Research Skills MSc SCM
LECTURE 2: PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION & STATEMENT
Agenda:
• Requirements for good theory supported inductive research
• Problem definition:
o Problem identification
o Problem statement
o Research questions
• Structure of the thesis Important tool: conceptual model
Important tool: conceptual model
Requirements for good theory supported inductive research:
• Validity:
o Concept validity - theory same concept as the problem
o Internal validity – usefulness of results of research = solving business problem
• Reliability
• Data collection methods sampling reliability
o How to collect right data etc
o Reliability – if interview today and you same interview tomorrow = answers pretty
similar
1
, Research Skills MSc SCM
Is the outcome of the research useful for problems
of other companies.
External validity (not required but desirable)
Problem identification:
• What is the topic of your research? – problem of the organization
• Why is this topic interesting?
o Motivation of empirical relevance / urgency. – why is it important for the
organization
o Motivation of theoretical relevance (more important for deductive research) – less
important now, usually done afterwards
• What is the main objective to achieve? - what does the organization want
• Connection to theory (of your expertise) - Tool: conceptual model…
Step 1: Description of the empirical problem – you get from company
Step 2: Conceptualization (=connection to the theory) Result: Conceptual model
Step 1 Description of the empirical problem:
• Story in the “language of the company”. – no logistical terms yet, in their language.
• Systematic from broad to narrow. – from broad to narrow market/supply chain,
organization, department…
• Intro 40%, problem 60%.
• Do not forget to describe the company and the process you want to research! – what do
they do
• Describe symptoms of the problem! – how can the company see that there is a problem?
All kinds of background information
• One clear objective. – what does the company wants to achieve?
• (Almost) no literature study. – connection to theory is step 2..
Common mistake 1:
Some CVA-patients stay in the hospital much longer than needed. Patients that medically are
already ready to go to one of the nursing homes, are not always immediately transferred. Every
day that a patient unnecessarily stays in the hospital is called a “wrong bed day” (wbd). The
hospital wants to avoid these wbd’s.
The problem is not well enough described/defined:
• What is CVA-patient? What treatment does (s)he need?
• Which hospital? Which nursing homes?
• Why is wbd a problem? To whom?
2
, Research Skills MSc SCM
Common mistake 2:
Aging and death are inevitable as mortality bounds human beings’ existence, and it is precisely
the notion that there is an end to our physical lives that causes a great deal of existential
insecurity. “The idea of death, the fear of it, haunts the human animal like nothing else; it is the
mainspring of human activity – activity designed largely to avoid the fatality of death, to
overcome it by denying in some way that it is the final destiny for man” (Becker, 1973). Woody
Allen’s quote “I'm not afraid of death; I just don't want to be there when it happens” illustrates
this fear of the unknown. The concept of fear of death has received much attention in the field
of psychology, however Becker (1973) argues that it is universal and can be approached from
several human science disciplines. After a long working life, retirement can be experienced as
professional death; […..]
• Too much introduction!
• Do not use literature if it is not really necessary.
Description of the empirical problem:
• Is about the problem!
• Write to-the-point: problem-based not knowledge based
• Stick to the facts, do not invent anything
• Clear line of reasoning!
• Does not contain solutions
In general the problem can be represented by a relation:
phenomenon → (un)desired effect
Examples:
The dewatering machine of FreFri brakes down very often → FreFri does not produce enough
fries per hour
Introduction of a new sorting system at the hubs of Post NL → Faster sorting process
Step 2 Conceptualization (=connection to the theory) result: conceptual model
Practical problem:
Delayed transfer… → Wrong bed days
Conceptual model (more abstract form):
Concept 1 → concept 2
(disrupted) patient flow → bed/capacity utilization in hospitals
Problem identification:
• Step 1:
Empirical problem: phenomenon → (un)desired effect
3
LECTURE 2: PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION & STATEMENT
Agenda:
• Requirements for good theory supported inductive research
• Problem definition:
o Problem identification
o Problem statement
o Research questions
• Structure of the thesis Important tool: conceptual model
Important tool: conceptual model
Requirements for good theory supported inductive research:
• Validity:
o Concept validity - theory same concept as the problem
o Internal validity – usefulness of results of research = solving business problem
• Reliability
• Data collection methods sampling reliability
o How to collect right data etc
o Reliability – if interview today and you same interview tomorrow = answers pretty
similar
1
, Research Skills MSc SCM
Is the outcome of the research useful for problems
of other companies.
External validity (not required but desirable)
Problem identification:
• What is the topic of your research? – problem of the organization
• Why is this topic interesting?
o Motivation of empirical relevance / urgency. – why is it important for the
organization
o Motivation of theoretical relevance (more important for deductive research) – less
important now, usually done afterwards
• What is the main objective to achieve? - what does the organization want
• Connection to theory (of your expertise) - Tool: conceptual model…
Step 1: Description of the empirical problem – you get from company
Step 2: Conceptualization (=connection to the theory) Result: Conceptual model
Step 1 Description of the empirical problem:
• Story in the “language of the company”. – no logistical terms yet, in their language.
• Systematic from broad to narrow. – from broad to narrow market/supply chain,
organization, department…
• Intro 40%, problem 60%.
• Do not forget to describe the company and the process you want to research! – what do
they do
• Describe symptoms of the problem! – how can the company see that there is a problem?
All kinds of background information
• One clear objective. – what does the company wants to achieve?
• (Almost) no literature study. – connection to theory is step 2..
Common mistake 1:
Some CVA-patients stay in the hospital much longer than needed. Patients that medically are
already ready to go to one of the nursing homes, are not always immediately transferred. Every
day that a patient unnecessarily stays in the hospital is called a “wrong bed day” (wbd). The
hospital wants to avoid these wbd’s.
The problem is not well enough described/defined:
• What is CVA-patient? What treatment does (s)he need?
• Which hospital? Which nursing homes?
• Why is wbd a problem? To whom?
2
, Research Skills MSc SCM
Common mistake 2:
Aging and death are inevitable as mortality bounds human beings’ existence, and it is precisely
the notion that there is an end to our physical lives that causes a great deal of existential
insecurity. “The idea of death, the fear of it, haunts the human animal like nothing else; it is the
mainspring of human activity – activity designed largely to avoid the fatality of death, to
overcome it by denying in some way that it is the final destiny for man” (Becker, 1973). Woody
Allen’s quote “I'm not afraid of death; I just don't want to be there when it happens” illustrates
this fear of the unknown. The concept of fear of death has received much attention in the field
of psychology, however Becker (1973) argues that it is universal and can be approached from
several human science disciplines. After a long working life, retirement can be experienced as
professional death; […..]
• Too much introduction!
• Do not use literature if it is not really necessary.
Description of the empirical problem:
• Is about the problem!
• Write to-the-point: problem-based not knowledge based
• Stick to the facts, do not invent anything
• Clear line of reasoning!
• Does not contain solutions
In general the problem can be represented by a relation:
phenomenon → (un)desired effect
Examples:
The dewatering machine of FreFri brakes down very often → FreFri does not produce enough
fries per hour
Introduction of a new sorting system at the hubs of Post NL → Faster sorting process
Step 2 Conceptualization (=connection to the theory) result: conceptual model
Practical problem:
Delayed transfer… → Wrong bed days
Conceptual model (more abstract form):
Concept 1 → concept 2
(disrupted) patient flow → bed/capacity utilization in hospitals
Problem identification:
• Step 1:
Empirical problem: phenomenon → (un)desired effect
3
