What is Visualization Reporting and How Does it Help Mitigate Risk?

Visualization reporting has gained tremendous popularity in recent years, alongside the rise of big data and analytics technology. An increasing number of business leaders and key decision-makers are leveraging visualization reporting in their efforts to make data-driven decisions. 

Whether it’s business strategy development, the creation of a new company-wide marketing plan, or coming up with a new, updated approach to risk mitigation, accurate data provides the information and insights you need to maximize your chances of seeing a healthy ROI and overall success as a business. Data visualization tools are ideal for depicting metrics and data in a clear, graphical manner that is easily digestible. But this begs the question: how does data visualization play into a company’s risk management and mitigation efforts? 

What is Visualization Reporting? 

Traditionally, data and analytics have been presented in the form of a numerical chart or report. You could expect to see columns and rows with numerical values, with few visual clues to illustrate the significance of this information.  

On the other hand, data visualization reporting involves the use of graphs, charts, illustrations and images, and other graphic elements — such as color — that are intended to provide context and clues as to the significance of metrics and figures. With more and more companies leveraging big data, reports with data visualization have rapidly gained favor. We continue to see the deployment of new platform-as-a-service (PaaS) sites that provide users with graphical renderings of their data, such as charts and graphs. Users can then generate and export reports using those data visualization elements. 

Data visualization reports are increasing in popularity because they’re highly digestible and visually appealing. Data visualizations are far more eye-catching and digestible than a plain numerical chart.  But beyond this, most people find that visualization reporting is much easier to understand, both in terms of the actual data and its broader, relative significance. 

How Does Visualization Reporting Mitigate Risks? 

A clear understanding of your enterprise data is absolutely essential when you are dealing with matters of great significance and/or potential consequences, such as a risk management and mitigation plan or a business strategy. This leads to an important question: how does visualization reporting help mitigate risk, eliminate threats and reduce a company’s vulnerabilities? Consider the following points. 

Attention-Getting Graphical Elements 

Getting — and keeping — the attention of busy business leaders and stakeholders can be challenging. If you present data in a plain, boring numerical chart, you’re going to struggle when it comes to capturing the attention of the individuals who will be making important risk management decisions. There is a much greater chance that their minds will wander at a time when you need them to be fully engaged. On the other hand, a colorful and interesting data visualization such as an infographic will make it much easier to capture others’ attention when it matters most. 

Data Visualization Reporting for Measuring Success 

Periodically, a company’s risk management task force must convene to evaluate the effectiveness of its risk mitigation efforts. This evaluation process is critical for the development of an updated risk management strategy. Data must be collected and quantified if you are going to obtain an accurate measurement of success. Visualization reporting can be used to illustrate the relationship between data points, providing insights into gains, losses, general dynamics, and predictions for the future. 

Data Renderings to Improved Understanding

Visualization reporting allows you to depict key relationships between data points, offering context that will lead to a much better understanding of a company’s risk management landscape. This insight is important if you are going to develop and deploy an effective risk mitigation strategy. Successful risk management requires a full understanding of the actual risk factor, threat, or vulnerability and all of the circumstances, events, and dynamics that surround that issue. Data visualizations allow you to convey this information in a way that people will easily understand, paving the way for data-driven decision-making. 

Data to Inform a Company’s Risk Mitigation Strategy

Effective risk mitigation is a bit like playing whack-a-mole, with the game mounted atop a moving target. You’re tasked with continually knocking back threats and new moles are always popping up. And while the data can tell you where new moles are likely to emerge, that information needs to be presented in a way that you’ll understand. Enter: data visualization reports — a tool for informing the development of a company’s risk management strategy. 

Data and metrics can be leveraged to provide a comprehensive view into several areas that will ultimately be addressed throughout the course of an organization’s risk mitigation efforts. Data visualization reporting can be used to answer several key questions, including the following. 

• What vulnerabilities opened the door to a specific threat or risk? 
• What circumstances or events caused or contributed to the formation of these vulnerabilities? 
• What is the nature of the threats or risk factors that are currently affecting your organization? 
• What is the nature of the threats or risk factors that are likely to arise in the future? 
• What risks are you currently confronting with your risk management efforts? 
• What are the prospective or potential risks that may affect your organization in the future? 

These are a few of the many questions that you can answer by leveraging data and analytics visualizations. Data visualization reports allow you to render graphics that depict important data points in a manner that’s easy to understand. Once you have a clear understanding of this information, you’ll be better positioned to develop a strategy for neutralizing threats, eliminating vulnerabilities, and mitigating risks. 

Periodic evaluation is really essential for the development of a risk mitigation strategy, whether it’s for a small startup, a thriving mid-sized business, or a massive corporation. The risk landscape is constantly evolving and changing, with new threats and vulnerabilities arising on a daily basis in some industries. This makes it difficult to nail down an effective risk mitigation strategy right out of the starting gate. Fine-tuning is virtually always necessary in order to achieve the best possible results. What’s more, a business must modify its risk management plans to accommodate new, emerging threats and newly discovered areas of vulnerability. 

Data-driven decision-making is widely regarded as a best practice for the development and refinement of a company’s risk management and mitigation strategy. By using data visualization reporting, you can convey important information to risk management task force members, empowering them with the data that will guide their decision-making and strategy development processes. 

Developing an Enterprise Risk Management Software Solution 

At iTech, we specialize in the development of risk management solutions, such as software platforms that are designed to help guide companies’ risk mitigation efforts. Our innovative developers work one-on-one with each client, collaborating to achieve an in-depth understanding of the company’s strategic objectives and risk management challenges. These insights are then used to create a purpose-built enterprise software solution — one that will help maximize productivity and generate a solid ROI.

Reach out to the iTech team today to begin a discussion about your company’s risk mitigation pain points and the organization’s goals for the future. Then, we’ll strive to exceed your expectations with the development of an innovative Digital Transformation solution.