Case Study-study Literature based Project
Identify from secondary sources (eg. Financial Times, The Economist, CNN.com etc) a company that interests you that is facing a particular business challenge or opportunity (pathway students should note that this challenge must be within their specialist field). From secondary data sources, build a case study of the company and evaluate the challenge or opportunity they face. From your own experience, previous taught modules, and with a review of past academic and practitioner studies in this area, identify potential solutions and evaluate the feasibility of these solutions.
You should consider a number of criteria when evaluating and planning your Independent Research Project:
• Is your proposed topic a management issue of importance to a contemporary industrial/commercial/public sector or organisation?
• What information will you require?
• What contacts will you need, and will they provide the information/data you need?
• Is the project feasible in the time available?
Some MSc Independent Research Projects will involve collecting some kind of primary data. For example, you may need to interview consumers or practitioners, or you may need some specific financial data from company reports. If you choose to write your report on a particular company, and hope to obtain primary data, then you should establish at an early stage the appropriate points of contact in the company. Be realistic about the contacts you intend to establish and take into account feasibility in terms of time and resources.
In your contacts with organisations, you are expected to ensure that your conduct is of the highest professional standard. You should bear in mind that
• Visits to organisations should only be made by prior mutual arrangement.
• You should be thoroughly prepared for interviews.
• Make sure that your respondents know that you are going to keep their identity confidential. If very sensitive data is involved, the university can establish a three-year ban on public access to your Independent Research Project.
• You should not tape record interviews without the explicit agreement of interviewees. If you explain that recording is a convenient form of note-taking for your own use, permission will not normally be withheld.
• You are responsible for conducting yourself in a way that ensures the maintenance of your integrity and the enhancement of the School’s reputation.
It is likely that most MSc Management (and pathways) Independent Research Projects will be one of the following types:
(1) Literature based – here, Independent Research Projects are expected to involve some personal contribution from the student. In primary and/or secondary investigations (see below) this is straightforward. It is more difficult in literature based studies and requires the student to undertake an in depth study of a particular body of literature, intelligent summarising of its key aspects, critical reflection on research and an attempt at synthesis and concept development.
(2) Primary and/or secondary research – involves some form of systematic data collection, subsequent analysis, followed by discussion of findings and how this relates to the literature.
The outline given here is a guide, which can be used to help you structure your Independent Research Project.
