Report Redesign
Transform Text-Heavy Technical Reports into Visual, Skimmable Reports
I used to write hundred-page reports...
I was trained to write lengthy reports filled with statistical jargon. Important information that sat around and gathered dust.
Now, I design reports that people actually want to read.
Fewer paragraphs. More graphs. My audience can understand the information, so the data actually gets used.
Reports aren't supposed to feel daunting.
We’ll walk through my Report Redesign Pyramid, a step-by-step process that you can apply to your own projects.
What's Included
I'm going to transform you into the report-redesigning hero that your organization needs. Here's what's included to make that happen.
- 45+ video lessons that you can watch anytime (the equivalent of my two-day Report Redesign workshop).
- Captions on all videos.
- Step-by-step process to transform Dusty Shelf Reports into reports that actually inform decisions.
- Office Hours (nearly) every week in 2023 and 2024 to talk about your projects (25+ Q&A sessions each year).
- TWO 1:1 Consultations with me as rewards for completing 25% and 50% of the lessons.
- 60-page Report Redesign ebook with our checklists and case studies.
- Discussion boards to ask questions and post your own work.
- Private online community of fellow participants.
- Weekly emails with suggested pacing so you don't feel behind.
- Examples from a variety of industries (Federal, state, and local government agencies; universities; public health; healthcare and hospitals; K-12 education; juvenile justice; museums; libraries; program evaluation; and more).
- Behind-the-scenes Word and PowerPoint magic tricks so you can continue using everyday software.
- Certificates of completion.
- Lifetime access so you don't feel rushed.
Step-by-Step Process
45+ Video Lessons
You'll get instant access to 45+ lessons--the equivalent of a two-day training. You can watch these lessons anytime around your own schedule.
Go Beyond the Report
7 lessons; 1 hour 49 minutes
In this module, you’ll learn how to:
- match your dissemination format's complexity to your audience;
- follow the 30-3-1 approach;
- design a one-pager with my seven ingredients; and
- choose which findings to include in a one-pager.
Structure Your Report
11 lessons; 4 hours 44 minutes
In this module, you’ll learn how to:
- set up your Theme Colors and Fonts inside Word;
- start with the "so what?"
- use landscape for on-screen reading;
- add a 20-minute cover;
- visually chunk the content with color-coded dividers; and
- apply a text hierarchy.
Design Each Page
11 lessons; 3 hours 16 minutes
In this module, you'll learn how to:
- aim for 1+ visual per page;
- add 15+ different styles of visuals using my checklist;
- go beyond the bar chart;
- visualize qualitative data in reports;
- tell a story through dark-light contrast and takeaway text;
- lower the reading grade level of your writing;
- add inclusive language; and
- use people-first language.
Case Studies
13 lessons; 7 hours 48 minutes
Let's look at real-life case studies from your colleagues! In these lessons, you'll see me talking through (1) what they're already doing well and (2) quick wins.
Case studies include:
- Bob's All-Text Weekly Report (18 min)
- Cathy's Two-Pager in PowerPoint (46 min)
- Christine's Full-Length Report (45 min)
- Diane's One-Page Annual Report (15 min)
- Miriam's Column Charts (33 min)
- Sharon's "Shell" for Data Briefs (22 min)
- One-Pagers from Bob & Christine (57 min)
- Sharon's Report on Youth Suicide (35 min)
- Maria's Qualitative Data & Icon Arrays from an Evaluation Report (49 min)
- Kristin W.'s Icon Arrays, Pie Charts, and Overlapping Bar Charts (52 min)
- Arthur's Transition from PDFs to One-Pagers or Web-Based Reports (34 min)
- Additional Case Studies from the 2020 Cohort's Graduation Party (22 min)
- Additional Case Studies from the 2021 Cohort's Graduation Party (36 min)
Guest Experts
Finally, you can watch these bonus lessons from guest experts:
- Sketchnoting with Emily Mills (56 min)
- Breathwork with Kathleen Oh (1 hr 38 min)
Captions on All Videos
By popular request, all our videos have been captioned.
Office Hours
Want me to review your drafts? Stuck trying to apply the lessons to your real-world dataset? Submit your questions to Office Hours! Your tuition includes all the Office Hours in 2023 and 2024. That's 25+ Q&A sessions in a small group setting each year.
Additional Support
Two 1:1 Consultations with Me
As a reward for completing 25% and 50% of the lessons, you'll be invited to 1:1 consultations with me. You'll pick my brain about anything and everything dataviz-wise. Much more cost-efficient than hiring me separately, too!
Data Vizards Community
You'll be invited to join our private community on LinkedIn. You can post your own questions and get feedback from me and from your colleagues.
Discussion Boards to Ask Questions
Every module includes discussion boards where you can ask questions, comment on the lessons, and share your own tips with the community.
Ebook
You'll get a license to download our 67-page ebook, which contains our 7 Ingredients for Designing One-Pagers, Checklist of 15+ Ideas for Visuals, and additional reporting case studies.
Monday Messages to Cheer You On
I know you’re going to skip straight to the juicy reporting magic tricks, but I’m going to email you on Mondays around 11 am EST and pretend like we’re working through the course one module at a time.
Certificates of Completion
Wow your boss and boost your resume.
What Participants Are Saying
8,400+ participants from around the globe have taken my online courses since 2018.
Here's how those researchers, evaluators, scientists, and professors are describing this course.
"Thank you to Ann K. Emery. I have learned so much from her courses , blogs, and presentations. Three times last week my team got enthusiastic reviews from clients about our engaging and readable reports!.. And no, I am not an affiliate. Just a happy student."
- Ann Price, Owner and President, Community Evaluation Solutions, Inc.
"Investing in the Report Redesign course from Depict Data Studio was one of the best decisions I have made in my career. Before the course, I was writing long, wordy reports that I thought were visually appealing because I included tables and bar charts; I had no idea the options I had within software I already had access to.
Now, I create impactful one-pagers and reports that are visually appealing and even more importantly, get read by my colleagues. I know that there are more than 15 types of visuals to include in reports, how to utilize my company's brand to my advantage, and more. I have been complimented on the new look of my reports by coworkers and external stakeholders, and continue to have "aha" moments of how I can continue to apply Ann's advice as access to the course never expires.
I cannot recommend this course enough. Thanks Ann and Depict Data Studio!"
- Olivia Power, Data and Reporting Specialist, National FFA Organization
"I was an ED for a small nonprofit. We had a serious marketing/branding problem when I came on board. There was NO strategy whatsoever. I enrolled in Ann's course because I had taken one of her Excel classes previously and knew I liked her teaching style.
At first, I wanted to learn how to brand all of our presentations (due to COVID everything we presented was now over Zoom or other virtual platform). I learned how to pull colors from our logo and use them in PowerPoints. I learned how to make an annual report tell our story visually rather than blah, blah, blah. I started having FUN and . . . we started receiving attention. A local winery said they saw something we had done recently on line and wanted to know if they could recognize our efforts by donating a portion of proceeds from their hottest selling wine to us on the upcoming Saturday. Um, well, YES!
Our website was getting a face lift, people commented on our FB page. I was invited to a (in person) city council meeting to explain what we do for the community. That led to more and more people understanding the organization. Previously, we pretty much had only been recognized for one particular program and that was all we were known for. We won a grant to initiate a large-scale human services survey. I was able to rock the grant report with charts and graphs!
I like this work so much, I am now hiring myself out to help others."
- Bonnie Fulford, Nonprofit Consultant/Virtual Assistant, Grant Weaver Communications, LLC
"I work in a large urban school district as a Strategic Data Analyst and as the local evaluation partner for a preschool site. I’ve followed Ann for many years and have shared the Data Visualization Checklist widely. However, I enjoyed and learned so much more by taking the Report Redesign course.
While enrolled in Fall 2020, I redesigned my more traditional portrait-oriented Microsoft Word report into a more infographic-style landscape report designed in PowerPoint. The re-designed annual report went over very well with our site leadership and our advisory board; it even strongly assisted in getting this preschool site invited to apply for a very large, 3-year grant…along with a few others!
Now, they want the next annual report asap …they can’t wait for more! Besides the “big things” we focused on in the course, I loved the live sessions, recorded feedback videos, and Office Hours. I picked up so many tips and tricks for Excel and PowerPoint that I use in my daily work. It was a great experience."
- Jodi G. Fender, Strategic Data Analyst & Local Evaluation Partner, Long Beach Unified School District
"Many of us who work in a non-profit or educational settings serve in a variety of roles, including back of the house data analysis, board reporting, public engagement, and educational outreach. Report Redesign gave me the tools and -- more importantly, the perspectives -- I needed to increase my skills in all of these areas. Ann's combination of technical know-how and design sense makes for a powerful learning experience. As we move through and past Covid, strong engagement with all of our stakeholders is more important than ever. You won't regret your investment."
- Bob Coulter, Director, Litzsinger Road Ecology Center
"Before this course, I was visualizing data in all the wrong ways. We had such compelling data, but it wasn't telling a story-- it wasn't coming alive. Ann's course really helped me transform my data and reports. I utilize the skills from this course every day-- when developing reports and papers, doing dashboards for my team, and presentations. I have begun to develop a reputation within my department, as well as from other departments, for making compelling reports and having a knack for data visualization. In turn, I always recommend this course. This course has even helped me become better at data analytics and even data collection and survey writing, because you can better visualize the data that you want to see. The course has been an amazing resource, and the fact that you have access to it indefinitely is astounding. If you're on the fence, take the leap! It's worth it!"
- Padraic Stanley, Program Coordinator, Rush University Medical Center
About the Instructor
Your Instructor
Ann K. Emery is an internationally-acclaimed speaker who equips organizations to get their data out of dusty spreadsheets and into real-world conversations.
Each year, she delivers over 100 keynotes, workshops, and webinars with the aim of equipping organizations to visualize data more effectively.
She has been invited to speak in 30 states and 11 countries; 9,000 people have enrolled in her online training academy; and she has consulted to 200 organizations, including the United Nations, Centers for Disease Control, and Harvard University.
She earned a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia and a Master’s degree from George Mason University.
After traveling full-time as a digital nomad, Ann now resides in Florida along with her husband and fivechildren.
Register
Mark your calendars! Registration closes on Friday, May 26, 2023. When it's open, it's open. When it's closed, it's closed.
As soon as you register, you can start the recorded lessons and attend Office Hours.
First 25 People -- SOLD OUT
We've also got special Early Bird Bonuses for the earliest registrants.
The first 25 people to register will receive a Swag Bag with a dataviz shirt, stickers, buttons, and magnets.
First 10 People -- SOLD OUT
The first 10 people to register will ALSO receive a 1:1 consultation with me about your report. We'll meet over Zoom for 60 minutes and work through your questions together. The feedback will be recorded and posted as a case study inside the course.
FAQs