Explain the differences between academic and business research approaches.
Write 200–300 words that respond to the following questions with your thoughts, ideas, and comments.You will develop a research proposal based on a business, organizational problem, or topic that you want to explore. If you need help in finding a problem to explore, check the Successful Business Research text book in chapter 6 for more on asking the right questions. Also, the following Web sites can assist in finding an organizational issue:
History of quality management Web site
Total quality management information Web site
Types of Research:
Locate one peer reviewed journal article that reports the findings of a qualitative study and one that reports the findings of a quantitative study (you will need to cite both in your response).
Discuss the following:
Explain the differences between academic and business research approaches.
Explain why you as a researcher would choose which research approach (quantitative, qualitative or business) for their particular research question/problem.
Using the worksheets in chapter 6 (pp. 37-41) ( Listed Below) examine how would you determine what area you will focus on for your research project and what questions you might be asking?
What is the broad primary question you want your research to answer?
What are the more specific questions that will help you answer the primary question?
How do you plan to use the information you find? (In a business plan? Research paper? Presentation?)
What kind of information do you need to answer your questions? (Qualitative, such analysts’ insights about trends, or quantitative, such as sales figures, industry or target market growth rates?)
What geographic region do you plan to cover?
What other key factors do you need to keep in mind during your research process? (Specific concerns of investors, professor’s course requirements, and so on.)
What is the size of the industry of which your business is a part?
What has the growth rate of that industry been over the last few years?
What is the projected future growth rate of that industry?
What are the leading products/services in that industry?
What are typical profit margins in that industry?
What are the key trends/developments affecting that industry?
Is the industry dominated by a few major companies or are there many healthy competitors?
What are the demographic characteristics of your target customers? (That is, age, gender, marital status, income, education level, type of business, and so on.)
What is the size of your potential market in actual numbers? (That is, how many people/businesses fit the characteristics of your target customers in the specific geographic location you’re targeting?)
What is the size of the potential market in your specific geographic area in terms of revenue?
What is the size of the potential market in your specific geographic area in terms of revenue?
What has the growth rate of that market been over the last few years?
What is the projected growth rate of that market?
How many other companies in your type of business currently serve the target market?
How many other companies in your type of business currently serve the target market?
Which companies are the leading competitors in your specific geographic target market?
How is market share divided?
What products/services do your leading competitors offer? At what price?
How are your competitors perceived in the marketplace?
Who are some potential customers for your products/services? What are the names of key personnel and their contact information?
Who are some potential suppliers of products/services that you need? How do their current customers rate them?
Provide citations and references for your articles in accordance with APA guidelines as needed and appropriate.
History of quality. (2011). Retrieved from the Business Performance Improvement Resource Web site: http://www.bpir.com/total-quality-management-histo…
Total quality management information. (2010). Retrieved from the Business Knowledge Source Web site: http://businessknowledgesource.com/manufacturing/c…
Answer preview to explain the differences between academic and business research approaches.
APA
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