Chapter 1

Nature & Scope of Business Research

www.company.com
 WHAT IS RESEARCH?

www.company.com
 Business Research Defined

www.company.com
12/08/21 3
 Why Study Research?

• Research provides you with the

knowledge and skills needed for the
fast-paced decision-making environment
• Data leads to…
• Information leads to…
• Knowledge

www.company.com
 When is Business Research
needed?
• A manager faced with two or more possible
courses of action faces the initial decision of
whether or not research should be conducted.
• The determination of the need for research
centers on:
• Time Constraints
• Availability of Data
• Nature of the Decision
• Benefits vs. Costs

www.company.com
 DETERMINING WHEN BUSINESS
RESEARCH SHOULD BE CONDUCTED

Time Constraints Availability of Data Nature of the Decision Benefits vs Costs

Is sufficient time Is the information Is the decision Does the value
available before a already on hand of considerable of research
managerial decision inadequate for strategic or information
must be made? making the tactical exceed the cost
decision? importance? of conducting
research?

No No No No
Yes
Business Research should not be conducted

Conduct
Business
www.company.com Research
 Characteristics of Research

• Controlled
• Rigorous
• Systematic
• Valid &
verifiable
• Empirical
• Critical

www.company.com
 Implications of Business Research

• Research information is neither intuitive nor

haphazardly gathered.
• If the information gathered or data collected
and analyzed are to be accurate, the business
researcher must be objective.
• The objective of business research is to
facilitate the managerial decision- making
process for all aspects of a business.

www.company.com
12/08/21 8
 Some commonly researched areas in business

• Employee behaviors such as performances, absenteeism, and turnover

• Employee attitudes such as job satisfaction, loyalty and organizational commitment.
• Employee selection, recruitment, training and retention.
• Validation of performance appraisal systems.
• HRM choices & organizational strategy
• Strategy formulation and implementation
• Organizational outcomes such as increased sales, market share, profits, growth and
effectiveness
• Distribution channels, advertising effectiveness
• Brand loyalty, PLC & NPD
• Consumer complaints
• Location analysis
• Market testing
• Portfolio management
• Risk assessment
• Auditing practices
www.company.com
12/08/21 9
 The Applications of Business Research

• From the viewpoint of:

• The Service Provider
• To answer such questions as:
– How many people are using the product or
service?
– Why do some people sue the service/
product while others do not?
– How effective is the service/ product?
– How can the service/ product be improved?
– Which type of people use or do not use the
service/ product?
– How satisfied or dissatisfied are the
consumers of the service/ product?
– What are the problems with service/
product?
www.company.com
 The Applications of Business Research

• From the viewpoint of:

• The Administrator, manager or planner
• To answer such questions as:
– What are the needs of the community?
– What types of service/ product are
needed by the community?
– How many service providers are needed?
– What are the training needs of the staff?
– How many cases can a worker handle in
a day?
– How can the effectiveness of each
worker be evaluated?
– How can the service/ product be made
popular?

www.company.com
 The Applications of Business Research

• From the viewpoint of:

• The Consumer
• To answer such questions as:
– Am I, as a consumer, getting value for
money?
– How good are the service providers?
– What are the long- term effects of the
product I am using?

www.company.com