RESEARCHPROJECTSCHEDULE

A.PROJECTTOPICS
1.EachgroupwillbedoingaProject,immediatelyvisitmeandgetatopicapproved.NoTopicwillbe
approvedafterDecember20,2014.
2.TopicwillbeapprovedonFIRSTCUMFIRSTSERVEBASIS.
3.Questionsaboutyourprojectwillbediscussedonlyappointmentistakenthroughemail.
B.RESEARCHPROPOSAL
1.Nolaterthan January15,2014,thefinaldraftofyourresearchproposalmusthavebeenformally
approved byme.It must beatypeddraftnothandwritten. Followingmyapproval,oranyrequested
changes,youmayproceedtoretypethefinaldraft.
2.Whenwritingupyourproposal,includetheheadingsintheFormatforResearchProposalsguideline
attachedtothiscourseguide.
C.SURVEYQUESTIONNAIRE
Monday, February 6, 2014 is a crucial date for you. This is the last day by which I will approve
questionnaires,sothatyourfieldworkcanbegin.Yourquestionnairemustbeprintedthewayitwilllookto
therespondentifselfadministeredortotheinterviewerifintervieweradministered.Theprocessforthe
questionnaireisasfollows:
1.Discussthequestionsthatneedtobeaskedofrespondents;
2.Thestudentshoulddevelopagooddraft questionnaireandmeet withtheinstructor todiscussand
modifythequestionnaireasneeded;
3. The questionnaire should be submitted to me by February 8, 2014 at the latest. Ill review the
questionnaireandprovidefeedbackforanynecessarymodifications.
D.INCLASSPRESENTATIONS
1.Thefinalweekofclassesisdevotedtoformalinclasspresentationsofyourresearchprojects.
2.Attendanceatthesepresentations,includingallstudentsnotmakingapresentation,ismandatory.Iwill
checkattendanceaccordingtotheclasslist.Astudentwhoskipsclassloses2%ofthefinalcoursemarkfor
eachpresentationdaymissed.Onlyadocumentedmedicalreasonwillabsolveyou.Jobinterviewswillnot
countasavalidexcuse.Don'taskmeforpermissiontomissapresentation,withoutpenalty.Outofrespect
forthosewhoarepresenting,Iwillnotgrantit.
3.TheorderofpresentationswillbealphabeticalProjectsTitle.
4. Each member of the study will be involved in the final presentation. Be prepared to explain the
complexitiesofyourprojectinterestinglyandvividlytoaclassthathasneverbeforeseenyourworkand
hasnoideaofwhatyourgroupdid.Impresstheclassandyouwillimpressmeenoughtobegenerousin
mygrading.
5.Yourpresentationmustbeprofessional.Dressfortheoccasion.UsePowerPointandotherappropriate
audiovisualdisplays.Timethetalkprecisely.Youareallowedexactly20minutes.Iwillcutyouoffifyou
gobeyondthatlimit.
6.Aweekinadvanceofyourpresentationdate,eachmembershouldpreparewelldesignedpresentation
material.Useafew,wellchosenexhibitstorevealtotheclassyourmostinterestingandvaluablefindings.
7.Aspartofmyevaluationoftheresearchproject,Iwillgradeyourinclasspresentation.
8.Baseyourinclasspresentationonthefollowingoutline:
BACKGROUND
Whatisthetopic/product/industry/service/concept?
Whatistheproblem;whywastheresearchneeded?
RESEARCHIMPLEMENTATION
Whatisthepopulationofinterest?
Whatdidyouuseasasampleframe?
Howdidyousample?
Whatweresomeofyourfirsthandexperiencesinthefield(funnyoccurrences,frustrations,
unexpectedproblems,andembarrassingmoments)?
FINDINGS

Created by Dr Rao BVIMR, New Delhi

Whataretheanswerstoyourkeycriticalquestions?Dontgothrougheachoftheresearch
hypotheses.
Mostinterestingandvaluablefindings?
Anysurprisingfindings?
IMPLICATIONS
What,exactly,shouldbedonenow?
Whatdidyoulearnfromthisresearchexperience?
E.THEPresentationDAY
DonotdeliveranythingtomyofficebuttotheAcademicManagerdeliverthefollowing:
a.Yourprojectreport;
b.Thequestionnairesfromyourproject
Projectreportsthatarereceivedlatewillbegradedwiththefollowingpenaltyscale:onegradelevel(e.g.,
fromAtoB+)foreachdaybeyondthedeadline.
SeetheattachedOutlineofResearchReportfortherequiredformatofyourprojectreport.
FORMATFORRESEARCHPROPOSAL
Theresearchproposallaysoutyourplanofresearchforthisproject.Itanswersthequestions:
(1)Whatistheproblembeinginvestigated?
(2)Howwillthisproblembestudied?
(3)Whatcanbeexpectedtogetatprojectcompletion?
Itshouldincludethefollowing(usethesameheadingsandsequencelisted):
TITLEPAGE
Titleoftheproject,fullname,emailidandtelephonenumbersofprojectmember.
1.0THEPROBLEM
AbriefIntroductionaboutyourProduct/concept/serviceetc.Describetheproblem,thesuspectedcauseof
theproblem,andthecompany'spresentsituation.Carefullyexplainwhytheresearchisneeded!
2.0OBJECTIVESOFTHEPROJECT
Stateyourresearchquestionsorresearchhypotheses.Theseshouldbelistedandwordedasexactlyas
possible.Undereachresearchquestionorhypothesis,listthekeyvariablesormeasuresonwhichdatamust
becollected.
3.0RESEARCHMETHOD
Providethefollowinginasmuchdetailaspossible.Bepreparedtodefendyourmethodology.
Whattypeofresearchdesign?Exploratory/Descriptive/Causal?
Whattypesofsecondarydatawillyoudigup,inordertoclarifytheresearchquestionsand/or
determineyourresearchdesign?
Whatprimarydatacollectionprocedureswillyouprobablyuse?
Definethepopulationfromwhichyouwillbesampling.
Specifyyoursamplingplan.Probability/Nonprobability?
Specifymethodofdatacollection.Telephone/Personalinterview/Mailquestionnaire?
Specifythetypesofdataanalysiswhichwillbeneeded.
ThedatawillbeanalyzedusingStatisticalPackageforSocialScience(SPSS).
Limitationsoftheproject.
4.0PROJECTSCHEDULE
Provideatimeschedulefortheproject.AGanttchartorothervisualdiagramofyourtimelineisvery
useful.MSProjectishandyforplanningandpresentingyourtimeline.
Schedulethefollowingkeytasksorstagesinyourproject:
Secondarydatacollection.
Design,pretest,andrevisionofquestionnaire.

Created by Dr Rao BVIMR, New Delhi

Drawingofsampleframeandidentificationofrespondents.
Executionofsurvey.
Retrieval,coding,andeditingofdata.
Analysisofthesurveydata.
Interpretationofdataforinclasspresentation.
Writtenreportandoralpresentationoffindings.

OUTLINEOFRESEARCHREPORT
MostmarketingResearchreportsareconstructedinPowerPointthesedays.Whilethisformatsavesalotof
writing,itputsagreat deal ofemphasisonensuringthateachslideisinformativeandthatimportant
materialisnotleftoutofthereportbecauseitdoesnotconformtotypicalexhibits.Youwillneedtobe
verycreativetoeffectivelycommunicateallimportantinformationinyourreport.
The main body of the report must be readable and understandable by any person with a reasonable
education.Theintentionoftheappendixistoprovetomethatyouunderstoodhowtoanalyzethedataand
thatyourconclusionsarewellfounded.
Guidelines:Theresearchreportshouldincludethefollowing(useheadingsandsequencelisted):
Cover
Directlyonthecoverofyourreport,givetheprojecttitle,datethereportwasprepared,nameofbywhom
prepared,supervisingprofessor.
ExecutiveSummary
Onasinglepage,brieflysummarizethemajorfindingsofyourstudy,inpointform.
TableofContents
Alistingofcontentsofthereportalongwiththepagenumbers.
1.0Introduction
The introduction provides background information which the reader needs, in order to appreciate the
discussioninthebodyofthereport.Mentionshouldbemadeofyourtopicandtheproblemthatare
confrontedwith.Itshouldgivethebackgroundoftheproblem(forexample,howandwhenitcameinto
existence), the importance of the problem, the various dimensions of the problem, and whether any
previousresearchwasdonewhichispertinenttothespecificprojectbeingreported.Unfamiliartermsor
termsthatareusedinaspecificwayinthereport shouldbedefinedhere.Anyhistorythatwouldbe
pertinenttotheproblemshouldbementioned(forexample,historyofbusiness,industry,etc.)
2.0StatementofResearchObjectives
Begintheresearchreportwithastatementofyourobjectivesand/orresearchhypotheses.Theseshouldbe
statedasclearlyaspossible.Ifpossible,listthemonebyone.Indicatewhichobjectivesaretheprimary
objectivesandwhicharesecondary.
3.0ResearchMethodology
Discussyoursamplingandfieldproceduresandanyotherpertinentmethodologicalinformation.Include
discussionofyour secondary data search here. Followingare someof the questionswhichshouldbe
answeredhere:
Whattypeofresearchdesignwasused?
Whywasthistypeofdesignused?
Whatdatacollectionmethodswereused?(Primary,secondary;survey,observation).
Whatdatacollectiondeviceswereused?(telephone,personalinterviewing)
Whywerethesedevicesappropriateforthisproject?
Howwasthepopulationdefined?Whatwereitsgeographic,demographic,orotherbounds?
Whatsamplingunitswereemployed?Weretheybusinessorganizationsorbusinessexecutives?
Weretheydwellingunits,households,orindividualswithinahousehold?Weretheystudentsor
nonstudents?

Created by Dr Rao BVIMR, New Delhi

Wasaprobabilityornonprobabilitysamplingplanemployed?Why?Howwasthesample
actuallyselected?Howlargeasamplewasselected?Whywasthissizesamplechosen?
Howwasalistofsamplingunitsgenerated?Whywasthismethodused?
Were any difficulties experienced in contacting designated sample elements? How these
difficultieswereovercomeandwerebiasintroducedintheprocess?Howwasthefieldworkdone?
Wasanypretestingofthequestionnairedone?
4.0Findings
Thefancierhypothesistestingisthecreambutdonotforgetthemilk!!Charts, tables and graphs can say
more than paragraphs and prose. Make sure your findings are understandable to a general audience.
Absolutely no statistical or marketing research jargon should appear in this section. There must be
no statistics in this section, only in the appendices. Introduceandreporttheresultsofyouranalysisof
thedata(includingfindingsfromsecondarydatasources).Categorizeyourfindingsunderthesubheadings
ofyourresearchobjectivesand/orhypotheses.Provideaninterpretationfortheresultsofwhateveranalysis
youdo.Omitanyinformationthatisinterestingbutirrelevantintermsofthespecificresearchobjectives
and/orhypotheses.Tablesandfiguresshouldbeused liberally whenpresentingtheresults.Whilethe
exhibitsintheappendixarecomplex,detailed,andapplytoanumberofproblems,theexhibitsinthis
findingssectionshouldbesimplesummariesofthisinformation,directedtothespecificresearchobjective
and/orhypothesesbeingdiscussed.
YoushouldhaveaKeyFindingsandOtherFindingssections.
5.0SummaryandConclusions
Makesomefinalconclusionsabouttheresultsofyouranalysis.
Relateyourconclusions/findingstotheobjectives/researchquestionsyoulistedatthebeginningofthe
report.Astepbystepdevelopmentoftheconclusionsshouldbegiven.Thereshouldbeaconclusionfor
eachstudyobjectiveorproblem.Theconclusionsshouldbestatedingreaterdetailthanintheexecutive
summary.Readersshouldbeabletoreadtheobjectives,turntotheconclusionsection,andfindspecific
conclusions relative to each objective. If the study does not provide evidence sufficient to draw a
conclusionaboutaproblem,thisshouldbeexplicitlystated.
Note:Marketingrecommendationsarenotincludedinthissection.Thisisonlyasummaryoftheanalyses
ofyourmajorresearchquestions.
6.0MarketingRecommendations
Thissectionincludesrecommendationsastowhataction,ifany,thefirmshouldtake.Itcanalsobeusedto
suggestfutureareasofresearch.Itshouldbeclearlydemonstratedhoweachrecommendationfollowsfrom
theinformationpresentedearlierinthereport.
7.0MethodologicalLimitations
Discussthelimitationsofthedataintermsofyourobjectives(forexample,indicateanycrucialvariables
you found were missing from the data). Also possibly suggest some modifications for the study and
questionnairewhichyouwouldrecommendforafuturestudy.Sourcesofnonsamplingerrorandthe
suspecteddirectionoftheirbiasesmightbediscussed.Readersshouldalsobeinformedspecificallyasto
howfartheresultscanbegeneralized.Researchdesignlimitationscouldbediscussed.Forexample,ifthe
studyisexploratoryanddesignedtofindnewhypotheses,readersshouldbewarnednottoconcludethat
theresultsareanaccuratemeasureofthephenomenonstudied.Ifparticularquestionsinasurveyseemto
haveconfusedrespondents,thereadersshouldbewarnedtouseparticularcareininterpretingtheresultsof
thesequestions.
Ifmanynotathomesorrefusalswereencounteredinthefieldworkandsubstitutionsweremade,readers
shouldbecautionedastotheeffectthiscouldhaveontheresults.Ingeneral,includeanythingwhichmight
qualifyyourfindings,conclusions,and/orrecommendations.Indescribinganylimitationsofthestudy,
howmuchthelimitationsmightaffecttheresultsandinwhatdirectionshouldalsobeindicated.
8.0Appendix
The purposeof theappendix istoprovide aplace for thosereport itemswhichwouldclutter upthe
Findingssection,becausetheyareeithertoodetailedortoospecialized.Forexample,theappendixmay
containadetailedstatement ofthesampledesign,theformulasusedtodeterminethesamplingerror,
detailedstatisticaltables,andthevariousresearchformsused,suchasthequestionnaire.Nothingshouldbe

Created by Dr Rao BVIMR, New Delhi

relegatedtotheappendixifitsabsencefromtheFindingssectionwillmakeitdifficultforthereaderto
understandtheresults.Ifcertaindataarediscussedinanydetail,thetablescontainingsuchdatashouldbe
INCLUDEDINTHEFINDINGS,ATTHATPOINT.Inmanycases,themainideascanbepresented
graphicallyintheFindingssection.Inthatcase,thetablesonwhichthechartsarebasedshouldbeincluded
intheappendix.Followingisafurtherlistofthingswhichcanbeincludedintheappendix(althoughitis
notlimitedtothese).
Includegeneralinformationfromsecondarydata:tables,referencesorannotatedbibliography,
advertisements,etc.
Mapsusedtodrawthesampleaswellasadetailedexplanationofthesampledesignused.
Samplesizedetermination.
Detailedcalculationsforhypothesistestingorconfidenceleveldeterminations.
Codingmanualusedincodingthedata.
Summaryofresponsestoallquestionnairemeasures,writtendirectlyontotheanswerspacesofa
blankquestionnaire.
Completelyblankquestionnaireusedinthestudy.
Tomakeiteasierforthereadertorefertotheseappendices,indextabsmustbeused.Neverburyimportant
findingsintheappendicesputtheminthebodyofyourreport.
DO NOT GET CARRIEDAWAYHERE.REMEMBERTHAT LONG REPORTSANDLONG
APPENDICESARENOTREAD!PUTINONLYTHOSEITEMS
WHICHAREPERTINENT?

FormatforFindingsSectionExtremelyImportant

Findings:AnswerstoQuestionnaireQuestions
Answerstoeachquestionmustbeprovided,whetherthefindingswere"significant"inastatisticalsenseornot.Some
of these findings should be presented in graphs, some in charts, some in tables and some using two formats
simultaneously.Basicfindingscanbestatedverysimply,forexample,"46%oftherespondentsweremaleand54%
werefemale."Thosefindingsthatareimportantdirectlytotheprojectobjectivesandwillmotivatekeydecisions
shouldbeplacedintheKeyFindingssection.Theremaininganswerstoquestions,hypothesesandobjectivesshould
belocatedintheOtherFindingssection.
Findings:MarketingHypotheses
Addresseachhypothesisinturn,providingafullbusinessinterpretation.Appropriateuseshouldbemadeofgraphs,
tablesandcharts.

FormatforAppendices
Appendices:
TableofContentsforAppendices
Appendix1:GlossaryofTerms(includingabasicexplanationofthestatisticaltestsused)
Appendix2:Questionnaire
Appendix3:CodingManual
Appendix4:FrequencyDistributions: (Thefrequencydistributionsforeachquestionintheorderin
whichthequestionsappearedinthequestionnaire.)
NB:ItisnecessarytoprovideallthestatisticalinformationasexplainedbelowinAppendix5"forthose
relationshipsthatarefoundtobestatisticallysignificant.ItisnecessarytoprovidethedetailedFrom
SPSSasdescribedbelowinAppendix5foronlytwohypothesesthatarefoundtobenotstatistically
significant, i.e.,justtwosetsofresults,notforeveryone.Forthenotsignificantfindings,listthe
findingsinatablesimilartothatpresentedbelow.
Hypothesis
Variables
H1: 1Intentiontobuy(Q.27)
2.Income(Q.32)
H2: 1.Awareness(Q.12)
2.Income(Q32)

Test
ChiSquare
ANOVA

significance(p)
0.09
0.12

Conclusion
NotSignificant
NotSignificant

Chisquare

0.38

NotSignificant

Appendix5:Hypothesis1
(StatethehypothesisasHO andHandthenprovideallofthefindings,analysisandinterpretationthatare
relevantforthetestingofthathypothesis.Statisticalinformation,notationandterminologymaybeused
here.Alsoinclude"businessinterpretations"oftheanalysis.Explainorstateanymanipulationsofthedata

Created by Dr Rao BVIMR, New Delhi

thatyouperformedtopreparethedataforeachanalysis.Inthecasereport,Xeroxedcomputeroutputcan
beused,butnotationsandexplanationsshouldbeadded.Forthetermfieldproject,theSPSSoutputshould
besenttoafile,takenintoyourwordprocessorandthenalteredtomakeiteasilyreadandinterpreted.An
alternativetothefiletransferwouldbetoretypetheappropriatetables,chartsandgraphs.Graphsand
chartscanbeusedintheappendicesinadditiontothetables.)
Appendix6:Hypothesis2
(Sameasabove.)
Appendix7?:Hypothesis3,4
(Sameasabove.)
Appendixxx:VerbatimComments(Ifimportantverbatimcommentscanbeextractedfromthe
questionnaire,summarizetheminthisappendix.)
Uselabeledtabsonthefirst(title)pageofeachsectionandeachappendix

ReportRequirements:

1.Communicationisveryimportantinresearch.Accordingly,theevaluationofyourreportwillbebased,
inpart,ontheaccuracyandclaritywithwhichyourfindingsarepresented.Rememberthatthisreportmust
beunderstandable(Theappendixshouldincludethemoretechnicaldetails).
2.Usesubheadingsandheadingswhereappropriatetoimprovethecommunicationofyourfindings.Bold
or underline to emphasize. Headings should be presented consistently throughout your report (either
centeredorleftjustified).
3.Sectionsshouldbetitledandanumberingsystemused(2.0,2.1,2.1.1,etc.).
4.Usetables,graphs,andchartsiftheywillsummarizeandclarifyresults.
5. Present general findings from secondary information in main body of report. Detailed secondary
informationshouldbelocatedintheappendix.
6.Inthesummarysectionofthereport,notablesofdataorstatisticsshouldbepresented.Newinformation
shouldnotbepresentedhere.Summarizekeyinformationinpointform.
7.ThepresentationofhypothesistestsorstatisticalanalysisMUSTbeleftintheappendixtothereport.
8.Labelingtheappendixforeachtypeofinformationmakesiteasiertoreference(forexample,Appendix
A,AppendixB,...,AppendixH).YOUMUSTUSEINDEXTABSFORAPPENDICES.
9.Makethereportlookprofessional:useonlyonetypeofpaper,useonlyoneprinter,useagoodbinder,
andbeneat.Designandrenderallgraphsandchartscarefullyandneatly.
10.Correctalltypographicalerrors.Usecorrectgrammar.Agoodreportisdiscreditedbecauseofthese
errorseventhoughthereportismethodologicallysound.
11.Refertoappendixnumbersandtablenumberswithinappendicesfromthemainbodyofyourreport.
12.Keepthebodyofthereporttoamaximumof40pages,excludingappendices.Butremember"Short
isbeautiful".Therehavebeen20pagereportsthathavereceivedgradeofA+.
13.Eachgroup,andyourprofessormusthaveacopyofthefinalreport.
14.Finalreportsarenotreturnedtostudents.Theycanbereadafterthefinalexams.Markswillbeposted.

Created by Dr Rao BVIMR, New Delhi