Database Reference
In-Depth Information
Following is a brief list of common questions that are helpful to ask during the
discovery phase when interviewing the project sponsor. The responses will begin to
shape the scope of the project and give the team an idea of the goals and objectives
of the project.
• What business problem is the team trying to solve?
• What is the desired outcome of the project?
• What data sources are available?
• What industry issues may impact the analysis?
• What timelines need to be considered?
• Who could provide insight into the project?
• Who has final decision-making authority on the project?
• How will the focus and scope of the problem change if the following
dimensions change:
Time:
Analyzing 1 year or 10 years' worth of data?
People:
Assess impact of changes in resources on project
timeline.
Risk:
Conservative to aggressive
Resources:
None to unlimited (tools, technology, systems)
Size and attributes of data:
Including internal and external
data sources
2.2.6 Developing Initial Hypotheses
Developing a set of IHs is a key facet of the discovery phase. This step involves
forming ideas that the team can test with data. Generally, it is best to come up with
a few primary hypotheses to test and then be creative about developing several
more. These IHs form the basis of the analytical tests the team will use in later
phases and serve as the foundation for the findings in Phase 5. Hypothesis testing
from a statistical perspective is covered in greater detail in Chapter 3, “Review of
Basic Data Analytic Methods Using R.”
In this way, the team can compare its answers with the outcome of an experiment
or test to generate additional possible solutions to problems. As a result, the team
