Course Catalogue

Module Code and Title:      BIM101 Introduction to Computer and Business Applications

Programme:                       Bachelors of Business Administration

Credit:                                12

Module Tutors:                   Shreejana Pradhan, Suchibrota Dutta, Tshering Yangchen

Module Coordinator:          Shreejana Pradhan

General Objective: This module teaches basic computer application concepts and familiarizes students with Information and Communication Technology (ICT). It is designed to impart basic computer applications skills by developing computer application solutions to business problems. This will be realized through both theoretic discussions and practical exercises. Latest available Microsoft Office package viz. MS-Word, MS-Excel and MS-PowerPoint will be used extensively to actualise the objectives of the module.

Learning Outcomes – On completion of the module, students should be able to:

  1. Describe the how a computer can be used and its working modality
  2. Explain the role ICT in organizations and businesses
  3. Demonstrate the mechanics of using Microsoft Word to edit text
  4. Create and design a spreadsheet for general office and specific business use.
  5. Analyse data in Microsoft Excel
  6. Identify computer security threats and prevention solutions
  7. Present and report data in graphs and charts using Microsoft Excel
  8. Design simple Microsoft Excel business solutions like Payroll, Electricity Billing, Tax Payment, Inventory Management, Simple Decision Support modules, etc.
  9. Customize MS-Excel with advance analytical excel tools such as What-If-Analysis and Solver

Teaching and Learning Approach:

Approach

Hours per week

Total Credit hours

Lecture

2

30

Practical

2

30

Tutorial/Case Studies

1

15

Written assignment

1

15

Independent study and practice

2

30

Total

120


Assessment Approach:

A. Written Assignments: Portion of Final Marks-10%

Each student will complete 1 assignment on computer related topics.

3%       substance

2%       organization such as clarity of controlling argument and main ideas

3%       analytic thinking and problem solving

2%       overall effectiveness of writing style with creativity and originality

B. Lab Tests: Portion of Final Marks-5%

Each student will do a lab test for 1 hour.

2%       written

3%       practical

C. Case Study: Portion of Final Marks-10%

Student in a group will do 1 case study on topics related to computer and its application in business. Written report with 800 words have to be submitted. The case will be assessed based on the following criteria.

3%       identifying the problem

4%       choosing the right approach for the analysis and solving the problem

3%       drawing the correct conclusion with a recommendation

D. Presentation: Portion of Final Marks-15%

Students in a group will do a presentation on given a topic. The presentation will be assessed as below:

7%       Presentation group mark:

3%       content of the presentation

2%       consistency and structure of presentation

1%       time management

1%       involvement of audience and adequacy in handling Q&A

7%       Presentation individual mark:

4%       demonstrates understanding of the material presented

2%       clarity

1%       tone and delivery

1%       Individually-assessed process score (contribution to the group output)

E. Project: Portion of Final Marks-10%

Students in group will do a practical based project work on a given topic. A written report along with a soft copy should be submitted. The report will be assessed based on the criteria below.

3%       project monitoring through periodic review

3%       written report

4%       soft copy of applications developed

F. Midterm Examination: Portion of Final Marks-20%

Students will take a written exam of 2-hour duration covering topics up to the mid-point of the semester.

G. Semester-end Examination: Portion of Final Marks-30%

The module will have a semester-end exam for 2 hours covering the entire syllabus. The question will be divided into two parts – Part A (carrying 40% of the exam weightage) will be mostly of short answer including objective questions. Part-B (carrying almost 60% of the exam weightage) will be mostly of essay type or an extended response to the given question. This part of the question requires students to apply, analyse, and evaluate or construct knowledge and skills. Cases will also be used to test the levels of knowledge.

Areas of assignments

Quantity

Weighting

A.    Written Assignments

1

10%

B.    Lab tests

1

5%

C.   Case Study

1

10%

D.   Presentation

1

15%

E.    Project (Practical based)

1

10%

F.    Midterm Examination (Lab Practical Only)

1

20%

Total Continuous Assessment (CA)

 

70%

G.   Semester-end Examination (SE)

 

30%

TOTAL

 

100%


Pre-requisites:None

Subject Matter:

  1. Introduction
    • Role of ICT in business
    • Data and information
    • Input, process and output
    • System and application software
    • Tools for maintenance and configuration of software
    • Procuring/acquiring software
      • Open source software
      • Proprietary software
      • Free software
    • Computer networks
      • Role of computer networks
      • Intranet
      • Internet
      • Cloud
      • Big data
    • Internet search engines and search techniques
    • Use and risks of social media
    • Use and functionalities of Email (Microsoft Outlook/Webmail)
  1. Word Processing Software (Microsoft Word)
    • Introduction to MS Word
    • Page Layout: Page setup, page orientation, indents, spacing
    • Formatting a document: font face, font size, font style, paragraph, bullets, numbering, Styles
    • Insert Menu: Table and formatting of table, pictures, shapes and grouping, hyperlink, bookmark, comments, header and footer, date and time, page number, text box, wordart, symbol and equations
    • Reviewing a document: Word count, spelling and grammar, tracking changes
    • references menu: footnotes and endnotes, citation and bibliography, insert captions, table of contents
    • Mailings
      • Mail merges
      • Envelops
    • Introduction to Dzongkha Unicode in Word
  1. Presentation Software (Microsoft PowerPoint)
    • Introduction to MS PowerPoint
    • Creating presentation slides
    • Header and footer: (Sub) title, date and time, slide number
    • Graphic Design: Ribbons, themes, shapes, smartart, wordart, design and animations
    • Audio/Visual effects in slides
    • Final review and presentation: Slide master review, slide show
  1. Electronic Spreadsheet Software (Microsoft Excel)
    • Introduction to MS Excel
    • Applications of MS Excel
    • Formatting worksheets and cells
    • Page layout: Orientation, themes, margins, freeze panes
    • Inserting (currency) symbols
    • Conditional formatting
    • Operators in Excel - Arithmetic, comparison, join and reference.
    • Writing a formula and order of operators in a formula
    • Referencing Cells and Worksheets
      • Absolute referencing
      • Relative referencing
      • Cross-sheet referencing
    • Using in-built functions (Math, statistical, financial, date and time)
    • Printing worksheets
    • If() function and nested If() function
    • Importing data from different files to Excel
    • Data consolidation
    • Data validation
    • Preparing different types of charts - Pie chart, bar chart, line chart, etc.
  1. Advanced Spreadsheet Functionalities for Business Decisions (Microsoft Excel)
    • Business process integration
      • Analysing business process
      • Structuring processes
      • Organizing data
      • Descriptive statistics - Central tendencies
    • What-if-analysis
      • Goal seek
      • Scenario manager
      • Data tables (Simple pivot table only)
    • Excel add-in solver (Simple problems only)
    • Create simple decision support modules (Case development) using scenario manager and solver in finance, marketing, etc.
  1. Computer Security
    • Security Threats
      • Non-malicious
        • Lack of maintenance (no updates)
        • Lack of trained users
      • Malicious
        • Malware
        • Viruses
        • Worms
        • Trojan Horses
        • Hoaxes
      • Security Solutions
        • Personal Computing Environment
          • Updates
          • Anti-virus/firewall
          • Strong passwords
          • Backups
        • Organizational Computing Environment
          • Same as personal computing environment
          • Demilitarized zone (DMZ) (internet/firewall/dmz/firewall/intranet)
          • Authorizations
        • Computer (Cyber) crimes
          • One to one (e.g. hacking) – actively being targeted / singled-out
          • One to many (e.g. spam)

Reading Lists:

  1. Essential Readings
    • Shrivastava, N. (2011). Computer applications in management. Dreamtech Press.
    • Wempen, F. (2014). Computing fundamentals: Introduction to computers.
    • Leon, A. & Leon, M. (2013). Computer applications in business (1st ed.). Vijay Nicole Publication.
  2. Additional Readings
    • Brands, B. (2013). Introduction to computer science: A textbook for beginners in informatics. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.
    • Rajaraman, V. (2013). Introduction to information technology (2nd ed.). PHI.
    • Melton, B., Dodge, M., Swinford, E., & Couch, A. (2013). Microsoft Office Professional 2013 step by step (1st ed.). Microsoft Press.
    • Frye, C. (2014). Microsoft Excel 2013 step by step (1st ed.). Microsoft Press.

Date: July, 2017
Royal Thimphu College