Analytic opportunities and the value of data. Gain the ability to process data to make predictions about the behavior of individuals or markets.

4.8

stars

37 ratings

Douglas B. Laney

2,068 already enrolled

Offered By

Part of the Master of Science in Accountancy (iMSA) degree
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Introduction to Business Analytics and Information Economics SpecializationUniversity of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

What you will learn

Conceive new ways to leverage analytics to business problems. Know what makes an analytics project successful. Be aware of key analytics trends.
Understand and apply methods for conceiving and generating broad-based and transformative business benefits from available information assets.
Lay out new and emerging organizational roles for treating information as an actual business asset.
Understand business models from a data perspective and apply a variety of techniques for identifying new data-driven value streams for a business.

Skills you will gain

About this Specialization

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This specialization targets learners who seek to understand the opportunities that data and analytics present for their organization and those interested in the value of and implications for data as an asset to their organization. Individuals who manage data and make decisions about how data can be leveraged in their organization will find this specialization of particular value. Businesses run on data, and data offers little value without analytics. The ability to process data to make predictions about the behavior of individuals or markets, to diagnose systems or situations, or to prescribe actions for people or processes drives business today. Increasingly many businesses are striving to become “data-driven”, proactively relying more on cold hard information and sophisticated algorithms than upon the gut instinct or slow reactions of humans. In this information age, the value of data as a business asset is essential. Organizations must creatively consider and implement new ways to generate economic benefits from the wide array of information assets available. Unfortunately, information frequently is under-appreciated and underutilized. Besides, accounting practices fail to recognize the financial value of information, and traditional asset management practices fail to recognize information as an asset to be managed with earnest discipline. This has led to a business culture of complacence, and the inability for organizations to leverage available information assets.

Applied Learning Project

Learners will work on cases in every course and the specialization will culminate with a project capstone that will embrace the knowledge acquired in the courses taken in this specialization.

The project capstone will consist of 4 weeks worth of activities that lead to a final project report and presentation that will be evaluated by classmates in peer review assignments following a very detailed rubric to make sure students receive meaningful feedback on their submission.

Shareable Certificate

Earn a Certificate upon completion

100% online courses

Start instantly and learn at your own schedule.

Coursera Labs

Includes hands on learning projects.

Learn more about Coursera Labs

Flexible Schedule

Set and maintain flexible deadlines.

Beginner Level

Approximately 4 months to complete

Suggested pace of 3 hours/week

English

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Shareable Certificate

Earn a Certificate upon completion

100% online courses

Start instantly and learn at your own schedule.

Coursera Labs

Includes hands on learning projects.

Learn more about Coursera Labs

Flexible Schedule

Set and maintain flexible deadlines.

Beginner Level

Approximately 4 months to complete

Suggested pace of 3 hours/week

English

Could your company benefit from training employees on in-demand skills?

Try Coursera for Business

See how employees at top companies are mastering in-demand skills

Learn more about Coursera for Business

How the Specialization Works

Take Courses

A Coursera Specialization is a series of courses that helps you master a skill. To begin, enroll in the Specialization directly, or review its courses and choose the one you'd like to start with. When you subscribe to a course that is part of a Specialization, you’re automatically subscribed to the full Specialization. It’s okay to complete just one course — you can pause your learning or end your subscription at any time. Visit your learner dashboard to track your course enrollments and your progress.

Hands-on Project

Every Specialization includes a hands-on project. You'll need to successfully finish the project(s) to complete the Specialization and earn your certificate. If the Specialization includes a separate course for the hands-on project, you'll need to finish each of the other courses before you can start it.

Earn a Certificate

When you finish every course and complete the hands-on project, you'll earn a Certificate that you can share with prospective employers and your professional network.

There are 4 Courses in this Specialization

Course1

Course 1

Business Analytics Executive Overview

4.6

stars

257 ratings

Businesses run on data, and data offers little value without analytics. The ability to process data to make predictions about the behavior of individuals or markets, to diagnose systems or situations, or to prescribe actions for people or processes drives business today. Increasingly many businesses are striving to become “data-driven”, proactively relying more on cold hard information and sophisticated algorithms than upon the gut instinct or slow reactions of humans.

This course will focus on understanding key analytics concepts and the breadth of analytic possibilities. Together, the class will explore dozens of real-world analytics problems and solutions across most major industries and business functions. The course will also touch on analytic technologies, architectures, and roles from business intelligence to data science, and from data warehouses to data lakes. And the course will wrap up with a discussion of analytics trends and futures.

Course2

Course 2

Infonomics I: Business Information Economics and Data Monetization

4.6

stars

86 ratings

Thriving in the Information Age compels organizations to deploy information as an actual business asset, not as an IT asset or merely as a business byproduct. This demands creativity in conceiving and implementing new ways to generate economic benefits from the wide array of information assets available to an organization. Unfortunately, information too frequently is underappreciated and therefore underutilized.

This first course in the two-part Infonomics series provides a non-technical perspective on and methods for understanding and taking advantage of information’s unique economic characteristics. Starting with dissecting whether the information is or isn’t an asset or even property, students will begin to appreciate the challenges and opportunities with treating it as one. Then the course examines how information behaves in the context of various familiar micro-economic concepts, and what can be gleaned from this to improve the way information is managed and leveraged. This leads to exploring the various ways information can generate economic benefits—or be monetized, including how various styles of business analytics can increase information’s potential and realized value for organizations.

Course3

Course 3

Infonomics II: Business Information Management and Measurement

4.5

stars

25 ratings

Even decades into the Information Age, accounting practices yet fail to recognize the financial value of information. Moreover, traditional asset management practices fail to recognize information as an asset to be managed with earnest discipline. This has led to a business culture of complacence, and the inability for most organizations to fully leverage available information assets.

This second course in the two-part Infonomics series explores how and why to adapt well-honed asset management principles and practices to information, and how to apply accepted and new valuation models to gauge information’s potential and realized economic benefits. In addition, the course will enlighten students on the critical but confounding issues of information ownership, property rights, and sovereignty. The course will wrap up with an overview of emergent roles for the information-savvy organization of the 21st century.

Course4

Course 4

Introduction to Business Analytics and Information Economics Capstone

Welcome to the Introduction to Business Analytics and Information Economics Capstone! I’m thrilled to have you enrolled in the course. This Capstone will enable you to put into practice some of the concepts you have studied previously about applying economic concepts to information, conceiving analytics hypotheses, valuing information assets, and developing ideas for monetizing information in various ways. I look forward to your contributions and ideas.

Instructor

Douglas B. Laney

Visiting Professor, and Innovation Fellow at West Monroe Partners

Accountancy and Business Administration

24,009 Learners

4 Courses

Offered by

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Start working towards your Master's degree

This specialization is part of the 100% online Master of Science in Accountancy (iMSA) from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. If you are admitted to the full program, your courses count towards your degree learning.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the refund policy?
If you subscribed, you get a 7-day free trial during which you can cancel at no penalty. After that, we don’t give refunds, but you can cancel your subscription at any time. See our full refund policy.
Can I just enroll in a single course?
Yes! To get started, click the course card that interests you and enroll. You can enroll and complete the course to earn a shareable certificate, or you can audit it to view the course materials for free. When you subscribe to a course that is part of a Specialization, you’re automatically subscribed to the full Specialization. Visit your learner dashboard to track your progress.
Is financial aid available?
Yes. In select learning programs, you can apply for financial aid or a scholarship if you can’t afford the enrollment fee. If fin aid or scholarship is available for your learning program selection, you’ll find a link to apply on the description page.
Will I earn university credit for completing the Specialization?
Courses on Coursera do not carry University of Illinois credit on their own. Each iDegree course has an enhanced for-credit component. You can earn academic credit if you combine an open online course with the enhanced for-credit component offered on the University of Illinois platform. To learn more visit https://giesbusiness.illinois.edu/graduate-hub/online. Some universities may choose to accept Specialization Certificates for credit. Check with your institution to learn more.
How long does it take to complete the Specialization?
Time to completion can vary widely based on your schedule, most learners are able to complete the Specialization in 3-6 months.
What background knowledge is necessary?
No background knowledge is necessary for this Specialization.
Do I need to take the courses in a specific order?
It is recommended that the courses in the Specialization be taken in the order outlined.
What will I be able to do upon completing the Specialization?
You will be able to understand and apply methods for conceiving and generating broad-based and transformative business benefits from available information assets.
You will also be able to understand business models from a data perspective and apply a variety of techniques for identifying new data-driven value streams for a business
Can I take the course for free?
When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Specialization, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. If you only want to read and view the course content, you can audit the course for free. If you cannot afford the fee, you can apply for financial aid.
Is this course really 100% online? Do I need to attend any classes in person?
This course is completely online, so there’s no need to show up to a classroom in person. You can access your lectures, readings and assignments anytime and anywhere via the web or your mobile device.
Where can I learn more and ask questions about earning credit or a degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign?
Please find more information at https://giesbusiness.illinois.edu/graduate-hub/online or email your questions to giesonline@illinois.edu

More questions? Visit the Learner Help Center.

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Introduction to Business Analytics and Information Economics Specialization

What you will learn

Skills you will gain

About this Specialization

Applied Learning Project