lesson 7.1 - introduction to component 2 (pedal power cycles)
Welcome to Component 2! Get ready to crunch data for Pedal Power Cycles. It's wheelie good.
Welcome to Component 2! We're swapping UI design for a deep-dive into the world of data. You're about to become a data wizard for a bike shop called 'Pedal Power Cycles', and your mission is to turn their messy numbers into powerful business insights. Get ready to master spreadsheets and build an interactive dashboard that will help them steer their business to success!
Learning Outcomes
The Building Blocks (Factual Knowledge)
The Connections and Theories (Conceptual Knowledge)
The Skills and Methods (Procedural Knowledge)
Recall the title and aim of Component 2: Exploring Data.
Describe the key tasks involved in the Component 2 Pearson Set Assignment (PSA).
The Connections and Theories (Conceptual Knowledge)
Explain the business scenario of 'Pedal Power Cycles' and the problems they are facing.
Analyse the role a data dashboard plays in helping a business make better decisions.
The Skills and Methods (Procedural Knowledge)
Apply organisational skills to set up a logical folder structure for your Component 2 project.
Digital Skill Focus: This lesson, you will focus on organising your digital work by creating a clear and logical folder structure for the new component.
Welcome to Component 2: Exploring Data
What is this Component All About?
This component is all about becoming a data expert. Unlike Component 1 where we focused on what an interface looks like, Component 2 is all about what's happening behind the scenes. You will learn how to take large amounts of raw, messy data and use professional spreadsheet software to clean it, organise it, analyse it, and present it in a meaningful way.
The ultimate goal is to create a data dashboard. This is a single screen, visual summary of key information that helps a business understand its performance at a glance. Think of it like the dashboard in a car - it doesn't show you every single mechanical part, just the important stuff like speed, fuel, and warning lights.
The Assessment: Pearson Set Assignment (PSA)
Just like Component 1, this unit is assessed through a practical project called a Pearson Set Assignment (PSA). This will be completed in your lessons under supervised conditions.
The PSA is broken down into a series of tasks, which generally follow this pattern:
Task 1 - Data & Planning: You will look at the data you've been given and write a short report about it.
Task 2 - Spreadsheet Magic: This is the biggest part. You will use spreadsheet software to import the data, clean it up, process it using formulas and functions, and build your dashboard.
Task 3 - The Review: You will review the dashboard you've created, explaining your findings and suggesting how the business can use your insights.
Your Client: Pedal Power Cycles
For this component, your client is a fictional bike shop called 'Pedal Power Cycles'. They have been collecting lots of data about their business - things like sales figures, staff performance, bike maintenance records, and customer details - but they don't know what to do with it all. It's just sitting in messy files, not helping them at all.
Their goal is simple: they want you to take their data and turn it into a powerful, easy-to-understand dashboard. This dashboard should help the managers make smarter business decisions, such as:
Which products are selling the best?
Which staff members are the top performers?
Are there any trends or patterns in sales throughout the year?
Where are the biggest opportunities to improve the business?
Your job is to act as their data consultant and build the tool that will unlock the secrets hidden in their data.
Put 'Pedal Power Cycles' in the middle of a blank page. Create main branches for 'Data', 'Problems', and 'Solutions'. Brainstorm and add keywords to each branch to map out everything you've learned about the new project.
Task Project Kick-Off: Meet Your Client
You've been hired as a data consultant! Your first client is a growing bike shop called 'Pedal Power Cycles'. They've got a big problem: they are drowning in data but starving for insights. Your mission is to understand their needs and set up your project workspace for success.
1
Get Organised!
Before you meet the client, you need a professional place to store all your work. A clear folder structure is the first step to a successful project.
On your computer, create a main folder called Component-2.
Inside your Component-2 folder, create four new sub-folders. Name them exactly as follows:
01-PSA-Brief
02-Data-Files
03-Dashboard
04-Review
This structure will keep all your evidence safe and organised, which is crucial for your final assessment.
2
Analyse the Brief
Now it's time to read the client's project brief. This document explains who they are, what their problems are, and what they need you to do. Read the text below carefully. As you read, try to identify:
The main problems the business is facing. (Their Problems)
The specific things they want the dashboard to do. (Dashboard Requirements)
The types of data they have available. (Data Dictionary)
Client Brief: Pedal Power Cycles
Pedal Power Cycles is a successful independent bicycle shop that has been trading for five years. They sell a range of bikes, accessories, and also offer repair services. The business has grown quickly, and the two managers feel they are losing track of performance.
They currently have their data stored in a few different spreadsheet files. One file contains all the sales data from the last two years, including product names, sales dates, prices, and the staff member who made the sale. A separate file contains information about their 10 staff members, including their start date and job role.
The managers find it very difficult and time-consuming to answer simple questions. They want a single, user-friendly dashboard that combines the data from these files. The dashboard must be easy for them to use and should visually present key information. Specifically, they want the dashboard to help them easily identify their best-selling products, their top-performing staff members, and any sales trends over the last year.
Act as a business analyst. Read the following brief for Pedal Power Cycles: "Pedal Power Cycles is a successful independent bicycle shop...They want the dashboard to help them easily identify their best-selling products, their top-performing staff members, and any sales trends over the last year." Summarise the company's main problem, their key requirements for the dashboard, and list three questions the dashboard should help them answer. Limit the response to 150 words for a Key Stage 4 student. NO intro, NO outro, NO deviation from the topic, NO follow-up questions.
3
The Report
1
Open a new word processed document.
2
Put your name and class in the header
3
Using built in header styles, add headings for the following sections
The Client
Their Problems
Dashboard Requirements
Data dictionary
Project Organisation
For the last section, paste in a screenshot of the folder structure you created in Step 1.
4
Complete each section as fully as you can using the information from the brief. If you are struggling try to use AI to help you to structure your response.
Outcome: A completed digital folder structure and a clear understanding of the client's needs for the Component 2 project.
Hungry for more?
Dashboard Designs: Research different examples of business dashboards online. What makes a good dashboard? What visual elements are common? Click here for inspiration.
Bike Shop Business: Find a real local or online bike shop. What kind of data do you think they collect every day? How could they use it to improve their business?
Excel Wizardry: Watch a short tutorial on a key spreadsheet feature you'll need, like VLOOKUP. Find a beginner's guide here.
Application to the Component Sample PSA
Everything in this lesson is directly focused on the Component 2 PSA. Understanding the 'Pedal Power Cycles' scenario is the first and most critical step. The folder structure you created today is the exact structure you should use for your real assessment to keep your evidence organised and easy to find. Your analysis of the client's problems will form the basis of your data collection report (Task 1) and will guide every decision you make when building your dashboard (Task 2).
Out of Lesson Learning
⭐ Data Spotting
Make a list of five different types of data (e.g., product name, price, staff member) that Pedal Power Cycles probably needs to collect in their spreadsheets to allow you to build their required dashboard.
Make a list of five different types of data (e.g., product name, price, staff member) that Pedal Power Cycles probably needs to collect in their spreadsheets to allow you to build their required dashboard.
⭐⭐ Client Questions
Imagine you are meeting the manager of Pedal Power Cycles for the first time. Write down three specific questions you would ask them to better understand their problems and what they want from the dashboard. For example, "When you say 'best-selling products', do you mean by the number sold or the total revenue?"
Imagine you are meeting the manager of Pedal Power Cycles for the first time. Write down three specific questions you would ask them to better understand their problems and what they want from the dashboard. For example, "When you say 'best-selling products', do you mean by the number sold or the total revenue?"
⭐⭐⭐ Mini-Proposal
Write a short paragraph outlining your initial plan. State the main purpose of the dashboard you will build for Pedal Power Cycles, identify the key audience (who will use it?), and describe one feature you think would be essential to include to solve their problems.
Write a short paragraph outlining your initial plan. State the main purpose of the dashboard you will build for Pedal Power Cycles, identify the key audience (who will use it?), and describe one feature you think would be essential to include to solve their problems.
Last modified: June 4th, 2026
