1. UNDERSTAND RESEARCH METHODS THAT UNDERPIN BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT
Knowledge & Understanding

2. FORMULATE RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND CRITICALLY DEVELOP A PROGRAMME OF INVESTIGATION TO ADDRESS THEM
Application

3. UNDERSTAND AND CRITICALLY APPLY THE ETHICAL AND METHODOLOGICAL DIMENSIONS OF THE BUSINESS RESEARCH PROCESS AND THEIR APPLICATION
Application
Knowledge & Understanding

4. DEVELOP RESEARCH DESIGNS USING A RANGE OF QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE ANALYTICAL METHODS TO ADDRESS BUSINESS RESEARCH PROBLEMS
Problem Solving

5. DEMONSTRATE SKILL AND UNDERSTANDING OF STATISTICAL ANALYSIS AND PRESENTATION USING APPROPRIATE STATISTICAL SOFTWARE
Application
Communication
Knowledge & Understanding
Learning
Problem Solving

Individual skills-based assignment utilising primary and/or secondary research to address a significant business issue focused around the major business pathway disciplines of HRM, Marketing, Strategy or Operations management
Words - 4, 000 (LO 1, 2, 3 and 4) 80%

A class test length .75 Hours weighted at 20% (Lo 5)

This module provides students with the knowledge and skills to successfully design and implement a valid and reliable business research project within the workplace following graduation

Topics -
- The influence of conceptual issues -
- Critically reviewing literature and secondary sources
- Developing the research design. Defining questions or hypotheses, designing the methodological approach and understanding the limitations imposed by design decisions
- Ethical dimensions of research
- Design of data capture instruments and issues of data collection
- Analysing qualitative data - including univariate and multivariate analysis
- Analysing quantitative data using appropriate statistical software, sampling strategies
- Writing up the project and presentation of quantitative and qualitative data

Business library
Internet access
E mail
PC with Office Software and appropriate statistical software
Blackboard module website
Companion web sites

Blumberg, Copper and Schindler, 2011, Business Research Methods,3rd ed, McGraw Hill, ISBN 9780077129972

Saunders, M., Lewis, P. and Thornhill, A, 2009, Research methods for business Students, 5th edition, Financial Times Prentice Hall, ISBN 978-0-272-71686-0

Taylor S, (2007), 3rd ed, Business Statistics, Palgrave
ISBN 978-0-230-50646-6

The learning strategy for this module is based around students committing a total of 150 hours of activities towards achieving the learning outcomes. These will be split between 39 hours of direct contact with a tutor and 111 hours of directed, guided and self-study, together with preparation for and completion of the assessment tasks. Learning support material will be provided for the module.
The module will draw upon a mixture of activities including lectures, web-based activities, case study analysis, relevant videos and in-class discussions, individual and group problem solving and self-directed learning.