3.

1 Types of Data Presentation

3.1.1 Definition of Business Data
By this age, you are probably acquainted already with things such as salary, sales, cash
receipts, and cash payments. If you have, then you already encountered what sometimes
become a company’s business data.
Business data refers to information that is captured and stored by a business as a digital asset
that may support strategy, decision-making, and day-to-day operations. As a business
person, it is wise to keep different information related to your operations in order to make
better decisions in the future.
There are two sources of business data. The first is primary source which you can obtain by
observing your environment (clients, competitors, etc.), networking, interviewing clients, or
by performing experiments. The second is secondary source which you can obtain from
business directories, existing demographic data shared by government and private agencies,
and existing marketing research. Whatever is the source, it is very important that the
business data being analysed is appropriate with the practical or research question being
answered.
Below is an example of a raw business data which presents the salaries of 12 full-time
instructors in a certain university.
₱15,000 ₱15,500 ₱17,250 ₱18,000
₱18,500 ₱14,250 ₱15,000 ₱16,250
₱16,500 ₱19,000 ₱17,000 ₱16,000
For consistency, we shall call the figures above as data set and each member of the data set
as observation. Thus, ₱15,000 is one observation.

3.1.2 Presentation of Business Data

Business data are usually messy and difficult to understand and describe in their raw form.
That is why it is important that you are capable of handling and analyzing data. Business data
may be presented either in table form or graphical form.

3.1.2.1 Tabular Form

Business data are often presented in tabular form using frequency distribution. The
frequency (𝑓) of a particular observation is the number of times the observation occurs in
the data set. Frequency distribution can show either the actual number of observations falling
in each range or the percentage of observations.
There are two types of frequency distribution, namely ungrouped and grouped. Ungrouped
frequency distribution shows the frequency of individual observations in a data set, while
grouped data shows the frequency of observations given in intervals.
Example 1: Create an ungrouped frequency distribution for the given data set which
shows the number of years 12 employees of Queen Lala Ventures, Inc. has
worked for the company.
1 3 6 4 5 6 3 4 6 3 6
4

Solution: First, we will count up the data by making a tally.

No. of Years Tally
1 I
3 III
4 IIII
5 I
6 IIII

Next, we add a column for the frequency, this will simply be the number of tick
marks for each data point. We will also total the number of data points.
No. of Years Tally Frequency
1 I 1
3 III 3
4 III 3
5 I 1
6 IIII 4
Total 12
We could also include a column for the relative frequency as part of the
frequency distribution.
Relative
No. of Years Tally Frequency
Frequency
1 I 1 8.33%
3 III 3 25.00%
4 IIII 3 25.00%
5 I 1 8.33%
6 IIII 4 33.33%
Total 12 100.00%
Example 2: Create a grouped frequency distribution for the given data set which shows
the ages of 20 workers of Zapateria de Lala.
26 18 21 34 18
37 22 27 22 30
25 25 37 29 20
24 28 32 33 18

Solution: i. Determine the range I of the data set.

Range I = Highest Observation − Lowest Observation
Range = 37 − 18 = 19
ii. Determine the number of classes or intervals (k).
No. of classes (k) = √No. of observations
= √20
≈ 4.47 ⇒ 4
We can round off the number of classes if we get a decimal.
iii. Calculate the class size I.
𝑅 19
𝑐= = ≈ 4.47 ⇒ 5
𝑘 √20
Since we need to include all points, we always take the next highest integer
from that which was computed to get the length of our interval.
iv. Enumerate the classes.
Classes
18-22
23-27
28-32
33-37
v. Tally the observations.
Classes Tally
18-22 IIIII-II
23-27 IIIII
28-32 IIII
33-37 IIII
 vi. Build additional columns for frequency and relative frequency.
Relative
Classes Tally Frequency
Frequency
18-22 IIIII-II 7 35%
23-27 IIIII 5 25%
28-32 IIII 4 20%
33-37 IIII 4 20%
Total 20 100%

3.1.2.2 Graphical Form

While using tables to present business data helps for a more organized presentation,
business data are more often better understood when presented in the form of graphs. A
graph can be defined as a pictorial representation or a diagram that represents data or values
in an organized manner.
The three most commonly used graphs include line graphs, bar graphs, and pie graphs (or
pie charts).
a. Line graphs. Line graphs are used to track changes over short and long periods of
time. When smaller changes exist, line graphs are better to use than bar graphs. Line
graphs can also be used to compare changes over the same period of time for more
than one group.
b. Bar graphs. Bar graphs are used to compare things between different groups or to
track changes over time. However, when trying to measure change over time, bar
graphs are best when the changes are larger.
c. Pie graphs. Pie graphs are best to use when you are trying to compare parts of a
whole. They do not show changes over time.

3.1.2.1.1 Creating a Line Graph

1. Decide on a title for your line graph.
2. Draw two perpendicular lines. The horizontal line is x-axis and the vertical line is y-
axis.
3. Mark points at equal intervals along the x-axis and write the names of the data items
whose values are to be marked.
4. Along the y-axis, choose an appropriate scale considering the given values.
5. Make the points and join each point with the successive point using a ruler.
Example 3: Create a line graph for the ice cream sales of Manong Jun this week.
Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun
₱410 ₱440 ₱550 ₱420 ₱610 ₱790 ₱770
Solution: Decide on a title for your line graph, for example, Ice Cream Sales. Draw the
x- and y-axis and make the vertical scale go from ₱0 to ₱800, with tick marks
every ₱200.

Draw a vertical scale with tick marks.

Label the tick marks, and give the scale a label.

Draw a horizontal scale with tick marks and labels.

Put a dot for each data value.

Connect the dots and give the graph a title.

3.1.2.1.2 Creating a Bar Graph
1. Decide on a title for your graph.
2. Draw the vertical and horizontal axes.
3. Label the horizontal axes.
4. Write the names of categories where the bars will be.
5. Label the vertical axes.
6. Decide on the scale. Consider the least and the greatest number shown on the graph.
7. Draw a bar to show the total for each item.

Example 4: Imagine you just did a survey of your friends to find which kind of movie they
liked best. The data is given below. Construct a bar graph.
Comedy Action Romance Drama SciFi
4 5 6 1 4
Solution: Decide on an appropriate title for your bar graph, say Favorite Type of Movie.

Draw the vertical and horizontal axes.

Label the horizontal axes and write the names of categories where the bars
will be.

Label the vertical axes with the scale you decide to use.

Favorite Type of Movie

No. of Friends

Genre
Draw a bar to show the total for each item.
3.1.2.1.3 Creating a Pie Graph
1. Decide on a title for your pie graph.
2. Put your data into a table, then add up all the values to get a total.
3. Divide each value by the total and multiply by 100 to get a percent.
4. Figure out how many degrees should be allocated for each “pie slice” or sector.
5. Draw a circle and use a protractor to measure the degrees of sector.
6. Finish up by coloring each sector and giving it a label.

Example 5: In a school, there are 750 students in first year, 420 students in second year,
630 students in third year, and 350 in fourth year. Draw a pie graph to
represent the numbers of students in these groups.
Solution: Decide on a title for your pie graph. It could be Groups of Students in a School.
Then put your data into a table, and add up all the values to get a total.
Year No.
First 750
Second 420
Third 630
Fourth 350
Total 2150

Divide each value by the total and multiply by 100 to get a percent.
Year No. Relative Frequency
First 750 750
× 100% = 35%
2150
Second 420 420
× 100% = 20%
2150
Third 630 630
× 100% = 29%
2150
Fourth 350 350
× 100% = 16%
2150
Total 2150 100%

Figure out how many degrees should be allocated for each “pie slice” or
sector.
 Year No. Relative Frequency Degrees
First 750 35% 360° × 0.35 = 126°
Second 420 20% 360° × 0.20 = 72°
Third 630 29% 360° × 0.29 = 104.4°
Fourth 350 16% 360° × 0.16 = 57.6°
Total 2150 100% 360°
Draw a circle and use a protractor to measure the degrees of each sector.
57.6°

126°

104.4°

72°

Finish up by coloring each sector and giving it a label.

Group of Students in a School