Understanding

Quad
Charts

A Brewer Science Quick Guide

2014 Brewer Science, Inc.

Introduction

Quad charts are not about including all of the information about
your project, technology, or business. Instead, they include only the
most important points and aspects that directly respond to the
need(s) of the client.

Quad charts are, without a doubt, informational tools that hold to
the principle less is more--informing an audience, often a non-
technical one, about the compelling highlights and merits of your
proposed:
project
technology
business

Quad charts are intended to be very brief visualsthey are not a
substitute for the big meeting, only a tool to get us to that big
meeting.

Quad charts also can serve as internal, informational tools.

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This guide is intended to provide you with:

1. Brief definitions of all the terms we
have seen in quad chart templates.

2. Guidelines and tips for creating concise, clear, and
informative quad charts.

Each organization has its own template, or layout, of how it wants
information arranged in the quad chart you will present.

This guide will not show you exactly where to place what. Instead,
this guide will enable you to quickly and efficiently plug and play
the desired information into a particular template.

Remember, everyones time is valuable.

Understanding Quad Charts:

Quadrants

Whats in a quad?

Each quadrant of a quad chart provides your audience with a
specific type of information.

Each organization or company (think DOE, DOD, or NASA) wants
specific information provided in a particular way, which is why its
extremely important to use the quad chart template provided by a
particular organization.

These templates are very specific. Some require headers, footers,
certain logos, specific fonts, etc. Each organization usually provides
a template instruction page along with its template.

On rare occasions, an organization may not provide a template. In
this instance, use the Brewer Science quad chart template available
at *insert location here*

Additionally, quad charts are useful tools for in-house
communication such as inter-group meetings, weekly reports, etc.
For these, again, use the Brewer Science quad chart template.

Different organizations often use similar terms for quadrant
topics but want them placed in different quads. Therefore, in
different charts, the same term may be found in different
quadrants, depending upon the template.

On the following pages, the Common Terms used as quadrant
topics are color coded in relation to the above image to
illustrate this variation in placement in the quad charts we
studied.

Remember, when in doubt, always refer to the organizations
quad chart template.

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Common Terms

Approach nn

Conclusions n
the outcome or the intended outcome of your proposed process

the steps you intend to take toward a particular purpose

Corporate contact information n

contact information about the lead technical contact person and the
lead administrative contact person associated with the project

Budget nnn
estimate of the costs, revenues, and resources required to
accomplish the purpose

Capabilities n
what you (and your organization) are able to accomplish

Co-Is (co-investigators)/partners nnn

collaborators on your project, usually affiliated with an outside
group or organization, who are key members of the project

Costs n
expenditures related to your process, product, or project

Customers n
who consumes or uses the processes or deliverables you create

Deliverable n

item that must be completed under the terms of an actual or

prospective proposal, agreement, or contract

Company highlights nn

what is of major interest or is significant about your organization

Compelling and unique n

(see also Differentiators and highlights) what demands attention
and is distinctly different about your organization, product, or
process

Description n
descriptive statement or account of the requested item: a proposal,
deliverable, or process

Differentiators and highlights n

(see also Compelling and unique); the major significant elements,
features, or factors that distinguish your project

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Graphic nnnn

Milestone nnn

a drawn image, often computer generated; charts, graphs, tables,

scheduled event indicating the completion of a major deliverable or

etc., are considered graphics

stage of the project

Image nnnn
photograph, scanned document, etc.; often a graphic converted for
2-D display

Information nnnn
data and knowledge that specifically apply to the customers pain or
your process or product

Intro n
a very brief introduction to the main idea of the proposal, project,
or process

Key personnel nnn
individuals who are directly involved with the project, process, or
deliverable

Key results n

Objectives nn
the specific results you aim to achieve within a particular time frame

Overview nn
a general survey of the project or deliverable or of the scope of the
project or deliverable; includes content that provides information
on the overall project, but does not go into specific details

Pain n
the concern or desire that is a driving factor of an issue the
customer or your organization wants resolved

Partners n
individuals or organizations that have joined with your organization
for a project; partners share the gains, losses, risks, and rewards of
the project

Specific outcomes as they relate to the project, process, or

deliverable or to a stage thereof

Problem nnn

Methods nn

mode of inquiry to resolve the pain or problem

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the issue under inquiry or consideration

Products nn

the deliverables your company has provided in the past

Timeline nnn

Risks nnn

the sequence of steps and/or milestones of a project plotted across

time

external or internal vulnerabilities that may affect your project

Transition application n

Schedule nnn

what is applied to a process to shift it to a new, more efficient

method

a timetable for your overall project, milestone, or deliverable

Scope nnn

Transition n

the total work to be completed during a project

what is necessary to shift the way a process currently works to a

new, more efficient method

Summary nn
(see also Overview) a description that is larger in scope than the
overview, includes content that provides information on the overall
project, and may, briefly, go into specific detail

Tech n
your organizations level(s) of technological competencies (tangible,
intangible, high, intermediate, low); also, the specific technology or
technologies resulting in the solution to a problem.

Technology readiness levels n

Value nn
the tangible and intangible assets of a project, process, or
deliverable

Variants nn
alternate versions of a project, process, or deliverable differing from
the expected and sometimes actual results

DOD metric for assessing the maturity of evolving technologies;

more information at
http://www.lbl.gov/dir/assets/docs/TRL%20guide.pdf

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Understanding Quad Charts: Text

Do
Always use the right template for the right presentation. When in
doubt, ask. If an organization has not provided a template, use the
Brewer Science quad chart template available on the server.

Be descriptive, but share only the most important aspects of an
idea/concept/process.

Treat each quad as if it were a single PowerPoint slide.

Use only clear images and graphics that scale well. Blurry images
make your work not only less readable, but less credible as well.

Use the preset PowerPoint guides to find the true center of the
PowerPoint page. This tool is accessible under VIEW > Guides,
where you then select Static Guides.

Be careful when using jargon and/or acronyms. Remember, your
audience is usually unfamiliar with the terms of your field. If you
must use jargon and/or acronyms, define or spell out the terms, at
least the first time you use them.

IMPORTANT: Any additional information or clarifications that do
not fit in a quadrant may be included in the slide NOTES.

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Dont
Less is more: keep text to an absolute minimum. Quad charts are
not the place for your paper abstract in its entirety.

Dont attempt to fill up each quad with text and graphicswhite
space (where text and images arent present) adds to your
presentation. A chart thats easy to read results in your most
important points/facts/ideas standing out. Too much text, too many
bullet points, etc., result in too much visual noise, rendering your
presentation unreadable.

Dont overuse bullet points, bold text, italics, etc.

Dont use blurry images. If you need help capturing or creating
good, clear images, ask for help.

Avoid using jargon and acronyms unless absolutely appropriate.

Understanding Quad Charts:

Text, continued

The following pages provide text from a Brewer
Science produced quad chart on the left of the page.

On the right are revisions of that text utilizing the Dos
and Donts from the previous page.

The text has been color coded to the above image to
show which quadrant the text was drawn from.

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Good Overview


The proposal for Thermochromic Reflectivity Roofing Material
will develop a polymer/glass composite that characterizes the
different refractive indices of polymer materials and glass to create
an environmentally robust composite roof coating that changes
reflectivity with temperature for optimal seasonal energy savings.

Good Pain

Better Overview


Develop a roofing material with thermochromic reflectivity
Create an environmentally robust polymer/glass
composite roof coating.
Reflectivity of composite adjusts in reaction to
temperature.
Provide optimal, seasonal energy savings.

Better Pain

DoE and EPA have successfully encouraged the roofing

manufacturers to market roofing products with certified reflective

Recent DoE and EPA suggestions have prompted development of

roofing materials optimized for energy efficient cooling.

Roofing materials should be optimized to minimize both heating
and cooling energy loads.

and emissive characteristics to achieve reduced energy use for

cooling. This comes at the expense of fully utilizing solar radiation
to help heat buildings in cold weather for reduced heating load.

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Good Capabilities

Better Capabilities

Current work on transparent armor in partnership with ABC Corp.
provides the technology base for this proposal and generated the
idea to take advantage of refractive index matching difficulties
over a wide ambient temperature range. We have the polymer

Current work on transparent armor with ABC Corp., in combination
with our polymer expertise, equipment, and facilities, will allow us
to develop a refractive-index-matching material that is effective
over a wide ambient temperature range.

expertise, equipment, and facilities to address the technical

challenges.

Good Compelling & Unique

Better Compelling & Unique

There is substantial pull in DoE and the roofing market for
products with thermochromic reflective properties to take
advantage of solar heating in cold weather. Prior efforts have
failed to provide sustained thermochromic effects with
environmental exposure. Our technology relies on an internal
thermochromic mechanism rather than on-surface color change in

A substantial market exists for products that make use of
thermochromic reflectivity. Others prior efforts produced
materials requiring an on-surface color change which have failed to

a polymer/glass composite with good long term environmental life.

Initial response from the marketplace indicates good funding
prospects and strong commercialization partnering opportunities.

withstand continued environmental exposure.

Our technology uses an internal thermochromic mechanism
to produce a material with good, long-term life.
We perceive good funding prospects and strong
commercialization partnering opportunities for this material.

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Understanding Quad Charts:

Examples

What you shouldnt do.

Whatever you do, do not make quad charts that look like the ones
at right.

Think about whats wrong with these quad charts.

Do you notice the colors?

The sideways text?

The text-heavy quadrants?

The inappropriate and mystifying graphic?

The confusing schedule/cost image?

Are the quadrants of equal size?

Are these really readable and usable?

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Understanding Quad Charts:

Examples, continued

Contrast

What you should do.

Keep C.R.A.P.1 in mind when creating your quad chart.

Contrast colors and images should be different from one
another (text against background, images against
background and/or text). For example, black text on a white
page is the most obvious example of contrast, as is white
text on a black page.

Repetition repeat visual elements and keep them
consistent. Text is a visual element, as are line thicknesses,
margins, tabs, etc. Keep things consistent from quadrant to
quadrant.

Alignment align text and images top and bottom, left and
right. Dont just place images wherever in a quadrant.
Align them to the text, another image on the page, and with
the quadrant divisions (see example on *insert page here*).

Proximity group related items close together. If a piece of
information belongs in one quadrant but wont fit, do not
put it in another quadrant just to have it there. Redesign
your layout, enlarge or shrink items, or consider leaving
something out.

1
Source: Presentation Zen: Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and
Delivery by Garr Reynolds.

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REPETITION
Shapes, etc.
Text

Header

Body Text

Alignment
nnnn
nnnn
Some text

Some text

Indented text

Some more text

Pain
Image and text should directly
relate to the pain.

Budget
Image and text should directly
relate to the solution. $$$$$!

Bulleted text

Solution
Image and text should directly
relate to the solution.

Schedule

Image and text should directly

relate to the solution. TIME!

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Understanding Quad Charts:

Examples, continued

Think about whats right with this quad chart.

Do you notice the colors?

What do you notice about the text?

How is important information made noticeable?

Do you think this quad chart is both readable

and usable?

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Understanding Quad Charts:

Examples, continued

Brewer Science Internal Use Template

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Understanding Quad Charts:

Examples, continued

Brewer Science External Use Template

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