Business Intelligence Concepts, Tools, and Applications

University of Colorado System via Coursera

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Provider

Coursera
Pricing

Paid Course
Languages

English
Certificate

Certificate Available
Effort

1 day 11 minutes
Sessions

Self-Paced
Level

Intermediate
Subtitles

Arabic, French, Portuguese, Chinese, Italian, German, Russian, English, Spanish, Korean, Hindi, Pashto, Bengali, Hungarian, Ukrainian, Indonesian, Urdu, Kazakh, Swedish, Greek, Thai, Japanese, Azerbaijani, Polish, Farsi, Dutch, Turkish

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Part of

Data Warehousing for Business Intelligence

Overview

This is the fourth course in the Data Warehouse for Business Intelligence specialization. Ideally, the courses should be taken in sequence. Effectively and efficiently mining data is the very center of any modern business’s competitive strategy, and a data warehouse is a core component of this data mining. The ability to quickly look back at early trends and have the accurate data – properly formatted – is essential to good decision making. By enabling this historical overview, a data warehouse allows decision makers to learn from past trends and challenges. In essence, the benefit of a data warehouse is continuous improvement. By the end of the course, you will be able to enhance Conformity And Quality of Data by gaining the knowledge and skills for using data warehouses for business intelligence purposes and for working as a business intelligence developer. You’ll have the opportunity to work with large data sets in a data warehouse environment and will learn the use of MicroStrategy's Online Analytical Processing (OLAP) and Visualization capabilities to create visualizations and dashboards. The course gives an overview of how business intelligence technologies can support decision making across any number of business sectors. These technologies have had a profound impact on corporate strategy, performance, and competitiveness and broadly encompass decision support systems, business intelligence systems, and visual analytics. Modules are organized around the business intelligence concepts, tools, and applications, and the use of data warehouse for business reporting and online analytical processing, for creating visualizations and dashboards, and for business performance management and descriptive analytics. This course is intended for business and computer science university students, IT professionals, program managers, business analysts and anyone with career interests in business intelligence. In order to be successful in this course, you should have either completed Course 3 of the Data Warehousing for Business Intelligence Specialization or have some prior experience with data visualization and document management.

Syllabus

Decision Making and Decision Support Systems

In this module, learners are introduced to decision-making concepts and the role of Decision Support Systems (DSS) in supporting business decisions. The module focuses on how decisions are made and how technology enhances decision-making. This module also includes Strategy training resources and tutorials related to decision-making and DSS concepts, along with AI-generated dialogues to enhance learner engagement. | This module covers: Lesson 1.1 - Overview of decision-making and types of decisions; Lesson 1.2 - Key concepts and models of decision-making; Lesson 1.3 - Introduction to Decision Support Systems (DSS); Lesson 1.4 - Applications of DSS in real-world decision-making. | Applying Concepts Using MicroStrategy Software: 1) Introduction to MicroStrategy software and its role in supporting data-driven decision-making, along with accessing the platform for assignments; 2) Hands-on use of MicroStrategy, including setup, navigation, and data exploration; 3) Creating visualizations and interactive dashboards (dossiers) for analysis and decision support. | To complete the practice assignments, you may: 1) Install Strategy Desktop and analyze offline dashboards; 2) Use Strategy Library (for Mac users). Note: Access requires a corporate or academic email address. | By the end of this module, learners will be able to: 1) Understand decision-making processes and types of decisions; 2) Explain the role of Decision Support Systems (DSS); 3) Use MicroStrategy software for basic data analysis and visualization.

Business Intelligence Concepts and Platform Capabilities

In this module, learners build on foundational concepts by exploring Business Intelligence (BI), its architecture, components, and relationship with Decision Support Systems (DSS). The module focuses on how BI platforms support data-driven decision-making in organizations. This module also includes Strategy training resources and tutorials related to BI platforms, reporting, and data analysis, along with AI-generated dialogues to enhance learner engagement. | This module covers: Lesson 2.1 - BI concepts, architecture, and key components; Lesson 2.2 - BI platform capabilities, including data connectivity and platform functionality; Lesson 2.3 - business reporting, types of reports, and the structure of reporting systems; Lesson 2.4 - OLAP styles, their applications, and differences between OLAP and OLTP systems. | Applying Concepts Using MicroStrategy Software: 1) Introduction to MicroStrategy as a Business Intelligence tool and its role in supporting data-driven decision-making; 2) Hands-on use of MicroStrategy, including connecting to data sources, exploring datasets, and understanding platform capabilities; 3) Creating reports and visualizations using MicroStrategy to support business reporting and analysis. | To complete the practice assignments for this unit, learners may: 1) Use Strategy Desktop to create data visualizations and analyze data to generate business insights; 2) Use Strategy Library (for Mac users) to complete the corresponding assignments. Note: Access requires a corporate or academic email address; personal email accounts are not permitted. | By the end of this module, learners will be able to: 1) Understand Business Intelligence concepts and platform components; 2) Explain business reporting systems and OLAP functionalities; 3) Use MicroStrategy software for data analysis, reporting, and visualization.

Data Visualization and Dashboard Design

In this module, learners focus on creating effective data visualizations and designing interactive dashboards to support business decision-making. The module introduces types of data, chart selection (basic and composite charts), and best practices for creating clear and impactful visualizations. It also covers dashboard concepts, including types of dashboards, key components, metrics, and common design guidelines and pitfalls. This module also includes Strategy training resources and tutorials related to data visualization and dashboard design, along with AI-generated dialogues to enhance learner engagement. | This module covers: Lesson 3.1 - Data Visualization; Lesson 3.2 - Data Visualization Guidelines and Pitfalls; Lesson 3.3 - Performance Dashboards; Lesson 3.4 - Dashboard Design Guidelines and Pitfalls. | Applying Concepts Using MicroStrategy Software: 1) Introduction to MicroStrategy Visual Insight for creating visualizations and dashboards; 2) Hands-on use of MicroStrategy for data exploration and dashboard design; 3) Creating and refining dashboards for business analysis and decision support. | To complete the practice assignments for this unit, you may: 1) Use Strategy Desktop to create data visualizations and analyze data to generate business insights; 2) Use Strategy Library (for Mac users) to complete the corresponding assignments. Note: Access requires a corporate or academic email address; personal email accounts are not permitted. | By the end of this module, learners will be able to: 1) Understand data visualization principles and chart selection; 2) Apply best practices and avoid common dashboard design pitfalls; 3) Use MicroStrategy to create dashboards and visualizations for business analysis.

Business Performance Management Systems

This module focuses on how BI is used for Business Performance Management (BPM). Learners will understand the main components of BPM, the four phases of the BPM cycle, and how organizations deploy performance management systems. In Lesson 4.2, learners will explore performance measurement systems and key performance indicators (KPIs). In Lesson 4.3, learners will examine balanced scorecard perspectives and compare them with Six Sigma approaches. In Lesson 4.4, learners will understand the role of visual and business analytics (BA) in BI and how analytics supports performance management in practice. This module also includes Strategy training resources and tutorials related to performance management and business analytics, along with AI-generated dialogues to enhance learner engagement. | This module covers: Lesson 4.1 - Business Performance Management; Lesson 4.2 - Performance Measurement System and KPIs; Lesson 4.3 - Balanced Scorecards and Six Sigma; Lesson 4.4 - Business Analytics. | To complete the practice assignments for this unit, learners may: 1) Use Strategy Desktop Visual Insight to design a dashboard for a Financial Services company, apply concepts, and explore visualization capabilities in a peer-evaluated exercise; 2) Use Strategy Library (for Mac users) to complete the corresponding assignments. Note: Access to the Strategy Platform is available only through the official Strategy corporate website and requires a corporate or academic email address; personal email accounts are not permitted. | By the end of this module, learners will be able to: 1) Understand Business Performance Management (BPM) concepts and lifecycle; 2) Explain performance measurement systems, KPIs, and balanced scorecards; 3) Compare balanced scorecards with Six Sigma approaches; 4) Understand the role of business analytics in BI and performance management.

BI Maturity, Strategy, and Summative Project

Module 5 focuses on BI maturity and strategy. Learners will understand different levels of BI maturity, the factors that impact BI maturity within an organization, and the main challenges and potential solutions for achieving pervasive BI maturity. The module also focuses on the critical success factors for implementing a BI strategy, BI framework, and BI implementation targets. This module also includes Strategy training resources and tutorials related to BI maturity, strategy, and implementation, along with AI-generated dialogues to enhance learner engagement. | This module covers: Lesson 5.1 - BI Maturity; Lesson 5.2 - BI Strategy; Summative Project and BI Implementation. | To complete the practice assignments for this unit, learners may: 1) Apply these concepts to create dashboards, blend external datasets, and explore visualization capabilities to find insights faster in a peer-evaluated exercise using Strategy visual analytics; 2) Use Strategy Library (for Mac users) to complete the corresponding assignments. Note: Access to the Strategy Platform is available only through the official Strategy corporate website and requires a corporate or academic email address; personal email accounts are not permitted. | By the end of this module, learners will be able to: 1) Understand BI maturity levels and factors affecting BI maturity; 2) Identify challenges and solutions for achieving pervasive BI maturity; 3) Explain BI strategy, framework, and implementation targets; 4) Apply BI concepts to analyze KPIs and generate insights using Strategy tools in a summative project.