This module prepares MBA students to undertake their consultancy based project which is the final integrative activity of the MBA Programme.

The aim of this module is to provide a process which will enable students to use and extend knowledge and skills that they have acquired during their programme of study. Using appropriate management research methodologies and/or data collection methods, students will have the opportunity to explore an area of interest within management in significantly greater depth than during the taught modules themselves.

Students will work on a specific project for an organisation. The organisation selected will function as the 'client'. The aim of this path is to enable students to undertake a self-managed process of systematic practitioner inquiry within the domain of management. The output will be:

A management report which addresses the issue or problem identified and agreed with the client, which should be in the format appr opriate to that organisation;

An academic report detailing the stages of the research, the literature reviewed, the methodology and techniques deployed, and the rationale for these. This will also include a reflective piece on the student's personal development.

The module will aim:
To provide students with tools to refine a research topic into an appropriate research problem and questions;

To offer guidance for students to choose the research design which is the most appropriate to the objectives and constraints relating to their research;

To focus on in-depth research gathering skills;

To give an overview of different data collection methods, including questionnaires, focus groups, interviews and ethnography;

To explain how different research methods can be combined into a coherent methodological design and produce good empirical analysis;

To guide students for the consultancy based project writing process;

To show an ability t o integrate theories and concepts drawn from the wider business/management literature with use of empirical case studies, use of empirical work, or references to appropriate empirical work and to develop expertise in that subject area;

To develop techniques which will improve research skills in problem definition, information collection, analysis, synthesis and reasoned argument;

To develop individual initiative and judgement;

To develop writing and other communication skills.

The indicative combined wordcount for the two reports is likely to be in the range of 8,000-10,000 words.

(LO1) Engage with a client organisation with the aim of investigating a current management problem.

(LO2) Diagnose and analyse client problems and issues using a structured programme of management research.

(LO3) Synthesise data from a wide variety of sources in order to evaluate client problems and issues.

(LO4) Prepare and present the consultancy findings, conclusions and recommendations in formats acceptable to the client.

(LO5) Reflect on their personal development throughout and as a result of this activity.

(S1) Problem solving skills. Often, the focus of a consultancy based project is to solve a particular problem or issue within the firm. Even minor improvements to systems or processes entail overcoming problems in reaching solutions to issues.

(S2) Numeracy. Developed through the quantitative research in the taught elements of the programme and assessed in the final project, via data analysis, critical evaluation of numeric data, and recommendations which need to have cost implications.

(S3) Commercial awareness. Lectures will focus on business examples and applications of data analysis. The consultancy based project, by its very nature, will demonstrate commercial awareness throughout.

(S4) Organisation skills. Developed via meeting with the client organisation, meeting the research brief, and meeting several phased deadlines throughout the project preparation.

(S5) Communication skills. The student will need to demonstrate high level written communication skills in the both the management and the academic parts of the project.

(S6) IT skills. Taught in the research methods training part of the module, and demonstrated in the project itself.

(S7) Lifelong learning skills. A compulsory element of the project is a reflection on learning, where students examine the skills they have developed and reflect on how they will continue to use these throughout their lives.

(S8) Ethical awareness. All research needs to be conducted under strict ethical guidelines, which are taught in the research methods training and applied in the project itself.

3 hour lecture x 4
4 hour workshop x 4
1 hour supervision x 3
Self Directed Learning x 569 hours

The context for management research;

Developing a research proposal;

Methods of management research;

Planning and conducting the research project;

Data collection and analysis;

Composing the management report.