IIBA IIBA Certifications CBDA Questions & Answers

• Question 71:

  An analyst is tasked with helping the sales team make better use of its data to support informed business decision making. The analyst creates the following research question 'How can shipping costs be lowered in the northeast to remain competitive?'.This question:

  A. Is sufficient to begin analytics work and can be revised after analysis

  B. Is adequately stated and scopes the analytics initiative

  C. Needs to be further defined before mathematical modeling can begin

  D. Needs to be more broadly focused to frame the research

  Correct Answer: C

  According to the Guide to Business Data Analytics, a research question is a clear, concise, and specific question that guides the analytics work1. The research question should be SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and

  Time-bound2. The question `How can shipping costs be lowered in the northeast to remain competitive?' is not SMART, as it lacks some important details, such as:

  What is the current shipping cost and the target cost reduction?

  What are the criteria for measuring competitiveness?

  What is the time frame for achieving the cost reduction and competitiveness?

  What are the factors that influence the shipping cost and competitiveness? What are the assumptions and constraints of the analysis?

  Therefore, the question needs to be further defined before mathematical modeling can begin, as the modeling requires clear and precise inputs and outputs. The other options are not correct, as they imply that the question is either too vague or too narrow, which is not the case.

• Question 72:

  A lab is conducting a study on protein interactions. They have used the data to create a graph visualization.In graph visualization, what would an edge represent?

  A. A single datapoint

  B. A link between two datapoints

  C. A collection of datapoints and links

  D. A dedicated algorithm that calculates the node positions

  Correct Answer: B

  A graph visualization is a type of visualization that shows the relationships among data points by using nodes (or vertices) to represent the data points and edges (or links) to represent the connections between them1. A graph visualization can help reveal patterns, clusters, outliers, or hierarchies in the data2. In a graph visualization, an edge represents a link between two data points, indicating that they have some kind of association, interaction, similarity, or dependency3. For example, in a study on protein interactions, an edge could represent a physical or functional interaction between two proteins, such as binding, signaling, or regulation4.

  A single data point, a collection of data points and links, and a dedicated algorithm that calculates the node positions are not correct definitions of an edge in a graph visualization. A single data point is represented by a node, not an edge, in a graph visualization. A collection of data points and links is the whole graph, not an edge, in a graph visualization. A dedicated algorithm that calculates the node positions is a method of graph layout, not an edge, in a graph visualization. A graph layout is the way the nodes and edges are arranged in a graph visualization, which can affect the readability, aesthetics, and interpretation of the graph.

• Question 73:

  An analyst is working through data on comparing performance scores in different schools across the state, for ranking purposes. Since there is a lot of data and some extreme outliers, the analyst is trying to determine which type of statistical average would best represent the results. Which of the following is a concern when relying too heavily on summary statistics during data analysis?

  A. Contextualization

  B. Data variation

  C. Data properties

  D. Frequency

  Correct Answer: A

  Summary statistics are numerical measures that describe certain characteristics of a data set, such as the mean, median, mode, standard deviation, range, or quartiles. Summary statistics can help simplify and communicate complex data, but they can also obscure or distort important information, such as the distribution, shape, outliers, or trends of the data. Contextualization is the process of providing relevant background information, assumptions, limitations, or explanations for the data analysis and its results. Contextualization can help avoid misinterpretation, confusion, or bias when using summary statistics. Contextualization can also help connect the data analysis to the business problem, objectives, and stakeholders.

• Question 74:

  Freedom Insurance is planning to offer a new type of insurance policy and would like to determine how to optimally price it. The company seeks to identify the characteristics of this policy that would produce the maximum profit in the coming year. What type of analytics would Freedom Insurance be considering to achieve this objective?

  A. Retrospective analytics

  B. Descriptive analytics

  C. Predictive analytics

  D. Prescriptive analytics

  Correct Answer: D

  According to the Guide to Business Data Analytics, prescriptive analytics is a type of analytics that provides recommendations or suggestions for optimal actions or decisions based on data analysis. Prescriptive analytics uses techniques such as optimization, simulation, and decision analysis to evaluate various scenarios and trade-offs and to determine the best course of action for a given objective and constraint. Prescriptive analytics can help organizations achieve their goals, improve their performance, and increase their efficiency and effectiveness. In this situation, Freedom Insurance wants to determine how to optimally price a new type of insurance policy that would produce the maximum profit in the coming year. This is a prescriptive analytics problem, as it involves finding the optimal solution for a complex and uncertain decision problem.

• Question 75:

  With the recent departure of two of its employees, an IT helpdesk team is now understaffed and finding it difficult to keep up with the current workload. The number of tickets being received has increased as well as the number of days to resolve the tickets. The IT manager has set up a meeting with the IT director to request funding for two new helpdesk agents. To prepare for the meeting, the manager is interested in showing the tickets processed against ticket volume over the past year. What type of chart should the manager use to effectively show the change in processing rate over time?

  A. A pie chart to compare the number of tickets coming in versus tickets being processed each month, over the past year

  B. A column chart to compare the number of tickets coming in versus tickets being processed each month, since June

  C. A line chart to show the widening gap between the number of tickets being processed against the number coming over the past year

  D. A waterfall chart to show the number of tickets coming in are a lot higher than those being processed as of year to date

  Correct Answer: C

  A line chart is the type of chart that the manager should use to effectively show the change in processing rate over time, because it is a technique that displays data as a series of points connected by straight lines. A line chart can help the manager visualize the trends and patterns in the ticket volume and processing rate over the past year, and highlight the widening gap between them. A line chart can also show the seasonal variations and fluctuations in the data, and compare the performance of different categories or groups. Options A, B, and D are not suitable for showing the change in processing rate over time, because they are techniques that display data as proportions (A), comparisons (B), or accumulations (D) of different categories or groups at a single point in time or over a fixed period.

• Question 76:

  An online retailer has been successful utilizing analytics to guide decisions on product placement and marketing spend.

  Management has requested a task force be assembled to make recommendations on how to further develop their analytics capabilities. To begin this work, the task force builds a model to develop a shared understanding about customer segments, customer relationships, key partnerships, and the company's value proposition. The team has leveraged the following model to facilitate this discussion?

  A. Value chain analysis

  B. Balanced scorecard

  C. Business model canvas

  D. CATWOE

  Correct Answer: C

  The business model canvas is the model that the task force has leveraged to facilitate the discussion, because it is a technique that describes the logic of how an organization creates, delivers, and captures value. The business model canvas consists of nine building blocks that cover the key aspects of a business: customer segments, value proposition, channels, customer relationships, revenue streams, key resources, key activities, key partnerships, and cost structure. The business model canvas can help the task force develop a shared understanding of the current state of the online retailer, and identify the opportunities and challenges for developing their analytics capabilities.

• Question 77:

  An analyst is using a Data Flow Diagram (DFD) to depict the flow of data across a data security company. Which of the following is true about DFDs?

  A. Can be categorized as Logical or Physical

  B. Can illustrate a sequence of activities

  C. Provide similar information as process flows

  D. Are used to model data attributes

  Correct Answer: A

  A Data Flow Diagram (DFD) is a technique that shows the flow of data among processes, data stores, and external entities in a system. DFDs can be categorized as logical or physical, depending on the level of detail and abstraction. A logical DFD focuses on the business functions and data flows, without specifying the implementation details. A physical DFD shows the actual componentsand mechanisms that are involved in the data flow, such as hardware, software, files, and network connections.

• Question 78:

  A database analyst is modelling a database for a large toy manufacturer. Which statement describes a logical database model?

  A. The layer of views created to summarize data or provide another perspective of certain data

  B. A model that depicts the actual design of the relational database

  C. An abstraction of the conceptual data model that includes rules of normalization

  D. Modelling that involves objects being defined at the schema level

  Correct Answer: C

  A logical database model is a data model of a specific problem domain expressed independently of a particular database management product or storage technology. It describes data using notation that corresponds to a data organization used by a database management system, such as relational tables and columns. It also includes rules of normalization, which are the process of converting complex data structures into simple, stable data structures

• Question 79:

  An analyst at a phone manufacturing company is preparing a dashboard for Senior Executives that will cover past year's performance. It will be used in the upcoming senior leadership team meeting to make strategic decisions for the new year. While analyzing the data, the analyst found a lot of interesting revelations related to performance. What should the analyst keep in mind when preparing the Executive dashboard?

  A. Keep some sections high-level, and some sections detailed

  B. Keep it detailed if there is a lot of good information to share

  C. Keep it high-level, summarizing key insights and metrics

  D. Keep it detailed so one dashboard can be shared to all levels of the organization

  Correct Answer: C

  When preparing an executive dashboard, the analyst should keep in mind that the purpose of the dashboard is to provide a quick and clear overview of the past year's performance and to support strategic decision making for the new year. Therefore, the analyst should keep the dashboard high-level, summarizing the key insights and metrics that are relevant and meaningful for the senior executives. The analyst should avoid cluttering the dashboard with too much detail or information that is not essential for the executives. The analyst should also use visual features, such as charts, graphs, and colors, to display the data in an organized and appealing way

• Question 80:

  An online retailer of men's athletic apparel is seeking to become the market leader in the industry. To deliver on this strategy, the analytics team continuously collects data on the prices of competitorproducts and uses this information to adjust the retailer's prices. What type of analytics is the retailer using to maintain their pricing structure?

  A. Descriptive

  B. Diagnostic

  C. Predictive

  D. Prescriptive

  Correct Answer: D

  Prescriptive analytics is the type of analytics that the retailer is using to maintain their pricing structure, because it is a technique that uses data and models to recommend the best course of action for a given situation. Prescriptive analytics can help the retailer optimize their prices based on the data collected from the competitors, the market conditions, and the customer preferences, and thus achieve their strategic goal of becoming the market leader.