VISUALIZATION 

 Challenge 

 The first tool I used was the tool of Visualization , or Visual Thinking , to achieve a shared   understanding of a problem space among a diverse group of stakeholders before attempting to   identify and define possible solutions to the problem . I use this approach often with our   customers , who are government agencies working to apply technology innovations to modernize   their mission or the delivery of their services to their customer , which may be U.S. citizens ,   businesses , and non - citizens . 

 Selection 

 I have used the technique of using a straw man visualization of a problem domain with a set of   questions or prompts for discussion to allow a diverse group of stakeholders to learn from each   other in the process of defining the scope , boundaries , key elements , and relationships between   elements to consider when identifying pain points and opportunities for improvements or   solutions . 

 Application 

 I start the process by creating a straw man graphic of the problem domain . To develop the straw   man graphic , I will draw from any existing material available to understand the environment .   The existing material may be operational or procedural documents , training materials , marketing   materials , GAO or other auditing reports . If materials are not available , then I conduct informal   interviews with one - three of the stakeholders who serve as my main points of contact on the   initiative . If appropriate to the situation , I will borrow the concept to “ front - stage / back - stage ”   from previous research , and discussed in David Gray ’s book , “ The Connected Company ” . The   front - stage / back - stage approach helps to reinforce the notion that every service – even an   internal service – has customers with whom the service provider interacts and internal processes   that enable the organization to provide the service . The template I often start with also has a   column on the left to identify Partners and Value Chain Providers and a column on the right to   identify Oversight Organizations , such as Congress , GAO , labor unions , advocacy groups , and   other entities that may add constraints to how the organization operates . The straw man graphic   is simple , using simple shapes and icons available in Visio or on the Internet . If the front- stage / back - stage view does n’t work , then I will create a different type of visual , either based on a   high - level process flow with swim lanes for different stakeholders , or another format . 

 Insight 

 What I have learned from conducting this exercise with several groups is that while the graphic –   especially the revised graphic that incorporates their feedback – is important for reinforcing their   understanding of the problem they are working to solve , the more valuable aspect of the activity   is the shared insights and shared learning that occurs while they are working to define their   problem space . The graphic gives the diverse group of stakeholders a focal point for discussion 

 VISUALIZATION 

 that allows them to share their perspectives and develop insights into potential root causes of   their problems . While they could create the graphic from a blank slate in a collaborative manner ,   starting with a straw man jump starts the conversation for them . They can quickly identify where   they are in the graphic – or if they are missing – and can more quickly gain new insights about   relationships between key entities instead of taking time to identify them . They can also identify   variables in the problem space – that is , it helps them to identify what they do n’t know , in what   areas they need to obtain information or data to provide the values for the variables . 

 Approach 

 Since I discovered that the most valuable aspect is the shared insights and learning , next time I   would use the visualization activity as a starting point for a series of design thinking activities .   Then the revised graphic that incorporates their combined feedback can serve as a reference tool   throughout the remainder of their work . 


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: VISUALIZATION 

 Challenge 

 The first tool I used was the tool of Visualization , or Visual Thinking , to achieve a shared   understanding of a problem space among a diverse group of stakeholders before attempting to   identify and define possible solutions to the problem . I use this approach often with our   customers , who are government agencies working to apply technology innovations to modernize   their mission or the delivery of their services to their customer , which may be U.S. citizens ,   businesses , and non - citizens . 

 Selection 

 I have used the technique of using a straw man visualization of a problem domain with a set of   questions or prompts for discussion to allow a diverse group of stakeholders to learn from each   other in the process of defining the scope , boundaries , key elements , and relationships between   elements to consider when identifying pain points and opportunities for improvements or   solutions . 

 Application 

 I start the process by creating a straw man graphic of the problem domain . To develop the straw   man graphic , I will draw from any existing material available to understand the environment .   The existing material may be operational or procedural documents , training materials , marketing   materials , GAO or other auditing reports . If materials are not available , then I conduct informal   interviews with one - three of the stakeholders who serve as my main points of contact on the   initiative . If appropriate to the situation , I will borrow the concept to “ front - stage / back - stage ”   from previous research , and discussed in David Gray ’s book , “ The Connected Company ” . The   front - stage / back - stage approach helps to reinforce the notion that every service – even an   internal service – has customers with whom the service provider interacts and internal processes   that enable the organization to provide the service . The template I often start with also has a   column on the left to identify Partners and Value Chain Providers and a column on the right to   identify Oversight Organizations , such as Congress , GAO , labor unions , advocacy groups , and   other entities that may add constraints to how the organization operates . The straw man graphic   is simple , using simple shapes and icons available in Visio or on the Internet . If the front- stage / back - stage view does n’t work , then I will create a different type of visual , either based on a   high - level process flow with swim lanes for different stakeholders , or another format . 

 Insight 

 What I have learned from conducting this exercise with several groups is that while the graphic –   especially the revised graphic that incorporates their feedback – is important for reinforcing their   understanding of the problem they are working to solve , the more valuable aspect of the activity   is the shared insights and shared learning that occurs while they are working to define their   problem space . The graphic gives the diverse group of stakeholders a focal point for discussion 

 VISUALIZATION 

 that allows them to share their perspectives and develop insights into potential root causes of   their problems . While they could create the graphic from a blank slate in a collaborative manner ,   starting with a straw man jump starts the conversation for them . They can quickly identify where   they are in the graphic – or if they are missing – and can more quickly gain new insights about   relationships between key entities instead of taking time to identify them . They can also identify   variables in the problem space – that is , it helps them to identify what they do n’t know , in what   areas they need to obtain information or data to provide the values for the variables . 

 Approach 

 Since I discovered that the most valuable aspect is the shared insights and learning , next time I   would use the visualization activity as a starting point for a series of design thinking activities .   Then the revised graphic that incorporates their combined feedback can serve as a reference tool   throughout the remainder of their work .
### Output: 