The Director of a Large Library Must Schedule Employees to Reshelve

question 11

Essay

The director of a large library must schedule employees to reshelve books and periodicals checked out of the library to determine the labor requirements. The following data reflect the numbers of items checked out of the library for the past three years.
$$\begin{array} { | c | c | c | c | } \hline \text { Month } & \text { Year 1 } & \text { Year 2 } & \text { Year 3 } \\\hline \text { January } & 1,847 & 2,045 & 1,986 \\\hline \text { February } & 2,669 & 2,321 & 2,564 \\\hline \text { March } & 2,467 & 2,419 & 2,635 \\\hline \text { April } & 2,432 & 2,088 & 2,150 \\\hline \text { May } & 2,464 & 2,667 & 2,201 \\\hline \text { June } & 2,378 & 2,122 & 2,663 \\\hline \text { July } & 2,217 & 2,206 & 2,055 \\\hline \text { August } & 2,445 & 1,869 & 1,678 \\\hline \text { September } & 1,894 & 2,441 & 1,845 \\\hline \text { October } & 1,922 & 2,291 & 2,065 \\\hline \text { November } & 2,431 & 2,364 & 2,147 \\\hline \text { December } & 2,274 & 2,189 & 2,451 \\\hline\end{array}$$ The director needs time series method for forecasting the number of items to be checked out during the next month. Find the best simple moving average forecast you can. Decide what is meant by 'best' and justify your decision.

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Definitions:

Liability

An obligation of an entity arising from past transactions or events, the settlement of which is expected to result in an outflow of resources embodying economic benefits.

Date Of Record

The specific date set by a company on which the shareholders of record are entitled to receive dividends or other distributions.

Dividend Payment Date

The specific date on which a company's dividend payment is to be made to shareholders of record.

Dividend Yield

A financial ratio that shows how much a company pays out in dividends each year relative to its share price.