I guess this is basically about "knowing your audience". I think storytelling can be a double-edged sword. When decision-makers hear a great narrative or story, they can more readily comprehend something that they can't get from the "numbers" like we might. That's usually the selling point. But there's a dark side to this power most jedi don't talk about.
A convincing narrative can override data and analysis. It can overstate the strength of a relationship, oversimplify complicated interactions, or even override a model entirely. Ever hear of an otherwise good model that was rejected because it was counter-intuitive or went against the received wisdom? The status quo likely already had a compelling narrative in your decision-maker's mind that you didn't overcome. The story was more powerful. But similarly, if we give a decision-maker a compelling story, it might communicate results more strongly than the model supports. Imagine a model that suggests a moderate correlation of X and Y. A compelling narrative received by the decision-maker of "if X then Y" might be well received and result in action, but its fundamentally a miscommunication of the analysis. What ultimately matters isn't the story told, but the story heard.
You can see an example in some of INFORM'S own social media posts. "Operations Research Ranked #1 Highest Earning Field" INFORMS LinkedIn Post. But if you follow the data, you'll find out that is a point estimate from an HEA survey from which only a handful of responses for OR were given (with the result being a weighted average of the reported median earning from only a handful of OR programs). Is Operations Research the #1 highest earning field? It's a great narrative, but I really don't think it is supported by the data or the analysis (especially when you look at the programs that responded, as well as the greater amount of data surrounding some of the other fields, or look a terms longer than 4-years after graduation). Telling the story "OR is a great field" would be fine, but the heard "OR is the highest earning undergrad" might miscommunicate results and set up some false expectations (especially at schools other than those represented) to be dealt with later.
The allure of a story is a tool. You want to replace the mental model in your decision-maker's head with the model you've built for your analysis. But just as a bad presentation fails to communicate results to those who need them, an overly "good" presentation can also fail to communicate results to those who need them. If the story is stronger than the analysis, it is the story and not the analysis that the decision maker will receive. Your decision-maker will now have internalized the story (with its overstated strengths or oversimplified relationships) rather than your model. Depending on the situation, that might be just as much a failure to communicate as the "bad" presentation. Definitely a potential snag to think about while spinning yarns about your data.
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Matthew Ferguson
Senior Operations Research Analyst
United States Army Human Resources Command
Elizabethtown KY
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Original Message:
Sent: 11-03-2023 04:20
From: Mrimon "Nemo" Guha
Subject: Presentations are more important than data- Agree or disagree?
I am starting to believe storytelling is like a cherry on top of the cake that manages to change the taste and perception of the cake( that is made of data). Presentations are stories that we get to see, hear, and judge when we attend big conferences or competitions. A good presentation sells so much more than what just good data might sell.
Dear Readers, do you agree or do you disagree with my point of view?
I was reading the book "Winning the room" by Bill Franks, Kirk Borne and I was enlightened to know the importance of being a good storyteller who makes great presentations and also got to know that there are so many aspects of presentations that we need to be aware of. For example, it is crucial to know who our audience is, what is the right amount of technical details should be in the slides, and what is the story behind our slides. I am loving the book and I would recommend it to everyone interested to learn more about leaving an impact with their slideshows.
What are some of your favorite tips or tricks that you keep in mind when you are presenting?
(P.S. - I would love suggestions for self-help books that can benefit a shy public speaker like me)
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Mrimon "Nemo" Guha
UC Davis
San Francisco CA
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