Exam 15: The Data Asset: Databases, Business Intelligence, Analytics, Big Data, and Competitive Advantage

Wal-Mart supplements its huge data assets with additional data provided by information brokers like Information Resources and ACNielsen.

In database terminology, a record represents:

A _____ is a system that provides rewards and usage incentives, typically in exchange for a method that provides a more detailed tracking and recording of consumer activity.

The open-source project known as ____________ was created to analyze massive amounts of raw information better than traditional, highly structured databases.

How has Wal-Mart leveraged information technology to become the world's largest retailer?

Data obtained from outside sources, when combined with a firm's proprietary internal data assets, can give the firm a competitive edge.

_____ systems are often used to empower employees to track and record data at nearly every point of customer contact.

Which of the following conditions is essential for data mining to work?

Most transactional databases are not set up to be simultaneously accessed for reporting and analysis. As a consequence:

In data warehousing projects, it is not uncommon for spending on consulting and services to cost five times or more than the cost of the technology itself.

_____ refer to older information systems that are often incompatible with other systems, technologies, and ways of conducting business.

Dynamic pricing is considered especially tricky in situations where consumers make repeated purchases and are more likely to remember past prices, and when they have alternative choices.

Why do firms need to create separate data repositories for their reporting and analytics work?

Enterprise software tends to be less integrated and standardized than the prior era of proprietary systems that many firms developed themselves.

In database systems, a _____ defines the data that a table can hold.

While spreadsheets are popular tools, they cannot effectively be used for "what-if" analysis.

In many organizations, the majority of available data is not exploited to advantage.

_____ are the most common standard for expressing databases, whereby tables (files) are related based on common keys.

_____ are model building techniques where computers examine many potential solutions to a problem, iteratively modifying various mathematical models, and comparing the mutated models to search for a best alternative.

Logistics is the term that describes the extensive use of data, statistical and quantitative analysis, explanatory and predictive models, and fact-based management to drive decisions and actions.