This Specialization provides an introduction to big data analytics for all business professionals, including those with no prior analytics experience. You’ll learn how data analysts describe, predict, and inform business decisions in the specific areas of marketing, human resources, finance, and operations, and you’ll develop basic data literacy and an analytic mindset that will help you make strategic decisions based on data. In the final Capstone Project, you’ll apply your skills to interpret a real-world data set and make appropriate business strategy recommendations.
Business Analytics Specialization
Make Data-Driven Business Decisions. Achieve fluency in business data strategies in four discipline-specific courses.
Offered By
About this Specialization
What you will learn
Explain how data is used for recruiting and performance evaluation
Model supply and demand for various business scenarios
Solve business problems with data-driven decision-making
Understand the tools used to predict customer behavior
Skills you will gain
Customer AnalyticsAnalyticsBusiness AnalyticsDecision Tree
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 5 Courses in this Specialization
Course1
Customer Analytics
4.5
5,873 ratings
Data about our browsing and buying patterns are everywhere. From credit card transactions and online shopping carts, to customer loyalty programs and user-generated ratings/reviews, there is a staggering amount of data that can be used to describe our past buying behaviors, predict future ones, and prescribe new ways to influence future purchasing decisions. In this course, four of Wharton’s top marketing professors will provide an overview of key areas of customer analytics: descriptive analytics, predictive analytics, prescriptive analytics, and their application to real-world business practices including Amazon, Google, and Starbucks to name a few. This course provides an overview of the field of analytics so that you can make informed business decisions. It is an introduction to the theory of customer analytics, and is not intended to prepare learners to perform customer analytics.
Course Learning Outcomes:
After completing the course learners will be able to...
Describe the major methods of customer data collection used by companies and understand how this data can inform business decisions
Describe the main tools used to predict customer behavior and identify the appropriate uses for each tool
Communicate key ideas about customer analytics and how the field informs business decisions
Communicate the history of customer analytics and latest best practices at top firms
Course2
Operations Analytics
4.7
2,992 ratings
This course is designed to impact the way you think about transforming data into better decisions. Recent extraordinary improvements in data-collecting technologies have changed the way firms make informed and effective business decisions. The course on operations analytics, taught by three of Wharton’s leading experts, focuses on how the data can be used to profitably match supply with demand in various business settings. In this course, you will learn how to model future demand uncertainties, how to predict the outcomes of competing policy choices and how to choose the best course of action in the face of risk. The course will introduce frameworks and ideas that provide insights into a spectrum of real-world business challenges, will teach you methods and software available for tackling these challenges quantitatively as well as the issues involved in gathering the relevant data.
This course is appropriate for beginners and business professionals with no prior analytics experience.
Course3
People Analytics
4.5
2,860 ratings
People analytics is a data-driven approach to managing people at work. For the first time in history, business leaders can make decisions about their people based on deep analysis of data rather than the traditional methods of personal relationships, decision making based on experience, and risk avoidance. In this brand new course, three of Wharton’s top professors, all pioneers in the field of people analytics, will explore the state-of-the-art techniques used to recruit and retain great people, and demonstrate how these techniques are used at cutting-edge companies. They’ll explain how data and sophisticated analysis is brought to bear on people-related issues, such as recruiting, performance evaluation, leadership, hiring and promotion, job design, compensation, and collaboration. This course is an introduction to the theory of people analytics, and is not intended to prepare learners to perform complex talent management data analysis. By the end of this course, you’ll understand how and when hard data is used to make soft-skill decisions about hiring and talent development, so that you can position yourself as a strategic partner in your company’s talent management decisions. This course is intended to introduced you to Organizations flourish when the people who work in them flourish. Analytics can help make both happen. This course in People Analytics is designed to help you flourish in your career, too.
Course4
Accounting Analytics
4.5
1,744 ratings
Accounting Analytics explores how financial statement data and non-financial metrics can be linked to financial performance. In this course, taught by Wharton’s acclaimed accounting professors, you’ll learn how data is used to assess what drives financial performance and to forecast future financial scenarios. While many accounting and financial organizations deliver data, accounting analytics deploys that data to deliver insight, and this course will explore the many areas in which accounting data provides insight into other business areas including consumer behavior predictions, corporate strategy, risk management, optimization, and more. By the end of this course, you’ll understand how financial data and non-financial data interact to forecast events, optimize operations, and determine strategy. This course has been designed to help you make better business decisions about the emerging roles of accounting analytics, so that you can apply what you’ve learned to make your own business decisions and create strategy using financial data.
Instructors
Noah Gans
Anheuser-Busch Professor of Management Science, Professor of Operations, Information and DecisionsThe Wharton School
Ron Berman
Assistant Professor of MarketingThe Wharton School
Senthil Veeraraghavan
Associate Professor of Operations, Information and DecisionsThe Wharton School
Peter Fader
Professor of Marketing and Co-Director of the Wharton Customer Analytics InitiativeThe Wharton School
Eric Bradlow
Professor of Marketing, Statistics, and Education, Chairperson, Wharton Marketing Department, Vice Dean and Director, Wharton Doctoral Program, Co-Director, Wharton Customer Analytics InitiativeThe Wharton School
Matthew Bidwell
Associate Professor of ManagementThe Wharton School
Martine Haas
Associate Professor of ManagementThe Wharton School
Wharton Teaching Staff
EducatorsThe Wharton School
Cade Massey
Practice ProfessorThe Wharton School
Sergei Savin
Associate Professor of Operations, Information and DecisionsThe Wharton School
Brian J Bushee
The Geoffrey T. Boisi ProfessorAccounting
Christopher D. Ittner
EY Professor of AccountingAccounting
Raghu Iyengar
Associate Professor of MarketingThe Wharton School
About University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (commonly referred to as Penn) is a private university, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. A member of the Ivy League, Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, and considers itself to be the first university in the United States with both undergraduate and graduate studies.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the 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?
Can I take the course for free?
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.
Will I earn university credit for completing the Specialization?
This Specialization doesn't carry university credit, but 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 Business Analytics Specialization?
Time to completion can vary based on your schedule, but most learners are able to complete the Specialization in about 5-6 months.
How often is each course in the Specialization offered?
Each course in the Specialization is offered on a regular schedule, with sessions starting about once per month. If you don't complete a course on the first try, you can easily transfer to the next session, and your completed work and grades will carry over.
Do I need to take the courses in a specific order?
We recommend taking the courses in the order presented, as each subsequent course will build on material from previous courses.
Will I earn university credit for completing the Business Analytics Specialization?
Coursera courses and certificates don't carry university credit, though some universities may choose to accept Specialization Certificates for credit. Check with your institution to learn more.
What will I be qualified to do upon completing the Business Analytics Specialization?
You’ll gain a deeper understanding of how big data and analytics are used in four key areas: marketing (customer analytics), human resources and talent management (people analytics), operations, and finance. You can use this knowledge to create new business strategies using data, participate in conversations about analytics, transition to a new career, or improve your own business. You will also have a strong foundation for further study related to analytics and big data.
What software will I need to complete the assignments?
You will need a full-featured version of Microsoft Excel for some assignments. You should also have a working knowledge of Excel’s basic functions.
What background knowledge is necessary?
No previous knowledge or experience in business or analytics is required. This Specialization is designed for anyone interested in understanding how decisions are made using big data.
More questions? Visit the Learner Help Center.
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