Business Analytics and Statistics for Executives

Business Analytics and Statistics for Executives --- In today's business world, problems are too complex to rely only on naive intuition (or 'gut') to make decisions. To create value for firms, a range of decisions (strategic as well as tactical) must be made and resources must be committed. Unfortunately, many of these decisions have to be made before managers have complete foresight on the outcome (e.g., ordering from a supplier well ahead of a selling season). Analytical tools enable decision makers to systematically account for uncertainties and possible consequences. In recent years, many companies have elevated the use of data analysis and model-driven (data-driven) decision making into a high art, and this practice is being embraced by a growing number of senior managers and executives. The majority of these analytical tools utilize probability and statistics to extract information from the data and generate fact-based (evidence-driven) management recommendation. In this course, we will provide a framework for systematically analyzing business data and extracting insights and recommendations from the data. Application domains include operations, finance, marketing, and human resources.