Business and Data Analytics

Study at Teesside University International Business School

See what it's like to study at our modern, enterprising and dynamic business school

This module will inspire you to think about entering the workplace once you have completed your studies. The module is delivered as an interactive learning experience which will enable you to develop an enterprising mind-set and help to identify some of the skills and attributes you already possess. The module content will encourage you to begin to think about your personal career aspirations, whilst addressing potential gaps linked to your knowledge, skills and experience. You will be encouraged to think in an enterprising fashion; learn new approaches to adapt and enhance your individual style. You will have the opportunity to work independently and as a member of a group by participating in personal challenges and group projects, and will learn to understand the importance of networking. Furthermore, you will have the opportunity to hear from and to question experienced external practitioners.

You gain an understanding of the way in which accounting is used in the external evaluation of organisations and develops the ability to use accounting and finance techniques in decision making, control, management and adding value to performance.

Business intelligence combines the business world and the technical world using technologies, applications and practices for the study of business information, influencing business decision making.

You will combine the analysis of given data sets from business case studies and the subsequent visualisation of narratives identified within the data. You must present business information on a variety of platforms and devices so you will learn how to develop responsive websites using HTML5 and CSS for presentation.

You are introduced to the fundamental concepts of software development through the Python programming language.  

You look at key aspects of the software development process including designing solutions, writing application code, developing documentation and formal approaches to testing.

Successful, robust and user-friendly systems or applications begin with a requirements analysis and detailed design. You are introduced to the concepts and techniques of systems analysis and design, enabling you to break down and simplify complex systems and represent them visually using industry-standard approaches such as Unified Modelling Language (UML). In industry, the resulting models are used to communicate designs to developers and stakeholders prior to implementation.

You learn to design and implement fully normalised relational databases as part of an information system. Using data modelling techniques you define how the system stores data and interacts with it. You implement your design using Structured Query Language (SQL): Data Definition Language for creating tables, and Data Manipulation Language for accessing the data.

You develop professional practice and transferrable skills essential for industry, including project management."

You study some of the general principles of business management, particularly in the context of structure, culture, leadership, organisational behaviour, the business environment and the impact of these areas operationally. You are also introduced to the concept of strategic management with an emphasis on organisational resource and competency. And you consider the impact of organisational behaviour on overall business effectiveness, examining the role of the individual within the organisation and exploring motivation, perception and personal impact.

In a world of relentless and fast paced change the most important question for any company is 'are we agile?' In other words are we able to deal with new situations and changes quickly and successfully. For many the answer is no. In this module you will learn how to get to yes through the greatest resource available: people. You will develop knowledge and understanding of why much of management is no longer fit for purpose (management 1.0), and how a new alternative is emerging (management 2.0) is an alternative fit for the 21st century.

This applied module allows you to demonstrate your practical skills and knowledge within a work environment. You explore the theoretical and practical world of business and will explore entrepreneurial and wider managerial approaches to the development of business within enterprise. Through your work within an enterprise, you will develop valuable professional skills and first-hand knowledge of an enterprise. If you already work you will be guided to recognise and reflect on this practice and use your own organisation as a case study. You are supported by academic staff and business contacts from across and outside the University.

You develop an understanding of the main issues affecting international business in the global economy and explore topics including globalisation, trade, economic growth and development. You focus specifically on examining these topics across different cultures. As the module progresses you become able to differentiate cultural variations and the impact of cultural difference on individuals and key organisations. You also have the opportunity to study a culture of your choice in-depth.

A practical module where you undertake the development of an IT based project usually in the form of an approved Web/Database System, taking into consideration appropriate legal issues and professional ethics. You will be placed in an active learning environment to enable development of group working, project process skills, and an identified product by a given deadline.

Working in small teams, you will take responsibility for determining project aims, objectives, roles, tasks, deliverables, schedules and documentation. The work will culminate with the teams providing a group report and a group presentation of the product or application to a panel of academics and/or industry experts. You will also be required to submit an individual report to reflect on the project process as a whole, review the ethical and legal issues considered, evaluate group members' performance, your own strengths and weaknesses and relate those to their future career aspirations.

You develop your ability to design and implement database applications to meet business needs. A case study is used to follow the system development life cycle, and you develop a server database application from inception to implementation for a real world scenario.

The module investigates the issues and technologies associated with implementing and supporting databases and the services that are needed to maintain and access a repository of data. Investigations are undertaken in a number of areas including data modelling, data management and approaches that support the modelling and visualisation of data for a range of use views.

You have the option to spend one year in industry learning and developing your skills. We encourage and support you with applying for a placement, job hunting and networking.

You gain experience favoured by graduate recruiters and develop your technical skillset. You also obtain the transferable skills required in any professional environment, including communication, negotiation, teamwork, leadership, organisation, confidence, self-reliance, problem-solving, being able to work under pressure, and commercial awareness.

Many employers view a placement as a year-long interview, therefore placements are increasingly becoming an essential part of an organisation's pre-selection strategy in their graduate recruitment process. Benefits include:

· improved job prospects
· enhanced employment skills and improved career progression opportunities
· a higher starting salary than your full-time counterparts
· a better degree classification
· a richer CV
· a year's salary before completing your degree
· experience of workplace culture
· the opportunity to design and base your final-year project within a working environment.

If you are unable to secure a work placement with an employer, then you simply continue on a course without the work placement.

You develop an understanding of the challenges faced by organisations and explores the controversies and dilemmas of contemporary management thinking and practice. You study three key interrelated contemporary issues facing businesses - internationalisation; technological innovation and sustainability.

Business intelligence tools are used to show the state of the business to facilitate better and faster business decision making. The next evolution is business analytics which is a technology-aided process which analyses the data to predict future performance.

You will develop skills in combining the analysis of a given data set from a business case study and the creation of dynamic, interactive visualisations that enable decision makers to explore the data through a variety of perspectives.

Using an interactive graphic gives the option to zoom in on sections of the data which are of interest, explore more than one dimension at a time, and sort and filter to discover new patterns and themes within the data.

You develop your ability to design and implement big data solutions to meet business needs by using a case study to follow the system development life cycle. You then develop a plausible big data solution from inception to implementation for a real world scenario.

You investigate the issues and technologies associated with implementing and supporting large scale databases and the services that are needed to maintain and access a repository of data. You undertake investigations in a number of areas including big data, data warehouses, integrating legacy data, data management and approaches that support the modelling and visualisation of data for a range of use views.

You gain knowledge and experience of business in society and how to implement responsible leadership for organisational sustainability. You will review the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and work with stakeholders, analysing the macro environment and providing evidence-based solutions to overcome a problem in society.

You complete a large scale piece of work, under the supervision of an academic staff member. You produce a substantial artefact relating to the computing field, and complete your report and viva consisting of a presentation, demonstration and discussion of the artefact.

You are guided to develop an appropriate sense of work-discipline coupled with a professional outlook. You take responsibility for the planning and execution of an extended piece of work including the consideration of associated legal, social, ethical and professional issues. You are able to explore in depth a chosen subject area, and thereby demonstrate your ability to analyse, synthesise, and creatively apply what has already been studied on the programme while demonstrating critical and evaluative skills and professional awareness.

Your final year dissertation is an opportunity to do an independent piece of research, demonstrating that you know how to take a systematic approach to research, analysis and evaluation within a structured business-orientated framework. It also encourages you to reflect and critically evaluate your personal development.