Quantitative Methods for Business

Quantitative Methods for Business has been thoroughly revised and updated for this 5th edition, and continues to provide a simple and practical introduction to an area that students can find difficult. The book takes a non-threatening approach to the subject, avoiding excessive mathematics and abstract theory. It shows how to apply quantitative ideas to the real problems faced by managers. The book includes numerous exercises and examples that help students understand the relevance of quantitative ideas to business. Assuming no previous knowledge, the text provides complete coverage for a first course in quantitative methods.Preface Part One Background 1 Managers and numbers 2 Calculations and equations 3 Drawing graphs Part Two Collecting and summarising data 4 Collecting data 5 Diagrams for presenting data 6 Using numbers to describe data 7 Describing changes with index numbers Part Three Solving management problems 8 Finance and performance 9 Regression and curve fitting 10 Forecasting 11 Linear programming Part Four Introducing statistics 12 Uncertainty and probabilities 13 Probability distributions 14 Using samples 15 Testing hypotheses Part Five Management problems with uncertainty 16 Making decisions 17 Quality management 18 Inventory management 19 Project networks 20 Queues and simulation Glossary