Business Research Methods 9e

Zikmund
Babin
1
Carr The Role of Business
Griffin
Research
Chapter 1
The Role of Business Research

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not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a
publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
LEARNING
OUTCOMES

1. Understand how research contributes to business

success
2. Know how to define business research
3. Understand the difference between basic and
applied business research
4. Understand how research activities can be used to
address business decisions
5. Know when business research should and should
not be conducted
6. Appreciate the way technology and
internationalization are changing business
research

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 ESPN Hits a Home Run

• ESPN has information in

many databases.
• Business research
integrated it so they
could learn more about
how fans use their
media.
• Gaining intelligence had
bottom-line implications
for their own revenue
and their advertisers'

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 Business Research Defined
• Business research is the application of the
scientific method in searching for the truth
about business phenomena.
• The process includes:
• idea and theory development
• problem definition
• searching for and collecting information
• analyzing data
• communicating the findings and their
implications

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 Business Research Defined
• This definition suggests that business
research information is:
• not intuitive or haphazardly gathered
• accurate and objective
• relevant to all aspects of the business
• limited by one’s definition of business
• Not-for-profit organizations and
governmental agencies can use research in
much the same was as managers in for-
profit organizations.

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 Applied and Basic Business Research
• Applied business research
• conducted to address a specific business
decision for a specific firm or organization.
• Example:
◗Should McDonald’s add Italian pasta dinners to its
menu?
◗Which health insurance plan should a business
provide for its employees?

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 Applied and Basic Business Research
• Basic business research (also called pure
research)
• conducted without a specific decision in mind that
usually does not address the needs of a specific
organization.
◗Attempts to expand the limits of knowledge in general.
◗Not aimed at solving a pragmatic problem.
• Example:
◗Do consumers experience cognitive dissonance in low-
involvement situations?
◗Does employee tenure with a company influence
productivity?

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 The Scientific Method
• Scientific Method
• The way researchers go about using knowledge
and evidence to reach objective conclusions
about the real world.
• The analysis and interpretation of empirical
evidence (facts from observation or
experimentation) to confirm or disprove prior
conceptions

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 EXHIBIT 1.1 A Summary of the Scientific Method

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 Managerial Value of Business Research
• There are only a few business
orientations:
• Product-oriented
• Production-oriented
• Marketing-oriented

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 Managerial Value of Business Research
• The decision-making process associated
with the development and
implementation of a business strategy
involves four interrelated stages:
1. Identifying problems and opportunities
2. Diagnosing and assessing problems or
opportunities
3. Selecting and implementing a course of
action
4. Evaluating the course of action

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 Evaluating the Course of Actions
• Evaluation Research
• The formal, objective measurement and
appraisal of the extent a given activity, project,
or program has achieved its objectives.
• Performance Monitoring Research
• Research that regularly, sometimes routinely,
provides feedback for evaluation and control of
business activity.

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 When is Business Research Needed?
• The determination of the need for research
centers on:
1. Time constraints
2. The availability of data
3. The nature of the decision to be made
4. Benefits versus costs (the value of the research
information in relation to costs)
◗ Will the payoff or rate of return be worth the
investment?
◗ Will the information improve the quality of the
managerial decision enough to warrant the
expenditure?
◗ Is the expenditure the best use of the available
funds?

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 Harley-Davidson Goes Abroad

• Consumers in different
countries have different
preferences.
• Even if consumers want it,
government regulations can
make it prohibitive (e.g.,
India).
• Harley is pursuing the U.S.
women’s market for bikes.

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 Business Class Success?

• Business-class travelers
want comfort, good food,
and convenient boarding,
but the price is hefty.
• Two start-ups offered
“discount” business-class-
only airlines but failed.
• Could more effective
research have determined
that these were not
feasible business
ventures?

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 Business Research in the 21st Century
• Communication Technologies
• Always “connected”—time, place, and distance
are irrelevant.
• Decreases in information acquisition, storage,
access, and transmission costs.

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 Business Research in the 21st Century
• Global Business Research
• Business research is increasingly global.
• Must understand the nature of particular
markets.
• Cross-validation
◗Verify that the empirical findings from one culture
also exist and behave similarly in another culture.

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 “Jacques” Daniels

• Research findings:
• Japanese use JD as a
dinner beverage
• Australian’s drink
distilled spirits at home
• British like to drink at
bars and restaurants
• Chinese prefer “knock-
offs” to save money and
enjoy it with green tea

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