Three keys to transitioning an organization to Tableau
Tableau Conference(ish) is quickly approaching and ‘tis the season where we all get excited about the possibilities Tableau can offer through better analytics and thus better decisions. The question that always results is, ‘How do I take all this awesome information and apply it in my day to day life?’ The answer is usually time and patience but here are my three key priorities in helping companies transition to Tableau from (usually) Excel.
ONE
It all starts with the data. The company’s data is almost always structured for Excel and to the uninitiated, this does not seem like a show stopper. Hopefully, no one wants to waste all that time with calculations splitting out a dimension into manageable parts - not to mention the performance implications. It is easier to start at the (data)source and restructure the data so Tableau can work its magic. This means: dates are all in one column, measures are distinctive and Tableau can do the totaling and aggregation - we do not need columns for that, they just get in the way. This means planning the transition from the start and negotiating with the data engineers for a little bandwidth. As the Tableau Blueprint recommends, pick your top 5 used data sources, prioritize them and ask data engineers for the time to give you a standard data source or two and have your users start with a standard, certified data source you can rely on. This then means that the organization is now using the same curated and updatable data source and talking the same numbers.
TWO
Have a Proof of Concept. Show your users/executives where you can take them. Take your newly minted data source and create a commonly used dashboard that highlights some problem areas in the business and show them how easy Tableau helps you discover hidden issues in your data. The dashboard does not have to be complicated but it should be clear and leverage visual best practices to highlight how much easier data is to discover with visual cues and attributes. Not all the dashboards should be converted on day one but working with your end-users on contrast iterations of how they see and understand data is key to gaining adoption.
THREE
Be patient with your end-users. They like the reports you are producing for them and likely do not know you are up to 1 AM every month making sure the data and reports are updated and ready for them on the first Wednesday after the data gets released. The reports are like comfort food - turkey soup when you are sick or mac and cheese on a cold winter day. They are used to what they look like and where to get what they need out of them. I most often get asked to recreate the same thing in Tableau that is in Excel so let’s start there. Meet your users where they are but add some elements to improve their experience - like make a highlight table so colour draws out their problem areas or give them another option (A/B testing) to allow them to adjust to what you could do in Tableau that was not possible before. There are lots of great resources on working with your end-users on change management such as this Tableau Conference 19 video from Kirk Munroe and Mike Madigan and this blog from Ryan Sleeper.
There is not really a magic potion to bring your end-users the excitement you feel for Tableau but with time, patience and some great vizzing - you will get there. Until then, enjoy the ride/vizzing!
