As the volume of available data continues to grow at a rapid pace, the ability to effectively tell a story about that data becomes increasingly important. This is especially true in labor and employment litigation, in which companies warehouse massive quantities of data about their employees (e.g., time-card punches and payroll records). Being able to effectively communicate in litigation may be the difference between a favorable and an unfavorable finding by a mediator, arbitrator, judge, or jury.
Why Visuals?
Descriptions of analyses and summary tables can convey a wealth of information, but they often do not tell the story in a simple, intuitive, and meaningful way. It can be cumbersome to try to quickly identify patterns and trends (or lack thereof) across a large summary table. In contrast, visualizations have high data density, allowing more information to be shown with less space than either a data table or a written description of the data. Visualizations also allow the reader or viewer to quickly ascertain relationships between different data points or to visually emphasize a pattern or trend of interest.