Steven McGinnis Participates in Market Analysis Competition to Benefit Industry

2018 Feb 12

Nine Kennesaw State graduate students, including Steven McGinnis, presented their findings of three market analysis studies to Georgia Power regional industry executives. Using data from Georgia Power's parent entity, Southern Company, the teams were able to overlay external data sets from crime, weather and household income statistics to complete their analysis.

According to Charlton Barker, data management and analytics manager in Southern Company's IT department, the collaboration between Southern Company and KSU's Graduate College brings value to both industry leaders and students.

"It allows us to work with very bright students and allows us to get even more insights from our data based on the perspectives and varying backgrounds of the students," said Barker, a graduate of Kennesaw State's Master of Science in Applied Statistics program. "It also helps our company develop a pipeline of talent because the skills that the students are learning are becoming ever more apparent, and those skill sets are needed in our company and industry."

The students presented three projects.

Students Matt Mitchell, Dewann Sturgis and Steve McGinnis analyzed the Atlanta market for prospective customers of Southern Company products. Their model split customers up by region, credit rating, account size, and other criteria, and identified 900,000 potential new customers. Their marketing campaign focused on improving market efficiency and reducing blanket marketing.

KSU alumnae Claudia Roper and Muniza Naqvi analyzed the market for potential buyers of Southern Company's home and business security systems. Using customer data from Southern Company, the team overlaid crime statistics broken down by zip code to identify customers who need security systems and are able to pay for them.

Students Ariel Reynolds, Jillian Kuether and Morgan Tamayo sought to maximize sales of Southern Company's surge protectors, which help prevent damage to appliances during powerful storms. The team analyzed customer data and lightning strike geographic data to determine which customers were at the greatest risk for damage and financially able to purchase surge protectors.

In addition, student Seung Lee also shared predictions that a demand for organic fruits and vegetables has created a market that Georgians could exploit by investing in indoor agriculture.

According to Xuelei (Sherry) Ni, program director of the Master of Science in Applied Statistics program at Kennesaw State, this collaboration allows industries to gain unique advantages when partnering with universities and also provides students with a head start when they join the workforce.