Optimization for Decision Making
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Optimization for Decision Making
This course is part of Analytics for Decision Making Specialization
Instructor: Soumya Sen
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There are 4 modules in this course
In this data-driven world, companies are often interested in knowing what is the "best" course of action, given the data. For example, manufacturers need to decide how many units of a product to produce given the estimated demand and raw material availability? Should they make all the products in-house or buy some from a third-party to meet the demand? Prescriptive Analytics is the branch of analytics that can provide answers to these questions. It is used for prescribing data-based decisions. The most important method in the prescriptive analytics toolbox is optimization. This course will introduce students to the basic principles of linear optimization for decision-making. Using practical examples, this course teaches how to convert a problem scenario into a mathematical model that can be solved to get the best business outcome. We will learn to identify decision variables, objective function, and constraints of a problem, and use them to formulate and solve an optimization problem using Excel solver and spreadsheet.
Prescriptive analytics is a part of business analytics that is aimed at prescribing solutions to decision problems. The most important modeling technique within prescriptive analytics is optimization. In this module, we will learn how to recognize contexts where it can be applied and get introduced to the basics of linear optimization.
What's included
11 videos1 reading2 assignments1 discussion prompt
11 videos•Total 91 minutes
- "Analytics for Decision Making" Specialization Overview•8 minutes
- "Optimization for Decision Making" Course Overview•11 minutes
- Meet Your Instructor: Soumya Sen•9 minutes
- Module 1 Overview: An Introduction to Linear Programming•1 minute
- Modeling Approaches to Decision Making•10 minutes
- Applications of Optimization – Part 1•10 minutes
- Applications of Optimization – Part 2•8 minutes
- How to Setup a Linear Optimization Problem•12 minutes
- Oak Barrel Brewery: An Example Linear Program Problem•10 minutes
- Luxury Sofas Problem: A Practice Exercise•4 minutes
- Solution to the Luxury Sofas Practice Problem•7 minutes
1 reading•Total 10 minutes
- Read this article on Optimization in Prescriptive Analytics•10 minutes
2 assignments•Total 120 minutes
- Module 1 Practice Exercise•60 minutes
- Module 1 Graded Exercise•60 minutes
1 discussion prompt•Total 30 minutes
- What are some problems you could reformulate into optimization problems?•30 minutes
In order to solve linear optimization problems (i.e., linear programs), we can use graphical methods for basic example problems. For higher dimensional problems, we will use tools like Excel Solver later in the course. The benefit of using graphical methods is that it gives us an intuition into how these problems can be solved.
What's included
8 videos2 assignments
8 videos•Total 61 minutes
- Module 2 Overview•2 minutes
- Solving Linear Optimization Problems - Part 1a•10 minutes
- Solving Linear Optimization Problems - Part 1b•8 minutes
- Solving Linear Optimization Problems - Part 2•10 minutes
- Solving Linear Optimization Problems - Part 3•5 minutes
- Example Problem: How Many Items of Two Products Should a Manufacturer Produce? (Part 1)•7 minutes
- Example Problem: How to Plot the Feasible Region of the Problem (Part 2)•8 minutes
- Example Problem: Finding the Optimal Solution for the Problem (Part 3)•11 minutes
2 assignments•Total 120 minutes
- Module 2 Practice Exercise: A Retail Butcher Shop•60 minutes
- Module 2 Graded Exercise: Giapetto's Woodcarving Company•60 minutes
In this module we will explore what happens when the model parameters are changed. We will also look at special cases of linear optimization problems.
What's included
7 videos2 assignments
7 videos•Total 49 minutes
- Module 3 Overview: Alternative Specifications and Shadow Prices•1 minute
- Impact of Changes to Model Parameters - Part 1•11 minutes
- Impact of Changes to Model Parameters - Part 2•10 minutes
- What to Do When There are Multiple Optimal Solutions•9 minutes
- Redundant Constraints•6 minutes
- Unbounded Solutions•8 minutes
- Infeasible Solution•4 minutes
2 assignments•Total 120 minutes
- Module 3 Practice Exercise: An Automobile Manufacturer•60 minutes
- Module 3 Graded Exercise: Dorian Auto Manufacturer•60 minutes
Having learned how to formulate linear optimization problem and the graphical methods for solving them, we are now going to start solving larger problems using Excel Solver. This module provides an overview of how to set up and solve these decision problems using Excel.
What's included
13 videos2 readings2 assignments
13 videos•Total 75 minutes
- Module 4 Overview: Modeling & Solving Linear Problems in Excel•1 minute
- Introduction to Spreadsheet Solvers•4 minutes
- Steps in Implementing an LP Model in Excel•6 minutes
- Organizing LP model data in Excel•9 minutes
- Optimal Solution with Excel Solver - Example 1•9 minutes
- Optimal Solution with Excel Solver - Example 2•7 minutes
- Optimal Solution with Excel Solver - Example 2 Solution•4 minutes
- Case Exercise: "Make vs. Buy" Decision (A Computer Gaming Company)•4 minutes
- Make vs. Buy Decision: LP Formulation•9 minutes
- Make vs. Buy Decision: Excel Solution Part 1 (Set Up the Problem)•12 minutes
- Make vs. Buy Decision: Excel Solution Part 2 (Using Excel Solver)•4 minutes
- Congratulations on Finishing the "Optimization for Decision Making" Course•3 minutes
- Carlson School of Management: Master of Science Program in Business Analytics (MSBA)•2 minutes
2 readings•Total 20 minutes
- Carlson School of Management: MSBA Program Website•10 minutes
- Management Information Systems (MIS) Research Center•10 minutes
2 assignments•Total 120 minutes
- Module 4 Practice Exercise: Calmetal, a Manufacturing Firm Example•60 minutes
- Module 4 Graded Exercise: A Medical Device Example•60 minutes
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Reviewed on Sep 17, 2021
Very insightful course. Love the detail explaination for solving simple LP problems.
Reviewed on May 31, 2021
There are a lot of examples to work through and learn from which I find helps make the material easier to learn.
Reviewed on May 15, 2021
Good teaching style with step by step guidance. Thanks for the connecting high school math (that I learned many years ago) to real life context. I look forward to the next course.
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