Research Scenario Using in Business - Assignment Example

Assignment Research Scenario Introduction and Research Scenario A research scenario is used to illustrate the use of research in business; consider the applicability of and measures in qualitative and quantitative research, and the limitations and assumptions in the study. The research scenario involves a manager of a full-service restaurant. Significant turnover has been experienced in the waiter/waitress pool, and some customers have commented that the once friendly atmosphere is changing. Scenario Assessment and Research Proposal Any kind of research is purposeful because “it is conducted with a view to achieving an outcome” (Collis, 2009:3). In this scenario, the desired outcome is to know why the ‘once-friendly atmosphere’ is perceived to be changing. And, if the cause is the significant turnover in the restaurant’s waiter or waitress pool, which is known to have taken place, then why is the turnover so high and what can be done about it? Thus, a research will help to better understand the problem with a view to resolving it. Customer satisfaction is a very important issue for most businesses. It is central to business success. So all possible means must be used to ensure that customers are satisfied. Our objective then is to first enhance our understanding of the problem, and we accomplish this by knowing more about it in detail through research using a systematic procedure. The issue is friendliness of the atmosphere, so we must devise a means of measuring this besides identifying the cause(s) of the decline. One possibility for obtaining this customer satisfaction measure would be to arrange a customer feedback mechanism involving a rating scale for friendliness and survey questions to encourage customers to disclose and pinpoint their reasons or what would help them to feel the atmosphere is friendly after experiencing a service at the restaurant. Secondly, the high staff turnover suggests there is an issue of demotivation or unhappiness with the working conditions. Hence, not only should a survey be conducted for the restaurant’s customers but also the waiter/waitresses must be interviewed to get insight into their thoughts, feelings and attitudes. In-depth interviews are advisable because there will be a small number of them and the deeper insight will be more valuable for addressing the root of the problem. This kind of research will be a mixture of qualitative and quantitative methods i.e. it will be a mixed research study. The open questions on the customer survey and the staff interviews will be qualitative whereas the friendliness ratings and closed survey questions will be quantitative as they are likely to provide quantifiable statistics. Whilst such a study can be useful, there could potentially be some significant limitations. For example, customers cannot be forced to participate in the survey and fill the questionnaire. Results will therefore be limited to those customers who were both willing and had the time to do so, and that too giving an honest reflection. Similarly, the ‘disclosability’ of staff depends on the wider prevailing atmosphere in the restaurant, and the nature of the management-staff relationship. Some waiters/waitresses may fear that honest disclosure could jeopardize their position if say, the blame for the lack of morale lies with a strict management. Hence, the findings will assume that management is genuinely concerned and wishes to improve things, that staff are being open and honest in their revealing, and that there is a sufficient number of customer feedbacks providing a representative sample of views. If so with the management, then it could also try ‘mystery shopping’ by using undercover customers to experience how friendly the service really is both prior to and after implementing changes. Conclusion The scenario in question is a typical one necessitating the conduction of research if the management is genuinely interested in improving both staff morale and customer satisfaction. A mixed research study is advised involving a questionnaire for customers and interviews for waiters/waitresses. Limitations of the study are discussed above, but obtaining a sufficiently large number of filled-in questionnaires and encouraging openness during the interviews can overcome these. References Collis, Jill and Hussey, Roger. (2009). Business Research: A Practical Guide for Undergraduate and Postgraduate Students. Palgrave Macmillan. Assignment 2: Research Theory Introduction This assignment is to develop a theory showing constructs, predictive indicators, and criterion variables(s) that will explain the differences in academic success that various students achieve in a K-12 grade school and a higher education institution. Definitions Research theory: A research theory is the complete set of related concepts, definitions and propositions devised in order to explain a certain phenomena (or predict it). This is one of the major influences on business research (Bryman, 2007:30). Construct: A construct is an idea that is devised for the purpose of a particular research theory. As such, it is an abstract concept so is not directly observable. They are built “by combining the simpler, more concrete concepts, especially when the idea or image we intend to convey is not subject to direct observation” (Cooper, 2006:37). An issue is construct validity i.e. “how well the items selected for the construct actually measure the construct” (Coldwell, 2004:18). Predictive indicators and criterion: In formal statistical terminology, predictive indicators are the independent variables in the study whereas the criterion is the dependent variable. Predictors are ‘manipulable’ and are manipulated so as to study the effect on the criterion, which is “measured, predicted, or otherwise monitored and is expected to be affected by manipulation” (Cooper, 2006:40) of the predictors. ‘Predictive indicators’ suggests that it is recognized that there are several independent variables that “are probably somewhat correlated and therefore not independent among themselves” (ibid). Towards a Development of Theory Criterion: The criterion in our case is ‘academic success’ that various students achieve in a K-12 grade school and a higher education institution. The two different environments can be studied separately as they will have different sets of predictive indicators. We need therefore to agree on a measure of ‘academic success’. The commonly accepted measure is examination results because high academic achievers are more likely to perform better in examinations than the contrary. Predictive indicators for academic success in a K-12 school: These could include the following: Age at which the child began school Qualification of the child’s teacher Educational background of parents of the child Attention given by the child’s parents School culture Student interest/motivation Time devoted to reading to the child (by both parents/teachers) Nutritious diet Predictive indicators for academic success in a higher education institution: These could include the following: Results/Qualifications obtained prior to entering higher education Time devoted to private study Active use of the university library Learning style compatibility with teacher Student motivation University culture and academic support These are just some examples of possible predictive indicators as there could be others. The point is that in a research study such independent variables are analyzed against the criterion to determine if there is any causal relationship. Some constructs that could be used for the research study are as follows: Student motivation (based on interest, learning style, devotion, study time etc.) Teacher input (based on his/her abilities, qualifications, experience, attention etc.) Parental support (based on their background, knowledge, time/attention etc.) Institutional environment (based on administration, culture, facilities, academic support etc.) The proposition (hypothesis to be empirically tested) is that positive student motivation; teacher input, parental support and institutional environment lead to greater academic success. Thus differences in academic success are attributable to differences in the quality of these constructs. Conclusion Elements of a theory were devised to explain differences in academic success (criterion) as measured by examination performance. Various predictive indicators are listed from which we derived the constructs of student motivation, teacher input, parental support and institutional environment. Thereafter, the proposition put forward is that the positive nature of these lead to greater academic success, and hence the theory that the qualities of these constructs cause the differences in academic success. References Bryman, Alan and Bell, Emma. (2007). Business Research Methods. 2nd edition. Oxford University Press. Coldwell, D. and Herbst, F. (2004). Business Research. Juta and Company Limited. Cooper, Donald R. and Schindler, Pamela S. (2006). Business Research Methods. 9th edition. McGraw Hill Irwin. Assignment 3: Research Study Introduction A peer-reviewed journal article on business research is selected for describing and analyzing how the study followed or failed to follow criteria for good research. These criteria for good research are outlined prior to the analysis. The article analyzed is ‘Business Process Outsourcing: Lessons From Case Studies In India, Poland, And Canada’, which appeared in the December 2008 issue of Journal of Business Case Studies (Appelbaum, 2008). Criteria for Good Research The criteria that will be applied to analyze how good the research study is, will be those nine criteria identified as defining characteristics of desirable, decision-oriented research in the text Business Research Methods (Cooper, 2008:13-16). These are as follows: 1. Purpose is clearly defined. 2. Research process detailed. 3. Research design thoroughly planned. 4. High ethical standards applied. 5. Limitations frankly revealed. 6. Adequate analysis for decision maker’s needs. 7. Findings presented unambiguously. 8. Conclusions justified. 9. Researcher’s experience reflected. About the Study The article first studies “the effectiveness of the company-partner relationship when outsourcing business processes in a large aerospace company” followed by a literature review to identify “best practices for a successful outsourcing venture”. Then survey questions were designed based on these findings and given “to 90 employees and managers from both the company and the vendor with the purpose of identifying gaps with the literature”. Mismatches between the survey results and literature were taken as opportunities for improvement. It was found that “Although the overall health of the outsourcing process is satisfactory, several aspects of the working relationship were found to be deficient and the cause of inefficiencies… In particular, employees from both sides found a lack in upfront planning, communication of expectations, and information sharing. Furthermore, both employees and managers expressed concern about the need for training to better deal with cultural differences and motivation”. Analysis of Article Each of the 9 criteria will briefly explained, applied, and discussed in turn to assess the article. 1. Purpose is clearly defined. √ This should be “sharply delineated in terms as unambiguous as possible” (Cooper, 2008). It includes scope, limitations, and precise meanings of terms used. In the article, the purpose of the case study and survey are very clear at the outset in the Abstract, in the introduction, and under ‘Issues to be analyzed’. 2. Research process detailed. √ This should be “in sufficient detail to permit another researcher to repeat the research” (Cooper, 2008). It includes “the steps to acquire participants, informed consent, sampling methods and representativeness, and data gathering procedures” (ibid). In the article, the ‘Research Methodology / Data Collection’ section details the research process. The questions used are all provided so another research could easily repeat the research. 3. Research design thoroughly planned. X/√ This includes “its choice among competing designs” (Cooper, 2008) and should be “clearly described and carefully planned to yield results that are as objective as possible” (ibid). Furthermore, there should be “satisfactory controls, reducing threats to internal validity and enhancing the probability of external validity” (ibid). The study does not justify the chosen methodology or mention that other designs were considered. There are some comments that show a consideration of validity in the methodology section but no strict set of controls was used. However, thorough planning is evident from the way in which the questions were devised. 4. High ethical standards applied. X This entails implementing “safeguards against causing mental or physical harm to participants and makes data integrity a first priority” (Cooper, 2008) and is a reflection of the researcher’s responsible behavior. There were no serious ethical issues in the study so little need was felt to apply high ethical standards. 5. Limitations frankly revealed. X Any flaws in procedural design should be reported together with an estimate of their effect on the findings. No limitations of the research are mentioned in the article. 6. Adequate analysis for decision maker’s needs. √ This means there should be sufficient analysis so that the significance of the findings is clear enough for the manager. “The data should be classified in ways that assist the researcher in reaching pertinent conclusions and clearly reveal the findings that have led to those conclusions” (Cooper, 2008). Analysis is given great attention in the article. Each hypothesis is carefully addressed based on the survey data, and classified under each set of questions relating to: (1) Outsourcing and Distance Management, (2) Cultural Differences, and (3) Motivation. 7. Findings presented unambiguously. √ “Presentation of the data should be comprehensive, reasonably interpreted, easily understood by the decision maker, and organized so that the decision maker can readily locate critical findings” (Cooper, 2008). Finding are clearly given in detail for each set of questions and then summarised in a table. There are no ambiguities. 8. Conclusions justified. √ “Conclusions should be limited to those for which the data provide an adequate basis [and not be broadened through] induction by including personal experiences and their interpretations” (Cooper, 2008). This includes abstaining from drawing conclusions based on a limited population and applying them universally, and over-relying on data collected from a previous study. In the article, the conclusions are combined with recommendations. Conclusions based on the research are clearly related, and 5 areas requiring manager action are listed before detailing each. All the conclusions are warranted because they are based on obtained data and nothing beyond this is included. The recommendations are clearly distinguishable from the conclusions and drawn from the findings of the study. 9. Researcher’s experience reflected. √ Mentioning the researcher’s own credentials may give greater confidence in the research if he/she has a good reputation in research. Brief author information is provided at the end of the study for both authors. Conclusion The article satisfies most of the criteria for good research. It is both clear and detailed. On the two points where it fails the applied criteria (4 & 5), these are not much of an issue as far as this study is concerned. For example, reporting limitations are necessary when precise measures are involved as in scientific studies. Thus, for the purpose set out, this article can serve as a good example of business research. References Appelbaum, Steven H. at al. (2008). Business Process Outsourcing: Lessons From Case Studies In India, Poland, And Canada. Journal of Business Case Studies. Volume 4, Number 12, December 2008. Cooper, Donald R. and Schindler, Pamela S. (2008). Business Research Methods. 10th edition. McGraw Hill Irwin. Read More