Students

BUSA3015 – Business Forecasting

2026 – Session 1, In person-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit Convenor & Lecturer
Prashan Karunaratne
prashan.karunaratne@mq.edu.au
Contact via Email
4ER 736
Please see iLearn
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
130cp at 1000 level or above
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description
This unit explores business forecasting by considering the planning process of the organisation, the environment in which business forecasts are made, prediction of key variables using qualitative and quantitative information, and the practical considerations of forecast implementation. Quantitative predictions will generally make use of spreadsheets and simple statistical procedures that can be easily applied in the business environment.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Identify and explain the need for, and uses of, forecasting in a business context.
  • ULO2: Select and apply quantitative and qualitative forecasting techniques for use in business.
  • ULO3: Demonstrate practical knowledge of spreadsheets and statistical software to produce business forecasts.
  • ULO4: Critically examine business contexts and transform relevant data to provide recommendations for stakeholders.

General Assessment Information

Late Submission Penalties

If you submit your assessment late, 5% of the total possible marks will be deducted for each day (including weekends), up to 7 days. Submissions more than 7 days late will receive a mark of 0.

Example 1 (out of 100):

If you score 85/100 but submit 20 hours late, you will lose 5 marks and receive 80/100.

Example 2 (out of 30):

If you score 27/30 but submit 20 hours late, you will lose 1.5 marks and receive 25.5/30.

 

Extensions

Automatic short extension: Some assessments are eligible for automatic short extension. You can only apply for an automatic short extension before the due date.

Special Consideration: If you need more time due to serious issues and for any assessments that are not eligible for Short Extension, you must apply for Special Consideration. Need help? Review the Special Consideration page for further details.

 

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due Groupwork/Individual Short Extension AI Approach
Skills development: Critical skills in business forecasting 20% No 09/04/2026 Individual No Open
Professional practice: Business forecasting report 40% No 23/04/2026 Individual Yes Open
Professional practice: Presenting business forecasts 40% No 28/05/2026 Individual No Open

Skills development: Critical skills in business forecasting

Assessment Type 1: Problem-based task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 10 hours
Due: 09/04/2026
Weighting: 20%
Groupwork/Individual: Individual
Short extension 3: No
AI Approach: Open

The purpose of this assessment is to assess the skills and knowledge required to produce business forecasts for an organisation.

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Students will complete a quiz in iLearn that involves a range of multiple-choice and/or short numerical questions. Questions may involve both calculations and theory. There will be two online quizzes. Students only need to complete one quiz. If students complete both quizzes, the best mark of the two marks will count towards the final grade.

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Skills in focus:​ 

  • Digital skills 

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Deliverable(s):​ Quiz in iLearn

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Individual assessment
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Identify and explain the need for, and uses of, forecasting in a business context.
  • Select and apply quantitative and qualitative forecasting techniques for use in business.
  • Demonstrate practical knowledge of spreadsheets and statistical software to produce business forecasts.

Professional practice: Business forecasting report

Assessment Type 1: Professional task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 30 hours
Due: 23/04/2026
Weighting: 40%
Groupwork/Individual: Individual
Short extension 3: Yes
AI Approach: Open

The purpose of this assessment is to assess students' ability to think critically and solve business problems in the realm of forecasting. In the world of work, you will be expected to communicate your findings via written reports that showcase solutions to business problems while providing a critique of your findings.

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Students will submit a report which will include a numerical component and a written component. Students will also be asked to submit the accompanying data/calculation file/s. Students can expect to provide an in-person defence of their work during class time.

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Skills in focus:​ 

  • Discipline knowledge 
  • Digital skills
  • Critical thinking and problem solving
  • Communication skills 
  • Work readiness

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Deliverable(s):​ Report, Numerical answers via iLearn, Data file with working, as well as an in-person defence.

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Individual assessment
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Select and apply quantitative and qualitative forecasting techniques for use in business.
  • Demonstrate practical knowledge of spreadsheets and statistical software to produce business forecasts.
  • Critically examine business contexts and transform relevant data to provide recommendations for stakeholders.

Professional practice: Presenting business forecasts

Assessment Type 1: Presentation task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 30 hours
Due: 28/05/2026
Weighting: 40%
Groupwork/Individual: Individual
Short extension 3: No
AI Approach: Open

The purpose of this assessment is to assess students' quantitative skills in the realm of business forecasting as well as students’ qualitative skills in analysing and presenting these forecasts. In the world of work, you will be expected to communicate your findings via presentations that showcase solutions to business problems while providing a critique of your findings.

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Students will submit a video that showcases their problem-solving skills in forecasting as well as their ability to critically think and analyse their results. The video is to evaluate business forecasting skills, not video production skills. In the video, students will showcase the creation of forecasts using the software that is utilised in the unit. Students will be asked to critically analyse their results, provide business recommendations – showcasing their professional skills. Students will also be asked to submit screenshots of their video, as well as the accompanying data/calculation file/s. 

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Skills in focus:​ 

  • Discipline knowledge 
  • Digital skills
  • Critical thinking and problem solving
  • Communication skills 
  • Work readiness

​

Deliverable(s):​ Video, Screenshots as a PDF, Numerical answers via iLearn, Data file with working.

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Individual assessment

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Identify and explain the need for, and uses of, forecasting in a business context.
  • Select and apply quantitative and qualitative forecasting techniques for use in business.
  • Demonstrate practical knowledge of spreadsheets and statistical software to produce business forecasts.
  • Critically examine business contexts and transform relevant data to provide recommendations for stakeholders.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • Academic Success for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation.

3 An automatic short extension is available for some assessments. Apply through the Service Connect Portal.

Delivery and Resources

Classes:

3 hours of teaching per week consisting of:

* 1 x 2 hour lecture and

* 1 x 1 hour tutorial.

NOTE: Tutorials begin in Week 2.

Classes are face-to-face (no online classes).

Recommended Texts and/or Materials

You do not need to buy these books. Handouts of readings that cover similar material will be distributed via iLearn.

Hanke, John E & Wichern, Dean W, (2013), Business Forecasting, (International Edition) Pearson, (9th Edition) ISBN: 9781292023007, ISBN 10: 1292023007

Also available as a Kindle book.

The library has complimentary electronic copies where a certain number of users can access the book at the same time.

Additional readings

Hyndman, Rob J and Athanasopoulos, George (2014), Forecasting: principles and practice, Online: https://www.otexts.org/fpp/

Technology Used and Required

Students will learn to use Microsoft Excel (compulsory) and MINITAB (optional). 

Unit Web Page The web page for this unit can be found at: iLearn http://ilearn.mq.edu.au 

Teaching and Learning Strategy

This unit is lecture- and tutorial-based, as well as pre-recorded concept videos. Typically, the class-time structure will be like this:

1. Lectures: Business Forecasting theory and concepts will be discussed. We will establish links between theory and your personal knowledge in a business strategic planning setting during class discussions.

2. Tutorials: Students are required to work on some tasks of business forecasting solutions using several models and techniques. Student participation and meaningful contribution are essential to understand business forecasting concepts and calculations.

Lecture notes will be posted before each lecture on iLearn.

Passing the Unit

Students must obtain a mark of 50% to pass the unit. There are no other hurdle requirements for passing the unit.

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit connect.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

Academic Success

Academic Success provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via the Service Connect Portal, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Changes from Previous Offering

The role of Artificial Intelligence in Business Forecasting will be added to the unit.

Unit information based on version 2026.02 of the Handbook