NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SINGAPORE
NUS Business School
Department of Decision Sciences
BMA5002 Analytics for Managers
Lecturer
:
A/P CHU Singfat
Session
:
Semester I, 2011/2012
1. Brief description of module
Many fresh MBA graduates start their career as consultant / analyst advising the
Supply Chain, Marketing, Finance and HR departments on process re-engineering
i.e. making them more efficient, profitable and customer-centric. This course aims to
prepare participants towards such jobs by equipping them with a scientific /
analytical mindset i.e. informed Management based on data, models and sensitivity
analyses.
Through case analyses and their presentation, participants will gain exposure to

Decision and Risk Analyses i.e. Systematic assessment of Strategies, Risks,
and Payoffs using Decision Trees and Sensitivity Analyses.

Business Optimization Models i.e. how to allocate scarce resources
productively e.g. Optimal Product / Advertising Mix, Revenue Management,
Hub Location, BPO, Portfolio Optimization, Supply Chain Optimization, Cash
Flow Optimization, …

Simulation for hard-to-analyse applications e.g. Cash Balance Management,
Hedging decisions, Market Share Dynamics, Sell now or later?, ....

Data Mining and Forecasting Tools:
o
Pivot Table for exploratory CRM
o
Regression Models e.g. analytical CRM i.e. customer segmentation.
You will be exposed to advanced regression models using dummy
and interaction variables.
o
Time series models to extract trends and seasonalities (e.g. GDP
forecasting etc.)
Microsoft Excel (e.g. SOLVER, PivotTable) and add-in software e.g. PrecisionTree,
StatTools, @RISK will be used as analytical enablers throughout the module.
2. Textbook
 Data Analysis, Optimization and Simulation Modeling by Albright, Zappe,
Winston, 4th edition, 2011
The text is a must –buy as:
1. The numerous examples in the text will provide useful references to you
in the future.
2. It comes with a “premium website access card” which among other
functionalities allows you to download and use the industrial version of the
DecisionTools software suite for a period of 2 years.
3. Assessment
Weekly team case analysis / presentation
Team Project / Presentation
3 in-class individual case analyses
Participation
25%
20%
45%
10%
NOTES:
 Classes start at 6.15 pm with a 15 mins break around 7.30 pm.
 Bring your laptop to EVERY class.
 The DecisionTools software suite (PrecisionTree, @Risk, StatTools etc) runs
alongside MS Excel on the Windows platform.
It does NOT run on the
native Apple or Linux etc. platform. Use the “premium website access card”
placed at the front of the text to download it (~150 MB: takes 1 hour!) as
indicated by this arrow.

Do NOT click anything else on this screen.

We will use SOLVER in the very first class. This is a tool native to MS Excel.
Check for its availability by clicking F1 (or help) and search “solver”

With SOLVER and the DecisionTools software suite checked-in, you are
ready for an exciting journey in the world of Business Analytics!

To find out more about Business Analytics (i.e. fact-based decisions) , watch
this video http://www.deloitte.com/us/insights/uncommoninsights and browse
through the articles/videos in the related links on the right hand side of the
screen e.g. Deloitte Analytics etc.

See you soon!