Group 2Ajo George, Kannan, Arundev,

Summayya, Diana, Thalu

1. OBSERVATION

BROAD PROBLEM AREA

• The entire situation where one sees a possible need for research and problem solving.

• The specific issues that need to be researched within this situation may not identified at this stage.

Such issues might pertain to:-

Examples of broad problem areas….

1. Training problems are not as effective as anticipated.

2. The sales volume of a product is not picking up.

3. Minority group members in organizations are not advancing the careers.

4. The daily balancing of accounting ledgers is becoming a continuing concern.

Examples of broad problem areas….

5. The newly installed information system is not being used by the managers for whom it was preliminary designed.

6. The introduction of flexible work hours has created more problems than it has solved in many companies.

7. The anticipated results of a recent manager have not been forthcoming.

Examples of broad problem areas….

8. Inventory control is not effective.9. The installation of an MIS keeps getting

stalled.10. The management of a complex,

multidepartmental team project is getting out of hand in the R & D department of a firm.

2. PRELIMINARY DATA COLLECTION

Contd…

• Data gathered through existing source are called secondary data.

• They are data that already exist and do not have to be collected by the researcher.

• Data gathered for research from the actual site of occurrence of events are called primary data.

Background information

• Origin & history of the company• Size of employee, assets etc• Location• Resources• Relationship with external environment• Financial position during the past 5-10 yrs

Structural factors & Management philosophy

• Role & position in the organization & No of employees at each level

• Communication channel• Control system• Coordination & span of control• Reward system

Perceptions, Attitudes and Behavioral responses

Employees perception-by talking & observing them, seeking their responses through questionnaires

Structured and unstructured interview-to know people’s perception of their work, organizational climate

Attitudinal factors Nature of the work Workflow interdependencies Participation in decision making Organization’s attitudes toward employees, and vice versa Opportunities for advancement in the organization Performance on the job Company’s/employee’s involvement with community and other social

groups

Behavioral factors include actual work habits-industriousness, extent of absenteeism, performance on job

Contd… Talking to several people at various levels-good idea of

dynamics that operate in system Certain aspects may have to be explored in greater

depth than others

Main idea in gathering information on values, structures and processes –reveal the root of real problem

After the interviews, next step is to tabulate the various types of information and determine if there are discernible patterns in responses

LITERATURE SURVEY

• Literature survey is the documentation of a comprehensive review of the published and unpublished work from secondary sources of data in the areas of specific interest to the researcher

• With computerized databases it is much speedier, easier and can be done without entering the portals of library building

• It could start as the information from structured and unstructured interview is being gathered

WHY LITERATURE SURVEY

• The purpose is to ensure that no important variable that has in the past been found repeatedly to have an impact on the problem is ignore

• Critical variables are never bought out in the interview

• It prevent waste of resources in reinventing the wheel

A good literature survey ensures that:

1. Important variables that are likely to influence the problem situation are not left out of the study.

2. The literature survey helps the development of theoretical framework and hypotheses for testing.

3. The problem statement can be made with precision and clarity.

4. Testability and replicability of the findings of the current research are enhanced.

5. One does not run the risk of “reinventing the wheel” that is ,Wasting efforts on trying to rediscover something that is already known.

6. The problem investigated is perceived by the scientific community as relevant and significant.

Conducting the literature survey

Main three steps are

1.Identifying the relevant source2.Extracting the relevant information3.Writing up the literature review

Identifying the relevant source

This is the step the process involves identifying the various published and un published materials that are available on the topics of interest ,and gaining access to these Main 3 data bases are1.Bibilography2.Abstract database3.Full text database

Extracting the relevant information

• This is the step at which gathering the relevant information either by going through the necessary materials in the library and by getting access to online sources

• It can provide a comprehensive bibliography by collecting all online information on the topic of interest

• It will form the basis for the next step

Writing up the literature review

• The documentation of the relevant studies citing the author and the year of study is called literature review or literature survey

• Clear and logical presentation of relevant research work done thus far in the area of investigation

• Brings together all relevant information in a cogent and logical manner instead of presenting all the studies in chronological order

Problem Definition

• Gap existing between the actual & desired idea states-problem

• It refers to a clear , precise, and succinct statement of the question or issue that is to be investigated with the goal of finding an answer or solution

Reference

• Uma Sekaran, Research Methods For Business, 4th Edition