Barbara Donnini

“While many think of data visualization as a pure science, I think there is certainly some room for art and creativity mixed in as well.”

Barbara Donnini is a data analytics expert with a Bachelor's in Applied Statistics. She is currently the President of Boxplot Analytics, a consulting firm that produces accurate, data-driven results for corporate clients. She also teaches for General Assembly, and is an expert in Excel, Tableau, Qlik, Python, R, JavaScript, and SQL.  Previously, she was a business analyst at an insurance company, as well as a statistician analyzing a variety of corporate, government, and nonprofit datasets. According to Barbara, visualization is a key part of what data analysts and data scientists do. This is because the human brain does not interpret tables of numbers well. Effective visualizations are easier to comprehend and can better tell the story of data. Most visualization choices are not very subjective -- there are only a certain set of charts that will work for certain types of data. However, in some cases there is room for creativity.

In her spare time, Barbara expends her own creativity by gardening and exploring the outdoors.

What does leadership mean to you?

“I think that leadership is a complex mixture of many qualities. And that it's a skill and a science in itself, and something that can be taught. Perhaps some people are born with the qualities of a great leader, but I do think that most people can learn what it means to be a leader and with practice can become an impactful leader. To me, kindness, empathy, and encouragement are large parts of leadership. When someone in the group does something well, it should be noted and noted with emphasis. I think leaders also should not see themselves as "above" or better than the people they are leading. When a leader has a mindset of equality and patience, and a desire to hear what everyone at the table has to say it makes an organization stronger. Leadership is something I like to keep learning about and in the situations where I'm in a leadership position I try to be conscious of these and other qualities that make a good leader.”

Where do art and your discipline meet?

“As data analysts and data scientists, visualization is a key part of what we do. The human brain doesn't interpret tables of numbers well. Effective visualizations are easier to comprehend and can better tell the story of data. Most visualization choices aren't very subjective - there are only a certain set of charts that will work for certain types of data. However, in some cases there is room for creativity. And more and more, we see groups of people coming together to talk about the beauty, creativity, and art in data visualizations. When people in the field see an innovative take on an existing visualiziation or a brand new type of graphic, it's exciting and catches our attention! While many think of data visualization as a pure science, I think there is certainly some room for art and creativity mixed in as well.”

Biography:

Barbara is a data analytics expert with a Bachelor's in Applied Statistics and a demonstrated history of working in the industry. She previously held a position as a Business Analyst at an insurance company where she primarily served the needs of the organization’s marketing department. She also worked for a statistician analyzing a variety of corporate, government, and nonprofit datasets. Barbara is currently the President of Boxplot Analytics, a consulting firm that produces accurate, data-driven results for corporate clients. She also teaches for General Assembly, and is an expert in Excel, Tableau, Qlik, Python, R, JavaScript, and SQL. In her spare time she enjoys gardening and being outdoors.