Tableau Conference 2024

A Year of Firsts

By: Christine Stonos

In the last week of April 2024, I attended the Tableau Conference held in San Diego. While my boss had years of experience working with the software, I had never used it before.

It was a week of firsts. I attended my first conference. I went on my first business trip. I travelled to San Diego for the first time.

For those of you who have worked in the field of data and analytics, you know. For those of you who don’t know, Tableau is a visual analytics software used to generate dashboards to display data quickly and easily to an end user. Basically, it’s a software program that takes your data and transforms it into pretty charts so that you can read and understand your data quickly and easily.

While a lot of time could be dedicated to talking about how this works and why it is important, that is not what this post is about. Rather, this post is about what it was like (as someone who had never used Tableau before) attending the conference.

My boss assured me that it would be worth it, however upon looking at the price tag to attend the conference, I was skeptical. “Isn’t there a cheaper way for me to learn about Tableau?” I asked. I found it difficult to justify this expense, but my boss insisted that it would be an experience like none other. His objectives were to have me learn the fundamentals of Tableau, network, and get inspired and energized. Still unsure, but ready to learn, I packed my bags and got on a flight from Ottawa to San Diego.

For three days I attended the sessions ranging from the science behind visual analytics to workshops and labs showing me how to work with data in ways that I have never seen before. When choosing my agenda, I giggled at the (either cheesy or clever) titles of the different sessions. I lined up to watch presenters speak about how the latest AI technology is being used, or how there are good and bad charts (something I had never considered before). It felt like I was back in university, and I loved it.

It didn’t take long, and after attending a few sessions filled with dad jokes and data puns followed by stifled chuckles and groans from the audience, I knew I had found my people.

Just as my boss had suggested, the environment of the conference just doesn’t compare to anything else. I have never felt so welcomed in a space before. Even as a newcomer without any experience with this software or this industry, I was still made to feel like part of the ‘data fam.’

More than ever, the Tableau Conference has made me want to get more involved and learn more about data and analytics. But also, I think it’s important for people to understand how the technology surrounding data and analytics is constantly changing and improving. Organizing your data has become easier than ever with the help of technology like this. Yet, many people outside this field have no idea this technology exists.

As I learn more about how to use Tableau and other data analytics software, I will post about my experiences, and what I learn. Feel free to follow along.