WGU C207 DATA-DRIVEN DECISION MAKING OA PRACTICE
QUESTIONS, VERIFIED ANSWERS & RATIONALES 100%
CORRECT!(Business Analytics Applications)
Question 1 (Multiple Choice)
An operations manager reviews monthly factory performance dashboards that track
historical production volume, scrap rates, and labor hours over the past three years.
What category of business analytics is being utilized in this dashboard?
● A. Descriptive analytics
● B. Predictive analytics
● C. Prescriptive analytics
● D. Qualitative analytics
Correct Answer: A. Descriptive analytics
Rationale: Descriptive analytics focuses on summarizing historical data to understand
what has happened in the past through reports, dashboards, and historical key
performance indicators (KPIs).
Question 2 (Multiple Choice)
A retail chain uses a statistical forecasting model to predict next month's customer foot
traffic and inventory demand based on weather patterns, local events, and historical
sales trends. Which type of analytics does this represent?
● A. Descriptive analytics
● B. Predictive analytics
● C. Prescriptive analytics
● D. Diagnostic analytics
Correct Answer: B. Predictive analytics
Rationale: Predictive analytics uses historical data, statistical models, and machine
learning techniques to forecast future outcomes, trends, or behaviors.
Question 3 (Multiple Choice)
An airline uses mathematical optimization software to determine the most profitable
ticket pricing and flight scheduling strategy across hundreds of routes, automatically
, factoring in capacity, fuel costs, and fluctuating demand. What level of analytics is being
applied?
● A. Descriptive analytics
● B. Predictive analytics
● C. Prescriptive analytics
● D. Retrospective analytics
Correct Answer: C. Prescriptive analytics
Rationale: Prescriptive analytics goes beyond predicting future outcomes by
recommending specific actions or optimal decisions (using optimization or simulation) to
achieve a desired objective.
Question 4 (Multiple Choice)
A supply chain analyst investigates why a specific distribution center experienced a
sudden surge in delivery delays last quarter, drilling down into supplier lead times,
weather logs, and staffing shortages. What type of analytics is the analyst performing?
● A. Diagnostic analytics
● B. Predictive analytics
● C. Prescriptive analytics
● D. Forward-looking simulation analytics
Correct Answer: A. Diagnostic analytics
Rationale: Diagnostic analytics examines historical data to discover the root causes,
patterns, or reasons behind past outcomes ("Why did this happen?").
Question 5 (Multiple Choice)
An e-commerce company uses data mining to identify customer buying patterns,
grouping shoppers who frequently purchase athletic shoes and protein supplements
together into targeted promotional segments. What business analytics application is
this?
● A. Market basket analysis / Customer segmentation
● B. Linear optimization
● C. Time-series extrapolation
● D. Quality control variance reduction
Correct Answer: A. Market basket analysis / Customer segmentation
QUESTIONS, VERIFIED ANSWERS & RATIONALES 100%
CORRECT!(Business Analytics Applications)
Question 1 (Multiple Choice)
An operations manager reviews monthly factory performance dashboards that track
historical production volume, scrap rates, and labor hours over the past three years.
What category of business analytics is being utilized in this dashboard?
● A. Descriptive analytics
● B. Predictive analytics
● C. Prescriptive analytics
● D. Qualitative analytics
Correct Answer: A. Descriptive analytics
Rationale: Descriptive analytics focuses on summarizing historical data to understand
what has happened in the past through reports, dashboards, and historical key
performance indicators (KPIs).
Question 2 (Multiple Choice)
A retail chain uses a statistical forecasting model to predict next month's customer foot
traffic and inventory demand based on weather patterns, local events, and historical
sales trends. Which type of analytics does this represent?
● A. Descriptive analytics
● B. Predictive analytics
● C. Prescriptive analytics
● D. Diagnostic analytics
Correct Answer: B. Predictive analytics
Rationale: Predictive analytics uses historical data, statistical models, and machine
learning techniques to forecast future outcomes, trends, or behaviors.
Question 3 (Multiple Choice)
An airline uses mathematical optimization software to determine the most profitable
ticket pricing and flight scheduling strategy across hundreds of routes, automatically
, factoring in capacity, fuel costs, and fluctuating demand. What level of analytics is being
applied?
● A. Descriptive analytics
● B. Predictive analytics
● C. Prescriptive analytics
● D. Retrospective analytics
Correct Answer: C. Prescriptive analytics
Rationale: Prescriptive analytics goes beyond predicting future outcomes by
recommending specific actions or optimal decisions (using optimization or simulation) to
achieve a desired objective.
Question 4 (Multiple Choice)
A supply chain analyst investigates why a specific distribution center experienced a
sudden surge in delivery delays last quarter, drilling down into supplier lead times,
weather logs, and staffing shortages. What type of analytics is the analyst performing?
● A. Diagnostic analytics
● B. Predictive analytics
● C. Prescriptive analytics
● D. Forward-looking simulation analytics
Correct Answer: A. Diagnostic analytics
Rationale: Diagnostic analytics examines historical data to discover the root causes,
patterns, or reasons behind past outcomes ("Why did this happen?").
Question 5 (Multiple Choice)
An e-commerce company uses data mining to identify customer buying patterns,
grouping shoppers who frequently purchase athletic shoes and protein supplements
together into targeted promotional segments. What business analytics application is
this?
● A. Market basket analysis / Customer segmentation
● B. Linear optimization
● C. Time-series extrapolation
● D. Quality control variance reduction
Correct Answer: A. Market basket analysis / Customer segmentation
