Valuing Research and its Role in Meeting Goals

The provided report delves into the significance of research in achieving business objectives. It emphasizes the importance of managing knowledge for successful competence exploration, as well as the impact of service orientation on corporate culture and business performance. The report also touches on the role of research in managing political risk, employee readiness for e-business, and cloud computing adoption. By understanding these aspects, businesses can make informed decisions to drive success.

Managing a Successful
Business

INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
P1 Devise project aims and objectives for a chosen scenario................................................1
P2 Produce a project management plan..................................................................................3
P3 Produce a work breakdown structure and a Gantt chart....................................................4
..........................................................................................................................................................6
..........................................................................................................................................................7
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................7
P4 Carry out small-scale research by applying qualitative and quantitative research methods..7
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................9
P5 Analyse research and data using appropriate tools and techniques..................................9
P6 Communicate appropriate recommendations as a result of research and data analysis to
draw valid and meaningful conclusions...............................................................................15
TASK 4..........................................................................................................................................15
P7 Reflect on the value of undertaking the research to meet stated objectives....................15
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................16
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................17

INTRODUCTION
Globalisation refers to the procedure through which business organisations, people,
government integrates with each other at international level. Globalisation helps organisation in
improving business performance by approaching broader market place (Ahmed Dine Rabeh,
Jimenez-Jimenez and Martínez-Costa, 2013). Present report is based on large scale organisation
that belongs to fashion industry. The company mainly manufactures, designs and sells its
products to fashion retailers across the world. John Lewis is one among popular retailers
worldwide which offers vast range of products and services to its customers. This company was
established in 1864 and headquartered in London, United Kingdom. With reference to the
present case, John Lewis is introducing new summer shoe for its customers in order to compete
large rival companies which are present in the same industry. Senior management team of John
Lewis have planned to introduce this new product in a popular event named London fashion
Week. This report will include project aims and objective that will satisfied provided case
scenario of John Lewis. It will further discuss about project management plan and its all
components like time, resource, cost, risk, scope and quality that will be followed for completing
this project in effective manner.
TASK 1
P1 Devise project aims and objectives for a chosen scenario
Globalisation is considered as the ways in which different countries and people
interact with each other for mutual purpose of growth. It can be said that concept of
globalisation has increased number of opportunities for organisations by which they can
maximise their profitability level (Craneand Matten, 2016). The given concept is not only
beneficial for the companies but it has also improved lifestyle of people. John Lewis is a
multinational company that provides huge variety of products like apparels, jewellery,
furniture, house hold things, watches and many other products to customers across the
world. This company is planning to introduce summer shoe in London fashion week with
the innovative feature for enhancing customers zone and maximising their profitability ratio.
The new summer shoe of John Lewis will be based on high technology, it will allow user to
know about number of foot step they have walked in particular way in a digitalised form.
This will provide better experience to the customers and also contribute in gaining
1

competitive advantage at market place. It can be said that this innovative summer shoe will
allow John Lewis in giving stiff competition to its rival companies and enhancing their
profitability ratio at global scale.
Background of research
John Lewis is a multinational organisation that was originated from United Kingdom,
but it has placed it remarkable presence in the international marketplace. The company is
owning approximately 55 stores in Scotland, England, and Wales. It has been identified that
there are around 38000 employees who are performing different business activities of this
company in effective manner. With the global expansion, John Lewis is facing issues related
to competition at international scale. In order to overcome this issue, top management of this
company has planned to launch new summer shoe with special feature. For this, the
company has conducted an effective research for analysing market place effectively in order
to check out that whether their idea of summer shoe launch in London fashion week will
help them in giving stiff competition to its competitor or not. In this regard, best suitable
aims and objectives have been prepared by the researcher which have been defined as
below:
Aim: “To Introduce and present new shoe in London fashion week to compete with other
big brands and increase own profitability”. A case study on John Lewis.
Objectives:
 To determine the concept of launching new product in international market.
 To evaluate importance of launching new services among competitors and target
customers.
 To identify challenges while establishing new products in global era. To assess the strategies responsible for increasing revenue of company by representing
business services in new country.
Questions:
 What is the concept of launching new product in international market?
 How to evaluate importance of launching new services among competitors and target
customers?
 What are the challenges while establishing new products in global era?
2

 How to assess the strategies responsible for increasing revenue of company by
representing business services in new country?
P2 Produce a project management plan
A project management plan refers to a formal document which helps managers and
leaders in managing and successfully executing a project so as to achieve profits for long
term. There are a number of components present in project management plan such as scope,
size, schedule , cost quantity , risk communication factors and so on (Den Hertog, Van der
Aa and De Jong, 2010). This document infuses certain functions such as describing,
developing, combining all activities etc. In present scenario it has been stated that managers
of John Lewis undertake this tool for developing accurate and effective decision making
policies that aim towards growth and development of firm. Various key factors of project
management plan have been stated as under:
Cost: Cost refers to amount of money or funds required to implement and
accomplish a project in an effective manner. In relation to John Lewis, managers need to
identify costs or monetary funds that have to be spent on a particular project so that
accordingly tools and techniques can be chosen. Here the cost infused by researcher will be
around 5000 pounds whereas cost involved by company is estimated to be around 100000
pounds.
Scope: Scope is a quite wide term which states or explains various growth prospects.
Also in this factor various future and present growth opportunities are stated. In context of
John Lewis it is observed that an effective and strategic plan for projects helps in enhancing
their overall productivity (Eckerson, 2010). Also it provides a number of opportunities that
lead to growth and development of a firm. In present scenario it is quite important that
numerous key factors related to globalisation are assessed it will further lead to
manufacturing better quality goods and services.
Time: Time in this context refers to time involved in executing a project. It can vary
from around two months to one year depending upon projects. In relation to John Lewis
managers and employees took around 2 months to complete this project whereas time taken
by researcher was estimated to be around 45 days.
Quality: In context of quality it is necessary that managers of John Lewis provide or
manufacture goods and services as per their set quality standards. This will be quite helpful
3

to them as they will be able to maintain their overall goodwill and brand image in
competitive market. In context of John Lewis it is quite important for managers to analyse
various environmental factors such as political, social, environmental, economic etc for
providing better quality goods to their customers thereby enhancing overall customer base.
Communication: Communication is an important factor which refers to transfer or
exchange of thoughts and ideas of individuals. Effectiveness in communication will further
help employees as they will be able to provide suggestions and ideas regarding new and
innovative ways of production. Also it will be greatly significant in finding out any errors or
mistakes that may be present (Gebauer, Edvardsson and Bjurko, 2010). By adopting
effective communication strategies managers of John Lewis will be able to timely
accomplish all projects.
Risk: Risk is an inevitable part of business and its overall functioning. Every
business or projects have certain risks associated with them. Managers of John Lewis will
have to observe a nd examine market conditions in order to find out the risk element
associated with them. Risks can be of any type such as cost time quality etc.
Resources: Resources are basic raw materials that are needed to accomplish a project
in a specified time frame. Whenever managers of John Lewis undertake a project they hire
investigators who can examine various resources that will be required for accomplishment
of a project. Various examples of resources are money, labour force, technology, plant and
machinery etc. These resources when used effectively provide a sustainable as well as
profitable position to a company.
P3 Produce a work breakdown structure and a Gantt chart
Work Breakdown Structure
`It is a process of dividing complex problems into simpler tasks. This is used in
project management to simply larger tasks into manageable chunks of work. This
methodology is not for a specific field rather it is used for any type of project (Incelli,
2013). A work breakdown structure is an outline or map of a specified project. It is
beneficial for a organising company projects and allocating project budget at top level of
management.
4

Gantt Chart
An American engineer Henry L. Gantt introduced a production control tool naming
Gantt Chart in the year 1917. A Gantt chart is used in project management for explanation
of duration of task. It provides a graphical representation of schedule that includes planning,
coordinating and tracking specific tasks in project. It represents time taken in completing
various tasks involved in completion of project.
5

6

TASK 2
P4 Carry out small-scale research by applying qualitative and quantitative research methods
While conducting a good research, it is required by researcher to through research
methodology in order to complete research in systematic manner. Appropriate research
methodology helps an investigator in managing and interpreting collected information in a
sequential manner. It has been identified that there are mainly two types of methods that is
qualitative and quantitative which are adopted by researcher while analysing data for
obtaining desired outcome (Jones and Lubinski, 2012). Both of these methods are defined as
below:
Qualitative research: In this research method, investigator uses interviews, focus
groups and observation in order to reach result. It can said that researcher gives preferences
to human perception, their thoughts at the time of evaluating whole research. Qualitative
research method states that evaluation of human behaviour is the best way for collecting
information over a single topic.
Quantitative research: It is the systematic research method in which information is
evaluated on the basis of numerical formulas, mathematical algorithm and computational
7

techniques. This research method collects information by conducting open communication
with the targeted audiences. This methodology is helpful for companies who conducts
research by targeting huge population in effective manner. It can be said that main aim of
researcher is to gather numerical information from chosen population for the purpose of
reaching expected outcome in effective manner.
Primary method: In this method of data collection researcher collects information
directly from respondents in order to approach authentic information. It is the raw data that
will going to be used by individual at first time. This method generally provides valuable
information to investigator by which they can obtain true outcome on the research topic
(Kankaanranta and Planken, 2010). Under this method information is gathered from
different sources like interview, Questionnaire, survey, field trails, focus group etc. It can be
said that primary method is time consuming but it provides accurate results to investigator.
This method of data collection is feasible for those research which has lots of time and is
seeking for pure authentic outcome for their research aim.
Secondary method: Information collected from this method is generally based on
previous conducted research or past record. In this, method of data collection, researcher
collects information from books, Journals, online sources, newspapers, published data,
magazines and many other. It can be said that all of these sources provides information from
the point of view of different writers and authors who have already conducted deep study on
the similar kind of topic. This type of data collection method is cost and time effective that
helps researcher in conducting research effectively.
Data collection: In this present research, investigator have used both the primary as
well as secondary sources of data collection method for meeting project deadline with
authenticity.
Questionnaire – Questionnaire is the formal paper that includes set of questions
along with the feasible answers in the form of options. These questions are prepared by the
researcher so that they can analyse response of targeted sample size (Lai and Ong, 2010).
Investigator can easily achieve adequate result by adopting this method. In this present
research for John Lewis, investigator have chosen 20 people as its respondent.
Questionnaire
Q 1) Are you aware about the concept of globalisation?
8

a) Agree
b) Disagree
Q 2) Do you think, concept of globalisation will help John Lewis in launching new summer
shoe in London fashion week?
a) Yes
b) No
Q 3) What are the main benefits of introducing new products in the international market place?
a) Improvement in organisation reputation
b) Acquiring huge income and revenue
Q 4) According to your perception, which one is the main challenge that will be faced by
companies at the time of launching new products at global scale?
a) Gaining attention of customers
b) Change in technology
Q.5. According to you, acquiring new strategies helps business organisation in gaining
competitive advantage?
a) Agree
b) Disagree
Q 6) Provide recommendation to John Lewis by which they can introduce and present summer
shoe in London fashion Week in order to complete large company and maximise their
profitability ratio.
TASK 3
P5 Analyse research and data using appropriate tools and techniques
9

Theme 1: Concept of globalisation
Q 1) Are you aware about the concept of globalisation? Frequency
a) Agree 12
b) Disagree 8
Interpretation: It is analysed from the given graph that out of 20 respondents, 12
are aware about the concept of globalisation. Globalisation is the process by which business
start operating at international scale. It is a common aspect among business people who are
passionate about expanding their business in foreign countries. Such people want to
maximise profits by managing operations and sales in other countries. On the other hand
there were 8 respondents who were not knowing about globalisation. These people are those
who have less knowledge about market expansion and segmentation in other countries. Such
people are afraid to start business in other country.
10
12
8
a) Agree
b) Disagree

Theme 2: Concept of globalisation will help John Lewis in launching new summer
shoe in London fashion week
Q 2) Do you think, concept of globalisation will help John Lewis in
launching new summer shoe in London fashion week?
Frequency
a) Yes 15
b) No 5
Interpretation: According to the above specified pie chart, it has been analysed that
concept of globalisation is very broad which helps organisation in enhancing their business
growth in effective manner. In present context, 15 respondents have said that yes they
agreed to the thought that Globalisation will help John Lewis in introducing new summer
shoe in London Fashion Week. In order to support this, these respondents have said that
with concept of globalisation only John Lewis will be able to communicate their information
about the product at international market. Whereas, 5 among them have denied to the similar
thought as they think John Lewis is introducing its new summer shoe in London. Thus, there
is no role of globalisation concept in its launching.
11
15
5
a) Yes
b) No

Theme 3: Main benefits of introducing new products in the international market place
Q 3) What are the main benefits of introducing new products in the
international market place?
Frequency
a) Improvement in organisation reputation 16
b) Acquiring huge income and revenue 4
Interpretation: As per the above mentioned graph, it has been interpreted that there
are numerous of benefits of launching new product at international market. It has been
identified that 16 respondents have said that main benefit of new product launch in
international market is that it improves reputation of the company. These respondents thinks
that new product popularises company at international scale which ultimately enhances its
awareness among international market. On the other hand, 4 of them have said that it
increases profits and revenue of company. This is because, they believes that new product
increases product range which provides more options to customers. As a result, they buy
more product of company and gives them good profit figures.
12
16
4
a) Improvement in organisation
reputation
b) Acquiring huge income and
revenue

Theme 4: Main challenge that will be faced by companies at the time of launching new
products at global scale
Q 4) According to your perception, which one is the main challenge that will
be faced by companies at the time of launching new products at global scale?
Frequency
a) Gaining attention of customers 8
b) Change in technology 12
Interpretation: According to the above specified graph, it can be said there are
various challenges which are faced by organisation while launching new product. Among
total number of 20, 8 respondents thinks that main challenge of new product is to gain
customers attention because no one is aware about its quality and special feature. On the
other hand, 12 among them have said that according their thought changing technology is
the biggest challenge for companies introducing its product at international market because
technology is changing very frequently which makes it difficult for company to stay single
technology and execute its business operation in international market in effective manner.
13
8
12
a) Gaining attention of
customers
b) Change in technology

Theme 5: Acquiring new strategies helps business organisation in gaining competitive
advantage
Q.5. According to you, acquiring new strategies helps business organisation
in gaining competitive advantage?
Frequency
a) Agree 14
b) Disagree 6
Interpretation: As per the above stated graph, it has been interpreted that 14 people
thinks that there business organisation can gain competitive advantage by adopting feasible
strategies. It can be said that new technologies helps company in attracting customers which
results in providing additional benefit to the company. As a result, they competitive
advantage. Whereas, 6 respondent have declared that formulation of strategies wastes
precious time of company which ultimately keeps them away from from working activities
in effective manner.
14
14
6
a) Agree
b) Disagree

P6 Communicate appropriate recommendations as a result of research and data analysis to
draw valid and meaningful conclusions
From the above mentioned report and its evaluation, it can be said that Globalisation
is vast concept which provides numerous of benefits to the large scale business concerns
whenever they wish to expand their area of operations (Lin and Chen, 2012). Also it has
been evaluated that business concerns can enhance their overall productivity as well as
profitability by bringing in new and innovative products and services. This also helps them
in attracting and influencing customers thereby enhancing their overall customer base. In
context of John Lewis it has been evaluated that they are launching a new type of shoe
collection which is meant for health freaks. In this shoe they will be able to examine their
overall day walking count digitally.
For this various recommendations can be provided to managers of John Lewis such
as globalisation should be practised effectively as it will be quite helpful in enhancing
overall profitability as well as brand image of the firm. Also managers need should evaluate
various environmental factors both internal and external before they enter competitive
markets for globalising their business operations. Also they should undertake effective
strategies which will be beneficial for expansion.
TASK 4
P7 Reflect on the value of undertaking the research to meet stated objectives
While conducting this research for John Lewis, I have gone through various
experiences. Some of them have provided me knowledge on different topics, whereas, some
among them have discouraged me a lot that has resulted in decline of my performance. In
order to conduct this research in effective manner, I had initially analysed overall market
place along with the customers details, their demands and requirements. This has helped me
out in understanding actual requirements of customers. As a result, it was easier for me to
examine that new summer shoe with special feature will influence interest of customers or
not in London fashion Week. At the time of this research, it have faced issue related to
respondents as they were not showing their interest answering questions stated in
15

Questionnaire. This has wasted my precious and time also delayed in overall project
deadline. I have also realised that provided financial funds, time and resources were not
satisfactory as concept of Globalisation is very vast and its difficult for me to manage
provided resources to conduct an effective research effectively. In this research, I have used
both the primary as well as secondary sources of data collection method for collecting
accurate information within less period of time. From the overall experience of mine, It can
be said that I have learnt a lot from this research. This research has improved my
communication skill and management skill that will help me conducting better research in
future.
CONCLUSION
From the above mentioned report it has been concluded that managing a successful
business project is a quite complicated process as there are various environmental as well as
organisational functions included in it. Globalisation is another important aspect which has
been studied in this report. Globalizing economies and business operations helps in better
transportation as well as better communication strategies being implemented. This report
also focusses on developing an effective project management plan along with
recommendations regarding a product that company is launching. A questionnaire has also
been added in this report so as to check reaction of individuals. Lastly, this report deals with
valuer of research and its role in meeting certain goals and objectives.
16

REFERENCES
Books and Journal
Ahmed Dine Rabeh, H., Jimenez-Jimenez, D. and Martínez-Costa, M., 2013. Managing
knowledge for a successful competence exploration. Journal of Knowledge
Management. 7(2). pp.195-207.
Crane, A. and Matten, D., 2016. Business ethics: Managing corporate citizenship and
sustainability in the age of globalization. Oxford University Press.
Den Hertog, P., Van der Aa, W. and De Jong, M. W., 2010. Capabilities for managing service
innovation: towards a conceptual framework. Journal of service Management. 21(4).
pp.490-514.
Eckerson, W. W., 2010. Performance dashboards: measuring, monitoring, and managing your
business. John Wiley & Sons.
Gebauer, H., Edvardsson, B. and Bjurko, M., 2010. The impact of service orientation in
corporate culture on business performance in manufacturing companies. Journal of
Service Management. 21(2). pp.237-259.
Incelli, E., 2013. Managing discourse in intercultural business email interactions: a case study of
a British and Italian business transaction. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural
Development. 34(6). pp.515-532.
Jones, G. and Lubinski, C., 2012. Managing Political Risk in Global Business: Beiersdorf 1914–
1990. Enterprise & Society. 13(1). pp.85-119.
Kankaanranta, A. and Planken, B., 2010. BELF competence as business knowledge of
internationally operating business professionals. The Journal of Business
Communication (1973). 47(4). pp.380-407.
Lai, J.Y. and Ong, C.S., 2010. Assessing and managing employees for embracing change: A
multiple-item scale to measure employee readiness for e-business. Technovation. 30(1).
pp.76-85.
Lin, A. and Chen, N.C., 2012. Cloud computing as an innovation: Percepetion, attitude, and
adoption. International Journal of Information Management. 32(6). pp.533-540.
Shang, S.S., 2012. Dual strategy for managing user resistance with business integration systems.
Behaviour & Information Technology. 31(9). pp.909-925.
Smith, A.D., 2011. Successfully managing manufacturing supplier integration and procurement
issues: case studies in recessionary environments. International Journal of Procurement
Management. 4(2). pp.121-138.
Smith, W.K., Binns, A. and Tushman, M. L., 2010. Complex business models: Managing
strategic paradoxes simultaneously. Long range planning. 43(2). pp.448-461.
Online
Difference Between Primary and Secondary Data. 2019. [Online]. Available Through:
<https://keydifferences.com/difference-between-primary-and-secondary-data.html>
17