Foundations of Business Analysis

Case Study – Computers R Us
Computers R Us, a computer manufacturer and retailer has recently launched a service and repair
division, CompleteCare, for its portable/laptop/notebook computers. This division promises to
provide a rapid response to customer technical enquiries and warranty repairs.
However, the division is experiencing:
– a shortage of trained technical operators in its telephone centre;
– distribution problems; and
– parts availability problems.
As a result, Computers R Us has received multiple complaints about CompleteCare at the Computers
R Us call centre.
To address these issues, a research proposal was prepared (Assignment 1) and the research
overseen by the management of Computers R Us. It was found that customer satisfaction was a
Page 2 of 6
contributing factor to the issues experienced in the CompleteCare division. Consequently, the
management of Computers R Us have developed several possible initiatives to improve customer
satisfaction to a minimum level of 7 out of 10. These initiatives include: decreasing response times in
the CompleteCare division, training and continuous education for staff on products and services to
assist customers, increasing methods of communication between Computers R Us and its customers
and a new loyalty rewards program. Management is interested to know which of these strategies is
considered the most effective by Computers R Us customers.
A member of your team has already collected data that can be used for this analysis. To collect this
data, a simple random sample of 500 customers was selected. Of the 500 customers to whom
surveys were sent, 420 responded. The survey used to collect this data is provided below and the
survey responses have been collated in the CompleteCare.xls Excel file. You are required to write a
report after performing an analysis on the data collected from the customers of Computers R Us.
A member of your team has suggested that, when you perform this analysis, you should undertake a
series of hypothesis tests to examine the following:
1. Does the current level of customer satisfaction differ from management’s goal of 7 out of
10?
2. Is there any difference between the overall satisfaction of male and female customers at
Computers R Us?
3. Are there any differences in overall customer satisfaction across the following age groups:
20 and below, 21–30, 31–40, 41–50, 51 and over?
4. Is there any difference in customer satisfaction between responses to the initiatives of
‘decreasing response times in the CompleteCare division’ and the ‘new loyalty rewards
program’?
5. Are any of the initiatives proposed by management related to the overall satisfaction of
Computers R Us customers?
Required:
Write a data analysis report that provides the results to each of the five hypothesis tests above and
make overall recommendations to Computers R Us that management can use for future business
decision-making. Based on your analysis relating to these hypotheses, your report should focus on
two key issues: the current degree of customer satisfaction and the strategy or strategies that would
be most effective to increase customer satisfaction.
Page 3 of 6
Customer Satisfaction Survey
Section 1: Personal information
Please complete the following information about yourself.
Question 1 – What is your gender?
Male Female
Question 2 – Please check the box that indicates your age group.
20 years and below
21–30 years
31–40years
41–50 years
51 and over
Section 2: Current Customer Satisfaction
Question 3 – Have you experienced any problems with the CompleteCare division?
Yes No
Question 4 – Overall, I am satisfied as a customer of Computers R Us.
Please circle the number that corresponds with your level of agreement with the statement below.
Strongly Disagree = 1 and Strongly Agree = 10
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Page 4 of 6
Section 3: Determinants of Customer Satisfaction
Please circle the number that corresponds with your level of agreement with statements below.
Strongly Disagree = 1 and Strongly Agree = 10
Question 5 – I am satisfied with the response time of the CompleteCare division.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Question 6 – I am satisfied with the level of advice CompleteCare staff provide on Computers R Us
products and services.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Question 7 – I am satisfied with the level of communication with staff and management at
Computers R Us.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Question 8 – I am satisfied with the loyalty rewards program at Computers R Us.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Page 5 of 6
Report Structure
Executive Summary
This section should provide a brief overview of the data analysis report. You should discuss the
subject matter, the method of analysis, the findings and recommendations and any limitations of the
report. It is suggested that the Executive Summary should be the last section that you write.
Introduction
Provide a brief background to the case to put your analysis in context. Provide a discussion of the
objectives of your analysis.
Research Design
Discuss the data collection process and the sampling procedures that were applied. In this section,
you should also outline the ethical considerations that would have been taken into account when
collecting data from this survey and reporting your results. This section should include references
from at least three credible sources, such as textbooks or journal articles.
Analysis
Synthesise the hypothesis test results as they relate to the two key research questions. Report the
conclusions that can be derived from this analysis.
Recommendations
Briefly summarise your results and provide recommendations to Computers R Us. Bullet points can
be used for the recommendations.
Referencing style
American Psychological Association (APA) 6th Edition. You can find helpful examples of APA 6th ed.
citation in pp 27–41 of the 2015 NBS Postgraduate Student Manual as well as at
http://www.apastyle.org/index.aspx.
Appendix: Hypothesis Testing
For each hypothesis you should:
a) State the null and alternative hypotheses.
b) Select an appropriate statistical test and briefly justify your selection.
c) Perform the appropriate test using Microsoft Excel.
d) Report the results of your analysis (including test statistic and p-value).
e) Provide a brief interpretation (both statistical and non-statistical) of the results.
Page 6 of 6
An example is provided below.
Hypothesis Testing Example
Question: How much are potential patrons willing to pay for the entrées? Is the $18 amount from
the forecasting model the correct value to use when setting food prices?
Appendix 1: Average patron expenditure
H0: The average amount patrons are willing to spend on the entrée course is equal to $18
HA: The average amount patrons are willing to spend on the entrée course is not equal to $18
A one-sample t-test is used, as this is the appropriate test to compare the difference between one
variable and a pre-determined mean (Zikmund, Babin, Carr, & Griffin, 2012, p. 520). The results from
this one-sample t-test are shown below:
Table 1: One-sample t-test for difference in patron expenditure
Variable 1 Variable 2
Mean 20.14118 18
Variance 91.85022 0
Observations 340 340
Hypothesized Mean
Difference 0
df 339
t Stat 4.119569
P(T<=t) one-tail 2.39E-05
t Critical one-tail 1.649361
P(T<=t) two-tail 4.77E-05
t Critical two-tail 1.966986
From Table 1, it is evident that we can reject that null hypothesis that the average patron is willing to
pay $18 for their entrée (p-value 0.0000477). As the average expenditure is greater than $18
($20.14), this value should be used when pricing food in the restaurant.
Word count (excluding tables): 107
References
Zikmund, W., Babin, B., Carr, J., & Griffin, M. (2012). Business research methods (9th ed.): Cengage
Learning.

Foundations of Business Analysis

Case Study – Computers R Us
Computers R Us, a computer manufacturer and retailer has recently launched a service and repair
division, CompleteCare, for its portable/laptop/notebook computers. This division promises to
provide a rapid response to customer technical enquiries and warranty repairs.
However, the division is experiencing:
– a shortage of trained technical operators in its telephone centre;
– distribution problems; and
– parts availability problems.
As a result, Computers R Us has received multiple complaints about CompleteCare at the Computers
R Us call centre.
To address these issues, a research proposal was prepared (Assignment 1) and the research
overseen by the management of Computers R Us. It was found that customer satisfaction was a
Page 2 of 6
contributing factor to the issues experienced in the CompleteCare division. Consequently, the
management of Computers R Us have developed several possible initiatives to improve customer
satisfaction to a minimum level of 7 out of 10. These initiatives include: decreasing response times in
the CompleteCare division, training and continuous education for staff on products and services to
assist customers, increasing methods of communication between Computers R Us and its customers
and a new loyalty rewards program. Management is interested to know which of these strategies is
considered the most effective by Computers R Us customers.
A member of your team has already collected data that can be used for this analysis. To collect this
data, a simple random sample of 500 customers was selected. Of the 500 customers to whom
surveys were sent, 420 responded. The survey used to collect this data is provided below and the
survey responses have been collated in the CompleteCare.xls Excel file. You are required to write a
report after performing an analysis on the data collected from the customers of Computers R Us.
A member of your team has suggested that, when you perform this analysis, you should undertake a
series of hypothesis tests to examine the following:
1. Does the current level of customer satisfaction differ from management’s goal of 7 out of
10?
2. Is there any difference between the overall satisfaction of male and female customers at
Computers R Us?
3. Are there any differences in overall customer satisfaction across the following age groups:
20 and below, 21–30, 31–40, 41–50, 51 and over?
4. Is there any difference in customer satisfaction between responses to the initiatives of
‘decreasing response times in the CompleteCare division’ and the ‘new loyalty rewards
program’?
5. Are any of the initiatives proposed by management related to the overall satisfaction of
Computers R Us customers?
Required:
Write a data analysis report that provides the results to each of the five hypothesis tests above and
make overall recommendations to Computers R Us that management can use for future business
decision-making. Based on your analysis relating to these hypotheses, your report should focus on
two key issues: the current degree of customer satisfaction and the strategy or strategies that would
be most effective to increase customer satisfaction.
Page 3 of 6
Customer Satisfaction Survey
Section 1: Personal information
Please complete the following information about yourself.
Question 1 – What is your gender?
Male Female
Question 2 – Please check the box that indicates your age group.
20 years and below
21–30 years
31–40years
41–50 years
51 and over
Section 2: Current Customer Satisfaction
Question 3 – Have you experienced any problems with the CompleteCare division?
Yes No
Question 4 – Overall, I am satisfied as a customer of Computers R Us.
Please circle the number that corresponds with your level of agreement with the statement below.
Strongly Disagree = 1 and Strongly Agree = 10
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Page 4 of 6
Section 3: Determinants of Customer Satisfaction
Please circle the number that corresponds with your level of agreement with statements below.
Strongly Disagree = 1 and Strongly Agree = 10
Question 5 – I am satisfied with the response time of the CompleteCare division.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Question 6 – I am satisfied with the level of advice CompleteCare staff provide on Computers R Us
products and services.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Question 7 – I am satisfied with the level of communication with staff and management at
Computers R Us.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Question 8 – I am satisfied with the loyalty rewards program at Computers R Us.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Page 5 of 6
Report Structure
Executive Summary
This section should provide a brief overview of the data analysis report. You should discuss the
subject matter, the method of analysis, the findings and recommendations and any limitations of the
report. It is suggested that the Executive Summary should be the last section that you write.
Introduction
Provide a brief background to the case to put your analysis in context. Provide a discussion of the
objectives of your analysis.
Research Design
Discuss the data collection process and the sampling procedures that were applied. In this section,
you should also outline the ethical considerations that would have been taken into account when
collecting data from this survey and reporting your results. This section should include references
from at least three credible sources, such as textbooks or journal articles.
Analysis
Synthesise the hypothesis test results as they relate to the two key research questions. Report the
conclusions that can be derived from this analysis.
Recommendations
Briefly summarise your results and provide recommendations to Computers R Us. Bullet points can
be used for the recommendations.
Referencing style
American Psychological Association (APA) 6th Edition. You can find helpful examples of APA 6th ed.
citation in pp 27–41 of the 2015 NBS Postgraduate Student Manual as well as at
http://www.apastyle.org/index.aspx.
Appendix: Hypothesis Testing
For each hypothesis you should:
a) State the null and alternative hypotheses.
b) Select an appropriate statistical test and briefly justify your selection.
c) Perform the appropriate test using Microsoft Excel.
d) Report the results of your analysis (including test statistic and p-value).
e) Provide a brief interpretation (both statistical and non-statistical) of the results.
Page 6 of 6
An example is provided below.
Hypothesis Testing Example
Question: How much are potential patrons willing to pay for the entrées? Is the $18 amount from
the forecasting model the correct value to use when setting food prices?
Appendix 1: Average patron expenditure
H0: The average amount patrons are willing to spend on the entrée course is equal to $18
HA: The average amount patrons are willing to spend on the entrée course is not equal to $18
A one-sample t-test is used, as this is the appropriate test to compare the difference between one
variable and a pre-determined mean (Zikmund, Babin, Carr, & Griffin, 2012, p. 520). The results from
this one-sample t-test are shown below:
Table 1: One-sample t-test for difference in patron expenditure
Variable 1 Variable 2
Mean 20.14118 18
Variance 91.85022 0
Observations 340 340
Hypothesized Mean
Difference 0
df 339
t Stat 4.119569
P(T<=t) one-tail 2.39E-05
t Critical one-tail 1.649361
P(T<=t) two-tail 4.77E-05
t Critical two-tail 1.966986
From Table 1, it is evident that we can reject that null hypothesis that the average patron is willing to
pay $18 for their entrée (p-value 0.0000477). As the average expenditure is greater than $18
($20.14), this value should be used when pricing food in the restaurant.
Word count (excluding tables): 107
References
Zikmund, W., Babin, B., Carr, J., & Griffin, M. (2012). Business research methods (9th ed.): Cengage
Learning.