Designing Data Visualizations that Work

why take this course?

In today’s data-rich environments, insight alone is not enough. To create real value, data must be communicated in a way that informs action, builds trust, and drives results.

This one-day course equips you with the skills to design data visualizations that do exactly that. Whether you’re preparing policy briefs, making dashboards, advising stakeholders, communicating results or creating internal reports, you’ll learn to design visual presentations of your data that are clear, trustworthy, and persuasive.

From boardrooms to dashboards, research reports to investor updates—this course helps you deliver impact through visual clarity.

Creating effective visualizations is not just about choosing the right charting technique, it’s about communicating the right message to the right audience in the right way. In this course, you’ll go beyond default templates to learn how to design data visuals that are intuitive, impactful, and purpose-driven.

This course is taught in English.

who should attend?

This course is designed for professionals who regularly work with data and need to communicate insights effectively, including:

• Business intelligence analysts and strategy professionals
• Data specialists in both public and private organizations
• Government and municipal analysts
• Researchers and social scientists
• Consultants and communication professionals presenting data to clients or stakeholders
• Advisors of decision-makers in both the public and private sector

Whether you work in a ministry, a multinational company, or a nonprofit—if your role involves turning data into decisions, this course is for you.

Key Learning Outcomes

After completing the course, you’ll be equipped to:

• Create visualizations that persuade, inform, and inspire action
• Avoid common mistakes that undermine trust or clarity
• Strengthen the credibility of your reports, dashboards, and presentations
• Apply advanced techniques to reveal insights that matter
• Use powerful visualization tools—without needing to codeYou’ll leave with the skills and tools to elevate how your data is seen, understood, and acted upon.

You’ll leave with the skills and tools to elevate how your data is seen, understood, and acted upon.

Master the techniques that turn raw data into sharp, visual insights.

Creating effective visualizations is not just about choosing the right chart—it’s about communicating the right message to the right audience in the right way. In this course, you’ll go beyond default templates to learn how to design data visuals that are intuitive, impactful, and purpose-driven.

You’ll explore a range of techniques, including:

• Choosing the right chart for your purpose from comparisons to trends, distributions to relationships
• Transforming standard visuals upgrading simple bar or line charts to reveal deeper patterns
• Using color, shape, and space with intent to highlight key findings, show variation, and support interpretation
• Applying design principles such as hierarchy, contrast, alignment, and consistency
• Avoiding cognitive overload by focusing attention and removing distractions

You’ll also learn how to design for different audiences: a dashboard for executives has different needs than a policy paper, a social media graphic, or an investor pitch. We’ll cover how to adapt your visual language to match the context—while staying accurate and credible.

In short: You’ll learn how to make charts that work—visually, cognitively, and strategically.

program

course overview

09.00–10.00 | Introduction & Motivation

• The true power (and limits) of Data Visualization
• When visuals unlock insight—and when they don’t
• Use cases across business, government, and research

10.15–11.15 | How Not to Visualize Data

• Common mistakes that confuse or mislead
• Hidden biases in design and interpretation
• Spotting and avoiding manipulative visuals

11.30–12.30 | Designing Effective Visualizations

• Using human perception to improve understanding
• Designing for executive, operational, or public audiences
• Ensuring clarity, inclusivity, and trustworthiness

13.00–14.00 | Advanced Visualization Techniques

• Going beyond standard Excel and Power BI charts
• When to use tree maps, sankey diagrams, heat maps, and more
• Using color, layout, and interaction to amplify meaning

14.15–15.15 | Practical Tools: No-Code & Low-Code

• Get started with:
  • RawGraphs
  • KNIME
  • Vega-Lite
• Learn how to integrate these tools into your workflow

15.30–16.30 | Q&A and Wrap-up

• Bring your own questions, challenges, or cases
• Summary of key takeaways and visual design principles
• Practical resources to apply immediately in your work

practical information

You need to bring your own computer and licenses (for instance PowerPoint and Power BI), but you’ll receive slides, toolkits, templates, and visual examples.

The price includes a complimentary meal, coffee, cake and drinks throughout the whole day.

No licenses – neither for PowerBI nor for PowerPoint – are needed for this course.

meet the instructor

Hans-Jörg Schulz brings extensive experience in designing data visualizations that make an impact from policy briefs to strategic dashboards. He is an associate professor at the Department of Computer Science at Aarhus University.

With a background in visual analysis of structured data, and consulting within both the public and private sector, he brings practical insight into how visualizations work and why they sometimes fail. His teaching combines evidence-based methods, hands-on examples, and a deep focus on real-world challenges.