When we imagine the work of a data analyst, we often picture meaningful data analysis and beautiful data visualizations. Although that is an exciting part of the job, data analysts actually spend the majority of their time acquiring, cleaning, and preparing data for analysis. This teaching case guides students through some of the most common data…

As organizations' reliance on data increases, the prevalence of data analytics programs in universities likewise increases. However, despite this specialized education, scholars still report a gap between the knowledge and skills students graduate with and those required by industry upon beginning work as an entry-level data analyst. We draw on…

This manuscript describes the use of real data applied to a fictional real-estate firm for teaching data visualization to university students. In the case study, students employ data analytic techniques in Tableau to clean, organize, and analyze real estate data. By creating visualizations, students address several questions about how selling…

This teaching tip describes using Microsoft Power BI Desktop in a class to analyze unstructured data from an exit survey of prior students from a Master of Science in Management Information Systems program. Results from a short survey administered to these students showed that the students, using the no-code Power BI, were able to accomplish their…

Students now have readily available and powerful tools to access, manipulate, combine, and visualize data. Acquiring data and visual literacy requires more than knowledge of how to use these tools. Students need to engage with assignments that challenge them to make relatively complex visualizations, interpret them, and explain why these…

The SQL-Explore Learning Module detailed in this teaching tip provides an opportunity for students to apply database course knowledge beyond solving traditional pre-determined Structured Query Language (SQL) coding questions. In this unique constructivist activity using the apropos 5E Instructional Model, students explore tables to locate data…

To ensure validity in survey research, it is imperative that we properly educate doctoral students on best practices in data quality procedures. A 14-year analysis of 679 studies in the AIS "Basket of 8" journals noted undercommunication in the most pertinent procedures, consistent across journals and time. Given recent calls for…

We report on the design and development of an introductory analytics course delivered to almost 10,000 undergraduate business students to date. One novel aspect of the course is its orientation to add analytics capabilities to a business student's toolbox, resulting in significant design and implementation implications. We anchored the course on…

The demand for qualified analytics professionals remains high with forecasts showing a continued need over the next few years. While this demand necessitates instruction in analytics in the classroom, many students find analytics concepts to be complicated and boring. This teaching brief describes a novel approach to teaching analytics through…

Business analytics is an emerging and prominent tool in many industries seeking to exploit the advantages of data-driven decision making. Simultaneously, educational institutions are developing and delivering business analytics offerings to equip business professionals with the tools necessary to implement business analytics in modern businesses.…

In this paper we present the evolution of the Business Data Analytics Graduate Certificate (BDA Certificate) at our institution, Loyola University Chicago. This certificate is a successful and expanding program that attracts a diverse group of dynamic professionals from local, national, and international populations. The program evolution…

Artificial intelligence (AI) and its subfield, machine learning, have become indispensable across various industries. With the aid of low-code/no-code development platform like KNIME, understanding and applying machine learning algorithms has been simplified for various fields, including business and information systems, as these platforms reduce…

Information Systems (IS) and Information Technology (IT) fields face a unique challenge because of the constant changes in the underlying technologies that need to be taught. The rapid overturn of content leads us to need a variety of strategies to maintain an up-to-date curriculum for our programs. This research continues a seventeen-year data…

Active learning pedagogy has many documented benefits, and while several positive examples of its recent use in STEM classes have led to better performance, greater diversity, more equity, and improved retention of underrepresented student populations, more research in IS and IT classrooms is needed. Most active learning exercises are in a…

Businesses assess public sentiment toward relevant topics and gain valuable insights through social media analytics (SMA). Students of business information analytics can therefore reap multiple benefits from SMA as a learning tool. We designed and implemented an SMA capstone project that integrated undergraduate research and community engagement.…