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A Guide to Using Applied Business Research
Applied Business Research at Keller Graduate School of Management
Definition of Applied Business Research
"Applied Business Research is the ability to formulate a business problem, define the information requirements necessary to solve the problem, and use primary and secondary sources to acquire this information."
The Need for Effective Business Research Skills
Successful business executives, no matter what their organizational responsibilities may be, have more tools than ever to research information to solve business problems. At the same time, the explosion of information available on the Internet, as well as other electronic information sources, has made the ability to uncover the correct problem-solving data and convert it into useful information a premium skill. Tomorrow's successful mangers will be expected to know how to use these ever-changing business information tools efficiently and effectively.
KGSM Proficiency Objectives
Keller's practitioner-oriented program objectives focus on competencies required to be successful in today's business world. One of these objectives is to insure that students are able to effectively conduct Applied Business Research. To meet this objective, Business Research assignments are woven into the content of many Keller courses.
Purpose of this Guide
This guide provides the student with a resource to learn how to conduct different types of Applied Business Research and to use "leading edge," as well as traditional research sources, to obtain the required information. It provides needed fundamentals for students with limited or no Internet experience as well as practical reference information for the more advanced student.
How this Guide is Organized
This Guide is designed as a quick reference resource to support all aspects of Applied Business Research:
- Basic principles of good Business Research
- Research information resources
- Learning resources and examples
- How Business Research is used in coursework
- How to report Business Research properly
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The Principles of Applied Business Research
Business Information Research Today
- Business Research today means using information that will help solve business problems. It also means being proficient in the use of the Internet as well as traditional information sources. Usually it means being able to do the information search by yourself
All Business Research Follows a Basic Process
- Define the problem and research objective.
- Develop a complete research plan.
- Collect the information, often from multiple sources.
- Analyze the information obtained.
- Present your findings for a decision.
Secondary Research Fundamentals
- Secondary research is gathering data that has already been developed for some other purpose . It typically can be found in company, industry and competitive information; libraries, trade publications, books and journals; government research; previously conducted research studies and on the Internet.
- More and more information is now available online, either from free sources or from fee-based providers. Even traditional libraries now make available their card catalogues in online or electronic form.
- Secondary research should often be your first source for information. It usually costs less than primary research and will widen your thinking on the business problem.
Primary Research Fundamentals
- Primary research is directly gathering data for the business problem currently at hand. It may be conducting market research in the field or discussing a specific operational problem with your production team. It has the advantage of being directly related to the specific business issue with which you are dealing. On the other hand, external research projects can be expensive and time consuming.
- Primary research will range from informal discussions with customers (exploratory research) to statistically valid sampling techniques that are used to infer something about an entire population.
- Primary research can also include "Benchmarking," a process for identifying organizations that excel at a particular process and then learning and using their processes to improve your organization. More informal Benchmarking can be accomplished through secondary literature searches.
Effective Search Strategies
Two significant issues have changed the landscape for effective Business Research. These have caused executives to change their approaches to managing the information-gathering process.
- The first is the electronic information revolution. Much more data is readily available now than ever before in history. At the same time, this overwhelming amount of data requires a process to efficiently extract useful information from this mountain of raw data.
- Secondly, the downsizing of today's organizations means that many managers are now directly responsible for finding their own information, rather than relying on staff experts.
Effective online searches normally start very broadly, and then are narrowed. One of the key problems with the Internet is that thousands of links will be returned for a broad search request such as "trucks."
In general, you can conduct three types of searches: keyword, publication and category.
You also have a choice of information sources such as government, fee-base research "libraries", individual commercial sites, and online discussion groups. You access all of these through various search engines on the Internet or within individual sites.
- Keyword Searches
Keyword searches often will start with a broad term such as "trucks." This will return references that include the keyword "trucks." Your next step is to use additional words to narrow the search to more manageable proportions. "Trucks in North America" is an example. Each search engine you use will have instructions on how to narrow the search. For example, "Trucks in North America" may return articles with any of those words in it while in some search engines; "Trucks and North and America" will return only references containing all of these words. A tip: Use "phrase" searching, if possible, when you are searching the Internet using a search or meta-search engine. This will access information that includes those words, in the order you typed them, throughout the Internet.
- Publication Searches
Publication searches can help you focus on specific industries. Once you get to the publication, you have to either know a specific issue for your search, or find that publication's search engine or index. More and more magazines have their own web site.
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Category Searches
Category searches are available in some Internet search sites. Yahoo, for example, has broad categories that are then subdivided into more specific topics. You "drill down" into the categories and then do a word search on a much more restricted universe of potential matches.
Rapid Change of Research Resources
- For users of traditional "static" information sources, the Internet provides an entirely new and rapidly evolving source of information that is anything but static.
- The ease of finding and cataloging information continues to evolve as new technology allows searches to be conducted much more effectively. Newer search tools are very user-friendly in order to attract a larger user base.
- New Internet providers compete to supply useful information, most with different business models. Their goal is to attract users to return to their web site. You have free sites, fee-based sites, and sites supported by advertising revenues. Content providers continue to experiment with user-acceptable methods of conducting business.
- Individual web sites come and go very frequently. There are few barriers to entry or to exit. You have both new opportunities and sometimes some lost sites that were very helpful to you.
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Business Research Information Resources
Electronic Business Information Resources
An Evolving Overview
- Today's information-rich academic and business environment offers students and business people unprecedented access to information to support their information requirements. This environment also requires a rethinking about the process used to obtain that information.
- The advantages of this information availability are the easy access to much more information than has ever before been available and the speed and ease of obtaining it.
- The disadvantages can be information overload, the difficulty of sorting through mountains of data to obtain relevant information, and understanding the validity of some of the content that is available electronically.
The Internet - The World Wide Web
What is it?
- A worldwide network of millions of computers that are linked together and can be accessed via a computer with a modem through an Internet Service Provider (ISP). The World Wide Web (WWW) is the graphical portion of the Internet that has resulted in its explosive growth in recent years.
How to access it
- The Internet is accessible using any computer that has a modem. You connect to the net through an ISP. These providers can be local, regional, national, or as part of a premium content provider such as America Online or Prodigy.
- There are no specific systems requirements. A key, however, is modem speed. Most sites make heavy use of graphics that can be very slow loading on your screen. New technology is speeding up this interface, but many home computers still have slow, outdated modems.
How it is organized
- Every web site has an address called a Uniform Resource Locator (URL). These addresses are your key to getting around on the net. You will often see them listed in a company's literature or ad. An example would be "www.ford.com." This means the site is on the World Wide Web, its name is "ford" and it is in the "Commercial" domain.
- Domain names such as ".com" for commercial businesses, ".edu" for schools and ".gov" for government are categories of web addresses. New domain names will expand the number of available web address, much like zip codes (and add to the confusion).
Learning the Resource
- First check out the Keller Applied Business Research Web Page, available from the Graduate Resources Library page for links to several sites that will give you an overview on the subject.
- Internet search engines have a "Help" section to guide you through effective searches. Once you understand the basics in one engine, you will have enough knowledge to use the other search engines.
- Another good source is Searching the Web and Online Databases at http://admin.nj.devry.edu/~bsran/online_search_seminar which includes an analysis of searching techniques as they are implemented in several of the major search engines such as AltaVista and Infoseek.
User "Tips"
- Each search engine has a help section that explains how to search that engine. Once you have the basics, the searching processes transfer between engines.
- You can often "guess" at site names for large organizations/companies such as "www.nikonusa.com" or "www.fedex.com."
- Check out federal government sites. Most agencies have put much of their data on the web. There are several governmental "Starting Points." For example, http://www.census.gov will access the U.S. Census Bureau's web site.
- Use the "Bookmark" or "Favorites" button on your browser to capture the addresses of the sites you may search again and again.
Samples of Internet Resources
Free Information Sites
Government Sites
Commercial Sites
Fee-Based Information Sites
Traditional Business Information Resources
Libraries
- A good place to start when visiting a public or academic library is their "Business Reference" section. Some of these libraries will have information such as demographic data, public companies' annual reports, directories, government information, and a variety of reports and studies.
- Libraries now have their card catalogs on computers, once again making electronic information search skills critical. Most of these systems allow you to search the catalog through your home or office computer.
Trade Publications
- These are excellent sources within a particular industry. You will find articles on technology, industry trends and specific companies. You can learn about new products through advertising as well as in articles. Most publications also have annual directory issues that identify product and service sources by manufacturer.
- A growing number of publications will also offer online versions that serve as sources of current information as well as archives of past articles.
- You can identify magazines by industry by checking sources such as Bacon's Publicity Checker that can be found at public and academic libraries.
Competition
- Information on products, markets, processes and facilitates is available directly from most companies.
- Look at web sites, literature, trade shows and local newspapers at headquarters locations.
Syndicated Research Reports
- Many research firms publish reports on various industries. FIND/SVP is a major distributor of these reports. The cost typically ranges from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars.
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Resources for Students
Internet Search Engines (i.e. Yahoo, Excite)
- Each search engine will have a help section accessible from the Home Page that will include a "Getting Started" section.
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Applied Business Research Examples
- General Marketplace and Industry Information
- Specific Company Information
- Prospects and Customers
- Competitors
- Suppliers
- Association Information and Support Groups
- Government Gathered Data
- Laws and Regulations
- Operational Improvement Information
- "Best Practices" Ideas
- Quality Standards and Practices
- Profitability Improvement
- Technology Searches
- Employee Practices and Data
- Demographic Data
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Using Applied Business Research
The objectives for Applied Business Research in KGSM courses
Keller's practitioner-oriented program objectives focus on competencies required to be successful in today's business world. One of these objectives is to insure that students are able to effectively conduct Applied Business Research. To meet this objective, Business Research opportunities are woven into the content of many Keller courses.
Management Core Courses
- FI504 Principles of Accounting and Finance
Students are asked to obtain a current corporate annual report, either on or off line for use in applying principles discussed in the course.
- GM533 Applied Managerial Statistics and Quality
The course teaches business problem solving processes using statistical methodology. Students learn to solve specific business problems from problems and cases presented in class.
- GM591 Leadership and Organizational Behavior
The course presents three specific projects that use Business Research principles. Each of these projects requires primary research. The Improvement project also requires secondary research to identify practices in organizations.
- Life Styles Inventory
- Organizational Cultural Inventory
- Human Resources Improvement Project
- IS535 Managerial Application of Information Technology
The course teaches students how to navigate the Internet and perform basic Internet tasks such as email and web site searching. It also has a project component that requires students to use the Internet and DeVry University's Online Library to obtain support information through a secondary data search.
- MM522 Marketing Management
This course teaches students how to use the Internet and Keller's Online Library. Both are demonstrated in the class. A Marketing Plan assignment has students gathering secondary data through online and conventional methods.
Additional Courses
Many of Keller's other courses have either a primary and/or secondary research component. Students are provided with information on online information searching as well as password access to the Online Library.
Distance Learning
Distance Learning enhances the use of online research such as engaging in threaded discussions. Students are expected to research information before they participate in the discussions that take place as part of their online education.
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Reporting Applied Business Research
Keller's Style Manual
The Business Student Writer's Manual and Guide to the Internet by Thomas P. Bergman, Stephen M. Garrison, and Gregory M. Scott has been adopted as the official style manual for Keller Graduate School of Management.
This book contains a variety of useful business communication information such as how to properly cite sources, how to write an effective business plan, how to develop and create a marketing plan, and how to effectively format a written report.
The book can be purchased at any Keller Bookstore. |
