Semester II Class of 2014 Business Research Methods (SL RM 502)

Course Handout
Course Objective Introduce the process of conducting Business Research to students. The course would act as a foundation towards an effective summer internship program in the short run and develop understanding, identifying and handling of business research problem for making business decisions in the long run. The course would also provide an exposure to quantitative methods used for design and analysis of research data using software (Minitab, Microsoft Excel). Teaching Pedagogy Discussion of concepts, data analysis and case methodology. Session Plan Sr . N o 1

Chapter Introduction to Research

Sessi on No. 1 2

Syllabus Meaning & definition of Research Relevance and significance of Research in business Types of Research. Ethics in research, consequences of Plagiarism. Elements of research process, statement of hypothesis, Research design - Qualitative Quantitative. Reliability and Validity. Research proposal. Exploratory: Qualitative research Various tools. Descriptive and Causal research Various tools. Introduction to Minitab (In computer lab) Factorial Design of Experiments. (In computer lab)

Cases

The launch of new coke

Research Process

3 4

The initial hiccups of a start up brand. Fall of Mayur Hypermarket

Research Design: Exploratory, Conclusive Research

5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

SSSs Experiment: Choosing an Appropriate Research Design New product design experiment at iConnect. (In computer lab) Saturn Clothing Company: measuring customer satisfaction. (In computer lab) Krupa Medical storesEvaluating its brand

Scales and Measurement

14

NCP Test Types of measurements Different Scales & comparison Developing Scales Classification of scales Rating Scales Attitude Scales Thurston scale Likert scale Semantic Differential scale Types of Errors in measurement Test of Reliability Measures of Stability Threats to Reliability.

15 5 6 Questionnaire Design Data Collection , Sampling Methods & Survey Research 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Questionnaire Designing Types Procedure Types of Data Collecting Primary & Secondary Data Sampling process Techniques Sample size. Qualitative Methods for Data Collection - Other Methods of Data Collection Panel Research, Warranty Cards, Pantry Audit and Consumer Panel Mechanical Devices Projective Techniques Sociometry. NCP Test Data Coding, Data Cleaning, Identification Outlier, Handling Missing Values, Cross tabulation. Multiple Regression Use of software and interpretation. Factor Analysis - Basics, software and interpretation. Use of

image. (In computer lab) Global stance on malaria. (In computer lab) Saturn Clothing Company : measuring customer satisfaction Survey in trade show: participant communication instrument.

Exploring Primary and Secondary data: Lessons to learn. Stream Accomplishing Success Through perfect data analysis Demand forecasting of Magic foods. (In computer lab) Marketing dilemma for Elan jeans brand (In computer lab) Consumers Perception on Inverters in India Corpus Electronics: Decision to segment the market for Convergence Products

Data Preparation Multivariate Analysis

23 24 25 26

Cluster Analysis - Basics, Use of software and interpretation. Basics of Discriminant Analysis Conjoint Analysis MDS. Types of reports planning and organizing a research project, Harvard system of referencing Bibliography footnotes checklist evaluation of report. NCP Test

Report Writing

27 28 29

Developing a Formal Report A Case Study of SmartMBA.com

30 Evaluation Plan Sr. No. 1 2 Components C1 C2

Weight age CP NCP

10% 15% 10% 10%

Remarks

C3

15%

10%

CP would be based on overall constructive participation in the class proceedings. Record will be maintained and best 6 scores from a 10 session period will be considered. A student should not expect /wait for a question to be asked to him/her. NCP would be based on average of announced / surprise test scores. Student absent on a NCP evaluation day for whatever reason will get zero.

Semester Examination

30%

As per the Exam. Department norms.

Books

1. 2.
3.

4. 5. 6. 7.

Research Methodology: Concepts and Cases: Deepak Chawla & Neena Sondhi, Vikas Publications, 2012. (Prescribed text book). Business Research Methods : 7e, William G. Zikmund, Thomson South Western, India Edition, 2006. Marketing Research : A South Asian Perspective : G.A. Churchill Jr., D. Iacobucci, D. Israel, Cengage Learning, 2009. Business Research Methods : Donald R. Cooper and Ramela S. Schnider, Tata McGraw Hill Publishing Co. Ltd., 2000. Marketing Research : Naresh Malhotra, Pearson Education. (Indian Edition available). Marketing Research : Concepts & Cases : Rajendra Nargundkar . Business Statistics in Practice: Bowerman et. al., 5th Tata McGraw Hill Edition, 2009.