Syllabus

OPIM 5272.B14: Business Process Modeling and Data

Management
Fall 2015
University of Connecticut
Last updated August 21, 2015

Instructor
Xue Bai
Office Phone: 860-486-8061 (Please do not leave a voice mail)
Email: xue.bai@business.uconn.edu (best means of contact; please include OPIM5272 in the
email subject line)
Office Hours: Between and after class, or by appointment.

Course Objectives
Managing and improving a business process adds to the bottom line, and data is a core business asset derived from business processes that drives subsequent business process improvement. The need
to manage data and business processes efficiently and use them effectively has assumed paramount
importance. In all business domains (financial, marketing, operations, etc.,) pertinent business
processes and available data are bedrocks for actionable business intelligence, predictive modeling
and other data mining techniques, which are key drivers of business productivity and growth.
This course lays the foundation for process modeling and data management. It focuses on key
aspects of mapping and modeling business processes, and introduces cutting-edge techniques that
help to identify and manage key data from business processes. It provides essential tools required
for data analytics and business process engineering. It combines lecture, cases, class discussion,
presentations and hands-on computer work in a business-oriented environment. At the end of
the course, students are expected to have the competency required to model and analyze AS-IS
processes and develop improvement plans, as well as design a data architecture to improve decision
making. The course does not require any previous knowledge.

Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this course, students should be able to:
Manage data for various business applications.
Retrieve data and create reports.
Implement a database using a DBMS tool.
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 Model simple business processes.

Create and deliver high-quality business-oriented presentations.

Class Website
The course homepage is available at HuskyCT. The class schedule, assignment requirements, exam
dates, grades, and other important announcements (including course updates) will be posted on
HuskyCT as the class progresses. It is your responsibility to check the class website regularly for
updated information.

Teams
You are to form teams of 4-5 students each. Your team will stay with you throughout the class
and you will work with your team to complete assignments. A good portion of your grade will be
based on team-based assignments, which includes cases, Homework 1, and the class project.
We will determine the teams during the two weeks of the class so that there are about 10 teams in
total. At the end of the semester, you will be required to submit a confidential Team Evaluation
Form. Based on what you and your teammates say, you will receive a score between 0-5, which will
contribute to your total score in the class. Failure to submit a team evaluation form will result in
a score of 0 out of 5 points.

Textbooks and Readings

Textbooks are not required but strongly recommended. Cases are required.
Databases
Modern Database Management (MDM), 11th edition, Hoffer, J.A., Ramesh, V., Topi,
H, Prentice Hall, 2013. ISBN: 978-0-132-66225-3. (Earlier editions will work as well).
Business Process Modeling
Workflow Modeling (WM), 2nd edition, Alec Sharp and Patrick McDermott, Artech
House, Boston, 2009. ISBN: 978-1-59693-192-3. (can be purchased online; 1st edition
will work as well).
Oracle
Oracle Database 11g (OD): SQL Fundamentals, Oracle (workbook available at UConn
bookstore).
Cases
Harvard Case course pack (can be accessed here); 3 cases; must be purchased for $3.95
per case.
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Case

Title

Case 1
Case 2
Case 3

How Process Enterprises Really Work

Pharmacy Service Improvement at CVS
The Process Audit

Each team is required to write a brief of each case, and submit it at the start of the class at which
the presentation is scheduled, as outlined in the schedule on the final page of this syllabus. Please
keep your briefs BRIEF - your brief should outline the key points/solutions of the case and provide
answers to the discussion questions that will be posted on HuskyCT, and should be limited to
single spacing 1-2 pages total.
In addition, each team will be assigned to present a case. If your team is assigned to present a case,
your team will create a 15 minute presentation. Your presentation should highlight all of the major
insights and solutions. As an important part of the presentation, you should try to engage the rest
of the class by asking follow-up questions and/or discussion to questions that I have provided online.

Grade Breakdown
Component

% of Final Grade

Exam 1
Exam 2
Homework 1
Homework 2 (team)
Project Reports (team)
Project Presentation (team)
Case Briefs (team)
Case Presentation (team)
Team Evaluation

25%
25%
5%
5%
15%
8%
10%
2%
5%

The final grades may be curved (should it be needed) as I see fit. All assignments must be submitted
on time. No credit will be given for assignments submitted after the posted deadlines.

Exams
There will be two exams in the course, accounting for 50% of your grade, both of which will take
place in class.
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Exam

Dates

Exam 1
Exam 2

October 14
December 2

The exam must be completed individually. You are permitted to use any of the course materials,
including the course notes and the course textbooks, however, you are not permitted to discuss any
of the questions on the exam until the exam period has ended.

Homework
There will be two homework assignments. One assignment must be turned in per team. Homeworks
must be submitted on time - failure to do so will result in a 0 on the assignment.The details regarding
when the homework will become available and the due dates are available on the schedule below.

Project
The project is designed to integrate the various business and technical concepts that you learn in
the course. The project should consist of a model of a business process (a financial analysis system,
a transaction process, a CRM system, etc.), and a design of a logical data model related to that
process. You will draw the process model and the data model in Visio, and implement the database
using Oracle sqldeveloper. Details will be discussed in class.

Academic Integrity
Academic Misconduct in any form is in violation of the University of Connecticut Student Code
and will not be tolerated. This includes, but is not limited to: copying or sharing answers on tests
or online quizzes, plagiarism, and/or having someone else do your academic work. Depending on
the act, a student could receive an F grade on the test/assignment, F grade for the course, and
could be suspended or expelled from the University.
Please see the Student Code at http://www.community.uconn.edu/student_code.html for more
details and a full explanation of the Academic Misconduct policies and process.
If you have any questions regarding what is allowed/disallowed, please contact me directly.

Tentative Schedule
(Subject to change - check HuskyCT regularly for an updated schedule)
Class 1: September 2
Lecture: Course Introduction, Introduction to Data Modeling
Reading: MDM Chapter 1
Class 2: September 9
Lecture: E-R Models
Reading: MDM Chapter 2
In-Class Discussion: Preliminary Project Discussion
Class 3: September 16
Lecture: Enhanced E-R Models
Reading: MDM Chapter 3
Class 4: September 23
Lecture: Logical Database Design and Normalization
Reading: MDM Chapter 4
Class 5: September 30
Lecture: Business Process Modeling
Reading: WM: Part I for general knowledge; Parts II, III, and IV for lectures
Class 6: October 7
Review: Review for Exam 1
Presentation: Case 1 Presentations
Class 7: October 14
Exam 1
In-Class Discussion: SQL Developer getting started
Lecture: OD Chapter 1 time permitted
Reading: OD Chapter 1
Class 8: October 21
Lecture: OD Chapters 1, 2, 3
Reading: OD Chapters 1-3
Presentation: Case 2 Presentations
Class 9: October 28
Lecture: OD Chapters 4, 5, 6
Reading: OD Chapters 4-6
Presentation: Phase I Project Presentations
Class 10: November 4
Lecture: OD Chapters 7, 8, 9
Reading: OD Chapters 7-9
Presentation: Phase II Project Presentations
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 Class 11: November 11

Lecture: OD Chapters 10, 11, extra DDLs
Reading: OD Chapters 10-11
Review: Review for Exam 2
Class 12: November 18
Presentation: Case 3 Presentations
Class 13: December 2
Exam 2
Class 14: December 9
Presentation: Final Project Presentations