Reflection on Visualization Tool 

 Challenge 

 Visualization is a powerful tool that helps integrate different views and trains of thought . I use it to   illustrate and idea or process , which comes in handy since I have always worked with people from different   areas and backgrounds . I work as Customer Marketing Coordinator for a multi - national massive   consumption Company . I ’ve been in this role for a year and a half , and I previously worked as CPFR   ( Collaborative Planning , Forecasting and Replenishment ) Analyst for two years . Both my jobs have   required the capability to add value through collaboration between different areas . For example , as CPFR   I had to collaborate with the Sales Department , and be part of the Supply Chain Team . Now , I work with   Marketing , Sales , Supply Chain , Planning and Category Management areas . At the beginning of this year ,   our Company was struggling with Market Research data that showed we kept losing Distribution points   versus our competitors . This meant we were selling our products in less stores that we should . The typical   approach for this issue was to “ put the blame ” on the Key Account Manager , who would “ put the blame ”   on Marketing , and we would be stuck in a vicious circle and find no solutions . So I was asked to lead a   Workstream to improve our Distribution , and therefore , our sales . 

 Selection 

 Since this was a complex task , I realized I had to create a multi - functional team to successfully map the   problem and to get commitments from all parties towards finding a solution . To understand the problem   from all its angles , I chose to use Visualization tool , which consists of using drawings , maps , photos ,   schemas and other visual components that enable “ Visual Thinking ” – as Designer Angela Meyer explains   in this course , Visualization is basically using a part of our brain different than logic , which we use most of   the time . In this way , by directing everyone ’s attention towards the same model of the problem , we would   all be speaking the same language regardless of our background and areas of expertise . 

 Application 

 We held a workshop with people from different areas of the Company that were somehow related to the   issue of “ stores without sales ” . This meant we had people from Marketing , Category Management , Fields   Sales , Key Account Manager ( KAM ) , Customer Marketing ( me ) , Demand Planning and Supply Chain ( CPFR ) .   At first , everyone thought that the only reasons why we had stores without sales were the most obvious   ones ( which we will call “ Lame Ducks ” ): our price was n’t competitive , our promotions were not attractive ,   our portfolio was n’t appealing , and our service level to our customers was not on target , among others .   However , once we started to integrate everyone ’s point of view , and we started “ drawing ” different   scenarios through a diagram ( your typical arrow – concept – arrow , nothing fancier ) , we realized that the   problem could have many other causes , most of them driven by the fact that there was no stock of our   products in store ( hence , the “ no - sales ” part ) . 

 We identified that a store could either have sales , or have no sales . For stores with no sales , if there was   no stock , this could be driven by forecasting issues of Phantom Inventory ( theoretic stock but no physical   stock ) . If there was stock in the store , there were two possible causes for not having sales : the wrong   execution or the ones we referred to before as “ Lame Ducks ” . This meant we were only looking at 1 of 4   possibilities at the beginning of the session . Once we were able to map this , we associated responsible   areas for each case , which allowed us to search for solutions through our different roles , rather than   blaming each other . 

 Insight 

 Now , with all this eye - opening information , we were able to understand with a more complete   approach not just this issue , but many other problems that other areas go through , and we realized that   through visual thinking these “ big complex problems ” could be split into “ smaller simpler problems ” ,   and through collaboration we could get better more efficient solutions that add more value to the   business . This exercise helped me understand better the “ Human ” part of the Design Thinking process .   Sometimes when we use tools like Visualization , we are able to empathize with others , and join forces   into finding efficient win - win solutions for all stakeholders . 

 Approach 

 In this case , we were able to take a step back and not just be focused in one possible cause for the   problem , but deep dive into other possible causes , and find suitable solutions . There was no blame   involved , but collaboration , empathy and creativity . We still have a lot of work ahead of us , but I am   confident that by identifying the root causes of the stores with no sales , we will be able to solve these   issues through concrete and tailor - made solutions . 

 I look forward for more challenges like this one , where we can add value through collaboration ! 

 The picture above illustrates the Visualization Tool being used to map the possible causes for stores with   no sales , and the responsible areas in each case . 


EMAIL: 
ID_NUM: 
NAME_STUDENT: 
PHONE_NUM: 
STREET_ADDRESS: 
URL_PERSONAL: 
USERNAME: 

### Task: You are a PII (Personal Identity Information) Detection. Given a essays written by students, you have to identify ONLY the following:
NAME_STUDENT - The full or partial name of a student that is not necessarily the author of the essay. This excludes instructors, authors, and other person names.
EMAIL - A student’s email address.
USERNAME - A student's username on any platform.
ID_NUM - A number or sequence of characters that could be used to identify a student, such as a student ID or a social security number.
PHONE_NUM - A phone number associated with a student.
URL_PERSONAL - A URL that might be used to identify a student.
STREET_ADDRESS - A full or partial street address that is associated with the student, such as their home address.
### Input: Reflection on Visualization Tool 

 Challenge 

 Visualization is a powerful tool that helps integrate different views and trains of thought . I use it to   illustrate and idea or process , which comes in handy since I have always worked with people from different   areas and backgrounds . I work as Customer Marketing Coordinator for a multi - national massive   consumption Company . I ’ve been in this role for a year and a half , and I previously worked as CPFR   ( Collaborative Planning , Forecasting and Replenishment ) Analyst for two years . Both my jobs have   required the capability to add value through collaboration between different areas . For example , as CPFR   I had to collaborate with the Sales Department , and be part of the Supply Chain Team . Now , I work with   Marketing , Sales , Supply Chain , Planning and Category Management areas . At the beginning of this year ,   our Company was struggling with Market Research data that showed we kept losing Distribution points   versus our competitors . This meant we were selling our products in less stores that we should . The typical   approach for this issue was to “ put the blame ” on the Key Account Manager , who would “ put the blame ”   on Marketing , and we would be stuck in a vicious circle and find no solutions . So I was asked to lead a   Workstream to improve our Distribution , and therefore , our sales . 

 Selection 

 Since this was a complex task , I realized I had to create a multi - functional team to successfully map the   problem and to get commitments from all parties towards finding a solution . To understand the problem   from all its angles , I chose to use Visualization tool , which consists of using drawings , maps , photos ,   schemas and other visual components that enable “ Visual Thinking ” – as Designer Angela Meyer explains   in this course , Visualization is basically using a part of our brain different than logic , which we use most of   the time . In this way , by directing everyone ’s attention towards the same model of the problem , we would   all be speaking the same language regardless of our background and areas of expertise . 

 Application 

 We held a workshop with people from different areas of the Company that were somehow related to the   issue of “ stores without sales ” . This meant we had people from Marketing , Category Management , Fields   Sales , Key Account Manager ( KAM ) , Customer Marketing ( me ) , Demand Planning and Supply Chain ( CPFR ) .   At first , everyone thought that the only reasons why we had stores without sales were the most obvious   ones ( which we will call “ Lame Ducks ” ): our price was n’t competitive , our promotions were not attractive ,   our portfolio was n’t appealing , and our service level to our customers was not on target , among others .   However , once we started to integrate everyone ’s point of view , and we started “ drawing ” different   scenarios through a diagram ( your typical arrow – concept – arrow , nothing fancier ) , we realized that the   problem could have many other causes , most of them driven by the fact that there was no stock of our   products in store ( hence , the “ no - sales ” part ) . 

 We identified that a store could either have sales , or have no sales . For stores with no sales , if there was   no stock , this could be driven by forecasting issues of Phantom Inventory ( theoretic stock but no physical   stock ) . If there was stock in the store , there were two possible causes for not having sales : the wrong   execution or the ones we referred to before as “ Lame Ducks ” . This meant we were only looking at 1 of 4   possibilities at the beginning of the session . Once we were able to map this , we associated responsible   areas for each case , which allowed us to search for solutions through our different roles , rather than   blaming each other . 

 Insight 

 Now , with all this eye - opening information , we were able to understand with a more complete   approach not just this issue , but many other problems that other areas go through , and we realized that   through visual thinking these “ big complex problems ” could be split into “ smaller simpler problems ” ,   and through collaboration we could get better more efficient solutions that add more value to the   business . This exercise helped me understand better the “ Human ” part of the Design Thinking process .   Sometimes when we use tools like Visualization , we are able to empathize with others , and join forces   into finding efficient win - win solutions for all stakeholders . 

 Approach 

 In this case , we were able to take a step back and not just be focused in one possible cause for the   problem , but deep dive into other possible causes , and find suitable solutions . There was no blame   involved , but collaboration , empathy and creativity . We still have a lot of work ahead of us , but I am   confident that by identifying the root causes of the stores with no sales , we will be able to solve these   issues through concrete and tailor - made solutions . 

 I look forward for more challenges like this one , where we can add value through collaboration ! 

 The picture above illustrates the Visualization Tool being used to map the possible causes for stores with   no sales , and the responsible areas in each case .
### Output: 