This course will expose you to the data analytics practices executed in the business world. We will explore such key areas as the analytical process, how data is created, stored, accessed, and how the organization works with data and creates the environment in which analytics can flourish.
This course is part of the Advanced Business Analytics Specialization
Offered By
About this Course
Skills you will gain
- Data Model
- Data Quality
- Data Analysis
- SQL
Offered by

University of Colorado Boulder
CU-Boulder is a dynamic community of scholars and learners on one of the most spectacular college campuses in the country. As one of 34 U.S. public institutions in the prestigious Association of American Universities (AAU), we have a proud tradition of academic excellence, with five Nobel laureates and more than 50 members of prestigious academic academies.
Syllabus - What you will learn from this course
Data and Analysis in the Real World
Welcome to week 1! In this module we’ll learn how to think about analytical problems and examine the process by which data enables analysis & decision making. We’ll introduce a framework called the Information-Action Value chain which describes the path from events in the world to business action, and we’ll look at some of the source systems that are used to capture data. At the end of this course you will be able to: Explain the information lifecycle from events in the real world to business actions, and how to think about analytical problems in that context , Recognize the types of events and characteristics that are often used in business analytics, and explain how the data is captured by source systems and stored using both traditional and emergent technologies, Gain a high-level familiarity with relational databases and learn how to use a simple but powerful language called SQL to extract analytical data sets of interest, Appreciate the spectrum of roles involved in the data lifecycle, and gain exposure to the various ways that organizations structure analytical functions, Summarize some of the key ideas around data quality, data governance, and data privacy
Analytical Tools
In this module we’ll learn about the technologies that enable analytical work. We’ll examine data storage and databases, including the relational database. We’ll talk about Big Data and Cloud technologies and ideas like federation, virtualization, and in-memory computing. We’ll also walk through a landscape of some of the more common tool classes and learn how these tools support common analytical tasks.
Data Extraction Using SQL
In this module we’ll learn how to extract data from a relational database using Structured Query Language, or SQL. We’ll cover all the basic SQL commands and learn how to combine and stack data from different tables. We’ll also learn how to expand the power of our queries using operators and handle additional complexity using subqueries.
Real World Analytical Organizations
In this module we focus on the people and organizations that work with data and actually execute analytics. We’ll discuss who does what and see how organizational structures can influence efficiency and effectiveness. We’ll also look at the supporting rules & processes that help an analytical organization run smoothly, like Data Governance, Data Privacy, and Data Quality.
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- 5 stars73.84%
- 4 stars21.44%
- 3 stars3.13%
- 2 stars0.63%
- 1 star0.93%
TOP REVIEWS FROM INTRODUCTION TO DATA ANALYTICS FOR BUSINESS
I liked it so much as it reminded me by a lot of subjects I forgotten during my working years away of my uni degree so i need to back to this one and dig deep in each subject of it again. many thanks.
It's a good course to get the feeling about Data and Analytics. For me it was quite redundant information but a good way to get familiar with the way Coursera and specific this course is working.
My first course using Cursera, and with University Colorado Bolder. Great experience and methodology and i trully learned some important concepts regarding Data Analytics for Business.
Very good introduction course. Clear and understandable explanations for beginners, good structure and helpful examples. Also the provided slides are beneficial for later reference and repetition.
About the Advanced Business Analytics Specialization
The Advanced Business Analytics Specialization brings together academic professionals and experienced practitioners to share real world data analytics skills you can use to grow your business, increase profits, and create maximum value for your shareholders. Learners gain practical skills in extracting and manipulating data using SQL code, executing statistical methods for descriptive, predictive, and prescriptive analysis, and effectively interpreting and presenting analytic results.

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