Possible Research Questions to share with students
Topics relating to sustainability | |
1 | Greenwashing - How common is it and why do companies (a) use this approach and (b) should it be made illegal? |
2 | How we manage money and where we invest our money can have a big impact on both sustainability, the environment, and politics. Possible areas to investigate, POLITICS Money talks – so is this a battle that consumers must take or is it about how investment funds choose their investments or is it a regulatory issue (3 possible different questions here) NB: Biggest investors in UK are pension funds, insurance companies, banks and private equity, these organisations place their funds, or employ their own, asset managers who develop their investment policies. Asset Management currently has between $8 and $9 trillion assets under management – biggest in Europe and 2nd biggest in the world. You can bring both politics and investments together by examining how much of UK funds are invested in Russian organisations and vice versa |
3 | Is there a viable opportunity in the UK (or any other country) to switch to electric cars and what are the consequences? NB - A lack of charging points and broken charging points is the scourge of the UK electric car business – who should fix this |
4 | Is there a real future for driverless cars – and what are the BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES AND the main obstacles. |
5 | 27 countries now use carbon taxation to reduce carbon dioxide emissions but he US, the biggest carbon produce has not. Why not: POSSIBLE QUESTIONS HERE: Are carbon taxes effective and do they help reduce carbon emission? |
6 | During the pandemic home delivery of groceries grew at a spectacular rate: But prior to the Pandemic few supermarkets in the UK found home delivery profitable, they did it to maintain their market share – what is the prospect for this in the future – based on pre and post pandemic sales figures? |
7 | Is it reasonable to expect goods delivered to our homes to cost the same as those available in our shops or supermarkets? Weight up the relative costs |
8 | is the use of home delivery better or worse for the environment |
9 | Is the Paris Agreement, which is technically a legally enforceable agreement, viable in the context of the current energy crisis? |
10 | Should we leave social and environmental reporting to the accountants? |
11 | Could we live without plastic, and what are the alternatives? Are there alternatives |
12 | Should we ban take-out food which relies on plastic containers and if so what % of existing business organisations would survive? this is a fun question to a degree which is almost impossible to answer – but think about questions which relate plastic to both costs, profits and think about the alternatives. What are the alternatives – is it cardboard and does this work |
there are lots of diverse ways to look at sustainability: Current thinking sees organisational sustainability as its ability to continue to generate funds and continue to exist – so clearly diesel cars as a business will soon not be sustainable – so how might a car manufacturer ensure its future sustainability. Can existing car manufacturing companies afford this | |
13 | Switching to electric cards requires a very specific infrastructure – few countries have this – so what can be done? |
14 | The US is proposing subsidising the sale of electric cars in an effort to meet its climate commitments. What impact will this have on ? |
15 | Is responsible management a sustainability issue or is it in fact a profit necessity? |
16 | Do we need legislation to ensure that business organisations follow or use social business models? |
17 | Is sustainability possible within the fast fashion industry in the UK? A comparison of ********** and *********
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18 | Is renewable energy coming of age? A case study of (country name) Review of adoption and growth of renewable energy within *********
What lessons can be learned by other similar countries |
Topics relating to economic growth | |
19 | Is economic growth dependent on population growth – an examination of growth prospects in xxxxxx country against (identify company) |
20 | What fuels economic growth - - what can be learned from attempts to grow the economy of (pick a country) and a company/industry sector |
Topics relating to supply chain | |
21 | What constitutes a green supply chain and is it a viable business model? |
22 | What is the potential impact of supply chain disruptions |
23 | Why are supermarkets in the UK criticised for their poor management of food suppliers? A case study of ******** |
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25 |
****************** car company
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Topics relating to Marketing | |
26 | Can social values shape consumers preferences |
27 | Is the concept of responsible marketing counter intuitive? |
BIG data is one of the most important assets that marketing companies now acquire. The EU is trying to draw up legislation to limit the transfer or sale of big data to China, the US and Russia, Is this, or will this, damage marketing opportunities? Or is it designed to give the EU an edge? Other questions and research might also be around the use, distribution and collection of big data and overall privacy for the individual | |
28 | Is it possible to regulate the influencer industry |
29 | THE EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THAT CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT IS INEFFECTIVE, - CAN YOU FIND EVIDENCE TO THE CONTRARY |
30 | Stinting on customer service is one way of saving costs – at what point does it become a costly mistake |
31 | What are the risks and benefits of social media influencers in the 16-25 clothing market?
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32 | Are loyalty cards still working in gaining customer loyalty and advocacy? |
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34 | How can streaming services use big data analytics to drive customer satisfaction and loyalty? A case study on ******** to identify best practice for the sector.
How has local market content increased membership? |
35 | Franchising in the fast-food sector is common, but where is the right balance of power and control between the two parties? A case study of ******** and *******
What improvements would you recommend to help grow a franchise operation further |
Topics relating to CSR | |
36 | CSR, does this have a future in profit motivated organisations? |
37 | Can profit and CSR survive side by side? |
38 | Do we need CSR regulation to ensure companies attempt to become more socially aware |
39 | companies are returning to the use of air freight for moving goods around, Is this a viable alternative? |
40 | Because of problems with a lack of drivers, together with high costs of fuel etc – is this an opportunity to find alternative supply chain systems such as more use of trains etc? |
41 | Is there a future in Elon Musk idea of pods which propel goods around – he suggested that these might move goods at over 600 Miles an hour |
42 | Do we need legislation to ensure that business organisations follow or use social business models? |
43 | China and other markets are finding it difficult to source the quantity of semiconductors and chips. These have become the latest scarce resource. What are the potential consequences of this situation |
Management issues which can be investigated. | |
44 | What might the future of shopping look like? the Pandemic, technological disruptions, the growing power of the consumer are having a major impact on retailers – |
45 | What, if any is the balance between customer satisfaction and dissatisfaction when using call centres? |
46 | What are the key drivers for successful strategic alliances in the automotive sector? A case study of *********
How can this be replicated by other auto manufacturers |
47 | Is there any future for print media and does this have any social consequences - is this a problem for our society |
48 | From a management perspective can print news recover and become profitable again? |
49 | should supermarkets, like our banks close many of their outlets and instead concentrate on home delivery to increase profits? |
50 | Does Board ethnic Diversity Boost stock (share) prices |
Does the inclusion of a high % of women on the Board of a company boost share prices? |
51 | Does equal pay matter or should men be paid more than women and if so why or why not |
52 | What would equal opportunity across organisations look like? |
53 | Is HR a function for the benefit of an organisation’s employees or an arm of Management |
54 | What exactly is leadership and how do you recognise it |
55 | Is Leadership a learned skill or an innate gift? |
56 | There is a lot written about the need for good business ethics. Ethics with regard to pay, to the treatment of people, to respect for the planet but the overall mission of a public limited company is, and has always been, to make profit for the owners (the shareholders) Possible questions: Does Business ethics have a role in business – select any current topical issue to examine in the context of ethics. 1. Is there a contradiction in the idea of business being ethical while also aiming to make profits for owners? |
57 | There is clear evidence that COVID has impacted the wellbeing of workers across the range of organisations, is this a management problem or an individual problem? |
5 | What is collaborative overload and what can be done about it? This is the belief that overuse of collaborative, online software is eating up our days and actually reducing workload? |
57 | The traditional bank was always expensive to run – tellers, banks, cash, using checks and the trans fer system that supports them etc. settlement times, settlement costs, settlement delays, bouncing cheques In a survey recently 60% of banks believe that this old system will disappear and is disappearing very fast in the UK. Does this mean that banks are making more money now that they have eliminated those costs or are we the customers paying less for our banking? Will a move away from paper, coin, and cheque reduce banking costs but increase retailer and end user costs? |
58 | Is growth essential for an economy or has growth peaked in some 1st world countries |
59 | Where is there real potential for future growth in the world – what are the barriers. This can apply to a wide range of countries each with different possible scenarios. Choose one |
60 | Reviewing the economic performance of the UK compared with France and Germany. Is continued quantitative easing working to grow the economy?
What other possible policies could improve the UK inflationary figures? |
61 | people everywhere believe that wellness is important and there has been a massive growth in the development of alternative approaches to wellness. |
Possible questions: Can the change in attitude towards wellness bring new business opportunities for smaller providers to reach much further than their local market. – for example:
There is so much on offer, is this a viable business model? The prediction by McKinsey is that there is a $1.5 trillion wellness market waiting to be exploited. | |
62 | Growth in the development of health-related apps in areas such as
what sort of business opportunities exist for further development and co- operation in these new markets |
63 | IS EMPLOYEE HAPPINESS CONNECTDED TO THEIR JOB PERFORMANCE OR TO THE QUALITEY OF MANAGEMENT – WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE? |
64 | DO HAPPY EMPLOYEES INFLUENCE THE FEELINGS OF OTHRS AROUND THE, - WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE? |
65 | Is “quiet Quitting” a real phenomenon in organisations (this is a new term that has appeared in the press in recent times, it depicts workers who do the bare minimum to remain employed and thus make little real contribution to the organisation) |
66 | Do employers really know what their employees want and if not is it possible for them to find out |
67 | Why are so many people leaving their jobs given the economic forecast in Europe and the US |
68 | Are the CEOs of UK companies too old for the new technological environment - The Majority of companies are run by middle aged men (average age 55) |
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