Suggested Projects List:

Here are some Decision Support System (DSS) project ideas designed for junior and senior college of business students using Microsoft Excel Visual Basic for Applications (VBA). Each project focuses on real-world business challenges, helping students learn how to analyze, format, and modify data to improve decision-making.

1. Sales Forecasting & Inventory Optimization

• Project: Develop a DSS to predict future sales based on historical data and recommend optimal inventory levels.
• Data Sources:
  • Kaggle – Walmart Sales Forecasting
  • UCI Machine Learning Repository – Online Retail
• VBA Features:
  • Time-series forecasting (moving averages, exponential smoothing)
  • Automated stock level alerts based on projected demand
  • PivotTables and charts for trend visualization

2. Customer Segmentation & Targeted Marketing

• Project: Build a DSS that segments customers based on their purchase behavior and recommends personalized marketing campaigns.
• Data Sources:
  • Kaggle – Customer Segmentation Data
  • UCI Machine Learning Repository – Bank Marketing
• VBA Features:
  • Clustering algorithms (K-means implementation)
  • Automated marketing email generation for different customer segments
  • Dashboard with customer trends and campaign effectiveness

3. Employee Performance Analysis & Promotion Decisions

• Project: Develop a tool to analyze employee performance and recommend promotions based on key performance indicators (KPIs).
• Data Sources:
  • Kaggle – HR Analytics Dataset
  • UCI Machine Learning Repository – Employee Attrition
• VBA Features:
  • Weighted scoring models for performance metrics
  • Interactive dashboards for ranking employees
  • Scenario-based promotion simulation

4. Financial Risk Analysis for Loan Approvals

• Project: Create a DSS that assesses the credit risk of loan applicants and suggests approval or rejection.
• Data Sources:
  • Lending Club Loan Data (Kaggle)
  • Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED)
• VBA Features:
  • Automated credit risk scoring based on loan attributes
  • Loan approval/rejection automation with risk alerts
  • Sensitivity analysis for different economic conditions

5. Budgeting & Expense Optimization for Small Businesses

• Project: Develop a budgeting tool that tracks expenses and optimizes spending based on business goals.
• Data Sources:
  • IRS Small Business Financial Data
  • Kaggle – Personal Finance Dataset
• VBA Features:
  • Automated expense classification and trend analysis
  • "What-if" scenarios for cost-cutting strategies
  • Custom reports and alerts for overspending

6. Optimizing Shipping Routes & Logistics Costs

• Project: Build a DSS that optimizes shipping routes and minimizes logistics costs.
• Data Sources:
  • US Logistics Data – Bureau of Transportation Statistics
  • Kaggle – Supply Chain Analytics
• VBA Features:
  • Solver-based optimization for cost-efficient routes
  • Dynamic carrier selection based on delivery time and cost
  • Route visualization using interactive maps

7. Real Estate Investment Analysis

• Project: Create a DSS to evaluate real estate investment opportunities based on historical price trends and ROI.
• Data Sources:
  • Zillow Research Data
  • Federal Housing Finance Agency – House Price Index
• VBA Features:
  • ROI and Net Present Value (NPV) calculators
  • Automated property comparison reports
  • Heatmaps for real estate price trends

8. Airline Revenue Management

• Project: Build a pricing model that optimizes airline ticket pricing based on demand and competition.
• Data Sources:
  • Bureau of Transportation Statistics – Airline Data
  • OpenFlights.org – Global Flight Data
• VBA Features:
  • Dynamic pricing model using demand elasticity
  • Competitive pricing analysis using external data
  • Revenue maximization simulations

9. Fraud Detection in Financial Transactions

• Project: Use VBA to develop a fraud detection system that flags suspicious financial transactions.
• Data Sources:
  • IEEE-CIS Fraud Detection Dataset (Kaggle)
  • Federal Reserve Bank Data
• VBA Features:
  • Anomaly detection using statistical models
  • Heatmaps to visualize fraudulent transaction patterns
  • Automated fraud alerts and email notifications

10. Healthcare Decision Support for Patient Prioritization

• Project: Create a DSS that prioritizes patients based on severity and hospital resource availability.
• Data Sources:
  • World Health Organization – Healthcare Statistics
  • Kaggle – Hospital Readmission Data
• VBA Features:
  • Rule-based patient prioritization system
  • Hospital resource allocation forecasting
  • Interactive dashboards for real-time patient management

Implementation Strategy

1. Define Business Problem: Clearly outline the objective of the DSS.
2. Collect & Clean Data: Use VBA macros to automate data import and preprocessing.
3. Develop Decision Support System: Implement algorithms for analysis and decision-making.
4. Visualize & Automate Reports: Create dashboards, charts, and automated reports.
5. Deliver Insights & Recommendations: Present findings through interactive Excel tools.

HINT:  Would you like a step-by-step VBA implementation guide for a specific project?