Chapter 2 Business Research Process

1 Chapter 2 Business Research ProcessThe Business Research Process involves a series of steps that systematicallyinvestigate a problem or an opportunity facing the organization. The sequence ofsteps involved in the Business Research Process are as follows: problem/opportunityidentification and formulation, planning a Research design, selecting a researchmethod, selecting the sampling procedure, data collection, evaluating the data andpreparing the Research report for presentation. The above steps provide a broadoutline applicable to any Business Research project.

2 However, the number andsequence of activities can vary as per the demand of an individual Research Process of Business Research can be primarily divided into three phases planning, execution and report preparation. The planning phase begins fromproblem/opportunity identification and leads to selection of the sampling proce-dure. Data collection and evaluation can be described as the execution phase of thebusiness Research Process , while report preparation can be considered as the lastphase. In this Chapter , we will discuss each of these phases in Steps in the Research ProcessThe steps in the Research Process , namely identification and definition of theproblem or opportunity, planning the Research design, selecting a Research method,selecting a sampling procedure, data collection.

3 Evaluating the data and finallypreparing and presenting the Research report have been shown in the Eachof these steps in the Research Process is discussed Identifying and Defining the Problem/OpportunityThe initial step in the Research Process is the identification of the problem oropportunity. As businesses today operate in a highly volatile environment gov-erned by various macro environmental factors, they need to constantly assess theirS. Sreejesh et al., Business Research Methods,DOI: , Springer International Publishing Switzerland 201413relative position and identify the various problem areas or opportunities they needto work upon in order to sustain themselves competitively in the market.

4 Themanagers need to analyse the changing dynamics of Business and to evolve astrategy to adapt to the changes taking place in the external environment. Whetherthese are potential problem areas or opportunities, it is very important for themanager to identify them accurately and at the earliest. Problem identificationprecedes the problem definition stage. For instance, a company producing cellphone wave protectors (devices that protect the cell phone from harmful radia-tions) may realize that its new product is not selling, but it may not know thereason for this at the outset.

5 Although it has identified the problem in a broaderperspective, it needs to define the problem specifically in terms of what is to is important to define the problem in a precise manner. A well-defined problemgives the researcher a proper direction for carrying out investigation. It also helps inutilizing the resources provided for the Research effectively. A researcher can focushis efforts on collecting relevant information, if the problem is defined Research problems such as conducting a survey on the newspaper readinghabits of a given set of the population can be clearly defined.

6 But if a companywants to define a Research problem such as declining sales, it needs to explore theresearch problem further through exploratory Exploratory ResearchExploratory Research aims at understanding the topic being researched. Throughexploratory Research , one arrives at a set of questions that are to be answered inIdentifying and Defining Problem/OpportunityPlanning the Research DesignSelecting a Research MethodSelecting a Sampling ProcedureData CollectionEvaluating the DataPreparing and Presenting the Research Report Fig.

7 In theResearch Process142 Business Research Processorder to solve the problem or cash in on an opportunity. Exploratory Research isundertaken in the initial stages of the Research Process . It is an informal processthat helps in defining the identified problem. This Process involves evaluating theexisting studies on related topics, discussing the problem with experts, analysingthe situation and so on. At the end of this Process , the researchers should be clearabout what type of information needs to be gathered and how the Research processshould data analysis and pilot studies are the most popular tools used inexploratory Research .

8 Secondary data are the data that have already been collectedpreviously for some other Research purpose. It can be obtained from magazines,journals, online articles, company literature and so on. Data from these secondarysources needs to be analysed so that the researcher has the knowledge to define theproblem. For our problem of low sales, since it is a new product in the market, itmay be difficult to obtain information. But a researcher can get some relatedinformation, which may help him to a certain extent in defining the problem.

9 Pilotstudies involve collecting data from the actual respondents in order to gain insightinto the topic and help the researcher in conducting a larger study. Here, data arecollected informally in order to find out the views of the respondents. Theresearchers may casually seek the respondent s opinion of the new cell phonewave protectors. Once the Research problem is identified and clearly defined, and aformal statement containing the Research objectives must be Preparing the Statement of Research ObjectivesOnce the problem is clearly defined, it becomes absolutely essential to determinethe objectives of the Research .

10 The objectives of the Research should be stated in aformal Research statement. The statement of objectives should be as precise aspossible. Objectives act as guidelines for various steps in the Research Process , andtherefore, they have to be developed by analysing the purpose of the researchthoroughly. The objectives of the Research must be brief and specific; also, it ispreferable to limit the number of objectives. The Research objectives comprise theresearch question/s and the hypothesis.