Services
We use data to help higher education institutions improve their policies, services, and processes.
Data Management
Searching for data?
We help streamline data so it can be used to make decisions. We work with the full data stack, from creating new data sources, to assessing and improving data quality, to ensuring robust data governance and security. Learn More...
Our services include assessment, auditing, planning, training, strategy, remediation, and improvement.
Data is at the core of higher education, in many forms - student information, learning management, teaching and research management, human resources, finance, facilities management. Data ranges from the legally protected to the fully open, and from operational, transactional data to data used for analysis, prediction, and forecasting. Examples include:
- Data quality assessment and improvement
- Data transformation
- Data governance
Analytics & Business Intelligence
Data rich, information poor?
Most institutions have lots of data, in many places, shapes, and forms. We help you make data-informed make decisions quicker through analytics, visualization, and reporting. Learn More...
Your data is trying to speak to you. However, most institutions have so much data, in so many different places and forms, it’s impossible to hear what it’s telling you. This is where analytics and business intelligence take over - turning your data into actionable insights that can help create value for both the institution and your students.
Some examples of our work in analytics & business intelligence:
- Dashboard design
- Analytics training
- Automating the flow of data
- Enrolment and tuition forecasting
Process & Policy Review
Do your policies need a fresh look?
We work with institutions to review, revise, and develop policy. We conduct environmental scans, incorporate data and analytics into the policy evaluation process, and write policy position papers. Learn More...
We bring data to conversations around policy and process. Examples include:
- Using surveys to inform action plans
- Projecting impact of policy options
- Environmental scans
- Reviewing and improving business processes
Tableau Training, Strategy, and Deployment
Are you getting the most out of Tableau?
Looking to leverage the power of Tableau to help your institution see and understand its data? From helping create dashboards to rolling Tableau Server out across the institution, Plaid can help. Learn More...
We've helped institutions launch Tableau Server and scale it to thousands of users, and worked with people to improve their analysis and dashboarding skills. Plaid is a Tableau Alliance Partner, and offers training targeted specifically at higher education. Plaid's team is certified by Tableau for our knowledge of their products.
Examples of our Tableau work include:
- Custom training for higher education: it's about so much more than just sales and profit
- Deployment of Tableau Server across the institution
- Dashboard design best practices
- Data source optimization
Project & Change Management
Bringing in a big change?
We help ensure your project is successful by focusing both on the technical (project management) and the people (change management) aspects. By bringing together your stakeholders and industry best practice, we can help position your team to confidently move forward with change. Learn More...
Examples of our project and change management work include:
- Replacing legacy Excel and Crystal reports with live and interactive Tableau visualizations
- Moving teams to data warehousing from semi-annual snapshots
- Using interactive dashboards for projection and prediction of admissions yields
Workshops
Interested in learning about working with data?
Our workshops provide participants with the knowledge necessary to be able to work with data effectively. By focusing on theory and principles rather than tools and by providing informative takeaways, participants leave with a toolkit they can use to be better producers and consumers of data. Learn More...
Workshops we offer include (but are not limited to):
-
Introduction to data visualization
This workshop provides a tool-agnostic introduction to the theory and principles of data visualization. Participants will leave the workshop with a toolset that will allow them to design and create effective data visualizations for purposes from day-to-day performance monitoring to evidence-informed decision making.
Topics covered include:
- Why visualizing data is important
- How the human brain processes information
- Ethics of data visualization
- Focusing the audience's attention
- Telling data-informed stories
This workshop can be delivered over 3 hours, 4 hours, or 6 hours depending on the desired amount of detail.
-
Introduction to data literacy
This workshop provides participants with the tools to be able to interpret data in the world around them. After the workshop, participants will be able to understand many common data scenarios and be able to appropriately interpret data presented to them.
Topics covered include:
- Understanding the context of data
- How the human brain processes information
- Basic statistical methods
- Populations, samples, and confidence intervals
- How to look beyond the data provided
This workshop can be delivered over 3 hours, 4 hours, or 6 hours depending on the desired amount of detail.
-
Fundamentals of Tableau
This workshop provides participants with an understanding of the fundamentals of Tableau's products, including Desktop, Prep, Server, and Online.
Topics covered include:
- Why visualizing data is important
- How the human brain processes information
- Preparing data for Tableau
- Creating visuals, dashboards, and stories
- Calculated fields, groups, sets, and parameters
- Sharing visuals both within an organization and publicly
Tailored versions of this workshop can be delivered as well, based on the participant's specific needs and experiences. Options range from a 2-hour introduction to several sessions over multiple days.
