Key stats:

Lessons

Study Mode

100% Online

Speed

Self-Paced

Location

UK Institution

About this programme

Most organisations do not have a data shortage. They have a question shortage. This Data Analysis for Business short course from Royale Business College teaches leaders how to ask the right questions, identify the metrics that matter, and turn data into confident decisions, without requiring a technical or statistical background. Across three focused lessons, the emphasis stays on interpretation, judgement, and decisions that actually get made.

What will you learn

How to start with the right business question, not the available data
The difference between a real KPI and a metric you are merely watching
Choosing the right tool, Excel, Power BI, or SQL, for the job
Ending analysis with a recommendation, not just a finding

Programme lessons

Thinking Clearly About Data What business data is for, and why the question changes everything.
KPIs and Metrics That Matter The five tests of a real KPI versus a metric you merely watch.
Practical Tools, Excel, Power BI and SQL Thinking What each tool is for and how to choose the right one for the problem.

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About this programme What will you learn Programme lessons

Your instructor

Dr. Sophie Hartley Business Analytics Leader Dr. Sophie Hartley spent fourteen years as Head of Insight at a major UK retail group before becoming an independent analytics advisor. Her career has been about one thing: turning messy business data into decisions that actually get made. She is warm, direct, and allergic to dashboards that look impressive but change nothing.

Begin Your Programme

Post-Merger Integration Project Planners
Software Stack Unification Checklists
Compensation Tier Harmonization Frameworks
Synergy Valuation Performance Trackers
Internal Transition Communication Kits

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Data has never been more available, and decisions have never felt more overwhelming. The problem is rarely too little data; it is starting with the data instead of the question. This data analysis course gives non-technical leaders a clear, practical way to move from numbers to decisions with confidence.

You begin by learning to think clearly about data: what business data is actually for, and why a sharp business question changes everything that follows. Measurement, diagnosis, prediction, and decision support are different jobs, and confusing them is where most analysis quietly goes wrong.

The second lesson separates real KPIs from the metrics people merely watch, using five practical tests, so your attention goes to numbers that drive action rather than numbers that simply move. The final lesson demystifies the tools, explaining what Excel, Power BI, and SQL thinking are each good for and how to choose between them, without turning you into an analyst.

Every idea ends where analysis should: with a recommendation, not just a finding. Taught by analytics leader Dr. Sophie Hartley within the executive education portfolio at Royale Business College, this online short course keeps the focus on decisions that get made, not dashboards that get admired.

From our students

Erind Velia

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Studying at RBC has been a transformative experience for my career. The balance between academic depth and real-world application gave me the confidence to take on senior leadership challenges, while the global network opened doors I hadnâ€™t previously considered. Erind Velia, Multi-Venue...

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