Question

  

Problem: Delta Wire manufactures high-carbon specialty steel wire and at present employs 20,000 workers. The company is currently experiencing serious problems, at least in part due to the continuing decline in value of the CDN$. Foreign competition is becoming a significant threat to Delta’s market position. At the same time, industry quality requirements have become increasingly tougher each year. One strength at Delta, however, is their level of employee education. Employee education has many payoffs, but one, in particular, has been suggested several times at recent executive meetings. Some managers believe that education has resulted in a more positive outlook and interest in implementing what has been learned and as a result, the more education received by a worker, the less likely he/she is to miss workdays (education may reduce absenteeism). Others, however, insist that the opposite is true (education stifles the free spirit leading to more absenteeism). The data addressing this issue is displayed in the table below for a random sample of 20 company employees with the number of hours of company education received and the number of days of sick leave taken.

Analysis: Use Excel to analyse this data statistically. Ensure that you conduct a correlation and regression analysis though it is possible other statistical analyses might also be warranted.

Business report: Write a formal business report to your “boss” at the company. The purpose of this business report is to permit you to show what you have learned in the course about statistics, in particular what you have learned about correlation and regression, and what should be included in a practical business report using statistical analyses.

    Students must submit a concise business report for which they should:

Utilize appropriate statistical analyses of the sample data provided

Interpret the results in the context of a business situation

Discuss the statistical results in the context of the business situation

Discuss any problems or shortcomings with the way the study was conducted (if any)

If necessary, describe methods of improving the study

Discuss any recommendations you think appropriate

    Assume that you are writing this report so that it can be read by two types of readers: those who know no statistics (such as your “boss” at this company) and those who know statistics (such as her statistics expert assistant who will want enough information to know if you analysed the data properly and whether you have drawn the correct conclusions). Use anything you have learned throughout this course when composing your comprehensive, yet concise, well-organized and well-written report.

Instructions: The business report is strictly limited to a maximum of 3 pages, 12-point, double-spaced, Times Roman (not including title page, graphs, tables, references, or appendices). Ensure all Excel analyses are attached. This report should be written in essay-format (i.e., sentences and paragraphs), not point form.

    Criteria for evaluation will include appropriateness and correctness of analyses; quality and thoroughness of analyses; quality of organization and writing; clarity and correctness of interpretation; professional quality of job performed.

Data:

                                                                                                           

Employee		Hours of Education		Sick Days
	1		24		5
	2		16		4
	3		48		0
	4		120		1
	5		36		5
	6		10		7
	7		65		0
	8		36		3
	9		0		12
	10		12		8
	11		8		8
	12		60		1
	13		0		9
	14		28		3
	15		15		1
	16		88		2
	17		120		1
	18		15		8
	19		48		0
	20		5		10

Answer 1

NULL HYPOTHESIS H0:

ALTERNATIVE HYPOTHESIS Ha:

degrees of freedom= 20-2=18

The p-value is .00022. The result is significant because p < .05.

Decision:REJECT NULL HYPOTHESIS H0.

CONCLUSION: WE HAVE SUFFICIENT EVIDENCE TO SHOW THAT THERE IS NEGATIVE CORRELATION BETWEEN TWO VARIABLES.

FROM REGRESSION ANALYSIS

Y^ = 7.16-0.07*X