1. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 1 Finding, Evaluating, and Processing Information

2. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 2 Research Process Understand topic and assignment Find and access information Evaluate and finalize sources Process information Analyze data Interpret findings

3. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 3 Understand the Topic and Assignment Preliminary information Problem statement Questions and subquestions

4. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 4 Using Secondary Sources of Information Business books Electronic databases Newspapers Periodicals Directories Government publications Almanacs Statistical resources

5. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 5 Business Information in Cyberspace Internet public library Company Websites News release sites

6. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 6 Searching the Internet Search engines Directories Portals

7. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 7 Searching Databases Select appropriate databases Use short phrases and single terms Use multiple search engines Avoid stopwords Replace concepts with key words Avoid words in the database’s name

8. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 8 Searching Databases Use variations of search terms Use proximity operators Specify logical relationships Use wildcards Use Boolean operators Refine searches as needed

9. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 9 Gathering Information Pull technology Push technology Personal agents

10. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 10 Tracking Progress Take notes Copy search results Bookmark Websites Record comments Download or print files Prepare a bibliography

11. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 11 Preliminary Observations Documents Observations Experiments

12. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 12 Effective Surveys Provide clear instructions Use short questionnaires Get easy-to-analyze questions Avoid leading questions Ask one question at a time Pretest all questionnaires

13. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 13 Effective Interviews Purpose –Collect information –Make decisions –Clarify issues Structure –Overall length –Stylistic issues –Organization

14. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 14 Types of Questions Close-ended Restatement Direct open-ended Open-ended

15. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 15 Preparing Questions Think about sequence Rate the questions Ask smart questions Mix types of questions Limit the number Edit questions

16. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 16 Processing Interview Information Write down your ideas Review notes Organize the material Transcribe recordings

17. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 17 Evaluating and Selecting Sources Honesty and reliability Logic and good sense Data collection methods The author Purpose of the material Completeness Independent verification Potential bias Timeliness

18. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 18 Process the Information Getting organized Reading the material Taking notes

19. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 19 Presenting Information Direct quotes –Enhance the argument –Preserve the original text Paraphrasing –Enhance your understanding –Condense original text

20. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 20 Documenting Sources Quotations Paraphrased material General knowledge Fair use doctrine

21. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 21 Analyzing the Data Mean Median Mode Trend Correlation

22. © Prentice Hall, 2003 Business Communication TodayChapter 10 - 22 Interpreting Your Findings Conclusions Recommendations