How Analytics Teams Can Use Data-driven Storytelling

Business analytics teams today are expected to grow beyond being just custodians of data—they are expected to help decision-makers take decisions that are based not only on informed logic, but also driven by emotional conviction.

 Why is this necessary? 

 Well, that’s because insights often fall flat if they are presented as dense dashboards or disconnected charts.  Everybody appreciates them, nobody likes them! BA teams need to show 'why' the data they are presenting merits a certain decision.

 According to a 2023 Gartner report, “Data storytelling will be the most widespread means of consuming analytics by 2025.” It helps analysts translate complex data into narratives that business leaders can act upon, bridging the gap between data and decision-making.

Role of 'Narrative based' Storytelling

I draw a distinction between 'Data Storytelling' as marketed by BI and analytics companies like Tableau or Power BI and 'Data-driven Storytelling' as used in the context of crafting business narratives from data.

The former often focuses on visualizing data through dashboards and charts—tools that enhance comprehension but may stop short of creating compelling narratives.

In contrast, Narrative-based storytelling goes beyond visualization; it’s about weaving data points into a structured narrative that reflects business context, stakeholder needs, and decision imperatives.

It's not just about what the data shows, but why it matters and what action it calls for. I call it Data-driven Storytelling. It requires analysts to turn themselves in trusted advisors who don't just inform decisions, but help drive them.

Case Study

 6 months ago, the Head of HR for India, of a US based MNC which is in small business financing approached us to conduct a Data-driven Storytelling session. This session was meant for a cohort of 45 participants, majority of them being from their BI/Analytics team.

 This is what she said to us:

"Our Analytics team members have to frequently present our lending data to our seniors, both here in India and the US. They struggle to engage with them meaningfully, and most often our leaders are not very clear of what’s required of them.”

Learning Journey of the Participants

 See below the flow of the Basecamp we created for her analytics team:

This workshop comprised an 8-hour learning journey that included 4 hours of Instructor-led Training (ILT) followed by 4 hours of case studies and group activities. The head of HR invited us to Chennai to conduct this session in person at their office.

Key Takeaways

• Collaborative group exercises involved participants working together on a case study, this helped bring out divergent ideas on how to craft a story for a specific dataset within each group

• Adapting Stori5's 4-step Data2Decision framework helped participants change their perspective on presenting Data, one that is based on empathy, creativity, and persuasion

• Participants reported high levels of Engagement and enjoyable Learning Experience as per HR because of the way the workshop was structured

• Each presenting group received peer feedback based on Rose (what was nice), Thorn (what did not work) and Bud (what can be improved)

Conclusion

Data/Business analytics teams already know how to crunch and analyse data that helps them generate insights. What they need are Storytelling skills- that enable them to make the data relatable and resonant for decision makers. Now, who would not want this!