How a Data Visualization Pro Helps Companies Get Power From Their Data

Ten years ago, data dashboards were pretty basic. “When I first started working with data, dashboards were just starting—they were very static and not always visually appealing,” said Aurélie Dussenne, a data visualization expert. “Dashboards have become much more efficient and powerful. You can use artificial intelligence (AI) to get insights and can really build a narrative around data.”

Dussenne became captivated by data during an internship while pursuing a master's degree in economics from Université Libre de Bruxelles in Belgium. “Through my project, I uncovered over half a million dollars of outstanding debt from the vendors to the company,” she said. “It was a great moment for me to see that, if you’re able to use the data correctly, you can really make an impact for a business.”

That potential continues to drive Dussenne. After graduating from Harvard with a master’s degree in liberal arts with a focus on international relations, she began her career as a data specialist for the United Nations (U.N.) before moving to Spate, a Y-Combinator consumer trend-spotting startup. More recently, Dussenne has established herself as an independent data analyst consultant and owner of DataDriven Agency.

“I bridge the gap between complex analytics and professionals who haven’t been trained in data and don’t want anything to do with it—I know it can be overwhelming,” she said. “I turn very complex raw data into engaging and actionable dashboards that teams love to use, then I bring that data to life.”

Making sense of data organizations don’t know how to use

The International Data Corporation (IDC) forecasts that organizations around the world will generate more than 73,000 exabytes of unstructured data in 2023. While some of that data is structured—quantitative, clearly defined, and relatively easy to search—as much as 90% of it is unstructured, its value essentially buried.

Companies are increasingly keen to tap into that data to their advantage. A survey of Fortune 1000 companies by NewVantage Partners found that 87.8% of the organizations who responded had increased data investments in 2022. However, fewer than one in four (23.9%) still characterized their organizations as “data-driven.”

Over the past decade, Dussenne has played a part in the expansion of her field as it’s risen from a niche skill set to an in-demand area of expertise that can bring a major shift to business intelligence and performance.

Data visualization is an essential piece of a company’s data strategy, building on a range of components such as data governance and data analytics. An expert can turn complex data into visual pieces—such as dashboards, maps, and diagrams—to present information in a way that’s easier to digest and understand than numbers in a text document or spreadsheet.

“Data visualization is the perfect way to enable senior leadership to leverage data to make better-informed decisions,” she said. However, a lot of companies don’t understand what it is or how best to use it to gain an advantage over their competitors. That’s how an independent professional, like Dussenne, can step up and help. Typical projects include trend predictions, inventory optimization, sales performance, survey analysis, as well as metrics and tracking of objectives and key results (OKRs).  

How do you start your next data visualization project?

Data visualization projects start with data—ideally clean data, with records that are accurate, complete, consistent, relevant, standardized, and free from duplicate entries.

This means that the first step is to take stock of your databases:

• What data sets already exist?
• Where are they being stored?
• How are they being refreshed?
• Is the data clean?
• Does your organization have a data cleaning process in place?

“If your team doesn’t specialize in data, surround yourself with specialists who can help you take your data to the next level,” said Dussenne.

Where in the data journey is your organization?

Many organizations don’t really know what can be done with their data, Dussenne explained. Rather than try to understand everything from the beginning, it’s easier to find a data visualization expert who can identify where your organization is in its data journey. She described five different phases:

Phase 1: ad hoc data

When data is collected in a way that’s raw and unstructured, it can be nearly impossible to get any information from it and nearly impossible to use it for making decisions.

Phase 2: emerging data

As an organization starts to recognize the importance of data, they may put processes in place to categorize, clean, and verify the information—but it’s static. Only a trained analyst can even begin to get insights from it using a process that’s time-consuming and very hands-on.

Phase 3: consistent data

At this mid-level stage, there are standards in place for data management and a clear structure. There is a dashboard, but while it’s functional, it isn’t great. A trained analyst can access the information and make sense of it. For those without a background in data, however, it’s challenging and difficult to leverage the information. This means that, despite the dashboard, the team doesn’t really understand how to read the information. So nobody is doing anything effective with it.

Phase 4: managed data

When an organization has a robust data infrastructure, it’s easier to access actionable insights. Dashboards become more than a collection of graphs. They can use data storytelling to present information in a way that’s accessible and engaging—not just to the data analyst, but also to the rest of the team members, whether they have a background in data or not.

Phase 5: optimized data

When data operations are more mature, there’s a strong foundation to layer on powerful tools like artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning. These new technologies enable companies to sift through massive amounts of data, whether to answer basic questions or to find patterns that might otherwise be missed.  

“If the dashboard and the data set are messy, the results will also be messy,” Dussenne said. “With a strong foundation, you can just ask a question and get information within seconds. It enhances the dashboard rather than making it more confusing.”

How Dussenne has grown her data visualization business

Dussenne signed up for Upwork in mid-2020, curious to see what could happen. Within a few weeks, she was earning enough to match her full-time salary. “I started by doing one-time projects but I quickly learned to listen to what my clients’ needs actually are,” she said. “Companies often think they need one thing, when there’s a broad range of opportunities they don’t realize they’re missing.”

Many of Dussenne’s clients reach out because of a dashboard that isn’t working well—they want a professional to redo the design and make it easy to use. However, Dussenne has repeatedly observed that a lackluster dashboard is usually just a symptom. “By the time I’ve redesigned the dashboard, I have a better understanding of the challenges in their business,” she explained. “And, because we’ve already started to build a relationship, there’s a better opportunity to show them what’s possible.”

Effective data storytelling shows the “why” behind the “what,” something that goes beyond better decision-making. It can also:

• Improve communication and build trust. Presenting data in a way that’s clear to everyone leads to more meaningful discussions and more transparency into the decisions that are made.
• Make data more engaging. When it’s easy to extract meaningful insights—and maybe even fun to do so—data can be interesting to work with and pay attention to.
• Inspire action. When data becomes more than dry numbers and statistics, it can create a compelling picture that motivates people to make changes or move forward.  

Dussenne said working as an independent professional, with exposure to different clients and a wide range of objectives, has given her a perspective she may have missed otherwise.

“When you work in a company, you’re often like a firefighter—putting out fires everywhere and working in a reactive way,” she said. “When you work as a consultant, you don’t have specific day-to-day analyses to deliver. It’s much easier to take a step back, to look at data in a proactive way, and to see how it can be used to improve performance.”

Personal networking helps her do her best work

One of the things Dussenne missed working on her own was the camaraderie of a team. To replicate that energy, she dove into building a professional network. “When you work in a team, you can walk through obstacles together and brainstorm to reach a good solution,” she said. “When I’m facing a very challenging project and I’m not sure the best way to move forward, I have now created a network of professionals in New York City that I can reach out to.”

Much of Dussenne’s network comprises people she’s worked with in the past. When she worked at the U.N., the data community wasn’t very big so it was easier to get to know her colleagues and, through them, an even broader community. She also has access to a lot of data-related meetups in the NYC area. “It isn’t in my nature to go and speak with random people I don’t know, but it’s been very rewarding because I’ve learned a lot,” she said

Finally, Dussenne leveraged her alma mater in Brussels. “I initially reached out to anyone I could find in NYC who went to my university,” she said. “After all, we have things in common: We went to the same university and, in most cases, we live in a big city that isn’t where we were raised. These two things made it easier for people to relate to me and more open to going for a coffee.”

AI makes working with data easier for clients and professionals alike

Advances in AI and machine learning have already transformed how Dussenne works. Generative AI is set to have an even more significant impact on her as well as her industry.

First, using AI has made Dussenne more efficient. When writing information for a dashboard, for example, she can write the information in her own words, then prompt ChatGPT to optimize it for use in a dashboard.

The more wide-reaching effect, however, is through data visualization tools like Microsoft Power BI. These robust tools were already very powerful, but they haven’t been particularly intuitive. In the past, users needed to be data literate and understand how to ask the precise queries needed to get an accurate response.

Generative AI blows past those barriers.

“If you’ve set up your dashboard correctly, and if your data is clean and well organized, a dashboard can be very powerful while also being easy enough for my grandmother to use,” Dussenne said. “You can ask a question in natural language and—based on what you’ve been building and how you’ve structured and documented the data—it can deliver the information within seconds.”

One client example: a mobile data dashboard for Wendy’s and Papa John’s

When Dussenne first started working with one of the largest Wendy’s and Papa John’s franchises, the fast-food company was working on an app to provide managers with on-the-go access to real-time store business metrics. The app had a structure but it wasn’t easy to use—and it definitely wasn’t providing the insights they wanted.

“It took two months of in-depth discovery to understand what the managers needed, then to redesign the app so it would be efficient and nice to use,” she said. “Now, it’s used by dozens of managers who enjoy having access to the data. They just grab their phone and have instant access to store sales, cost, trends, order speed, and regional comparison data.”

The project led to significantly higher engagement from field managers, fostering a more data-driven operational culture. It also decreased the time and effort needed to identify important key performance indicators (KPIs), enhancing the efficiency of decision-making processes. It also helped Dussenne understand just how powerful mobile can be for data visualization. “It’s much easier to have data on a phone because you can easily have access to it,” she explained.

It’s also an interesting way to increase data literacy. “Instead of having to sit at a computer, the app provides key KPIs so you don’t have to deal with an overload of information—just the information that matters most,” she said.

Screenshots of a mobile template Dussenne has developed to use with her clients.

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Why parenthood and a career can be a compelling blend

After starting as an independent professional working on solo projects, Dussenne recently launched DataDriven Agency, a move to help expand and diversify her business. Not only is she motivated to expand her business to meet the rise in demand for her expertise, but she also knows her biggest fan is watching—and she wants to make every moment count.

Before starting daycare in the new year, Dussenne’s two-year-old son spends his days at home, both being actively parented but also playing independently. She’s found a business cadence that works for both of them. “Life can be unpredictable but somehow it is still pretty predictable with him,” she said. “I'm not going to say it’s the same day because every day is very different. But I can rely on the same sort of thing happening at the same time every day.”

Their day starts with one-on-one time—no phone, no distractions, just 30 minutes or an hour of doing something together. It’s time that Dussenne says makes all the difference in her day. “The time fills up his cup so he feels loved,” she explained. “If I try to get to work too quickly and I haven't spent enough time with him, he’ll ask for more attention. But he knows the difference between time when I’m Mom and times when I’m here if he needs me but am otherwise focused. He’s fine playing independently beside me.”

Building a business and exceeding her financial expectations while being a full-time mom who’s there for the day-to-day moments is a unique advantage that Dussenne is grateful for. But it also takes a lot of organization to keep things under control.

Here’s a look at the cadence of a typical day:

• One-on-one time together
• Meetings in the morning while her son plays independently
• Deep work during nap time: “I’m lucky he’s a good napper, he usually naps for two to three hours a day.”
• Administrative work during pockets of time in the afternoon, when interruptions are less disruptive
• Deep work in the evening once her son is asleep

In total, Dussenne plans for four to six hours of focused work every day—enough time to get everything done. “I think being a mom has made me a better professional,” she said. “I’m much more efficient and I’ve learned how to optimize every single minute of my day. I’ve become a better communicator, with more empathy toward my clients. And I have a deeper sense of purpose.”

What happens next?

Dussenne sees data visualization moving closer to the heart of business strategy and development over the next few years. “Leaders will learn how to use data to optimize decisions rather than leaving their dashboards sitting in a corner,” she said.

And as the field of data visualization matures, Dussenne plans to grow her business alongside it. She recently hired an apprentice to help with the basic requirements of client work and, over the next six months, she aims to leverage more of her professional network to grow her agency. She also sees an opportunity to help teams build their capacity to use data visualization tools to their advantage.

“I help my clients see what they can do with their data, how they can leverage data visualization when it’s designed specifically for them,” Dussenne said. “There’s a lot of power in democratizing data at a company level, and I’m excited to contribute to that.”

Looking for a data visualization specialist who can help with your next project? Connect with Aurélie Dussenne or have a look at other data analysts on Upwork.