IA ideas · for IB Business Management students
Maths IA ideas for business management students
Businesses make decisions under constraints every day: how many to make, how many staff to roster, how to cut materials with least waste, how long customers will queue, which deal is really cheaper. Each of those is an optimisation, a simulation or a piece of financial mathematics.
The ideas below suit students who like practical decisions. Several use linear programming or simulation, which are outside the IB syllabus, so explain them carefully as new mathematics and check them on a small case by hand.
Accessible (4)
- How many of each? Planning a charity bake sale with linear programmingAA SLAI SLAccessible
- What is the cheapest way to hire coaches for a school trip?AA SLAI SLAA HLAI HLAccessible
- Contract or SIM-only? The real cost of a new phoneAI SLAA SLAccessible
- How fast do cars lose value? Modelling depreciation from listingsAI SLAI HLAA SLAccessible
Solid (12)
- How few staff can a café roster? An integer programming rotaAI SLAI HLAA SLSolid
- Cutting shelves from planks with the least wasteAA SLAA HLAI SLAI HLSolid
- Square or hexagonal? Packing tins into a boxAA SLAA HLAI SLSolid
- What price maximises profit at our school bake sale?AA SLAI SLAA HLAI HLSolid
- One snake queue or a queue at every till? Simulating supermarket checkoutsAI SLAI HLAA SLAA HLSolid
- How many extra tickets should an airline sell?AA SLAA HLAI SLAI HLSolid
- Will one phone brand take over? Brand loyalty as a Markov chainAI HLSolid
- Should I lease or buy my first car?AI SLAI HLSolid
- What interest rate are you really paying? Solving for the rate by iterationAI SLAI HLAA SLSolid
- Does the wording change the answer? A split-sample survey experimentAI SLAI HLAA SLSolid
- Who answers online surveys? Measuring non-response biasAI SLAI HLSolid
- Planning the shortest delivery round: bounds for the travelling salesman problemAI HLSolid
More in this area: all optimisation & linear programming IA ideas · simulation & monte carlo methods · numerical methods & error analysis · survey-based investigations. Thinking of using the same topic or data as another IA? Check your school's policy and ask both teachers first.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use linear programming in my Maths IA?
Yes, if you explain it clearly: draw the feasible region for a two-variable version, explain why the best answer is at a corner, and only then use a solver for bigger versions.
Is a business decision enough mathematics for an IA?
Only if the decision needs real mathematics: optimisation with several constraints, a simulation checked against theory, or financial models derived and compared. A spreadsheet of costs alone is not enough.
Which ideas suit AI students?
Most of them: AI's emphasis on modelling with technology, statistics and financial mathematics fits business questions well. Make sure you explain what any software is doing.
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