DMS 411:

BUSINESS
RESEARCH
METHODS

1
 Course Content
• Course aims at equipping students with
research skills that are applicable
across the curriculum.
• Due to the unique content and
contextual differences between the
various disciplines (specialization areas),
a more general approach is used.
• At the end of the course, the student
should be able to:
– Appreciate research methodology
– Successfully plan and execute a Research
Project

2
 Course Content
i. Introduction
ii. The Scientific Research Method
iii. Study Background And Problem
Formulation
iv. Literature Review
v. Designing Research
vi. Data Collection Methods
vii. Data Analysis
viii. Conclusions And Recommendations
ix. Research Proposal And Research Report
Writing
x. Ethics In Research.

3
 Scientific research process
Define the research Desktop
Field work &
problem research
report writing
=
Research
Review literature: proposal
Report writing Theory Vs Empirical
(findings)?
Concepts & Previous research
Theories findings

Formulate Hypothesis
Data analysis

Design research

Collect data

4
• Notes available on e-portal

5
6
• Definition

• Purpose of research
– General
– Organizations

• Types of research

• Sources of research
7
What is Research?
• Re – search

How do we know
about the origin of
the universe Or
life, as we know it
today?
Which of the various
explanations do
you prefer?
Why?
8
 What is research?
• A voyage of discovery; A journey;
An attitude; An experience; A
method of critical thinking; A
careful critical enquiry in seeking
facts for principles
• The act of carrying out of a diligent inquiry/a
critical examination of a given phenomenon –
following some logical sequence

• Research is the process of searching for an

explicit answer to an Implicit question,
through the use of data.
9
 What is research?
• Systematic enquiry aimed at providing
information to solve problems, i.e.
Research is the process of finding
solutions to a problem after a thorough
study and analysis of the situational
factors.
• Research involves a critical analysis of
existing conclusion or theories with regard
to newly discovered facts – thus continued
search for new knowledge and
understanding of the world.
10
 What is business research?
• Business Research is the process of
determining, acquiring, analyzing,
synthesizing and disseminating relevant
data, information, and insights to
decision makers in ways that mobilize
the organization to take appropriate
actions, in turn maximizing business
excellence.

11
 • Business
research
provides
information
to guide
business
decisions
“Enterprises have long recognized the need to better sense and respond to
business change.

What’s different today is that ubiquitous access to information and real-

time communications have fostered an ‘always on’ business culture
where decision making has become a ‘just-in-time process.’”
Business Performance Management Forum

12
 Business Research

PRACTICE
OBSERVATIONS
Practice based researcher
THEORY

LEARNING
Academia based
researcher

Customer
Public
experience
dynamics
Employee
relations Market
dynamics
13
 Research as a Science
• Body of Knowledge • Method of Inquiry

• Systematic • Logical
• Abstract – induction
• General – deduction

• Parsimonious • Self-corrective
• Empirical

14
• Definition

• Purpose of research
– General
– Organizations

• Types of research

• Sources of research
15
 1-16

Research Should Reduce Risk

The primary
purpose of
research is to
reduce the
level of risk in
making
managerial
decision
 Why research? – General
• Discover new knowledge
• Describe a phenomenon –who? What? When? Where?
How? (Description is popular in business research
because of its versality across disciplines).
• To enable prediction – ability to go beyond mere
description, towards estimating a phenomenon
• To enable control – ability to regulate the phenomenon
• To enable explanation of phenomena –accurate
observation and measurement of a given phenomenon.
• Enable theory development – formulation of concepts,
laws, and generalizing about a given phenomenon

17
 Research in organizations
• Why the drive in modern business towards
research?
– Explosive growth and influence of the internet
– stakeholders demanding greater influence
– Competition
– Government intervention
– More complex decisions
– Maturing of management as a group of
disciplines.
– New perspectives on established research
methodologies
– Greater computing power and speed
18
 1-19
What’s Changing in Business
that Influences Research

New
Information Technological
Research
Overload Connectivity
Perspectives

Computing Shifting
Power & Global
Speed Economics
Factors
Battle for Critical
Analytical Scrutiny of
Talent Business
Government
Intervention
 1-20

Computing Power and Speed

Lower-cost
Data
Collection
Better
Integration
Visualization
of Data
Tools

Factors

Real-time Powerful
Access Computation
Decision making in Organizations
• Managers in organizations constantly engage themselves in studying and
analyzing issues and hence are involved in some form of research activity
as they make decisions at the workplace.

• Sometimes Managers:
• Make good decisions and the problem gets solved.
• Make poor decisions and the problem persists.

• The difference between making good decisions and poor decisions, lies in
how managers go about the decision-making process.

21
 1-22

Redefining Business Research

Used to identify and

define opportunities and
problems

Generate, refine, and

evaluate performance

Monitor performance

Improve understanding
of business process
How do managers make decisions today?

23
 1-24

When Should Business Research be Undertaken?

Time Constraints

Is sufficient time
available?

Yes

Is information
inadequate? NO Do not
undertake Business Research
Yes

High importance
of decision?

Yes

Research benefits
greater than costs? Undertake Business Research

24
 1-25
Hierarchy of Business Decision Makers
“Users of Research”
• Decisions guided by research
• Enterprisewide access to research data &
findings
Visionaries
• Firms develop & use a combination of
methodologies
• Some decisions based on business research
• Limited enterprisewide access to data &
Standardized
findings
Decision Makers
• Firms use tried & true methodologies

• Most decisions based on past experience

Intuitive Decision and instincts
Makers • Decisions supported with secondary data
searches
• Definition

• Purpose of research
– General
– Organizations

• Types of research

• Sources of Research
26
 Types and Scope of Research
• Research can be classified using different
perspectives:
Types of Research
Type of Information
Application Objectives Sought
Exploratory
Pure Research Research Quantitative Research

Applied Research Descriptive Qualitative Research

Research

Correlation
Research Explanatory
Research

27
• Definition

• Purpose of research
– General
– Organizations

• Types of research

• Sources of research
Sunday, October 11, 2015 28
 Sources of research issues (General)

• Casual observation
• Deductions from theory
• Related literature
• Current economic, social & political
issues
• Practical situations
• Personal interests and experience
• Replication of previous studies

Sunday, October 11, 2015 29

Sources of Business Research
Web sites Syndicated industry
Public opinion
studies
Government Patent organizations
reports fillings

Government / Competition
Regulatory

Economic Demography
growth/trends Business
Knowledge

Experience Intuition

Social Cultural Technology

Speeches from Press Conference

authorities releases presentations
Clipping
Business Literature
services
research searches

30
• General questions and
answers?

• Lessons learnt?

• General comments?
31
Thank you

32