“Late orders are down. It's working.”
Down from what, out of how many? If volume fell faster, the late rate went up. Check the denominator before anyone celebrates.
AI AT WORK · MAKE BETTER DECISIONS WITH WORKPLACE DATA
Read the numbers right
before anyone decides on them.Fewer late orders can mean worse performance.
Learn to tell the difference.AI can run your numbers in seconds.
Be the one who knows when they're wrong.
Define the measure, check the records before you calculate, compare rates fairly and read a weekly chart without overclaiming. Then recommend a step sized to the evidence, and catch what AI gets wrong when it runs the numbers for you.
Show how you read data: a defined measure, a chart someone else can build, a decision memo and an assessed completion credential.
- About 4 hours
- No coding or statistics needed
- Reviewed final case study
- Lesson 1 free
THE NUMBERS BEHIND THE DECISION
The numbers are right. The story they tell isn’t.
“The AI summary says the tool caused it.”
Nothing in the data isolates the tool, and nobody recorded whether the order mix changed that week. Rate each claim before it reaches a decision.
“I cleaned up the weird rows.”
Deleted, overwritten, and now nobody can rebuild the number. Keep the raw file, log every change and report the blanks.
WHY IT MATTERS NOW
Everyone is expected to read data. Most organizations don't train for it at scale.
88%
of 500+ US and UK enterprise leaders say basic data literacy is essential for day-to-day work. Fewer than half say they provide structured, foundational training at scale.
Source: DataCamp and YouGov, The State of Data & AI Literacy 2026.
The numbers now come from everywhere: the ERP, a dashboard, an AI summary someone pasted into the ops report. Reading them wrong costs you either way.
A falling count reported as an improvement can roll a change out to every site. A zeroed blank or two hand-picked weeks can sink a change that was working. In an ISO 9001 system, this is the analysis and evaluation of data that feeds management review.
MAKE YOUR METHOD VISIBLE
Bring analysis someone else can check.
A metric card
What's counted, out of what, for which period, from which source, and who owns it, so two people applying it get the same number.
A weekly chart someone else can build
Every week in order, the axis disclosed, the change marked, and a note on what the chart can't show, specified so anyone can draw it the same way.
A six-part decision memo
Finding, evidence, uncertainty, action, owner and review date, with the next step sized to the evidence.
Use authorized, redacted data to document your application. Employer recognition depends on your role and demonstrated results.
EARN IT. KNOW WHAT IT MEANS.
A verifiable record of assessed completion.
Complete the seven labs and module reflections. Pass the 30-question final exam at 80 percent and an unseen final case study: an eight-week performance log, an AI draft and a decision. A reviewer scores the case, usually within 5 business days. You need 16/20 on the case and 10/12 on its six decisions, with no unresolved critical error.
Three distinct exam versions, three attempts and a 24-hour wait after an unsuccessful attempt. The online exam is unsupervised.
Your name. The course. The assessment record.
The certificate records completion of this training and its assessments. It is not accreditation, a license or a statistics qualification.
Verify a QMS Learning certificate →PRACTICE WITH SUPPORT
Coach Q helps you reason through the numbers.
Your AI quality and compliance colleague asks what question a number is meant to answer, points you to the records and gives hints that get more specific each time you ask. Check its output against your records.
During the final case study it explains the task and helps you find your way around. It doesn't run your calculations or write your memo.
Illustrative practice exchange
You: The AI says late orders fell 18% after the new tool. Can I put that in the ops report?
Coach Q: Before it goes in: is 18% the change in the count of late orders, or in the late rate?
Coach Q: Check how many orders were handled in each period. If volume fell faster than late orders, the rate went up. What does your log show?
PUT AI TO WORK
Let AI run the arithmetic. Keep the judgment.
Module 7 covers ChatGPT, Copilot in Excel, Gemini in Sheets and Claude: what each maker's own help pages say the tool does and where they tell you to check it, a prompt that gives the tool the question, the definition and the rule for blanks, and six checks before anything goes to a decision-maker.
In the lab you review an AI analysis with planted mistakes: reconcile the rows, recompute the key figures and strike the claims the records can't support.
You stay the one who signs
You can do every lab without an AI tool. At work, follow your company's rules on what data goes into any AI tool.
PRIMARY SOURCES, PRACTICAL APPLICATION
A defined measure. The whole series. A decision sized to the evidence.
The run chart rules in Module 4 follow Perla, Provost and Murray in BMJ Quality & Safety. Module 5 works a published comparison of kidney stone treatments (Charig and colleagues, BMJ, 1986, split by stone size in Julious and Mullee, BMJ, 1994) where the treatment with the better success rate for small stones and for large stones had the lower rate overall.
These sources inform the method. The authors and journals do not accredit or endorse this course.
Inside the course
The course, step by step.
About 4 hours, self-paced, in short sessions that fit your week.
Start with a question and a definition
Turn a business question into a measure with a numerator, a denominator, a period, a source and an inclusion rule. 2 lessons.
Inspect the records before calculating
Find duplicates, blanks, unit mixes and impossible values, and log every cleaning decision without touching the raw file. 2 lessons.
Use counts, rates and distributions
Choose a count, rate, mean, median or total to fit the question, and calculate it correctly. 2 lessons.
Read change over time
Plot the whole weekly series, read it without overclaiming, and label the chart so nobody misreads it. 2 lessons.
Separate evidence from explanation
Name the explanations a before-and-after comparison can't rule out, and ask for the evidence that would tell them apart. 2 lessons.
Recommend a proportionate action
Brief a decision-maker on what the data supports, what's unknown and the smallest useful next step. 2 lessons.
Put AI to work on your data
Have an AI tool run the numbers, then reconcile the rows, recompute the key figures and strike the claims the records can't support before anything goes to a decision-maker. 2 lessons.
THE ITEMIZED OFFER
See the value, piece by piece.
Published prices for related training, professional support and AI tools give you reference points. Each priced line links to the provider and explains the differences. Checked October 14, 2026.
What comes with your QMS Learning course3 price references · $699
Seven-module course with hands-on labs
Define a measure, inspect the records, choose a count, rate, mean or median, read a weekly chart, test other explanations, brief a decision-maker and check an AI analysis. Seven labs: six on one continuing case, the seventh on a new AI analysis.
PRICE REFERENCE · AMA, Workforce Development: Problem Solving and Data Analysis. A related on-demand course, 339 minutes. Different curriculum and assessments.
reference price
An unseen final case study with reviewer scoring
Work an eight-week performance log, an AI draft and a decision. A reviewer scores your case and the reasons for your six decisions against a written rubric. If it needs another pass, you get specific feedback and a fresh case.
PRICE REFERENCE · MoreSteam, E-Learning Support. One hour of human Lean Six Sigma learning support. A reference for professional instructor support, not the same service as QMS Learning case scoring.
reference price
Coach Q and AI-assisted data documents
Your AI quality and compliance colleague supports practice and drafts from your facts. Four templates: metric card, cleaning log, decision memo and AI data review card. Check every number against your records.
PRICE REFERENCE · Anthropic, Claude Pro annual plan. A general-purpose AI assistant with document features, $200 billed annually. Different capabilities and usage limits; this is not a Claude subscription included with QMS Learning.
reference price
Coached module and final reflections
Check your reasoning, keep the remaining uncertainty visible and choose a proportionate next step.
Included in your QMS Learning course; no separate comparison amount added.
A 30-question final exam
Five questions on each of the six core modules. Pass at 80 percent, with distinct retake versions and a 24-hour wait after an unsuccessful attempt.
Included in your QMS Learning course; no separate comparison amount added.
A verifiable assessed-completion certificate
Issued after the required labs, reflections, final exam and reviewer-scored final case study. Records training completion; it isn't a statistics qualification.
Included in your QMS Learning course; no separate comparison amount added.
Study plan and focus timer
Plan study around your goal date and use focused sessions that follow you between course screens.
Included in your QMS Learning course; no separate comparison amount added.
Apply at work and continuing course access
Record an authorized application, actual results and supporting evidence. Return to the lessons and course tools as your work needs them.
Included in your QMS Learning course; no separate comparison amount added.
Subtotal of the three listed reference purchases$699
This combines one related course, one support hour and one year of an AI plan. The products have different scope, duration and credentials. The subtotal is a comparison reference, not a former QMS Learning price or a claim that the products are interchangeable. Taxes and provider prices may vary.
YOUR COMPLETE QMS LEARNING COURSE · PER PERSON, ONE TIME
$129
Every item above is included. Course access and Coach Q come with your purchase; no separate subscription is required.
STRAIGHT ANSWERS
Know what you are earning.
Do I need statistics, spreadsheet or coding skills?
No. Basic arithmetic is enough. A calculator is built in, every chart has a data table, and there's no coding. You can do every lab without an AI tool.
How long does it take?
About 4 hours of planned study, including the final case study, plus the 30-question exam. It's self-paced, without a countdown.
What assessments are required?
Complete the seven labs and module reflections, pass the 30-question final exam at 80 percent, and pass a reviewer-scored final case study at 16/20 with its six decisions at 10/12 and no unresolved critical error.
Does Coach Q write my final case study?
No. During the final case study it explains the task and helps you find your way around. It doesn't run your calculations, supply answers or write your memo. The online exam is not supervised.
Which AI tools does it cover?
ChatGPT, Copilot in Excel, Gemini in Sheets and Claude. You learn a prompt and a set of checks that work with whichever tool your company allows.
Can I use my own company's data?
The labs use fictional records. Your application plan and the Course Hub templates work on a measure you're allowed to use. Follow your company's rules on what goes into any AI tool.
What does the certificate mean?
It records the required course completion and assessments. It isn't a statistics qualification, a Six Sigma belt or a license, and it doesn't certify your company's data.
Can my company pay?
Company-card checkout is available. For a quote or invoice, contact will@qmslearning.com. Check your employer’s approval criteria before purchase.
Is lesson 1 free?
Yes. Start the actual first guided lesson with a verified email, name and phone number, without a payment card.
YOUR NEXT STEP
Say what the numbers support. Then decide.
About 4 hours, self-paced. Define the measure, check the records, read the whole series and brief the person who decides.