Overview

In this individual assignment, I will provide you with a selection of mock scenarios for organizations at different levels of analytical maturity. You will select one organization scenario and put together a 3-4 page response on how you would build out an effective team to meet the business plan needs.

Steps
You should take the following steps to complete this assignment:

Step 1: Review the material.

Revisit the readings from modules 7-9, and the discussions we have had in class and online. Pay particular attention to how different organizational designs require unique team composition.

Step 2: Select an organization profile.

Choose one of the following organization scenarios to focus your paper on.

Option 1: I have a project that needs to create a proof of concept for analyzing the advertising segments to be addressed and used for a proposed new product. This is a test for now, not a production system. We need it completed in a few weeks and tested against some existing marketing data. A competitor may emerge soon. What resources do I need?

Option 2: My company is addressing some technology and business changes that will force me to sell things through the internet. How do I establish an analytics team to test this idea, and then implement it as a production system?

Option 3: My manufacturing systems are being upgraded to use new suppliers of raw materials. I need to be able to test such systems in real time using internet of things methods, to be able to change process settings. How do I establish an analytics team to test these systems?

Option 4: I need to be able to interact with people online who might act as testers of my products, so I need to analyze tweet data in real time to determine if they are likely users and then try to engage them online. What resources do I need to effectively analyze the data and engage users online?

Option 5: I am not doing any analytics today, just completing some spreadsheets. Should I build an internal team or buy services? Who should I assemble to determine whether an internal team can handle this task or outside services need to be purchased? What measures should I use?

Step 3: Develop and author a business plan.

Consider your options for building an effective analytics team to meet the needs of the organization. Build a plan that includes the following elements:

• An analysis of the problem and its relationship to the organizational context. Describe the organizational setting, including its currently analytical capabilities and the specific needs you are trying to address in the development of an analytical team.
• A summary of the gaps in the existing resources and what capabilities are needed to address the organizational problem.
• A discussion of the structure of your team. Articulate what role each team member would play and how you would structure these resources. Be sure that you include an explanation of why you have structured the team as you have.
• A summary of the benefits for building analytical capacity. Remember the importance of communicating about analytics to non-technical professionals. How will you defend the resources used to create this team and build our organization’s analytical efforts.

Assessment

In assessing this assignment, I am looking for evidence of the following:

You were able to communicate principles and effective implementation strategies for building and maintaining an analytics team
You were able to assess an organization’s analytical maturity and design appropriate analytics strategy to meet organizational needs
You were able to synthesize and apply the reading material, present concepts clearly in a written format, and create a coherent, well-supported plan to build out an effective team