Systems Visualization: Creating a Picture that Is Worth 1000 Words

The Challenge

The BUILD Initiative offers partnership, learning opportunities, and technical assistance to help state leaders build equitable, high-quality child- and family-serving systems. To help them communicate the complexity of this systems building work to their stakeholders, they leveraged an illustration that captured all of the many moving, intersecting parts. 

But, things change and systems grow, and BUILD needed a clearer, fresher update to this graphic: something that captured the present day, and brought together design, content, and structure to deepen understanding. That’s where VIVA came in.

How do you help stakeholders understand complex, interconnected systems at a glance? 

The Approach

VIVA had 8 weeks to turn an existing visual that was nearly as complex as the systems it represented into something that was streamlined, simple, engaging–without losing the nuance of the connections between systems that BUILD helps develop. VIVA developed two infographics that were coordinated enough to use together seamlessly, while conveying the right level of information to stand alone powerfully. An animated version further supports BUILD’s communications of its critical priorities.