Lecture three Lecturer: Otuo Serebour Agyemang (Ph.D)

Learning objectives Kind of business/Management problems that might need a research study How do we choose an area of research or research topic?

Management Research Problem Management Dilemma: – Employee turnover is increasing Management Question – What should be done to mitigate employee turnover? Research Question: Framed by the researcher – What factors account for the increasing employee turnover in this organisation? – What actions are necessary to mitigate employee turnover in this organisation?

Management Research Problem Note: Before you know what should be done to reduce employee turnover, you must first find out the causes or reasons behind the employee turnover. Secondly, you must investigate possible solutions to the problem, having determined the factors responsible.

Management Research Problem Interrogative questions – Breaking down of the research questions regarding ; What factors account for increasing employee turnover in the organization? Using deductive reasoning, we refer to factors that we know from the literature and experience that may explain employee turnover; these factors may include: conditions of service and job satisfaction So we ask questions, which will guide us to investigate those factors that are associated with conditions of service and job satisfaction.

Management Research Problem Conditions of Service: For instance take remuneration as one of the conditions of service and pose a question such as: How does the organization’s remuneration levels different from those of other organizations in the industry? How do employees perceive their remuneration levels in the organization? Job Satisfaction: For instance take passion, competence and market as some elements of job satisfaction and pose the following questions: – Are the workers in the organization passionate about the work they do? – Does the organization employ competent workers? – Does the organization willing to pay its workers for what they do?

Management Research Problem Note that at this level, the questions must imply the sources from which data will be collected.

Measurement questions

Measurement questions are the questions you actually ask respondents when administering a questionnaire, OR ask interviewees OR specific types of observations you must make. For example, regarding How does the organization’s remuneration levels different from those of other organizations?, the researcher may want to make the following observations: – What monthly salary does a Clerk Grade 1 employee take in this organization? – How is the salary taken by a Clerk Grade 1 employee in this organization different from the salary a Clerk Grade 1 takes in other organizations in the industry?

Measurement questions Regarding How employees perceive their remuneration levels?, the researcher may want to find out specifically from employees how they feel about their pay by asking them questions such as: How satisfied are you with your monthly salary? Very satisfied Satisfied Fairly satisfied Dissatisfied Very dissatisfied The employees will have to tick the response/option that best reflects your satisfaction.

Measurement questions If I compare my salary with the work I do, I feel that: My pay is very low My pay is low My pay is fair My pay is good My pay is very good If I compare my salary with workers doing similar jobs in other companies, I feel that: My pay is relatively low My pay is just about the same My pay is better My pay is much better

How to choose an area of research

Choosing an area of Research When choosing an area for research, we usually start with a broad area of management, which particularly interests us. For instance – Human Resource Management – Marketing – Operations Management – Management Information System – Supply Chain Management Then we start with a very practical question like our previous example on the factors that lead to employee turnover in an organisation, which needs answers to help with managerial decision- making

Choosing an Area of Research However, from this point to a researchable question or objective is not easy. We need to do the following things: – Narrow down the study topic to one, which will interest you and have the time to examine painstakingly – Choose a topic context where we can find some access to practitioners if possible, either a direct connection with an organisation or professional body, or a context which is well-documented either on the web or in the literature. – Identify domains of knowledge or theory around the question for reading and background understanding – Write and re-write the question or working title, checking comprehensively the implications of each phrase or word to check assumptions and ensure you really mean what you write. You can ask for assistance from others.

Choosing an Area of Research – Use the published literature and discussion with others to help us narrow down firmly to an angle or gap in the management literature, which will be worthwhile examining – Identify both the possible outcomes from this research topic, both theoretical or practical. If they are not clear, can we refine the topic so that they become clear.

Research Process

Wish to do Research Formulate and Clarify your research topic Critically review the literature Understand your philosophy and Approach Formulate your research design Negotiate access and address ethical issues Submit your report and give your presentation SampleSecondary dataObservation Semi-structured interview and in-depth interview Questionnaire: Open- ended or Closed ended Quantitative methodsQualitative Methods Write your project report and prepare your presentation Plan your data collections and collect the data using one or more of Analyze your data using one or both of Saunders et al. (2007)

End of Lecture three