Data-Informed Leadership: Advance Your Career with Carnegie Mellon’s Part-Time Online MSBA
- Email ckiz@andrew.cmu.edu
- Phone 412-554-0074
Do you ever feel overwhelmed by the sheer amount of data you have to work with? If you answered “yes,” you’re not alone. While 93% of business leaders explain that the right decision intelligence determines business success, 72% say that data volume stops them from making decisions.
To succeed in business, leaders need to cut through the noise to make sound decisions. If you want to understand and leverage data to lead effectively, consider Carnegie Mellon University’s Part-Time Online Master of Science in Business Analytics program.
The Importance of Data-Informed Leadership in Today’s Business Environment
Data is an enormous part of business today, making analytical skills essential for leaders.
What Is Data-Informed Leadership?
The evolution of technology and smart tools has created an enormous amount of data. For years, this data was seen as a mere byproduct of doing business, albeit one that became increasingly regulated and safeguarded over time.
However, data-informed leadership recognizes that data is a deep well of opportunity and insight into business performance, customer behavior, and operations. Rather than sit on that information, effective leaders wield it to guide business and company decisions. Overall, data-informed leadership incorporates data-informed decision making, tech fluency, and leadership through interdisciplinary collaboration, as it can apply to every part of an organization, from human resources and supply chain to growth strategies and cost management.
Learning how to maximize data, such as through our Part-Time Online MS in Business Analytics program, can help you build your analytical skills. In addition, it can help you bring structure to organizations, lending insight and nuance to dynamic business environments.
Data-Informed Leadership in Action
Our Part-Time Online MSBA capstone pairs student teams with corporate sponsors to solve real business challenges using advanced analytics. Students analyze complex data, develop predictive models, and deliver actionable recommendations tailored to the sponsor’s goals.
The result is a polished, business-ready solution—such as a forecasting tool, optimization model, or data visualization dashboard, which drives measurable impact for the organization. Companies gain innovative insights and potential recruitment connections, while students graduate with a portfolio project that demonstrates their ability to translate data into strategic outcomes.
Developing Leadership Skills in Working Professionals Through Data Analytics
The concept of using data to make decisions may sound simple in theory, but it is complex in practice. Carnegie Mellon’s Part-Time Online MSBA curriculum offers specialized training in analyzing and interpreting data and extracting relevant meanings. You’ll also accelerate your career by building people management skills. Applicable knowledge and skill areas include the following:
- Types of analytics
- Data quality and completeness
- Statistics and measurements
- Types of data visuals
- Misleading or inaccurate trends
- Types of technology and models
- Managing teams and organizations
Throughout your time in the program, you will explore a wide range of subjects, from data mining and machine learning to statistical modeling and business intelligence. Our experienced faculty, renowned for their expertise and research, guide you through the complexities of analytics, preparing you to tackle real-world challenges effectively.
Hands-on projects and case studies further enhance your practical knowledge, ensuring you can apply your learnings immediately in your professional endeavors.
Empowering Working Professionals To Lead With Data-Informed Decision-Making
Leadership development offers you a broader skill set, enhancing opportunities for advancement and influence. At the Tepper School, leadership development is just as essential as analytical expertise. That’s why Part-Time Online MSBA students have access to the Accelerate Leadership Center (ALC), Carnegie Mellon’s hub for next-generation leadership training. Through personalized coaching, hands-on workshops, and the opportunity to earn a Leadership Development Certification, students strengthen skills in self-awareness, communication, and team motivation—capabilities that complement their data-informed education.
Overcome Challenges and Stand Out in Leadership
Leadership roles come with responsibility, both for making decisions and managing outcomes. Honing your data and analysis skills gives you a foundation of expertise on which to lean. As you apply those skills, you gain the competence to assess input and the trust to make sound decisions.
MSBA student Vivek Shenoy experienced the value of applying data in leadership firsthand. “Before joining the MSBA program, I worked as a quantitative analyst and engineer. The program equipped me with the skills and credibility to transition seamlessly into a product manager role within my organization. It made the switch an easier sell—both to myself and my employer—by blending my technical background with a broader, analytics-driven perspective. Academically, it sharpened my ability to bridge data insights with business strategy, and practically, it gave me the tools to showcase my fit for the role,” he said.
Develop data-informed leadership skills with the flexibility to learn around your schedule. If you’re ready, get started on your application there is no fee to apply!