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Data Warehousing and Business Intelligence

Course Number (IS525)

Fall 2024
IS 525 BC class meets Tuesdays 3:30pm-6:20pm, Room 126 iSchool Building
IS 525 AC class meets Thursdays 3:30pm-6:20pm, Room 1065 Lincoln Hall

Weekly contact hours required: 1 time per week for 2:50 minutes.
Lectures will not be recorded except when using Zoom.

This syllabus may be obtained in alternative formats upon request. Please contact the instructor.

Michael Wonderlich
AITS
50 Gerty Dr, Champaign
Phone: 217-265-6513
Email: [email protected] (Preferred contact method)

Course Description
This course examines the construction of a data warehouse and business intelligence system. It
will review the roles and requirements of building the system, including data modelling and
business intelligence product design. This course will explore real-world case studies of data
warehouse and business intelligence projects through hands-on experience with data modelling,
Business Objects, Power BI and Tableau. The course culminates with a final project to design a
solution for a business case.

Pre- and Co-requisites

No prerequisites, but knowledge of SQL is encouraged.

# Credit hours
This course is available for 4 hours credit only.

Student Learning Objectives or Outcomes

• Building a data warehousing and business intelligence environment
o What are the primary components
o What are the key services/technology
o What are the primary roles in the project
• Defining the Data Warehouse/Business Intelligence Project
o Requirements gathering
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o Requirements analysis
o Understanding the goals
• Designing a Data Warehouse
o Which modelling methodology
 Kimball
 Inmon
o Organizing the data warehouse
o Security the data
o Creating the data model
• Loading the Data Warehouse
o Source-to-Target Maps
o Extract, Transform, Load
o Data Cleansing
o Data Quality
o Talend Open Suite
• Basic SQL
• What is Business Intelligence
o Reporting
o Data Analysis
o Data Visualization
o Dashboards
o Predictive Analytics
• Hands-On Practice with
o Dimensional Modeling
o Talend Open Studio
o SAP Business Objects Web Intelligence
o Microsoft Power BI
o Tableau Desktop/Server
• Best practices in data visualization
o Creating effective data visualizations
o Using the best tool for the task
o Designing effective dashboards and scorecards
• New technologies in data organization
o Hadoop
o NoSQL
o Unstructured Data
o Data Lakes
o Data Virtualization
• Final Project in Data Warehousing or Business Intelligence

Course Context
This course meets a number of learning outcomes connected to program objectives for
the Information Management program, which in turn connect to larger iSchool and University of
Illinois learning goals.

Program Learning Outcomes

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1. Manage information using best practices in management and policy; knowledge

representation; human-centered design and systems; and data analytics.
2. Define and successfully address a tractable research question or real-world problem in
information management using the appropriate scientific and/or research methods.
3. Accurately convey the implications of analytical results (in both oral and written modalities)
to diverse stakeholders.
4. Apply best practices for providing value, leadership, and team building.
5. Stay up-to-date by learning how to read, analyze, discuss, synthesize, and critique advances
reported in research literature.

iSchool Goal
This course meets the following goal:
Maintain global leadership in education for the information professions

University of Illinois Campus-Wide Learning Goals

This course meets the following goals:
1. Intellectual Reasoning and Knowledge
2. Creative Inquiry and Discovery

Course materials
Required Textbook
Storytelling With Data: A Data Visualization Guide for Business Professionals, by Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic
ISBN 978-1119002253 Price on Amazon is $27.73
Suggested Readings
The Data Warehouse Toolkit: The Definitive Guide to Dimensional Modeling, 3rd Edition, by Richard
Kimball and Margy Ross

The Data Warehouse Lifecycle Toolkit, 2nd Edition, by Richard Kimball and Margy Ross

Data Warehouse Design Solutions, by Christopher Adamson and Michael Venerable

Information Dashboard Design: Displaying Data for At-a-Glance Monitoring, by Stephen Few

Practical Business Intelligence, by Ahmed Sherif

SAP BusinessObjects Reporting Cookbook, by Yoav Yahav

Tableau 10 Business Intelligence Cookbook, by Donabel Santos

The Big Book of Dashboards, by Steve Wexler, Jeffrey Shaffer and Andy Cotgreave

The Wall Street Journal Guide to Information Graphics: The Dos and Don’ts of Presenting Data, Facts,
and Figures, by Dona M. Wong

Performance Dashboards – Measuring, Monitoring, and Managing your business, 2nd Edition, by Wayne
Eckerson

Too Big to Ignore: The Business Case for Big Data, by Phil Simon
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Successful Business Intelligence: Unlock the Value of BI & Big Data, 2nd Edition, by Cindi Howson

Business Intelligence Roadmap: The Complete Project Lifecycle for Decision-Support Applications, by
Larissa T. Moss and Shaku Atre
Business Intelligence Guidebook: From Data Integration to Analytics, by Rick Sherman

Week-by-Week Topic and Assignment Schedule

The schedule of topics, homework assignments, and quizzes is available on the course website in
Canvas.

Bio of Instructor
Michael Wonderlich is the Senior Associate Director for Business Intelligence and Enterprise
Architecture at the University of Illinois, a role he has served since 2003. In this capacity he
leads a team in the administration of Business Intelligence technologies and works with the
Decision Support team to deliver Business Intelligence to the university. Michael has a
background in administrative computing but enjoys the opportunity to provide information to
decision makers to further the enhancement of the university’s strategic position.

During the creation of the Enterprise Data Warehouse at the University of Illinois, Michael
served as the technical architect for the data warehouse environment. During this time, he also
was responsible for the first business intelligence application. Since the end of the project,
Michael has furthered the purchase and deployment of additional business intelligence
technologies. He led his team in partnering with the information delivery projects to enhance the
BI products available to the university community. Michael is a primary lead for the Enterprise
Architecture group for the university administrative environment. In 2017 he joined the School
of Information Sciences as an adjunct lecturer teaching a data warehousing and business
intelligence course in the Information Management program.

Assignments and Methods of Assessment

The components of the course grade are 40% for regular assignments combined, 30% for
quizzes, 25% for the final project, 5% reading material discussion forum contributions.
The homework assignments will vary in complexity, so they may be weighted accordingly.
There will be no traditional in-class final exam – instead, the final project is due during
finals week.

There may be some suggested exercises that will be self-evaluated. In other words, you
should do them for learning and reinforcement practice, but they won't be graded.

Use of Artificial Intelligence Policy

Use of Generative AI (e.g., ChatGPT, Copilot, Gemini, etc.) is strictly prohibited for writing
assignments. This includes reading assignment discussions and any homework assignments
requiring written statements.

Late Assignment Policy

For the assignments requiring problem solutions to be submitted, late submissions may be
accepted. Late submissions will have significant penalties (typically 10% of
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the total points deducted per day late). Some assignments will not be accepted
late except in cases of emergency. (Reason: Late submissions make it impossible to post or
discuss solutions with the class on a timely basis.) If you have an emergency, contact the
instructor as early as possible to avoid impacting your grade.

Incomplete grades
An exceptional request for an incomplete grade is most often granted to students encountering
a medical emergency or other extraordinary circumstances beyond their control. Students must
request an incomplete grade from the instructor. The instructor and student will agree on a due
date for completion of coursework. The student must submit an Incomplete Form signed by the
student, the instructor, and the student’s academic advisor to the front office:
https://uofi.app.box.com/s/sx7arobhr0gfw12teaetmp1qq32ifdrd
Please see the Student Code for full details: http://studentcode.illinois.edu/article3/part1/3-104/

Grading Scale
Grade scale:
A 94-100; A- 90-93.9; B+ 87-89.9; B 83-86.9; B- 80-82.9; C+ 77-79.9; C 73-76.9; C- 70-
72.9; D 65-69.9; F < 65.

Qualitative Grading: When subjective evaluation is used to assign a score for an

assignment or part thereof, this qualitative scale will be used as a guide:
• A: Demonstrates solid understanding of the material, followed instructions carefully,
and completed the work with zero or minor errors/omissions. Where applicable,
shows creativity or ingenuity in appropriately adapting course concepts to realistic
scenarios.
• B: Demonstrates good understanding of the material, completed the assignment
and made a few minor or moderate errors/omissions. Shows some ingenuity
where applicable.
• C: Demonstrates partial understanding of the material, completing the work with
some notable problems.
• D-F: Demonstrates very poor understanding of the relevant material and/or
did not follow instructions well to substantially complete the work. Zero
credit for problems/sections not performed.

Course Policies
Class sessions will include lectures and respectful, relevant orderly discussion is
encouraged and expected. Cell phones should be turned off or silent. The use of
computers in the classroom is expected for course-relevant purposes such as using our
Canvas site, consulting on-line documentation, taking notes, and of course doing the in-
class exercises. However, unrelated activities such as texting, instant messaging, emailing,
gaming, Facebook, and other recreational web browsing are limited to outside the class or
during designated break times. Even if you have mastered the material being discussed at
the time, those activities will be distracting to other students and/or the instructor.

Food & Drink: Given that we’ll have many computers in our classroom, please be very
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careful with food at the tables and make sure any liquids are in spill-resistant containers.
Please clean your area before leaving.

If you need the restroom or have a personal crisis during class, quietly dismiss yourself as
necessary. Your instructor also understands that personal and family emergencies can occur.

Attendance/ Participation Policy

The iSchool expects students to attend all classes except in cases of emergency.
Student Code on Attendance: http://studentcode.illinois.edu/article1/part5/1-501/

This class has two sections. If you are unable to attend during your class time, then try to attend
during the other class time. If you are unable to attend either, it is your responsibility to notify
the instructor. Absence from class does not change when assignments are due.

Class lectures will not be recorded except on special occasions when lectures are delivered via
Zoom. This may occur due to campus-events, weather, illness of the instructor, substitute
instructors, guest speakers or similar reasons.

Students who attend class have historically performed better on quizzes and homework than
students with frequent absences.

Classroom Behavior
Students share some of the responsibility for fostering an inclusive classroom. Students are
expected to be respectful of others' perspectives and lived experiences during class discussion.
Students are expected to always demonstrate respect for the ideas and opinions of all other
members of the class. Failure to observe this course requirement can result in a failing course
participation grade and may result in a failing grade for the course.

Behavior that persistently or grossly interferes with classroom activities is considered disruptive
behavior and may be subject to disciplinary action. Such behavior inhibits other students’ ability
to learn and an instructor’s ability to teach. A student responsible for disruptive behavior may be
required to leave class pending discussion and resolution of the problem and may be reported to
the Office for Student Conflict Resolution (https://conflictresolution.illinois.edu;
[email protected]; 333-3680) for disciplinary action.
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Academic Integrity
Please review and reflect on the academic integrity policy of the University of Illinois,
http://studentcode.illinois.edu/article1/part4/1-401/ to which we subscribe. By turning in
materials for review, you certify that all work presented is your own and has been done by you
independently, or as a member of a designated group for group assignments.
If, in the course of your writing, you use the words or ideas of another writer, proper
acknowledgement must be given. Not to do so is to commit plagiarism, a form of academic
dishonesty or plagiarism. Please be aware that the consequences for plagiarism or other forms of
academic dishonesty will be severe. Students who violate university standards of academic
integrity are subject to disciplinary action, including a reduced grade, failure in the course, and
suspension or dismissal from the University.

Statement of Inclusion
https://diversity.illinois.edu/about/senate-diversity-resolution/
As the state’s premier public university, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign’s core
mission is to serve the interests of the diverse people of the state of Illinois and beyond. The
institution thus values inclusion and a pluralistic learning and research environment, one which
we respect the varied perspectives and lived experiences of a diverse community and global
workforce. We support diversity of worldviews, histories, and cultural knowledge across a range
of social groups including race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, abilities, economic
class, religion, and their intersections.

Religious Observances
In keeping with our Statement of Inclusion and Illinois law, the University is required to
reasonably accommodate its students' religious beliefs, observances, and practices in regard to
admissions, class attendance, and the scheduling of examinations and work requirements.
Religious Observance Accommodation Request form:
https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?UnivofIllinois&layout_id=19
Other accommodations may be available.

Accessibility Statement
To insure disability-related concerns are properly addressed from the beginning of the
semester, I request that students with disabilities who require assistance to participate in this
class contact me as soon as possible to discuss your needs and any concerns you may have.
The University of Illinois may be able to provide additional resources to assist you in your
studies through the office of Disability Resources and Educational Services (DRES). This
office can assist you with disability-related academic adjustments and/or auxiliary aids. Please
contact them as soon as possible by visiting the office in person: 1207 S. Oak St., Champaign;
visiting the website: http://disability.illinois.edu; calling (217) 333-4603 (V/TTY); or via e-
mail [email protected]. NOTE: I do not require a letter from DRES in order to discuss
your requested accommodations.

Land acknowledgement Statement

Adopted by the University of Illinois in 2018
More information: https://chancellor.illinois.edu/land_acknowledgement.html
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As a land-grant institution, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has a responsibility to

acknowledge the historical context in which it exists. In order to remind ourselves and our
community, we will begin this event with the following statement. We are currently on the lands
of the Peoria, Kaskaskia, Peankashaw, Wea, Miami, Mascoutin, Odawa, Sauk, Mesquaki,
Kickapoo, Potawatomi, Ojibwe, and Chickasaw Nations. It is necessary for us to acknowledge
these Native Nations and for us to work with them as we move forward as an institution. Over
the next 150 years, we will be a vibrant community inclusive of all our differences, with Native
peoples at the core of our efforts.

Land Acknowledgement Statement Suggested by Native American House:

I/We would like to begin today by recognizing and acknowledging that we are on the lands of
the Peoria, Kaskaskia, Piankashaw, Wea, Miami, Mascoutin, Odawa, Sauk, Mesquaki,
Kickapoo, Potawatomi, Ojibwe, and Chickasaw Nations. These lands were the traditional
territory of these Native Nations prior to their forced removal; these lands continue to carry the
stories of these Nations and their struggles for survival and identity.
As a land-grant institution, the University of Illinois has a particular responsibility to
acknowledge the peoples of these lands, as well as the histories of dispossession that have
allowed for the growth of this institution for the past 150 years. We are also obligated to reflect
on and actively address these histories and the role that this university has played in shaping
them. This acknowledgement and the centering of Native peoples is a start as we move forward
for the next 150 years.

Community of Care
As members of the Illinois community, we each have a responsibility to express care and
concern for one another. If you come across a classmate whose behavior concerns you, whether
in regards to their well-being or yours, we encourage you to refer this behavior to the Student
Assistance Center (217-333-0050 or http://odos.illinois.edu/community-of-care/referral/). Based
on your report, the staff in the Student Assistance Center reaches out to students to make sure
they have the support they need to be healthy and safe.

Further, as a Community of Care, we want to support you in your overall wellness. We know
that students sometimes face challenges that can impact academic performance (examples
include mental health concerns, food insecurity, homelessness, personal emergencies). Should
you find that you are managing such a challenge and that it is interfering with your coursework,
you are encouraged to contact the Student Assistance Center (SAC) in the Office of the Dean of
Students for support and referrals to campus and/or community resources.

Mental Health Resources

Significant stress, mood changes, excessive worry, substance/alcohol misuse or interferences in
eating or sleep can have an impact on academic performance, social development, and emotional
wellbeing. The University of Illinois offers a variety of confidential services including individual
and group counseling, crisis intervention, psychiatric services, and specialized screenings which
are covered through the Student Health Fee. If you or someone you know experiences any of the
above mental health concerns, it is strongly encouraged to contact or visit any of the University’s
resources provided below. Getting help is a smart and courageous thing to do for yourself and for
those who care about you.
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• Counseling Center (217) 333-3704

• McKinley Health Center (217) 333-2700
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (800) 273-8255
• Rosecrance Crisis Line (217) 359-4141 (available 24/7, 365 days a year)
If you are in immediate danger, call 911.

Emergency Response Recommendations

Emergency response recommendations and campus building floor plans can be found at the
following website: https://police.illinois.edu/em/run-hide-fight/. I encourage you to review this
website within the first 10 days of class.

Other Resources
Students experiencing economic hardships resulting in food insecurity, housing insecurity,
homelessness, or other issues that may affect the quality of their work, are encouraged to reach
out to iSchool Assistant Dean for Student Affairs, Meg Edwards at [email protected] or
call 217–244–3776.”

Sexual Misconduct Reporting Obligation

The University of Illinois is committed to combating sexual misconduct. Faculty and staff
members are required to report any instances of sexual misconduct to the University’s Title IX
Office. In turn, an individual with the Title IX Office will provide information about rights and
options, including accommodations, support services, the campus disciplinary process, and law
enforcement options.
A list of the designated University employees who, as counselors, confidential advisors, and
medical professionals, do not have this reporting responsibility and can maintain confidentiality,
can be found here: wecare.illinois.edu/resources/students/#confidential.
Other information about resources and reporting is available here: wecare.illinois.edu.

Library Resources
https://www.library.illinois.edu/infosci/

The iSchool Academic Support Center

The iSchool Academic Support Center offers academic success workshops; coordinates with
faculty and instructors to provide support for specific courses or exams; and curates and shares
academic support resources. Appointments are available online and in person in room 4020
(Academic Support Center) in the 614 E. Daniel iSchool building. For more information
including hours of operation, please visit https://ischool.illinois.edu/student-life/academic-
support-center.

The Writers Workshop

The Writers Workshop (https://writersworkshop.illinois.edu/) provides writing support to
students, including individual consultations, workshops, and resources. In response to the
ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, all Writers Workshop consultations are currently offered online
(https://writersworkshop.illinois.edu/services/consultations/online/). To request disability-related
accommodations for our services, please contact Dr. Carolyn Wisniewski at [email protected]
or call 217-333-8796.