Terms and definitions for Course 1, Module 1

 

Analytical skills: Qualities and characteristics associated with using facts to solve problems

Analytical thinking: The process of identifying and defining a problem, then solving it by using data in an organized, step-by-step manner

Context: The condition in which something exists or happens

Data: A collection of facts

Data analysis: The collection, transformation, and organization of data in order to draw conclusions, make predictions, and drive informed decision-making

Data analyst: Someone who collects, transforms, and organizes data in order to draw conclusions, make predictions, and drive informed decision-making

Data analytics: The science of data

Data design: How information is organized

Data-driven decision-making: Using facts to guide business strategy

Data ecosystem: The various elements that interact with one another in order to produce, manage, store, organize, analyze, and share data

Data science: A field of study that uses raw data to create new ways of modeling and understanding the unknown 

Data strategy: The management of the people, processes, and tools used in data analysis

Data visualization: The graphical representation of data

Dataset: A collection of data that can be manipulated or analyzed as one unit 

Gap analysis: A method for examining and evaluating the current state of a process in order to identify opportunities for improvement in the future

Root cause: The reason why a problem occurs

Technical mindset: The ability to break things down into smaller steps or pieces and work with them in an orderly and logical way

Visualization: (Refer to data visualization)