IS601 (OMBA) - Quantitative Methods for Managerial Decision Making – Fall 2024

Course Description

The primary objective of the course is to introduce students to analytical concepts, reasoning, techniques, and tools developed for the purpose of supporting managerial decision-making processes. Furthermore, the  course will  enable  students to  use  quantitative  methods  and  statistical  procedures  for  analyzing management problems in order to make intelligent, optimal business decisions.

Learning Outcomes

Critical Thinking: Demonstrate  conceptual  learning,  critical  thinking,  and  problem-solving  skills  using statistical  and  mathematical  methods  for  the  purpose  of  supporting  managerial  decision-making processes.

Quantitative and Technical skills: Possess quantitative skills and analytical reasoning enabling the students to interpret business data in order to improve overall business performance.

Interpersonal and Team Leadership: Understand individual member’s strengths and weaknesses in a team and improve collaboration and teamwork skills through working on group projects.

Detailed Course Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

•     Understand and discuss principles, concepts, and application of statistics in business.

•     Develop an understanding of descriptive and inferential statistics.

•    Apply   the   principles   and  concept  of  probability  to  assign  probabilities  and  estimation  to experimental outcomes.

•     Understand probabilities associated with various discrete and continuous distributions.

•     Demonstrate effective skills in data collection and random sampling.

•     Estimate population parameters utilizing confidence interval estimates.

•     Understand  and  apply the  concept  of  hypothesis  testing techniques for  both  single  and two population means.

•     Measure  and  predict  the  relationship  among  data  variables  using  correlation  and  regression analysis.

•     Learn  basic  principles and techniques of applied  linear  programming for  managerial decision- making.

•    Analyze sequential decisions under different decision making environments.

•     Use Excel spreadsheets effectively for business analysis.

•     Use Minitab to perform regression analysis.

Required Texts/Readings

Douglas A. Lind, William G. Marchal, and Samuel A. Wathen,

Statistical Techniques in Business & Economics, 19th Edition, McGraw-Hill

Required Technology Tools

Microsoft Excel

Minitab (free for CSULB students through Software Depot) Zoom

Lecture Videos and Slides

You are  responsible for  learning  the  materials  by  watching the videos  and  studying the slides  (while studying, follow the slides and the videos simultaneously). During the synchronous Zoom sessions,I review the  materials  (with  the  assumption  that  you  already  studied  the  materials  carefully),  answer  your questions and solve extra examples. Please note that the synchronous sessions are not intended forgiving lectures from scratch. There is simply not enough time for giving full lectures in this online setting. This course requires the students to solve many examples. The primary objective of the synchronous Zoom sessions  is to solve examples. The  lecture videos contain  multiple  questions  (Playposit).  You  need to answer those questions while watching the videos.

Assignments and Class work

•    A total of seven mandatory assignments will be given in this class (the due dates are set in the Tentative Lecture Schedule). They will be graded for completeness only (all the questions should be  solved  completely).  The  solution  does   not  have  to  be  typed.  You  can  either  scan  your handwritten solution or take clear pictures of it. The handwritten solution should be neat and readable. You must submit only one file on Canvas. The name of the file should be your full name. If all the questions are complete, you will receive the whole point, otherwise, you will receive zero point.  The  assignments  are   extremely  important  in   learning  the  course   materials.   I  highly encourage you to solve the assignments questions on your own before the due date.

•     During each class session, I will provide sample questions and activities, guiding you through how to solve them. You'll be required to complete and submit your work by the end of the session.

•    There is a list of recommended extra exercises from the end of each chapter. Those exercises are optional but highly recommended to be solved for success in this course.

Examinations

There will be three tests. The exact materials covered will be announced prior to its scheduled date. The date for each testis set in the Tentative Lecture Schedule. The tests will be closed book and closed notes. Tests will be taken online using Respondus LockDown Browser. You need to download the Respondus LockDown Browser on your computer before the test and make sure that it works by taking the dummy quiz on Canvas.  You need to join the class Zoom session by using a second device (i.e. your phone), with your full name. The camera of the second device should be on. Make sure your face is shown. If you have an issue with turning on the camera during the quiz, you need to discuss this with the instructor. According to COB regulations, carrying any types of wireless electronics, in particular smartphones, tablets, and alike, other than the device that you are using to take the quiz on and the one that you use for the purpose of proctoring, is specifically prohibited while taking an exam. You are required to have the Formula Sheet and Statistical Tables printed. The formula sheet and statistical tables should be the exact copy of the ones posted on Canvas with no extra information written on them. The instructor has the right to see your printed materials. You are only allowed to have the formula sheet provided by the instructor (without any extra information written on it), the statistical tables, scratch papers, and calculator during the quizzes. The instructor has the right to ask you to show your surroundings during the quiz. No makeup exam will be given without verified legitimate reasons. In case of illness or family emergency, a doctor's notice or other evidence is required to take a make-up exam. If a make-up exam is allowed, it shall be given within one week after the regular exam date. Once the test password is given in class, you have to start the test immediately. That is the start time of the test. If you have delay in starting, you will be losing your time.

Case studies

You should work on several case studies provided during the semester. The case studies should be solved and analyzed using Microsoft Excel and submitted via Canvas. You should write all the insights in the same Excel file that you did your analysis in and turn them in one Excel file. It is recommended that you use separate sheets for each part of the case study. The name of the Excel file should be your full name. Case studies   are   individual   work.   Each   student   should   submit   a unique output   based   on   his/her understanding and effort. Similar copies won't be graded, are considered plagiarism and will be reported to the University. Case studies submitted late will lose points and the ones submitted 24 hours after the due date won’t be graded. Any file format other than Excel will not be graded.

Project

Students should work in groups to complete a class project using Minitab. Each group will present their work to the class on a scheduled date (chosen by the group among prespecified date). Each student will evaluate all the members of their group. The project will be graded based on a rubric. The students should answer any question asked by the instructor or other students during their presentation. Some questions might be specific to an individual and not the entire group. Based on the quality of the answers and the tasks completed by each member, the project grade might be different for each member of the group. An extra credit section might be considered for the project.

TA

The TA for this course is - ([email protected]). The TA is responsible for grading the case studies and assignments. The TA’s office hour information is listed at the top of the syllabus. If you have any question about grading the cases or assignments, please refer to theTA first.

Course Policies and Requirements Grading Breakdown

Course Grading Scale