THE UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY BUSINESS SCHOOL
BUSINESS INFORMATION SYSTEMS
1
INFS6024 Managing Data at Scale
2023 Semester 1 Group Assignment
Due Date: 15th May 2023 11:59PM
Late assignments will be penalised in accordance with the Business School Policy as specified in
the UoS outline.
The purpose of this assignment is to enable students:
• Analyse, identify, and define organisational data management challenges based on real-world
scenarios
• Propose and justify data management strategies based on theoretical foundations and best
practices
• Stimulate broader thinking through collaborative teamwork and present findings in written,
oral, and visual form.
Group formation
• You will work in groups for this assignment.
• All members in the group must contribute equally towards the group report and
presentation.
Summary of requirements
The group assignment consists of two parts, each of the which needs to be completed by the due
date.
Deliverables Format Indicative length Due Date
Part 1: Group
report (25% of
final grade)
• A report uploaded
to Canvas Maximum 5000 words
For all groups:
15th May 2023 11:59PM
Part 2: Group
presentation (15%
of final grade)
• In-class presentation
• Slides uploaded to
Canvas
10 mins team
presentation, followed
by 5 mins Q&A
For all groups:
15th May 2023 11:59PM
Word Limit and Submission requirements
• 5000 words limit (references are not included in the word limit; words in tables and figures
are not included in the word limit)
o Where the word length is exceeded, the student will lose 10% of the total marks
when the submission is 10% above the word length and 10% for each 10% over-
length thereafter.
• Format: Line spacing 1.5, font size 12 point, margins 1 inch.
o Only include question numbers with the answers (1.a., 1.b., …) DO NOT repeat the
question in the answer sheet.
• Questions that are not answered will receive zero marks.
• Page number should be added and centred in the bottom footer of each page.
• The report can be submitted as a Microsoft Word document or pdf.
THE UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY BUSINESS SCHOOL
BUSINESS INFORMATION SYSTEMS
2
• File name should be of the format: GroupNumber-Year-Semester-Stream, example:
Group15-2023-S1-Stream2.docx/pdf
• The report should be print-friendly and should not contain a cover sheet.
• Submit an electronic copy of the report via Canvas by the due date.
• Only one person in a group should submit the report (i.e., submit only one report on canvas
per group).
• References
o Use of high-quality references. Make sure appropriate referencing and referencing
style is used (e.g., APA). See Canvas for more information.
General comments related to the assignment:
• Failing to meet the instructions will result in point deduction.
• Avoid using foreign languages in the assignment, submission documents, and visualisations.
• It is recommended that you use external resources such as the library to help with
persuasive writing style expected in the report and presentation.
Group Project
Case study introduction
The case study is a continuation of your work on the individual assignment. The case is included
at the end of the document in the section titled, “All the Ways Spotify Tracks You”.
• All questions below apply to the case study.
• Answer the questions based on the independent research you conducted in the individual
assignment, your understanding of the business domain, and expertise in data management
topics.
• Build upon your knowledge from the lecture content, weekly learning materials, and
independent research.
• Use external resources to supplement the answers.
• Provide a separate figure for each question. Only details specific to the question should be
shown in the related figure.
• Avoid vague generalisations unsupported by data and external research.
1. Data management architecture:
a. Propose an updated data management architecture based on your improved
understanding of the topic of “Managing Data at Scale”. You can use the individual
assignment as a starting point (or you can start fresh). The architecture should
support all three subject areas.
b. Indicate specific technologies in the architecture (e.g., Apache Spark, Cassandra, etc.).
Provide written justification of your choices including a cost/benefit analysis, as well
as the risks and challenges that the organisation need to be consider.
2. Data Quality management:
a. Based on the people-process-technology perspective, identify potential areas that
would lead to poor data quality. For each perspective, provide a bulleted list with a
short justification for each.
THE UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY BUSINESS SCHOOL
BUSINESS INFORMATION SYSTEMS
3
b. On the data management architecture (from Q1), identify and mark the control
points for data quality. Provide an explanation of how the implementation of the
control points will ensure data quality.
2. Data Ethics:
a. Research and identify privacy regulations in Australia that Spotify will have to comply
with, in the handling of personal identifiable information (PII) and personal credit
information (PCI).
b. Identity clear and specific ethical implications to Spotify if customer data is
compromised. Explain what steps Spotify must take to minimise ethical risks.
3. Data Security:
a. Develop a data centric security architecture for Spotify. On the data management
architecture (from Q1), identify and mark policy enforcement points (PEP).
b. Provide an explanation of how the implementation of PEPs would ensure data
security for data ingestion, data at rest, data in motion, data access, and data
consumption.
4. Data Governance:
a. Provide clear and specific justification to convince senior executives that a data
governance program is important for Spotify to manage data at scale.
b. Identify a data governance framework to guide the development of the data
governance program. Justify your choice of this specific framework.
c. Provide actionable recommendations for Spotify to implement the data governance
program. Describe how Spotify can evaluate the effectiveness of the data governance
program.
THE UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY BUSINESS SCHOOL
BUSINESS INFORMATION SYSTEMS
4
Group Presentation
Group presentation:
Prepare a ten (10) minute (maximum) presentation based on your group work. The objective
of the presentation is to provide key insights to decision makers at Spotify. Present insights and
recommendations that are meaningful and actionable. They should be supported by your
understanding of the business domain, independent research, and expertise in data management
topics.
Note:
• Each group will focus only on one question from the group report. The question that
each group must address will be assigned by instructor and posted on canvas.
• The presentation can be in your preferred format (power point, pdf, etc.)
• Submit presentation on canvas by the due date.
Group Q&A Sessions:
The group presentations will be followed by a 5 minutes Q&A session. All group members
must attend the Q&A session. There will be follow up questions from other teams and the class
after the presentation. Team responses to the questions count towards the total evaluation.
Additional details:
• The presentations will be during weeks 12 and 13.
• Attendance for the presentations in Weeks 12 and 13 is mandatory for all students.
• All members in the group must be present (including those on zoom, with video turned on)
during the group presentation.
• Students that are not present during weeks 12 and 13 will forfeit all marks for their group
presentation unless they have an approved Special Consideration. Information about the
special consideration process is available at: https://sydney.edu.au/students/special-
consideration/apply.html. Students who are granted special consideration might be required
to satisfy additional requirements.
THE UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY BUSINESS SCHOOL
BUSINESS INFORMATION SYSTEMS
5
Assessment Criteria
Please refer to the ‘Business School Grade Descriptors’ document posted on the unit of study
Canvas site in the assignments Tab. These grade descriptors are used as a basis for constructing
the marking schemes in all assessment items.
Marking Guide – Project Report (25 marks)
Criteria Marks
Use of literature:
Knowledge of theoretical and methodological foundations/understanding of
subject matter
7
Critical reasoning:
Problem solving / Critical thinking / Attention to purpose
7
Analysis:
Abstracting situation / Providing solution / Relevance of the solution approach /
Originality / Creativity / Clarity of message and information
7
Clarity of expression:
Conforming with instructions (e.g., word length, font, other instructions) /
Organisation (incl. accuracy, spelling, grammar, punctuation) / Attention to detail
/ Visual clarity
4
Total 25
Marking Guide – Group Presentation (15 marks)
Criteria Marks
Problem Statement / Clarity of objectives Purpose and justification / Relevance
of content/ Use of literature
5
Critical reasoning / Analysis / Application to the case / critical thinking /
conclusions / Insights from external research
4
Relevance of response, quality of preparation, clarity in answering question (incl.
quality of response, relevance, demonstration of knowledge, etc.).
4
Presentation (oral/visual) / Conforming with instructions (e.g., duration, word
length, other instructions)
2
Total 15
THE UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY BUSINESS SCHOOL
BUSINESS INFORMATION SYSTEMS
6
Case study: All the Ways Spotify Tracks You
Read the case study: All the Ways Spotify Tracks You. Conduct independent research to
understand business processes involved in the use of analytics, personalisation, and Ad
marketing in entertainment industry. Then, answer the questions.
Spotify utilizes analytics to drive personalization and targeted advertising. All aspects of the data
cycle need to be addressed to ensure improvements in personalisation and effectiveness of
tailored Ads.
Your task:
You have been hired as a consultant to help Spotify improve data management with the goal of
targeting people with attention-grabbing Ads. Spotify has identified the following three subject
areas for you to focus:
• Personalisation: All aspects of user data to gain insights on people’s listening habits.
• Tailored Ads: All aspects of user data to generate targeted Ads.
• Analytics: Business Intelligence (BI) and analytics to improve strategic and operational
efficiencies.