Data Analytics for Decision Making: An Introduction to Using Excel

In a world of big data, industries need big thinkers to harness its potential

More and more organisations are investing in big data. In fact, in the next two years 76% of companies are planning to increase their investment in data analytics. But it is not enough to simply gather information and crunch numbers; to stand out you must know how to analyse and use data to effectively improve real-life decisions.

Data analytics is the science of analysing raw data in order to make conclusions about that information. This course, taught by Bond University’s Associate Professor of Data Analytics Dr Adrian Gepp, introduces students to the use and application of data.

You will be introduced to methods used to describe data, as well as basic probability concepts needed to understand what the data means, and how it can be applied to improve business decisions. Using Microsoft Excel, you will learn practical methods to solve basic quantitative problems in business decision making.

This introductory course is for anyone who has an interest in data analytics or data science and how it can be used to improve business decision making. The content in this course can be applied to a range of industry sectors including health, sport, marketing, finance and more.

You will need access to any version of Microsoft Excel

• Graphs, Descriptive Statistics, and Ethics
• Welcome to the course
• Graphical Techniques for Describing Data
• Graphical Techniques for Describing Data with Excel
• Descriptive Statistics for Summarising Data
• The Role of Ethics in Data Analysis
• Probability and beyond
• Introduction to Probability for Discrete Random Variables
• Event Relations
• Discrete Random Variables
• Making Decisions under Uncertainty
• The Environment for Analytics