The jobs

Visualization is a workflow, not a prompt.

“Make a chart” hides work before, during, and after visual encoding. The same assistant can be strong at one job and harmful at the next.

01

Define

Decide what is worth doing and which data is allowed to answer it.

  1. Frame the questionRestate, clarify, propose hypothesesHuman owns the decision and the refusal.
  2. Acquire and governFind tables, describe schemas, draft access stepsHuman owns authority, permission, and allowed use.
02

Work the data

Turn source material into evidence without losing its meaning.

  1. Prepare and transformClean, join, reshape, calculateHuman owns definitions and exclusions.
  2. AnalyzeSummarize, compare, model, find anomaliesHuman owns method and uncertainty.
  3. ExploreBranch into cheap views and follow-upsHuman owns relevance and stopping.
03

Make the artifact

Choose what the audience will see and make every consequential choice inspectable.

  1. Sketch or reproduceMake a candidate, mockup, or reference copyHuman owns whether the reference fits.
  2. Choose and encodeSelect aggregation, form, emphasis, annotationHuman owns the analytical and rhetorical choice.
  3. Critique and refineImprove layout, labels, interaction, accessHuman resolves intent and conflicting advice.
  4. Verify and debugInspect data, code, state, values, and claimsHuman defines decisive acceptance checks.
04

Deliver and sustain

Test the real surface, support the reader, and keep the work correct later.

  1. Package and publishAssemble, document, export, deployHuman owns privacy and release gates.
  2. Explain and interrogateAdd summaries, tooltips, guided questionsHuman owns the source claim and reader test.
  3. Maintain and updateRegenerate, detect drift, hand off, retireHuman owns semantic and dependency changes.