Choose one of the papers displayed on the Blackboard site under 'Case Study Papers' or the Envirofacts Data Warehouse to analyze. Follow the instructions below to analyze what has been done with their warehouse. If you would like to choose a paper of your own, you may do so with the approval of Dr. Chasser.
The Envirofacts Data Warehouse, Environmental Protection Agency, is available at https://www.epa.gov/enviro. This is a data warehouse for public use. Enter your locality and search through the online data warehouse. You may have to modify your locality to find an area near to you. Experiment with the various online tools. Use your experience to write your paper.
Report Format for Individual Papers
Your assignment should be at least 3 pages, but no more than 5 pages about the chosen paper. The important thing in developing your paper is to be "thorough" and "accurate". You should read the selected paper several times before you start writing, and take some time off in between the reading and the reporting so you let some thought and incubation take place. The questions listed below do not necessarily have EXACT answers; however that doesn't mean that any sloppy thinking will do.
Begin with the background of the company being written about. Use the internet to research any information not available in the paper. Include information on their products, their organization structure, their financial/stock performance and their competitors.
Include all of the following items with your analyses. Each item should be the header of a paragraph.
a. Key business tasks supported
b. Key business users supported
c. Describe the general architecture
d. Products utilized
e. Business decisions driving the decision for a data warehouse
f. Key business objectives
g. Expected benefits
h. Training/education required
i. Outside services used during the implementation
j. From YOUR perspective, was the project a success?
k. If the system went down for three hours, what kind of 'pain' would the company feel?
l. Major success factors
m. Major risk factors
n. What were the lessons learned?
o. What enhancements do you see for this system?
p. What other materials would you have liked to have in order to answer more effectively?