Business Statistics is a branch of statistics that focuses on the application of statistical methods and techniques to analyze and interpret data relevant to business operations and decision-making. It plays a crucial role in various aspects of business, including marketing, finance, operations, and human resources. The primary goal of business statistics is to provide managers and decision-makers with the tools needed to make informed choices based on empirical data.
At its core, Business Statistics encompasses the collection, analysis, interpretation, presentation, and organization of data relevant to business activities. It provides a framework for understanding trends, patterns, and relationships within data, enabling decision-makers to assess risks, forecast future outcomes, and evaluate the effectiveness of various strategies. From market research and quality control to financial analysis and customer behavior studies, the applications of business statistics are vast and varied.
Table of Contents
Syllabus of Business Statistics
Course Objectives of Business Statistics
Business Statistics aims to develop competency and ability to use statistical techniques in conducting research and project work. The emphasis of the course is more on the interpretation of results and understanding of the strengths and limitations of different statistical measures.
Course Description of Business Statistics
Business Statistics has a business focus. The course covers fundamentals of descriptive and inferential statistical techniques. The contents include data summaries and descriptive statistics; an introduction to a statistical computer package; Probability: distributions, expectation, variance, covariance, and statistical inference of univariate and bivariate data for hypothesis testing.
Course Outcomes of Business Statistics
By the end of this course, students will be able to
- Understand and use the descriptive and inferential statistical tools used in business decision-making,
- Select an appropriate graph to describe a distribution,
- Calculate and interpret the shape, center, and spread of a distribution,
- Understand the problem of inference when working with the results from random samples, and
- Analyze the data using Excel.
Course Contents of Business Statistics
Unit I: Introduction 5 hours
Basic concepts of statistics, Terminologies associated with statistics such as populations and samples, Variables (Dependent and independent only), Types and sources of data, Descriptive and inferential statistics, Data processing (editing and coding), Applications of statistics in business and management.
Unit II: Describing Data: Graphs and Tables 6 hours
Data array, Stem and leaf Display, Frequency tables, Histograms, Polygon, Cumulative Polygon,
Scatter plots, Simple Bar and Pie charts, Cross tabulation
Unit III: Describing Data: Summary Measures 10 hours
- Central Location: Mean, Median and Mode
- Non Central Location: Quartiles, Deciles and Percentiles
- Dispersion: Range, Interquartile range, Variance, Standard deviation, Coefficient of variation,
- Index for qualitative variation (IQV)
- Shape: Crude measure (comparison of mean, median, and mode), Five number summary, Box plot
- Inequality Measure: Gini concentration ratio
Unit IV: Basics of Probability Theory 5 hours
Basic concepts, Counting rule, Objective and subjective probability, Marginal and joint probability, Addition rule, Conditional probability, Multiplication rules, Bayes’ theorem
Unit V: Probability Distributions 10 hours
Discrete probability distribution (Binomial and Poisson distribution and mean and standard deviation of their distributions), Continuous probability distribution: Normal distribution, Normal approximation of Binomial and Poisson distribution
Unit VI: Estimation and Hypothesis Testing 12 hours
Concept of estimation, Confidence intervals, confidence intervals for means and proportions (one sample case only), Test of significance, p-value approach to hypothesis testing, connection between confidence intervals and hypothesis testing, comparing two means (two sample z and test procedures), and comparing two proportions.
Basic Texts
1. Davis, G., & Pecar, B. Business Statistics using Excel. New Delhi: Oxford University Press
2. Berenson, M. L. & David M. L. Basic Business Statistics: Concepts and Applications.
References
1. Levin, R. I., & David S. R. Statistics for Management. New Delhi: Prentice Hall of India
2. Allbright, S. C., Winston, W., & Zappe, C. J. Data Analysis and Decision Making with Microsoft Excel. Pacific Grove: Duxbury Press.
3. Argyrous, G. Statistics for Research with a Guide to SPSS. New Delhi: Sage South India Edition
4. Whigham, D. Business Data Analysis using Excel. New Delhi: Oxford University Press
Conclusion
In conclusion, Business Statistics is an indispensable tool in the contemporary business landscape, providing the essential framework for understanding and leveraging data to drive informed decision-making. As organizations face increasing complexity and competition, the ability to analyze data effectively becomes a critical competency for managers and professionals across all sectors.
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