Business Analytics
Practice Exam
Course Introduction
Business Analytics is an interdisciplinary course designed to equip students with the analytical skills and tools necessary to make data-driven business decisions. The course covers fundamental concepts such as data mining, statistical analysis, predictive modeling, and data visualization. Students learn to apply quantitative methods to real-world business problems, leveraging software and analytics platforms to interpret data and generate actionable insights. Through case studies and practical exercises, students will gain hands-on experience in analyzing data to inform strategic planning, optimize operations, and improve overall business performance.
Recommended Textbook
Practical Management Science 6th Edition by Wayne L. Winston
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14 Chapters
421 Verified Questions
421 Flashcards
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Page 2
Chapter 1: Introduction to Modeling
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Sample Questions
Q1) A first step in determining how well a model fits reality is to:
A) check whether the inputs are correct
B) see if the sensitivity analysis is correct
C) check whether the model is valid for the current situation
D) try some what-if scenarios to see if the model is able to obtain solutions
Answer: C
Q2) Modeling is a process where the essence of a theoretical problem is extracted into a model,spreadsheet or otherwise.
A)True
B)False Answer: False
Q3) Verification is typically the most difficult phase of the modeling process,from a mathematical perspective.
A)True
B)False Answer: False
Q4) Models that suggest a desirable course of action are called descriptive models
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Page 3
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Chapter 2: Introduction to Spreadsheet Modeling
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Sample Questions
Q1) Trace Dependents and Trace Precedents are Formula Auditing commands.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q2) A chart is typically much more informative to a business manager than the table of numbers it is based on.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q3) Which of the following is not one of the required arguments for a VLOOKUP function
A) The lookup table range
B) The value you want to compare to the values in the left column of the table
C) The index of the column you want the returned value to come from
D) TRUE (for an approximate match) or FALSE (for an exact match)
Answer: D
Q4) Refer to Exhibit 2-2.Use the above information to develop a simple cash flow proforma sheet,and then apply Excel's NPV function to calculate the project value assuming a 10% discount rate.What is your answer
Answer: The project NPV is $5,468.24 (allowing for a fraction of a volleyball)
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Chapter 3: Introduction to Optimization Modeling
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Sample Questions
Q1) Common errors in LP models that exhibit unboundedness are a constraint that has been omitted or an input which is incorrect.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q2) If a manufacturing process takes 4 hours per unit of x1and 2 hours per unit of x2 and a maximum of 100 hours of manufacturing process time are available,then an algebraic formulation of this constraint is:
A) 4x1S1U1B0 + 2xS1U1B12S1U1B0 100
B) 4x1S1U1B0 2xS1U1B12S1U1B0 100
C) 4x1S1U1B0 + 2xS1U1B12S1U1B0 100
D) 4x1S1U1B0 2xS1U1B12 S1U1B0 100
Answer: C
Q3) The condition of nonnegativity requires that:
A) the objective function cannot be less that zero
B) the decision variables cannot be less than zero
C) the right hand side of the constraints cannot be greater then zero
D) the reduced cost cannot be less than zero
Answer: B
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Page 5
Chapter 4: Linear Programming Models
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Sample Questions
Q1) The results of a sensitivity analysis with a dual objective model can be shown graphically using a:
A) scatterplot
B) tradeoff curve
C) trend diagram
D) bar chart
Q2) If integer constraints are used in a model,Solver uses an algorithm called branch and round to obtain the solution.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Integer programming (IP)models are optimization models in which all of the variables must be integers.
A)True
B)False
Q4) In aggregate planning models,we can model backlogging of demand by allowing a month's inventory to be negative.
A)True
B)False
Q5) Refer to Exhibit 4-3.Determine the optimal processing plan for the meat market.
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Chapter 5: Network Models
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Q1) Refer to Exhibit 5-2.Suppose Tech 2 will not be available during the next month.Keeping the same number of design and construction plan projects,how many survey projects would the firm be able to do What would be the revised assignment plan in that case
Q2) The network model representation of the transportation problem has the following advantage relative to the special case of a simple transportation model:
A) it does not require capacity restrictions on the arcs of the network
B) the flows in the network model don't all necessarily have to be from supply locations to demand locations
C) a network model representation is generally easier to formulate and solve D) All of these options
Q3) It is useful to model network problems by listing all of the arcs and their corresponding flows in one long,comprehensive list.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Refer to Exhibit 5-3.What general type of LP model can be applied to this problem What modifications to the general type are required for this problem
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Chapter 6: Optimization Models With Integer Variables
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Sample Questions
Q1) An algorithm which uses implicit enumeration:
A) is impractical
B) examines all possible solutions
C) does not guarantee that some of the solutions not examined could be optimal
D) excludes many possible solutions that guaranteed to be suboptimal
Q2) Any integer program involving 0 1 variables with ____ constraint(s)is called a knapsack problem.
A) three
B) two
C) one
D) zero
Q3) Refer to Exhibit 6-2.Suppose the shipping capacity for all routes is 3000 tons per month.What is Sinclair's optimal shipping plan in that case What is the total cost in that case
Q4) Problems with a fixed cost that is incurred only if an activity is undertaken at a positive level are inherently nonlinear.
A)True
B)False
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8
Chapter 7: Nonlinear Optimization Models
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following is not one of the useful options within Solver's Multistart box
A) Population size
B) Error distribution
C) Random seed
D) Upper or lower bound constraints on all changing cells
Q2) [Part 1] Refer to Exhibit 7-3.Formulate a nonlinear optimization model to find the parameters of a function of the form: f(x)= axb to model demand for its product as a function of ad exposures (x).
Q3) Which of the following types of fit should be selected in Excel's Trendline function if a constant elasticity curve is to be used to model demand
A) Exponential
B) Logarithmic
C) Polynomial
D) Power
Q4) Relative to linear optimization models,nonlinear optimization models are typically more difficult to solve.
A)True
B)False
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9
Chapter 8: Evolutionary Solver: An Alternative Optimization
Procedure
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Q1) In Evolutionary Solver,the initial population is chosen randomly,so the starting solution you enter in the changing cells is irrelevant.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Combinatorial problems have only a finite number of feasible solutions.
A)True
B)False
Q3) The initial set of chromosomes generated by a genetic algorithm is called the population.
A)True
B)False
Q4) The Evolutionary Solver setting that helps the algorithm explore a completely different area of the feasible region is:
A) convergence
B) mutation rate
C) population size
D) random seed
Q5) Refer to Exhibit 8-2.What is the fewest number of breaks that are needed to air all eight of the commercials
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Chapter 9: Decision Making Under Uncertainty
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Q1) Bayes' rule is used for updating the probability of an uncertain outcome after observing the results of a test or study.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Refer to Exhibit 9-1.Suppose the farmer is uncertain about the reliability of the National Weather Service forecast.If he thinks the probability of a freeze occurring could be anywhere between 40% and 80%,would that change his decision
Q3) Which of the following statements is true concerning decision tree conventions
A) Time proceeds from right to left.
B) The trees are composed of circles, triangles and ovals.
C) The nodes represent points in time.
D) Probabilities of outcomes are shown to the right of the end nodes.
Q4) Refer to Exhibit 9-1.Construct a decision tree to help the farmer make his decision.What should he do
Explain your answer.
Q5) Refer to Exhibit 9-2.Should the credit union purchase the report if it costs $150
Q6) Refer to Exhibit 9-2.What should the credit union do
What is their expected profit
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Chapter 10: Introduction to Simulation Modeling
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Sample Questions
Q1) Refer to Exhibit 10-1.A little later on,management still believes the upper and lower bounds for the costs are $5M and $8M,but now they can also state that "we believe the most likely value is about $6.5M."
Q2) Refer to Exhibit 10-2.Finally,suppose the apparel company receives an uncertain fraction of the total retail revenue from its retailers,modeled as a Triangular(0.70,0.75,0.80)distribution,and then must subtract production and operations costs,which are modeled as a Lognormal distribution with mean of $1,000,000 and standard deviation of $300,000.In that case,what is the expected net profit from the jacket line
Q3) Which of the following is not one of the important distinctions of probability distributions
A) Discrete versus continuous
B) Symmetric versus skewed
C) Bounded versus unbounded
D) Positive versus negative
Q4) Excel's standard functions,along with the RAND function,can be used to generate random numbers from many different types of probability distributions.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 11: Simulation Models
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Sample Questions
Q1) In marketing and sales models,the primary issue is the uncertain amount of sales that can be obtained,given an assumed timing.
A)True
B)False
Q2) In cash flow models,we are typically interested in investigating:
A) the value at risk (VAR)
B) the net present value (NPV)
C) the amount of loans required to maintain a minimum cash balance
D) the interest on loans taken out by a firm
Q3) [Part 1] Refer to Exhibit 11-1.What is the deterministic next present value (NPV)of the project,including the required investment,assuming a 10% discount rate
Q4) A common distribution for modeling product lifetimes is the normal distribution A)True B)False
Q5) In bidding models,the simulation output variable is the number of competitors who will bid.
A)True B)False
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Chapter 12: Queueing Models
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Q1) The mean and standard deviation of an exponential distribution are both equal to the parameter .
A)True
B)False
Q2) The decision to balk at entering a queuing system can be made by the customer or the system.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Refer to Exhibit 12-3.What is the average length of time (in hours)spent waiting in line
Q4) Which of the following is not one of the important issues defining types of arrivals in a queuing system
A) Whether customers arrive one at a time or in batches.
B) Whether customers are all essentially alike or are in separate priority classes.
C) Whether customers have been through the system before or not
D) Whether customers will wait in line or not
Q5) Refer to Exhibit 12-4.Use the M/M/s template to find the expected number of busy servers,and the expected fraction of time each server is busy
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Page 14
Chapter 13: Regression and Forecasting Models
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Q1) Refer to Exhibit 13-2.Use the information above to estimate the linear regression model.
Q2) In reference to the equation \[\hat { Y } = - 0.70 + 0.10 X\] ,the value 0.10 is the expected change in Y per unit change in X.
A)True
B)False
Q3) The smoothing constant used in simple exponential smoothing is analogous to the span in moving averages.
A)True
B)False
Q4) In regression analysis,we can often use the standard error of estimate se to judge which of several potential regression equations is the most useful.
A)True
B)False
Q5) The residual is defined as the difference between the actual and predicted,or fitted values of the response variable.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 14: Data Mining
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Q1) If the probability of a restaurant being successful is 10% then the odds of it failing are 10 to 1.
A)True
B)False
Q2) See Exhibit 14.1 - What kind of person is more likely to be diagnosed with the illness
Q3) The last step of cluster analysis is to understand the shared characteristics of the observations in each cluster.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Which of the following is true of clustering methods
A) They are called supervised data mining techniques.
B) They require known values of the dependent variable.
C) They group observations into clusters based on predefined characteristics.
D) They are also known as segmentation methods.
Q5) When classifying rare events,it is inadvisable to oversample.
A)True B)False
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