer segments generate very different profit levels. You could present that information as:

• a paragraph;

• a table;

• a pie chart;

• a bar chart.

All four may technically communicate the data. If the message is segment A generates significantly more profit than the other customer segments, a bar chart may make the comparison immediately obvious. It is simply not a question of what information we have; it is what relationship in the information matters?

Match the Visual to the Message

Different communication tasks require different visuals.

Bar Charts

• Use when you want to compare categories.
• Examples:
  • revenue by product;
  • profitability by segment;
  • customer satisfaction by region;
  • alternatives by financial return;
  • market share by competitor.
• A bar chart helps the audience answer: Which is bigger, smaller, stronger, or weaker?

Line Charts

• Use when you want to show change over time.
• Examples:

  • revenue growth;

  • customer retention;

  • market share;

  • operating margins;

  • adoption;

  • cumulative cash flow.

• Line charts are particularly useful when the trend matters more than the individual numbers.
• The audience should quickly see where we are going.

Pie and Doughnut Charts

• Use cautiously when showing simple composition.
• They can work when:

  • there are relatively few categories;

  • the categories clearly form a whole;

  • the differences are reasonably obvious.

• For example, where does Revenue come from?
• They become much less useful when you have many categories or when precise comparison matters.
• If the audience needs to compare similar values, a bar chart may be easier to interpret.

Maps

• Use when geography is part of the insight.
• Examples:

  • market attractiveness by region;

  • store locations;

  • expansion opportunities;

  • customer concentration;

  • supply-chain exposure.

• Do notDon't use a map simply because the case involves geography.
• Use it when location itself communicates something important.

Process Diagrams

• Use when the audience needs to understand how something works.
• Examples:

  • customer journey;

  • operational process;

  • supply chain;

  • proposed service model;

  • decision process.

• A process diagram should simplify the process, not reproduce every operational detail.

Timelines

• Use when sequence and timing matter.
• They are particularly useful for implementation.
• Show:

  • phases;

  • milestones;

  • dependencies;

  • ownership;

  • decision points;

  • timing.

• A timeline allows the audience to see what happens when.

2×2 Matrices

• Use when comparing items across two meaningful dimensions.
• For example: 
  • High Impact / Low Impact against Easy to Implement / Difficult to Implement
  • A 2×2 can make prioritisation clear.
• Choose the axes carefully.
• If the dimensions do notdon't matter to the decision, the matrix may look sophisticated without producing useful insight.

Tables

• Use when precise comparison matters.
• Tables can work well for:

  • alternatives;

  • decision criteria;

  • budgets;

  • financial metrics;

  • scenario results;

  • implementation responsibilities.

• Remember a table makes the audience read.
• If the primary objective is to show a pattern or relationship, a chart may convey it more quickly.

Icons and Images

• Use when they communicate meaning.
• An icon can help distinguish:

  • customers;

  • employees;

  • financials;

  • operations;

  • technology.

An image can help create:

• • context;

  • emotional connection;

  • product understanding;

  • geographic understanding.

But decorative visuals still consume attention. Ask whether this image helps the audience understand something? If not, it may not belong.

Visualising Financial Information

Financial slides deserve particular attention because teams often present them as spreadsheets. Judges usually don't need to see the entire model. They need to understand the financial conclusion. For example, instead of displaying twenty rows of calculations, you might show:

• Investment: $2.5M
• Expected Annual Benefit: $1.1M
• Payback: 2.3 Years
• NPV: +$1.7M

Then use a chart to show how the economics develop over time. The spreadsheet proves the calculation. The slide communicates the insight.

Visualising Alternatives

Alternatives also lend themselves to visual communication. Suppose three strategies are evaluated against:

• strategic fit;

• financial impact;

• feasibility;

• risk.

A comparison table may help the audience quickly understand why one alternative performs better. Be careful, the purpose is not to manufacture a table that makes your recommendation win. The visual should reveal the actual trade-offs.

Visualising Implementation

Implementation plans should help judges see how this moves from recommendation to reality. Useful formats include:

• phased timelines;

• Gantt-style charts;

• roadmaps;

• process diagrams;

• responsibility matrices.

A strong implementation visual might show: Pilot → Validate → Refine → Scale with:

• timing;

• ownership;

• KPIs;

• decision gates

connected to each phase. Now the implementation becomes something the judges can see happening.

Don't Visualise Everything

Not every idea requires a chart. Sometimes the clearest communication is: 27% or "Customer retention has fallen for three consecutive years." Or a simple sentence with one supporting number. Teams sometimes create complex diagrams because they believe every slide needs a visual. It doesdoesn't; not. Thethe objective is clarity.

The Visualisation Question

Before creating any visual, complete: We want the audience to see that __________. Then ask what is the simplest visual that makes that relationship obvious? Only then choose the chart.

Discover Your MAD Skills Principle

Don't choose the chart first. Choose the insight first.

The visual exists to make the thinking easier to understand.

The Bottom Line

Visuals should help the audience see:

• comparison,
• change,
• composition,
• relationship,
• sequence, or
• priority.

Start with what we want them to see?see. Then choose the visual that makes it easiest to see.