MGT602 Business Decision Analytics: Scenario A and B Analysis Report

This report, based on the MGT602 Business Decision Analytics course, analyzes two scenarios to explore decision-making tools and techniques within virtual teams. Scenario A focuses on a mid-sized Australian firm utilizing hierarchical clustering to select key R&D employees for a meeting, leveraging email data to identify innovative competencies. The report details the clustering process, identifies key members, and discusses the use of group-based communication technology. Scenario B examines a service-based firm in Australia, employing Leximancer concept mapping to analyze qualitative data from interviews with field employees and managers. The analysis highlights communication themes, management support, and the impact of communication on business outcomes. The report provides recommendations for improving decision-making and concludes by emphasizing the importance of effective communication and data-driven insights in the contemporary business environment.

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Operations
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Executive Summary
Many companies in the fast-changing world of business are implementing various innovative
techniques for holding their market position and also for overcoming the issues of globalization.
So the virtual teams have been created as they are advantageous for the companies. These teams
do not work face-to-face and operate in a network which supports their communication and their
physical existence with the help of technology and group memberships. The report is based on
two scenarios, Scenario A and Scenario B. The first scenario is about the clustering methods for
selecting the key members of R, D & D to attend the meeting. The second scenario is about the
use of Leximancer concept map which will discuss about the decision-making process of the
managers. Both the scenarios will describe about those concepts which are helpful for the firms.
The report discusses about the business decision analytics which influences the decisions of the
firms.
Table of Contents

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Introduction...............................................................................................................................................3
Main Context.............................................................................................................................................3
Discussion of Scenario A.......................................................................................................................3
Discussion of Scenario B.......................................................................................................................6
Recommendations.....................................................................................................................................9
Conclusion................................................................................................................................................10
References................................................................................................................................................11
Appendices...............................................................................................................................................13

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Introduction
In the fast-changing world of business, the work atmosphere is continuously changing
and the organizations are implementing various innovative techniques to bring together various
groups of people. Forming virtual teams is one of the techniques the firms have implemented to
reduce globalization. These teams do not work face-to-face and operate in a network which
supports their communication and their physical existence with the help of technology and group
memberships. The report will analyze two scenarios, Scenario A and Scenario B. It will also
discuss about different decision-making tools and techniques that will be used by the managers
of the firms.
Main Context
Discussion of Scenario A
This scenario has been set in a mid-sized firm of Australia where there are 800
employees working for the firm. 80 employees out of 800 employees are engaged with the works
of research, development, and design (R, D & D) (Abdel-Maksoud, Elmogy & Al-Awadi, 2015).
The firm is extremely eager for identifying the innovative and creative competencies of the
employees those who are engaged in R, D & D works and utilize their skills for distinguishing its
business from its competitors. The firm has made plans for a project for conducting a research
on the innovative and creative competencies of the employees those who are engaged in R, D &
D works which have been held weakly by the R, D & D employees as well as in their
unstructured communication.
It has been observed that if the communication through emails among the employees of
R, D &D could be accessed, then it would be the best way to access the implicit data and convert
them into knowledge. For a period of one week, the emails, of the employees engaged in R, D &
D works, their rates and direction of connectivity has been observed accordingly (Aguwa, Olya
& Monplaisir, 2017). The outcomes of the audit of research have been accessible on the attached
map of R, D & D which has been made based on the unstructured data and has been available in
the emails.
Data of Scenario A

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The attached map of R, D & D has identified each of the employees and the workstations
where they have logged in, with the help of node. The node has a number in the circle. The rates
of connectivity have been presented through different nodes which are connected by lines. The
intensity and direction of traffic have been presented through the numbers in the lines which are
inside or outside the nodes. The project will interpret both the map and the decisions for
discussing about the content and combining them. It has been done to convert the weak and
unstructured data, which has been accessed from the emails into strong data and make it suitable
so that the firm can use it (Ahmed, Mahmood & Hu, 2016). Some of the R, D & D employees
would be chosen for the meeting and they would be given many meeting rooms. Each room
would have a facilitator, visual aids and a group decision support system (GDSS) so that the
employees of all the rooms could connect and summarize the outputs of the meeting.
The group-based communication technology system would be used by the project for
supporting the meetings among the R, D & D employees and helping them to make the weak
data into strong information. For making the meeting successful, resources which are accessible
in the meeting rooms would provide guidance to the group procedure (Al-Anazi, AlMahmoud &
Al-Turaiki, 2016). It will also make sure that the participants of each of the meeting rooms
connect with each other as well as with the other groups in other rooms so they could generate
strong information.
Task
No. Clusters Nodes Identified per Cluster
1 19 4
2 28 2
3 31 3
4 42 9
5 53 4
6 61 5
Table 1: Each Cluster and the Constituents of Each Cluster

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Rooms Clusters Key Members Selected to Attend Meetings
A 1 Technician
B 2 Research Manager
C 3 Project Design Manager
D 4 Project Development Manager
E 5 R & D Engineer
F 6 Senior Research Associate
Table 2: Key Members of R, D & D as per the Clusters and Meeting Rooms
Answers
The type and size of each cluster have been decided on the basis of the same features of
the clusters. The process which is used for identifying the nodes in the clusters is called
clustering process. In this case, the chosen clustering method is a hierarchical clustering process.
In this process, the distant data point has several clusters (Ishizaka & Pereira, 2016). Each cluster
is far from one another while the nodes point are joined with each other. For choosing the crucial
members to attend the meeting and conducting the research, it has used a minimum connection.
The hierarchical clustering process can prove to be the most useful process for choosing the
crucial members to attend the meeting.
The selection of the nodes in the clusters has been done by identifying the innovative and
creative competencies of the employees those who are engaged in R, D & D works and utilize
their skills for distinguishing its business from its competitors (Machnik, 2015). It has been
observed that if the communication through emails among the employees of R, D &D could be
accessed, then it would be the best way to access the implicit data and convert them into
knowledge. The group-based communication technology system would be used by the project
for supporting the meetings among the R, D & D employees and helping them to make the weak
data into strong information. This is the method adopted to select the crucial members for the
meeting.

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In the analysis of the research, the dangling nodes are those nodes that are not connected with
other nodes, so that nodes have not been counted in the research. There are some gaps in the
cluster at the connection point of two nodes (Mahdi et al., 2016). It is for removing the nodes
from the clusters. But in this case, not a single node has been removed, and all the nodes are
connected with one another. Thus, the dangling nodes have not been counted in the research.
The unconnected nodes have been counted in the cluster as they help in identifying the
employees those who are engaged in R, D & D works. In this case, the key members those who
are engaged with the R, D & D works are represented by the unconnected nodes. The task is to
select the crucial members for attending the meeting, so it has become vital to include them
(Mardani et al., 2015). Although they are not involved in most cases, but in this case, the
unconnected nodes will make their task simpler.
The process of clustering does not have any target but it is beneficial for finding any type of data.
The main purpose of clustering is to make divisions of the nodes in some groups. It is done so to
cluster the nodes of same features in the same clusters to distinguish them from nodes with
different features. The nodes in the clusters which has the same features and are connected with
each other make the task simpler and better. The two employees those who are engaged with the
R, D & D work, Research Manager and Project Development Manager have been selected as
they both are closely connected with each other as well with the project and their contributions
can be beneficial for the project of the firm (Mastorakis & Siskos, 2016). So, they can be
selected from each cluster to attend the meeting. They would be given many meeting rooms with
a facilitator, visual aids and a group decision support system (GDSS) so that they could connect
and summarize the outputs of their meeting.
Discussion of Scenario B
This scenario has been set in a service-based firm which is based in Australia. Its
headquarters is located in Melbourne of Australia. There are 200 service employees as well as 10
service centers and they report to 40 managers regarding their works. The firm is extremely
eager for determining their service support levels which are delivered by the employees of the
firm. The firm has initiated a project for observing the tasks of the service employees as well as
recognize the perceived assistance which has been given by the management (Cao, Duan & Li,
2015). The management has done several telephonic interviews and face-to-face interviews of

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the field employees and the managers and they have recorded the interviews. The stories of the
individuals have been recorded in interviews with the help of Leximancer concept map. It is a
qualitative analysis tool and helps to evaluate huge amounts of information.
Data of Scenario B
The Leximancer concept map has analyzed the huge amount of qualitative information through
the interviews of the field employees and the managers of the service-based firm of Australia.
The map has six themes; customer, management, communication, open, focused, and results.
Each balloon is connected with other balloons, which implies that all the balloons have some
connection links with each other to run the business. The balloon of communication has two
elements, work, and team. It implies that communication is connected with both groups and
work so that the operations in the firms are systematically conducted (Ghotra, McIntosh &
Hassan, 2015). The map also implies that the other balloons of customer, management, open and
results are all connected with the balloon of communication. Thus, it proves that communication
has a vital role and it is an important tool for running the business successfully. The
communication among the teams is needed in every firm for better performance and for
achieving their targets.
Answers
The employees of field service have open communication through emails, face-to-face
communications, communications at the time of training, and use body language for
communication.
The employees of field services are most likely communicating with the management
team and other employees within the firm. They communicate about the business developments
for achieving the targets of the firm.
There is no high level of communication between the managers and the customers, as the
customers mostly make communication with the staffs about their needs. The communication
between the managers and the customers are of low level (Paja, Maté, Woo & Mylopoulos,
2016).
The support availability is essential to run the business in the firm. The clients are also
provided technical support in accordance with their needs.

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The communication between the field employees and the managers is open. The
managers and the field employees openly share their issues and also of the firm with each other.
They acn take proper decisions which can be advantageous for the firm.
The nature of the outcomes of communicating by the field employees is based on proper
communication (Saha & Das, 2018). Proper communication can help for improving the
performance of the staffs as well as for achieving the objectives set by the firm.
The managers have a vital role in communicating the outcomes so that they can make
plans, lead, organize and manage the various management operations of the firm. Proper
communication helps them in carrying on their managerial tasks and duties.
The managers are not effectively facing the customers for introducing a system of the
incentive payment for the customers. The reason is that the managers are not well-equipped with
sufficient capacity for funds. So, a system of incentive payment system cannot be provided to the
customers.
Based on the outcomes of the analysis both the management teams and the field
employees are working together in spite of several difficulties. They are targeting for reaching
their customers and meeting their needs (Sourlas, Psaras, Saino & Pavlou, 2016. Both are equally
crucial for the firm for running the business successfully.
The managers are not directly associated with the customers, so the customers cannot
communicate their needs and give feedback. The communication between the customers and the
managers are of low level. So, the support availability is of great significance for providing
relevant technology to the customers according to their needs (Thompson, Houbiers, McConnell
& Irving, 2016).
The managers and the employees have open communication among them according to
the Leximancer concept map. The managers and the employees openly share their issues and
also of the firm with each other. They can take proper decisions which can be advantageous for
the firm (Irani, Pise & Phatak, 2016). If open communication is established among managers and
employees, then it can affect the decision-making process of the firm.

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Recommendations
It is highly recommended to the managers of the firm to conduct their properly as it can help
them to achieve their targets. They can choose soft clustering process in place of hierarchical
clustering process while choosing the crucial members for the meeting. This process can
help to cluster every information in a single node. It can also help to select the right
employees for attending the meeting. It can prove to be a useful process for proceeding with
the clustering of nodes.
The managers should maintain a good relation with each employee of the firm in accordance
with the Leximancer concept map. Each concept of the map has been maintaining a good
relation with one another for delivering their best performance. If one concept does not
maintain a good relationship then it can also have a negative impact on the other concepts.
The management team has to maintain a high level of communication with the customers. It
can be helpful for the customers as they will able to communicate their needs directly to the
managers and the managers can also help them to fulfill their demands and needs
The management team has to come up with innovative ideas and solutions for solving the
issues of the firm. The employees should also communicate with the managers about some
innovative and creative ideas and solutions for improving the existing strategies of the firm.
The managers should consider the ideas from every direction, particularly from the
perspectives of the firm

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Conclusion
The report described two scenarios, Scenario A and Scenario B. The first scenario is
about the clustering methods and the second scenario is about the Leximancer concept map. In
the current world of business, many firms have been using virtual teams for improving their
business. It helps to create a positive impact on the decisions of the managers of the companies.
Moreover, the virtual teams help to create innovative techniques which can increase the
profitability of the companies. The report also analyzed various decision-making tools and
techniques utilized by both the companies of two scenarios. The managers have used that tools
for taking relevant decisions for the companies.

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References
Abdel-Maksoud, E., Elmogy, M., & Al-Awadi, R. (2015). Brain tumor segmentation based on
a hybrid clustering technique. Egyptian Informatics Journal, 16(1), 71-81.
Aguwa, C., Olya, M. H., & Monplaisir, L. (2017). Modeling of the fuzzy-based voice of the
customer for business decision analytics. Knowledge-Based Systems, 125, 136-145.
Ahmed, M., Mahmood, A. N., & Hu, J. (2016). A survey of network anomaly detection
techniques. Journal of Network and Computer Applications, 60, 19-31.
Al-Anazi, S., AlMahmoud, H., & Al-Turaiki, I. (2016). Finding similar documents using
different clustering techniques. Procedia Computer Science, 82, 28-34.
Cao, G., Duan, Y., & Li, G. (2015). Linking business analytics to decision making
effectiveness: a path model analysis. IEEE Transactions on Engineering
Management, 62(3), 384-395.
Ghotra, B., McIntosh, S., & Hassan, A. E. (2015, May). Revisiting the impact of classification
techniques on the performance of defect prediction models. In Proceedings of the 37th
International Conference on Software Engineering-Volume 1 (pp. 789-800). IEEE
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Irani, J., Pise, N., & Phatak, M. (2016). Clustering techniques and the similarity measures used
in clustering: A survey. International Journal of Computer Applications, 134(7), 9-14.
Ishizaka, A., & Pereira, V. E. (2016). Portraying an employee performance management
system based on multi-criteria decision analysis and visual techniques. International
Journal of Manpower, 37(4), 628-659.
Machnik, Ł. (2015). Documents Clustering Techniques. Annales Universitatis Mariae Curie-
Sklodowska, section AI–Informatica, 2(1), 401-411.
Mahdi, O. A., Abdul Wahab, A. W., Idna Idris, M. Y., Abu Znaid, A. M., Khan, S., Al‐
Mayouf, Y. R. B., & Guizani, N. (2016). A comparison study on node clustering
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Communications and Mobile Computing, 16(16), 2663-2676.

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Mardani, A., Jusoh, A., MD Nor, K., Khalifah, Z., Zakwan, N., & Valipour, A. (2015).
Multiple criteria decision-making techniques and their applications–a review of the
literature from 2000 to 2014. Economic Research-Ekonomska Istraživanja, 28(1), 516-
571.
Mastorakis, K., & Siskos, E. (2016). Value-focused pharmaceutical strategy determination
with multicriteria decision analysis techniques. Omega, 59, 84-96.
Paja, E., Maté, A., Woo, C., & Mylopoulos, J. (2016, November). Can goal reasoning
techniques be used for strategic decision-making? In International Conference on
Conceptual Modeling (pp. 530-543). Springer, Cham.
Saha, S., & Das, R. (2018). Exploring differential evolution and particle swarm optimization
to develop some symmetry-based automatic clustering techniques: application to gene
clustering. Neural Computing and Applications, 30(3), 735-757.
Sourlas, V., Psaras, I., Saino, L., & Pavlou, G. (2016). Efficient hash-routing and domain
clustering techniques for information-centric networks. Computer Networks, 103, 67-
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Thompson, M., Houbiers, M., McConnell, J., & Irving, D. (2016). Quantitative 4D analysis
using business analytics techniques. First Break, 34(7), 33-38.

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Appendices
Figure 1: (Data of Scenario A)

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Figure 2: (Data of Scenario B)