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Understand...
Chapter 5
The purpose and process of exploratory research.
The two types and three levels of management decisionrelated secondary sources.
The five types of external information and the factors for
evaluating the value of a source and its content.
The process of using exploratory research to understand
the management dilemma and work through the stages of
analysis necessary to formulate the research question (and,
ultimately, investigative questions and measurement
questions).
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Understand . . .
What is involved in internal data mining and how
internal data-mining techniques differ from
literature searches.
Executives today are at risk of drowning in an ocean of
technology-generated data. One possible response to data
overload is to tune out completely, but that only takes the
problem to the other extreme. A better response is to make
the companys business model as simple and as
transparent as possible and to figure out exactly which
measures are needed to illuminate the
models success.
Robert J. Thomas, Executive Director,
Accentures Institute for High Performance Business
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Discovery/ Analysis
Secondary Sources
Expert
Interview
Search
Strategy
Group
Discussions
Individual
Depth Interviews
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Expand understanding of management dilemma
Gather background information
Identify information that should be gathered
Identify sources for and actual questions that might be
used
Identify sources for and actual sample frames that might be
used
Define management dilemma
Consult books for relevant terms
Use terms to search
Locate/review secondary sources
Evaluate value of each source and
content
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Primary
Sources:
Memos
Letters
Interviews
Speeches
Laws
Internal records
Whiteboard technology makes the discussion of
symptoms relevant to the management-research
question hierarchy easier
Secondary
Sources:
Encyclopedias
Textbooks
Handbooks
Magazines
Newspapers
Newscasts
Tertiary
Sources:
Indexes
Bibliographies
Internet
search engines
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The
U.S. Government
is the
worlds largest
source of data
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Indexes/
Bibliographies
Directories
Purpose
Dictionaries
Format
Types
Handbooks
Audience
Encyclopedias
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Authority
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Evolutionary Step
Investigative Question
Enabling Technologies
Characteristics
Data collection (1960s)
What was my average
total revenue over the last
five years?
Computers, tapes, disks
Retrospective, static data
delivery
Data access (1980s)
What were unit sales in
California last
December?
Relational databases
(RDBMS), structured
query language (SQL),
ODBC
Retrospective, dynamic
data delivery at record
level
Data navigation (1990s)
What were unit sales in
California last December?
Drill down to
Sacramento.
Online analytic
processing (OLAP),
multidimensional
databases, data
warehouses
Retrospective, dynamic
data delivery at multiple
levels
Data mining (2000)
Whats likely to happen
to Sacramento unit sales
next month? Why?
Advanced algorithms,
multiprocessor
computers, massive
databases
Prospective, proactive
information delivery
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Scope
Evaluation
Factors
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Management-research question hierarchy process
begins by identifying the management dilemma
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Break
questions
down
Examine
variables
Determine
necessary
evidence
Fine-Tuning
Set
scope of study
Evaluate
hypotheses
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Performance Considerations
MindWriter
Project Plan
Attitudinal Issues
Behavioral Issues
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2002 McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., McGraw-Hill/Irwin
Bibliography
Bibliographic Database
Data Mart
Data Mining
Data Visualization
Data Warehouse
Dictionary
Directory
Encyclopedia
Expert interview
Exploratory research
Handbook
Index
Individual depth interview
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Investigative questions
Literature search
Management question
Measurement question
o Custom-designed
o Predesigned
Primary sources
Research questions
Secondary sources
Source evaluation
o Purpose
Bibliographic Database Searches/
Advanced Searches
o Scope
o Authority
o Audience
o Format
Tertiary sources
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