The Need for Data Mining

ITS 632 Module One Essay Guidelines and Rubric

Topic: The Need for Data Mining

Overview: Over the last decade, advances in processing power and speed have enabled us to move beyond manual, tedious, and time- consuming data mining practices to quick, easy, and automated collection for data analysis. The more complex the data sets, the more potential there is to uncover relevant insights. Retailers, banks, manufacturers, telecommunications providers, and insurers are using data mining to discover relationships among everything from price optimization, promotions, and demographics to how the economy, risk, competition, and social media are affecting their business models, revenues, operations, and customer relationships.

Select one of the following industries and discuss the required topics:

 Medical  Banking/Finance  Marketing/Sales  Science and Engineering  Insurance  Retail

Guidelines for Submission: Using APA 6th edition style standards, submit a Word document that is 2-4 pages in length (excluding title page, references, and appendices) and include at least two credible scholarly references to support your findings. The UC Library is a good place to find these sources. Be sure to cite and reference your work using the APA guides and essay template that are located in the courseroom.

Include the following critical elements in your essay:

I. Use Case: Present an industry use case discuss the need for data mining in this particular industry. Describe how data mining can help organizations within the selected industry to retrieve the valuable information from the huge amount of data they collect. Explain how they make the data usable for analytical purposes, for business use, or for strategic planning purposes as a result of data mining processes.

II. Data Mining Challenges: Describe one challenge associated with data mining practices and processes within this industry. How can organizations overcome this challenge to gain a competitive advantage over their competitors?

III. Data Mining Techniques: Describe one data mining technique that would be useful for collecting the data required to support the industry and foster effective data analysis processes for decision-making (clustering, classification, pattern matching, association, regression, visualization, or meta rule-guided mining, for example). How will this technique help organizations in this industry overcome the challenge you mentioned?

Required elements:  Please ensure your paper complies APA 6th edition style guidelines. There is an essay template located under the Information link.  APA basics:

o Your essay should be typed, double-spaced on standard-sized paper (8.5" x 11") o Use 1" margins on all sides, first line of all paragraphs is indented ½” from the margin o Use 12 pt. Times New Roman font o Include and introduction and conclusion (at least one paragraph)

 Follow the outline provided above and use section headers to improve the readability of your paper. If I cannot read and understand it, you will not earn credit for the content.

Critical Elements Proficient (100%) Needs Improvement (70%) Not Evident (0%) Value

Use Case

Presented an industry use case. Explains the need for data mining and how organizations make the data useful for analysis.

Industry use case lacks substantive details regarding the need for data mining or how organizations make the data useful for analysis.

Did not present a valid industry use case nor explain the need for data mining. No discussion of how organizations make the data useful for analysis with data mining.

Data Mining Challenges

Described one challenge associated with data mining practices and processes within the industry.

Explanation lacks substantive details regarding how the challenge inhibits the industry from achieving success or gaining a competitive advantage over its competitors.

Did not explain how the challenge inhibits the industry from achieving success or gaining a competitive advantage over its competitors.

Data Mining Techniques Described one data mining technique that would be useful for collecting the data required to

Did not describe one data mining technique that would be useful for collecting the data required to

Did not describe that would be useful for collecting the data required to support the industry and foster effective data analysis

support the industry and foster effective data analysis processes.

processes. No explanation how of this technique will help organizations in this industry overcome data mining challenges.

Articulation of Response Submission has no major errors related to citations, grammar, spelling, syntax, or organization.

Submission has major errors related to citations, grammar, spelling, syntax, or organization that negatively impact readability and articulation of main ideas.

Submission has critical errors related to citations, grammar, spelling, syntax, or organization that prevent understanding of ideas.

EARNED TOTAL 100%