PBT Group brings Visual Business Intelligence expert, Stephen Few, to SA!

PBT Group, one of the leading Business Intelligence (BI), Advanced Analytics and Information Specialist groups in Africa, is proud to announce that Stephen Few, a global expert in data visualisation, will be in South Africa, from the 03rd – 05th June 2014, to present his Visual Business Intelligence Workshop.

Says Martin Rennhackkamp, CIO of PBT Group: “As data continues to explode, it will have a profound impact on businesses, especially as organisations grapple with how to extract value from their data to remain competitive. But how can businesses make data work for them?”

With 30 years of experience as an innovator, consultant, and educator in the fields of BI and information design, Stephen Few is well known within the BI industry as a leading expert in data visualisation.

Says Stephen Few; “We are overwhelmed by information, not because there is too much, but because we don’t know how to tame it. Information lies stagnant in rapidly expanding pools as our ability to collect and warehouse it increases, but our ability to make sense of and communicate it remains inert, largely without notice. Computers speed the process of information handling, but they don’t tell us what the information means or how to communicate its meaning to decision makers. These skills are not intuitive; they rely largely on analysis and presentation skills that must be learned.”

Data visualisation provides a very powerful means to make sense of data. By mapping data to visual properties such as position, length, size, shape and colour, visualisation designers leverage perceptual skills to help people discern and interpret patterns within data. Such patterns are often hard or impossible to detect and analyse when merely looking at the data in a typically tabular textual format.

Continues Rennhackkamp; “The purpose of data visualisation is to utilise a visual view to obtain to a better understanding of the underlying data and what it represents. This is critically important for businesses as this then allows the information to be put into a business context, thereby allowing for better analyses or better decisions to be made. PBT is honoured to be able to bring Stephen Few to SA to show local businesses how to effectively achieve this! A first for South African businesses, who will gain direct insight’s from the global innovator in this space”

The 3 day course will focus on the following:

• how to effectively communicate quantitative data using tables and graphs
• how to select the appropriate medium of communication (table vs. graph, and which type)
• how to visually design each component to express your message clearly and compellingly
• unique design skills required to build dashboards that really work
• full visual data analysis skills and practices that can truly make a difference

Stephen Few will be presenting the Visual Business Intelligence Workshop in Johannesburg from the 03rd – 05th June 2014, at The Venue in Melrose Arch. The cost of delegate tickets includes:

• R17 995 excluding VAT.
• Group booking discount: Get 4 for the price of 3

There is limited space and therefore bookings are on a first come first serve basis. All lunch and refreshments for the duration of the course are included.

Given the relevance and expected insights that Stephen Few will bring to South Africa, we have no doubt that this workshop will be beneficial to experts in the field of BI, and so we are excited about having Stephen here to teach and guide us. We look forward to the impact this workshop will make to those who attend and of course our broader industry.

For more details on how to register today, please visit: http://www.pbtgroup.co.za/events/