The values were not negative the last 2 times the chart was used to convey the bridge. Data labels were also not used then, as the Y axis formatted +ve on both sides conveyed the %s. One bad month (May) in the prior year in the last two categories is what is giving negative values now & leading to a rethink on alternate ways of portrayal.

When they were used the last 2 times, the under performance in Jan/ Feb compared to the last year & the enormity of tasks ahead to achieve the year end numbers came out clear from the display (atleast we felt so)

I am at a loss trying to figure out how 3 sets of interrelated data (sub segments) could be portrayed using stacked bar chart.

I forgot to apologise in my last mail – I did not mean to send duplicate data to you for the pie charts –The data that is to be plotted is still to be compiled & as it would take some time, I thought I’ll use some sample data to seek your advise.

Savithri

Thanks for the additional information. I hadn’t realized your chart was in the Chart Masters queue. I may use some of the other charts as additional examples.

A few comments:

It’s good to experiment with different approaches. However, it’s also good to analyze how well the message gets across. In your up and down bars example, the values cannot be interpreted by height alone, since some values are negative. The labels are required to show the value, thus the bars are not sufficient to show the data. So an alternative approach is called for.

If two sets of data are interrelated but convey different types of data, as in your bar-column, a panel is good because it prevents confusion over the different types, but it conserves the temporal relationship because of the parallel time axes.

I understand about bosses. I used to have bosses, and some are more flexible than others. You could compare the two approaches, and say why one is better than the other, then hope the boss isn’t so stubborn as to insist the inferior chart he wanted should be used in place of the improved approach.

And I apologize about not matching up your name to the appropriate gender.

1. The Pie chart is already an entrant to your chart doctor. I have no problem in your using any of the rest too, if it would help you to educate others how not to graph.

2. Pie: It started like this. A pie in pie, to show how much was overspent in each major category of cost in the 1st quarter was reqd. Outer pie showing the categories of cost & the inner pie having 2 segments in each category showing the % spent & the balance available % as per the budget.
Same colours were used for spends & balance ileft n each category.
The categories which clocked > 40% in the 1st quarter deserving attention stood out.
Trust me (I know you won’t) that it wasn’t all that bad…
Then the need was to show Market segments (organised, unorganised etc) classified into sub & sub sub categories, the sub categories being regions & sub sub being us vs them competitors’ share
Pardon me, the data sent to you was not the result of the analysis but some test data that I used.

2. Stacked clustered columns up & down the X axis: the idea was the heights could be compared above & below if it started in the same base line.
For e.g. in the 1st set, YTD CY % say EBIT is 5 as against 6 of the prior year. As against this , the balance year would have to produce 10% as against 7% of the corresponding period of last year in order to achieve the full year result of 8.4% (oval) in that category.
If I had stacked all above X axis, I don’t (atleast didn’t) think it would have conveyed the bridge to be achieved in the balance months clearly.

3. Bar – column: The ABS numbers & the %s are interrelated. Assuming it is GP, GP in ABS value as well as GP% of one year is on the same side.. Yes I could have done this in a panel chart one showing ABS numbers & the other %,s but the requirement was to see it together month on month. We have targets not just in the abs numbers but % s too

The idea of sending 2 axis graph was to convey that situations are not rare when various ABS numbers & %s are needed in one place.
Month on month movement of current period, previous period, targets, revised target (global meltdown!!) values were needed to be displayed along with growth %.
If I use 6 line graphs with data labels, the result was even more annoying than what you see.

4. Why data labels instead of formatted nice data tables? Why different colours for markers & lines? Why multi colours? Why so much info crowded in one place? Why 2 axis graphs instead of panel charts?
Sir, if the user (read … ‘boss’) does not want to strain his eyes looking up & down, wants all info in one shot, cannot see a green marker on a green background, cannot read figs on simple data tables & … one is left with no option but to comply, what then?

Thank God only 12 months in a year, only 2 eyes, limited screen space to show ppt presentations, your Excel cannot support innumerable colour codes…

I can sense you frowning at this long mail. I stop here, as I guess otherwise my future mails will end up in your trash can

P.S. Only females are named savithri in India

I would love to see these before and after charts, even if there is only a before available. Could they be another candidate for the Chartbusters?

Sheet2: Drawing some bars upward and others downward causes problems, especially when the downward bars include positive and negative values. Bad idea. How closely related are the YTD and Balance?

Bar-Column: The tornado won’t work, because the series with related data are separated across the chart, and also because the dates run vertically instead of horizontally. Use all lines, and adjust the axis scales to produce a panel chart. Set the primary scale to -75 to 75 and the secondary to 0 to 30%. This keeps the two sets of lines away from each other, which is important to do, since otherwise, Secondary Axes in Charts can cause confusion.

2 Axis: This needs to be cleaned up. I would change the columns here to lines, and separate the primary and secondary lines into top and bottom panels (as above). The colors are strange. Using contrasting colors for markers and lines of the same series means colors can no longer be used to distinguish between series, leading to confusion.

In general, you use way too many data labels. These labels are so dense they obscure the plotted data, and there are so many they don’t add to comprehension. If you need to have the exact values on hand, place a table near the chart. Also, one chart has some labels in ovals in addition to the other data labels, and I don’t know what they represent.

2. How about Building a 2×2 Panel Chart? Then you don’t have above/below issues.

3. It is very hard to compare the bars on the left to the bars on the right. Make a clustered bar chart, or perhaps a dot plot, such as the one at the bottom of my article on Tornado Charts and Dot Plots.

1. To present 3 series of inter related data, to someone who finds it easy to add up the proportion of pie slices at each level, than to figure out the heights of columns/ bars stacked one on the other…

If I try to do a doughnut pie combination, I’m not able to get the series in the order in which it is required – outermost, inner & innermost

2. Need to compare sets of data for 2 years broken down into Year to date & balance year. To do so, (using your stacked clustered column combo approach), I plotted year to date values below X axis & the balance period above X axis. This way, I felt the comparison between the 2 years’ YTD & balance year was clearly getting portrayed. However one negative data in between this time is upsetting this representation.

3. I used your tornado chart to represent 12 months data (Val & % on 2 axis) instead of a column line graph as I thought that bar charts on either side of x axis looked less clumsier. But again I’m struck with just one negative data in between

I’ve sent all the graphs to you by mail. Would it be possible to advise?

Thanks,
Savithri