research problem in management

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• 07 May 2024
• Cold Call Podcast

Lessons in Business Innovation from Legendary Restaurant elBulli

Ferran Adrià, chef at legendary Barcelona-based restaurant elBulli, was facing two related decisions. First, he and his team must continue to develop new and different dishes for elBulli to guarantee a continuous stream of innovation, the cornerstone of the restaurant's success. But they also need to focus on growing the restaurant’s business. Can the team balance both objectives? Professor Michael I. Norton discusses the connections between creativity, emotions, rituals, and innovation – and how they can be applied to other domains – in the case, “elBulli: The Taste of Innovation,” and his new book, The Ritual Effect.

• 26 Apr 2024

Deion Sanders' Prime Lessons for Leading a Team to Victory

The former star athlete known for flash uses unglamorous command-and-control methods to get results as a college football coach. Business leaders can learn 10 key lessons from the way 'Coach Prime' builds a culture of respect and discipline without micromanaging, says Hise Gibson.

• 02 Apr 2024
• What Do You Think?

What's Enough to Make Us Happy?

Experts say happiness is often derived by a combination of good health, financial wellbeing, and solid relationships with family and friends. But are we forgetting to take stock of whether we have enough of these things? asks James Heskett. Open for comment; 0 Comments.

• Research & Ideas

Employees Out Sick? Inside One Company's Creative Approach to Staying Productive

Regular absenteeism can hobble output and even bring down a business. But fostering a collaborative culture that brings managers together can help companies weather surges of sick days and no-shows. Research by Jorge Tamayo shows how.

• 12 Mar 2024

Publish or Perish: What the Research Says About Productivity in Academia

Universities tend to evaluate professors based on their research output, but does that measure reflect the realities of higher ed? A study of 4,300 professors by Kyle Myers, Karim Lakhani, and colleagues probes the time demands, risk appetite, and compensation of faculty.

• 29 Feb 2024

Beyond Goals: David Beckham's Playbook for Mobilizing Star Talent

Reach soccer's pinnacle. Become a global brand. Buy a team. Sign Lionel Messi. David Beckham makes success look as easy as his epic free kicks. But leveraging world-class talent takes discipline and deft decision-making, as case studies by Anita Elberse reveal. What could other businesses learn from his ascent?

• 16 Feb 2024

Is Your Workplace Biased Against Introverts?

Extroverts are more likely to express their passion outwardly, giving them a leg up when it comes to raises and promotions, according to research by Jon Jachimowicz. Introverts are just as motivated and excited about their work, but show it differently. How can managers challenge their assumptions?

• 05 Feb 2024

The Middle Manager of the Future: More Coaching, Less Commanding

Skilled middle managers foster collaboration, inspire employees, and link important functions at companies. An analysis of more than 35 million job postings by Letian Zhang paints a counterintuitive picture of today's midlevel manager. Could these roles provide an innovation edge?

• 24 Jan 2024

Why Boeing’s Problems with the 737 MAX Began More Than 25 Years Ago

Aggressive cost cutting and rocky leadership changes have eroded the culture at Boeing, a company once admired for its engineering rigor, says Bill George. What will it take to repair the reputational damage wrought by years of crises involving its 737 MAX?

• 16 Jan 2024

How SolarWinds Responded to the 2020 SUNBURST Cyberattack

In December of 2020, SolarWinds learned that they had fallen victim to hackers. Unknown actors had inserted malware called SUNBURST into a software update, potentially granting hackers access to thousands of its customers’ data, including government agencies across the globe and the US military. General Counsel Jason Bliss needed to orchestrate the company’s response without knowing how many of its 300,000 customers had been affected, or how severely. What’s more, the existing CEO was scheduled to step down and incoming CEO Sudhakar Ramakrishna had yet to come on board. Bliss needed to immediately communicate the company’s action plan with customers and the media. In this episode of Cold Call, Professor Frank Nagle discusses SolarWinds’ response to this supply chain attack in the case, “SolarWinds Confronts SUNBURST.”

• 02 Jan 2024

Do Boomerang CEOs Get a Bad Rap?

Several companies have brought back formerly successful CEOs in hopes of breathing new life into their organizations—with mixed results. But are we even measuring the boomerang CEOs' performance properly? asks James Heskett. Open for comment; 0 Comments.

• 12 Dec 2023

COVID Tested Global Supply Chains. Here’s How They’ve Adapted

A global supply chain reshuffling is underway as companies seek to diversify their distribution networks in response to pandemic-related shocks, says research by Laura Alfaro. What do these shifts mean for American businesses and buyers?

• 05 Dec 2023

What Founders Get Wrong about Sales and Marketing

Which sales candidate is a startup’s ideal first hire? What marketing channels are best to invest in? How aggressively should an executive team align sales with customer success? Senior Lecturer Mark Roberge discusses how early-stage founders, sales leaders, and marketing executives can address these challenges as they grow their ventures in the case, “Entrepreneurial Sales and Marketing Vignettes.”

• 31 Oct 2023

Checking Your Ethics: Would You Speak Up in These 3 Sticky Situations?

Would you complain about a client who verbally abuses their staff? Would you admit to cutting corners on your work? The answers aren't always clear, says David Fubini, who tackles tricky scenarios in a series of case studies and offers his advice from the field.

• 12 Sep 2023

Can Remote Surgeries Digitally Transform Operating Rooms?

Launched in 2016, Proximie was a platform that enabled clinicians, proctors, and medical device company personnel to be virtually present in operating rooms, where they would use mixed reality and digital audio and visual tools to communicate with, mentor, assist, and observe those performing medical procedures. The goal was to improve patient outcomes. The company had grown quickly, and its technology had been used in tens of thousands of procedures in more than 50 countries and 500 hospitals. It had raised close to $50 million in equity financing and was now entering strategic partnerships to broaden its reach. Nadine Hachach-Haram, founder and CEO of Proximie, aspired for Proximie to become a platform that powered every operating room in the world, but she had to carefully consider the company’s partnership and data strategies in order to scale. What approach would position the company best for the next stage of growth? Harvard Business School associate professor Ariel Stern discusses creating value in health care through a digital transformation of operating rooms in her case, “Proximie: Using XR Technology to Create Borderless Operating Rooms.”

• 28 Aug 2023

The Clock Is Ticking: 3 Ways to Manage Your Time Better

Life is short. Are you using your time wisely? Leslie Perlow, Arthur Brooks, and DJ DiDonna offer time management advice to help you work smarter and live happier.

• 15 Aug 2023

Ryan Serhant: How to Manage Your Time for Happiness

Real estate entrepreneur, television star, husband, and father Ryan Serhant is incredibly busy and successful. He starts his days at 4:00 am and often doesn’t end them until 11:00 pm. But, it wasn’t always like that. In 2020, just a few months after the US began to shut down in order to prevent the spread of the Covid-19 virus, Serhant had time to reflect on his career as a real estate broker in New York City, wondering if the period of selling real estate at record highs was over. He considered whether he should stay at his current real estate brokerage or launch his own brokerage during a pandemic? Each option had very different implications for his time and flexibility. Professor Ashley Whillans and her co-author Hawken Lord (MBA 2023) discuss Serhant’s time management techniques and consider the lessons we can all learn about making time our most valuable commodity in the case, “Ryan Serhant: Time Management for Repeatable Success.”

• 08 Aug 2023

The Rise of Employee Analytics: Productivity Dream or Micromanagement Nightmare?

"People analytics"—using employee data to make management decisions—could soon transform the workplace and hiring, but implementation will be critical, says Jeffrey Polzer. After all, do managers really need to know about employees' every keystroke?

• 01 Aug 2023

Can Business Transform Primary Health Care Across Africa?

mPharma, headquartered in Ghana, is trying to create the largest pan-African health care company. Their mission is to provide primary care and a reliable and fairly priced supply of drugs in the nine African countries where they operate. Co-founder and CEO Gregory Rockson needs to decide which component of strategy to prioritize in the next three years. His options include launching a telemedicine program, expanding his pharmacies across the continent, and creating a new payment program to cover the cost of common medications. Rockson cares deeply about health equity, but his venture capital-financed company also must be profitable. Which option should he focus on expanding? Harvard Business School Professor Regina Herzlinger and case protagonist Gregory Rockson discuss the important role business plays in improving health care in the case, “mPharma: Scaling Access to Affordable Primary Care in Africa.”

• 05 Jul 2023

How Unilever Is Preparing for the Future of Work

Launched in 2016, Unilever’s Future of Work initiative aimed to accelerate the speed of change throughout the organization and prepare its workforce for a digitalized and highly automated era. But despite its success over the last three years, the program still faces significant challenges in its implementation. How should Unilever, one of the world's largest consumer goods companies, best prepare and upscale its workforce for the future? How should Unilever adapt and accelerate the speed of change throughout the organization? Is it even possible to lead a systematic, agile workforce transformation across several geographies while accounting for local context? Harvard Business School professor and faculty co-chair of the Managing the Future of Work Project William Kerr and Patrick Hull, Unilever’s vice president of global learning and future of work, discuss how rapid advances in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and automation are changing the nature of work in the case, “Unilever's Response to the Future of Work.”

• USC Libraries
• Research Guides

Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Paper

• The Research Problem/Question
• Purpose of Guide
• Design Flaws to Avoid
• Independent and Dependent Variables
• Glossary of Research Terms
• Reading Research Effectively
• Narrowing a Topic Idea
• Broadening a Topic Idea
• Extending the Timeliness of a Topic Idea
• Academic Writing Style
• Applying Critical Thinking
• Choosing a Title
• Making an Outline
• Paragraph Development
• Research Process Video Series
• Executive Summary
• The C.A.R.S. Model
• Background Information
• Theoretical Framework
• Citation Tracking
• Content Alert Services
• Evaluating Sources
• Primary Sources
• Secondary Sources
• Tiertiary Sources
• Scholarly vs. Popular Publications
• Qualitative Methods
• Quantitative Methods
• Insiderness
• Using Non-Textual Elements
• Limitations of the Study
• Common Grammar Mistakes
• Writing Concisely
• Avoiding Plagiarism
• Footnotes or Endnotes?
• Further Readings
• Generative AI and Writing
• USC Libraries Tutorials and Other Guides
• Bibliography

A research problem is a definite or clear expression [statement] about an area of concern, a condition to be improved upon, a difficulty to be eliminated, or a troubling question that exists in scholarly literature, in theory, or within existing practice that points to a need for meaningful understanding and deliberate investigation. A research problem does not state how to do something, offer a vague or broad proposition, or present a value question. In the social and behavioral sciences, studies are most often framed around examining a problem that needs to be understood and resolved in order to improve society and the human condition.

Bryman, Alan. “The Research Question in Social Research: What is its Role?” International Journal of Social Research Methodology 10 (2007): 5-20; Guba, Egon G., and Yvonna S. Lincoln. “Competing Paradigms in Qualitative Research.” In Handbook of Qualitative Research . Norman K. Denzin and Yvonna S. Lincoln, editors. (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 1994), pp. 105-117; Pardede, Parlindungan. “Identifying and Formulating the Research Problem." Research in ELT: Module 4 (October 2018): 1-13; Li, Yanmei, and Sumei Zhang. "Identifying the Research Problem." In Applied Research Methods in Urban and Regional Planning . (Cham, Switzerland: Springer International Publishing, 2022), pp. 13-21.

Importance of...

The purpose of a problem statement is to:

• Introduce the reader to the importance of the topic being studied . The reader is oriented to the significance of the study.
• Anchors the research questions, hypotheses, or assumptions to follow . It offers a concise statement about the purpose of your paper.
• Place the topic into a particular context that defines the parameters of what is to be investigated.
• Provide the framework for reporting the results and indicates what is probably necessary to conduct the study and explain how the findings will present this information.

In the social sciences, the research problem establishes the means by which you must answer the "So What?" question. This declarative question refers to a research problem surviving the relevancy test [the quality of a measurement procedure that provides repeatability and accuracy]. Note that answering the "So What?" question requires a commitment on your part to not only show that you have reviewed the literature, but that you have thoroughly considered the significance of the research problem and its implications applied to creating new knowledge and understanding or informing practice.

To survive the "So What" question, problem statements should possess the following attributes:

• Clarity and precision [a well-written statement does not make sweeping generalizations and irresponsible pronouncements; it also does include unspecific determinates like "very" or "giant"],
• Demonstrate a researchable topic or issue [i.e., feasibility of conducting the study is based upon access to information that can be effectively acquired, gathered, interpreted, synthesized, and understood],
• Identification of what would be studied, while avoiding the use of value-laden words and terms,
• Identification of an overarching question or small set of questions accompanied by key factors or variables,
• Identification of key concepts and terms,
• Articulation of the study's conceptual boundaries or parameters or limitations,
• Some generalizability in regards to applicability and bringing results into general use,
• Conveyance of the study's importance, benefits, and justification [i.e., regardless of the type of research, it is important to demonstrate that the research is not trivial],
• Does not have unnecessary jargon or overly complex sentence constructions; and,
• Conveyance of more than the mere gathering of descriptive data providing only a snapshot of the issue or phenomenon under investigation.

Bryman, Alan. “The Research Question in Social Research: What is its Role?” International Journal of Social Research Methodology 10 (2007): 5-20; Brown, Perry J., Allen Dyer, and Ross S. Whaley. "Recreation Research—So What?" Journal of Leisure Research 5 (1973): 16-24; Castellanos, Susie. Critical Writing and Thinking. The Writing Center. Dean of the College. Brown University; Ellis, Timothy J. and Yair Levy Nova. "Framework of Problem-Based Research: A Guide for Novice Researchers on the Development of a Research-Worthy Problem." Informing Science: the International Journal of an Emerging Transdiscipline 11 (2008); Thesis and Purpose Statements. The Writer’s Handbook. Writing Center. University of Wisconsin, Madison; Thesis Statements. The Writing Center. University of North Carolina; Tips and Examples for Writing Thesis Statements. The Writing Lab and The OWL. Purdue University; Selwyn, Neil. "‘So What?’…A Question that Every Journal Article Needs to Answer." Learning, Media, and Technology 39 (2014): 1-5; Shoket, Mohd. "Research Problem: Identification and Formulation." International Journal of Research 1 (May 2014): 512-518.

Structure and Writing Style

I.  Types and Content

There are four general conceptualizations of a research problem in the social sciences:

• Casuist Research Problem -- this type of problem relates to the determination of right and wrong in questions of conduct or conscience by analyzing moral dilemmas through the application of general rules and the careful distinction of special cases.
• Difference Research Problem -- typically asks the question, “Is there a difference between two or more groups or treatments?” This type of problem statement is used when the researcher compares or contrasts two or more phenomena. This a common approach to defining a problem in the clinical social sciences or behavioral sciences.
• Descriptive Research Problem -- typically asks the question, "what is...?" with the underlying purpose to describe the significance of a situation, state, or existence of a specific phenomenon. This problem is often associated with revealing hidden or understudied issues.
• Relational Research Problem -- suggests a relationship of some sort between two or more variables to be investigated. The underlying purpose is to investigate specific qualities or characteristics that may be connected in some way.

A problem statement in the social sciences should contain :

• A lead-in that helps ensure the reader will maintain interest over the study,
• A declaration of originality [e.g., mentioning a knowledge void or a lack of clarity about a topic that will be revealed in the literature review of prior research],
• An indication of the central focus of the study [establishing the boundaries of analysis], and
• An explanation of the study's significance or the benefits to be derived from investigating the research problem.

NOTE :   A statement describing the research problem of your paper should not be viewed as a thesis statement that you may be familiar with from high school. Given the content listed above, a description of the research problem is usually a short paragraph in length.

II.  Sources of Problems for Investigation

The identification of a problem to study can be challenging, not because there's a lack of issues that could be investigated, but due to the challenge of formulating an academically relevant and researchable problem which is unique and does not simply duplicate the work of others. To facilitate how you might select a problem from which to build a research study, consider these sources of inspiration:

Deductions from Theory This relates to deductions made from social philosophy or generalizations embodied in life and in society that the researcher is familiar with. These deductions from human behavior are then placed within an empirical frame of reference through research. From a theory, the researcher can formulate a research problem or hypothesis stating the expected findings in certain empirical situations. The research asks the question: “What relationship between variables will be observed if theory aptly summarizes the state of affairs?” One can then design and carry out a systematic investigation to assess whether empirical data confirm or reject the hypothesis, and hence, the theory.

Interdisciplinary Perspectives Identifying a problem that forms the basis for a research study can come from academic movements and scholarship originating in disciplines outside of your primary area of study. This can be an intellectually stimulating exercise. A review of pertinent literature should include examining research from related disciplines that can reveal new avenues of exploration and analysis. An interdisciplinary approach to selecting a research problem offers an opportunity to construct a more comprehensive understanding of a very complex issue that any single discipline may be able to provide.

Interviewing Practitioners The identification of research problems about particular topics can arise from formal interviews or informal discussions with practitioners who provide insight into new directions for future research and how to make research findings more relevant to practice. Discussions with experts in the field, such as, teachers, social workers, health care providers, lawyers, business leaders, etc., offers the chance to identify practical, “real world” problems that may be understudied or ignored within academic circles. This approach also provides some practical knowledge which may help in the process of designing and conducting your study.

Personal Experience Don't undervalue your everyday experiences or encounters as worthwhile problems for investigation. Think critically about your own experiences and/or frustrations with an issue facing society or related to your community, your neighborhood, your family, or your personal life. This can be derived, for example, from deliberate observations of certain relationships for which there is no clear explanation or witnessing an event that appears harmful to a person or group or that is out of the ordinary.

Relevant Literature The selection of a research problem can be derived from a thorough review of pertinent research associated with your overall area of interest. This may reveal where gaps exist in understanding a topic or where an issue has been understudied. Research may be conducted to: 1) fill such gaps in knowledge; 2) evaluate if the methodologies employed in prior studies can be adapted to solve other problems; or, 3) determine if a similar study could be conducted in a different subject area or applied in a different context or to different study sample [i.e., different setting or different group of people]. Also, authors frequently conclude their studies by noting implications for further research; read the conclusion of pertinent studies because statements about further research can be a valuable source for identifying new problems to investigate. The fact that a researcher has identified a topic worthy of further exploration validates the fact it is worth pursuing.

III.  What Makes a Good Research Statement?

A good problem statement begins by introducing the broad area in which your research is centered, gradually leading the reader to the more specific issues you are investigating. The statement need not be lengthy, but a good research problem should incorporate the following features:

1.  Compelling Topic The problem chosen should be one that motivates you to address it but simple curiosity is not a good enough reason to pursue a research study because this does not indicate significance. The problem that you choose to explore must be important to you, but it must also be viewed as important by your readers and to a the larger academic and/or social community that could be impacted by the results of your study. 2.  Supports Multiple Perspectives The problem must be phrased in a way that avoids dichotomies and instead supports the generation and exploration of multiple perspectives. A general rule of thumb in the social sciences is that a good research problem is one that would generate a variety of viewpoints from a composite audience made up of reasonable people. 3.  Researchability This isn't a real word but it represents an important aspect of creating a good research statement. It seems a bit obvious, but you don't want to find yourself in the midst of investigating a complex research project and realize that you don't have enough prior research to draw from for your analysis. There's nothing inherently wrong with original research, but you must choose research problems that can be supported, in some way, by the resources available to you. If you are not sure if something is researchable, don't assume that it isn't if you don't find information right away--seek help from a librarian !

NOTE:   Do not confuse a research problem with a research topic. A topic is something to read and obtain information about, whereas a problem is something to be solved or framed as a question raised for inquiry, consideration, or solution, or explained as a source of perplexity, distress, or vexation. In short, a research topic is something to be understood; a research problem is something that needs to be investigated.

IV.  Asking Analytical Questions about the Research Problem

Research problems in the social and behavioral sciences are often analyzed around critical questions that must be investigated. These questions can be explicitly listed in the introduction [i.e., "This study addresses three research questions about women's psychological recovery from domestic abuse in multi-generational home settings..."], or, the questions are implied in the text as specific areas of study related to the research problem. Explicitly listing your research questions at the end of your introduction can help in designing a clear roadmap of what you plan to address in your study, whereas, implicitly integrating them into the text of the introduction allows you to create a more compelling narrative around the key issues under investigation. Either approach is appropriate.

The number of questions you attempt to address should be based on the complexity of the problem you are investigating and what areas of inquiry you find most critical to study. Practical considerations, such as, the length of the paper you are writing or the availability of resources to analyze the issue can also factor in how many questions to ask. In general, however, there should be no more than four research questions underpinning a single research problem.

Given this, well-developed analytical questions can focus on any of the following:

• Highlights a genuine dilemma, area of ambiguity, or point of confusion about a topic open to interpretation by your readers;
• Yields an answer that is unexpected and not obvious rather than inevitable and self-evident;
• Provokes meaningful thought or discussion;
• Raises the visibility of the key ideas or concepts that may be understudied or hidden;
• Suggests the need for complex analysis or argument rather than a basic description or summary; and,
• Offers a specific path of inquiry that avoids eliciting generalizations about the problem.

NOTE:   Questions of how and why concerning a research problem often require more analysis than questions about who, what, where, and when. You should still ask yourself these latter questions, however. Thinking introspectively about the who, what, where, and when of a research problem can help ensure that you have thoroughly considered all aspects of the problem under investigation and helps define the scope of the study in relation to the problem.

V.  Mistakes to Avoid

Beware of circular reasoning! Do not state the research problem as simply the absence of the thing you are suggesting. For example, if you propose the following, "The problem in this community is that there is no hospital," this only leads to a research problem where:

• The need is for a hospital
• The objective is to create a hospital
• The method is to plan for building a hospital, and
• The evaluation is to measure if there is a hospital or not.

This is an example of a research problem that fails the "So What?" test . In this example, the problem does not reveal the relevance of why you are investigating the fact there is no hospital in the community [e.g., perhaps there's a hospital in the community ten miles away]; it does not elucidate the significance of why one should study the fact there is no hospital in the community [e.g., that hospital in the community ten miles away has no emergency room]; the research problem does not offer an intellectual pathway towards adding new knowledge or clarifying prior knowledge [e.g., the county in which there is no hospital already conducted a study about the need for a hospital, but it was conducted ten years ago]; and, the problem does not offer meaningful outcomes that lead to recommendations that can be generalized for other situations or that could suggest areas for further research [e.g., the challenges of building a new hospital serves as a case study for other communities].

Alvesson, Mats and Jörgen Sandberg. “Generating Research Questions Through Problematization.” Academy of Management Review 36 (April 2011): 247-271 ; Choosing and Refining Topics. Writing@CSU. Colorado State University; D'Souza, Victor S. "Use of Induction and Deduction in Research in Social Sciences: An Illustration." Journal of the Indian Law Institute 24 (1982): 655-661; Ellis, Timothy J. and Yair Levy Nova. "Framework of Problem-Based Research: A Guide for Novice Researchers on the Development of a Research-Worthy Problem." Informing Science: the International Journal of an Emerging Transdiscipline 11 (2008); How to Write a Research Question. The Writing Center. George Mason University; Invention: Developing a Thesis Statement. The Reading/Writing Center. Hunter College; Problem Statements PowerPoint Presentation. The Writing Lab and The OWL. Purdue University; Procter, Margaret. Using Thesis Statements. University College Writing Centre. University of Toronto; Shoket, Mohd. "Research Problem: Identification and Formulation." International Journal of Research 1 (May 2014): 512-518; Trochim, William M.K. Problem Formulation. Research Methods Knowledge Base. 2006; Thesis and Purpose Statements. The Writer’s Handbook. Writing Center. University of Wisconsin, Madison; Thesis Statements. The Writing Center. University of North Carolina; Tips and Examples for Writing Thesis Statements. The Writing Lab and The OWL. Purdue University; Pardede, Parlindungan. “Identifying and Formulating the Research Problem." Research in ELT: Module 4 (October 2018): 1-13; Walk, Kerry. Asking an Analytical Question. [Class handout or worksheet]. Princeton University; White, Patrick. Developing Research Questions: A Guide for Social Scientists . New York: Palgrave McMillan, 2009; Li, Yanmei, and Sumei Zhang. "Identifying the Research Problem." In Applied Research Methods in Urban and Regional Planning . (Cham, Switzerland: Springer International Publishing, 2022), pp. 13-21.

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• Research Process

What is a Problem Statement? [with examples]

• 5 minute read
• 981.5K views

Table of Contents

The statement of the problem is one of the first things that a colleague or potential client will read. With the vastness of the information available at one’s fingertips in the online9 world, your work may have just a few seconds to draw in a reader to take a deeper look at your proposal before moving on to the next option. It explains quickly to the reader, the problem at hand, the need for research, and how you intend to do it.

A strong, clear description of the problem that drew you to your research has to be straightforward, easy to read and, most important, relevant. Why do you care about this problem? How can solving this problem impact the world? The problem statement is your opportunity to explain why you care and what you propose to do in the way of researching the problem.

A problem statement is an explanation in research that describes the issue that is in need of study . What problem is the research attempting to address? Having a Problem Statement allows the reader to quickly understand the purpose and intent of the research. The importance of writing your research proposal cannot be stressed enough. Check for more information on Writing a Scientific Research Project Proposal .

It is expected to be brief and concise , and should not include the findings of the research or detailed data . The average length of a research statement is generally about one page . It is going to define the problem, which can be thought of as a gap in the information base. There may be several solutions to this gap or lack of information, but that is not the concern of the problem statement. Its purpose is to summarize the current information and where a lack of knowledge may be presenting a problem that needs to be investigated .

The purpose of the problem statement is to identify the issue that is a concern and focus it in a way that allows it to be studied in a systematic way . It defines the problem and proposes a way to research a solution, or demonstrates why further information is needed in order for a solution to become possible.

What is Included in a Problem Statement?

Besides identifying the gap of understanding or the weakness of necessary data, it is important to explain the significance of this lack.

-How will your research contribute to the existing knowledge base in your field of study?

-How is it significant?

-Why does it matter?

Not all problems have only one solution so demonstrating the need for additional research can also be included in your problem statement. Once you identify the problem and the need for a solution, or for further study, then you can show how you intend to collect the needed data and present it.

How to Write a Statement of Problem in Research Proposal

It is helpful to begin with your goal. What do you see as the achievable goal if the problem you outline is solved? How will the proposed research theoretically change anything? What are the potential outcomes?

Then you can discuss how the problem prevents the ability to reach your realistic and achievable solution. It is what stands in the way of changing an issue for the better. Talk about the present state of affairs and how the problem impacts a person’s life, for example.

It’s helpful at this point to generally layout the present knowledge and understanding of the subject at hand, before then describing the gaps of knowledge that are currently in need of study. Your problem statement is a proposed solution to address one of these gaps.

A good problem statement will also layout the repercussions of leaving the problem as it currently stands. What is the significance of not addressing this problem? What are the possible future outcomes?

Example of Problem Statement in Research Proposal

If, for example , you intended to research the effect of vitamin D supplementation on the immune system , you would begin with a review of the current knowledge of vitamin D’s known function in relation to the immune system and how a deficiency of it impacts a person’s defenses.

You would describe the ideal environment in the body when there is a sufficient level of vitamin D. Then, begin to identify the problems associated with vitamin D deficiency and the difficulty of raising the level through supplementation, along with the consequences of that deficiency. Here you are beginning to identify the problem of a common deficiency and the current difficulty of increasing the level of vitamin D in the blood.

At this stage, you may begin to identify the problem and narrow it down in a way that is practical to a research project. Perhaps you are proposing a novel way of introducing Vitamin D in a way that allows for better absorption by the gut, or in a combination with another product that increases its level in the blood.

Describe the way your research in this area will contribute to the knowledge base on how to increase levels of vitamin D in a specific group of subjects, perhaps menopausal women with breast cancer. The research proposal is then described in practical terms.

How to write a problem statement in research?

Problem statements differ depending on the type and topic of research and vary between a few sentences to a few paragraphs.

However, the problem statement should not drag on needlessly. Despite the absence of a fixed format, a good research problem statement usually consists of three main parts:

Context: This section explains the background for your research. It identifies the problem and describes an ideal scenario that could exist in the absence of the problem. It also includes any past attempts and shortcomings at solving the problem.

Significance: This section defines how the problem prevents the ideal scenario from being achieved, including its negative impacts on the society or field of research. It should include who will be the most affected by a solution to the problem, the relevance of the study that you are proposing, and how it can contribute to the existing body of research.

Solution: This section describes the aim and objectives of your research, and your solution to overcome the problem. Finally, it need not focus on the perfect solution, but rather on addressing a realistic goal to move closer to the ideal scenario.

Here is a cheat sheet to help you with formulating a good problem statement.

1. Begin with a clear indication that the problem statement is going to be discussed next. You can start with a generic sentence like, “The problem that this study addresses…” This will inform your readers of what to expect next.

2. Next, mention the consequences of not solving the problem . You can touch upon who is or will be affected if the problem continues, and how.

3. Conclude with indicating the type of research /information that is needed to solve the problem. Be sure to reference authors who may have suggested the necessity of such research.

This will then directly lead to your proposed research objective and workplan and how that is expected to solve the problem i.e., close the research gap.

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International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS)

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•                                                                       Strengthening Social Sciences for the Future
• May Issue 2024
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Research Problems in Management Sciences: An Expository Approach

• OSADEME Gloria Chinagozi
• Jun 30, 2023
• Business Management

OSADEME Gloria Chinagozi Department of Business Administrations, Lagos State University, Ojo

DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.47772/IJRISS.2023.7634

Received: 02 May 2023; Revised: 24 May 2023; Accepted: 27 May 2023; Published: 29 June 2023

The importance of the research problem cannot be over emphasised, as the success of a study is dependent on the identification of an appropriate problem. One of the most difficult tasks for a researcher is identifying a researchable problem to study. This study explored the identification of research problem in management sciences research. The study adopted an exploratory research design. Further, an evaluation of the types, sources, and procedure for formulating research problem as well as research problem statement in the field of management sciences was carried out. The study revealed three types of research problems: exploratory, causal, and relational research problems; three major sources of research problems: empirical, theoretical, and conceptual deductions; a model of research problem conceptualisation; and appropriate ways of writing problem statements in management sciences. The study concluded that identifying and conceptualising research problems as well as developing problem statements is an essential part of the research process, which must be done appropriately. The study suggested that researchers use the model to identify and formulate an appropriate research problem prior to conducting a study, because the research problem is the bedrock of all research.

Key words: Identification, Management Sciences, Methodologies, Problem Statement, and Research Problem.

INTRODUCTION

The first step in the scientific research method, according to Kebritchi (2017) is the recognition of a felt difficulty, an obstacle, or a problem that perplexes the researcher. A situation becomes a problem when it affects a single person, a group of people, or a community as a whole. A problem is defined as an issue that appears to necessitate interpretation and as matter that require change in order to be resolved (Jonker & Pennink, 2010).The first and most important step in management sciences research is the identification of research problems, without which no research can be conducted. It is like knowing where one is going before embarking on a journey (Walia & Chetty, 2020).It forms the basis for the entire research process. It is also similar to the foundation of a future building, and developing a plan of a building is a difficult task. Similarly, identifying different research problems is a difficult task (Shoket, 2014). The fuel that propels the entire scientific research process is research problems. As a result, in contemporary management sciences research, problem identification is of the utmost importance for the researcher before the research is conducted (Simmi, Tanu, & John, 2019).

When a problem is effectively identified and formulated, subsequent research efforts are facilitated (Shoket, 2014). Problem identification and formulation involves the researcher psychologically, induces restlessness, and piques his/her interest in finding a solution to the problem. Problems do not occur in a vacuum; rather, they are context dependent (Bryman, 2007). According to Simmi, et al. (2019)the fundamental component of an excellent research is an explicitly stated research problem that is essential in revealing natural mysteries. The research problem defines the problem to be investigated and guides the methodology. It results in the development of an appropriate research objective, research question, and research hypothesis. As a result, the research problem is aimed at investigating an existing ambiguity regarding a particular area of concern and demonstrates the need for deliberate investigation. A good research problem helps to develop a focused arguable thesis and the construction of a logical argument (Hashimi, 2015).

Management sciences is a broad multidisciplinary study of problem solving and decision making in human organisations, with solid links to economics,  business, management consulting, engineering, and other fields (Paavo, Sabrina & Snejina, 2020). It uses a variety of scientific research-based strategies, principles, and analytical methods, such as numerical algorithms, mathematical modelling, and statistics to enhance an organisation’s capacity for making logical and accurate management decisions by arriving at optimal or near-optimum answers to complex issues (Ellis &Yair, 2018). Management science research helps businesses achieve their goals by utilising various scientific methods (Bracio & Szarucki, 2020).

Thus, identifying and developing a compelling problem statement is critical in management science research because it functions as a communication tool and is critical in the context of research with the objective of enhancing individuals, groups, and companies,  (Ellis &Yair, 2018). The most important goal of the problem statement is to precisely and clearly define the issue under discussion. Maintaining focus and keeping the research on track.  It is revised at the conclusion of the research to make sure that the solution chosen addresses the problem (Hashimi, 2015).

The aim of this study is to shed more light on the identification of research problems in management sciences. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to review the current state of affairs and present some guiding considerations in the identification of research problems in management sciences.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The significance of the research problem cannot be overstated, as the success of a study depends on identifying a suitable problem (Fischler, 2019). One of the most challenging tasks for a researcher is to identify a research problem to study (Fischler, 2019). It calls for a significant amount of thought, searching, and speculation on the part of the researcher. In addition, it calls for a substantial amount of effort, time, and energy (Miles, 2019). A novice researcher will typically struggle to determine how to locate the problem situation (Miles, 2019). A poor problem identification and formulation may fail to keep researchers interested in the study and may land the researcher in unanticipated difficulties later on (Alvesson& Sandberg, 2011). According to Nixon (2019), identifying and formulating a research problem can sometimes be more challenging than resolving it.

This challenge could be attributed to the researchers being unable to identify relevant research problems without duplicating and repeating prior research, rather than a lack of researchable problems (Simmi, Tanu, & John, 2019). This inability may occur because the researcher lacks in-depth knowledge of the research process. The researcher may not be familiar with the areas for research as well as the procedures that must be complied with in order to identify a suitable area of research (Oyediran, 2019). New researchers have an unattainable, thereby unrealistic view of the research problem. Even an experienced researcher finds it challenging to list all of the problems that require investigation (Alvesson& Sandberg, 2013). Further, even after identifying the research problem, some researchers struggle to come up with a suitable problem statement (Fischler, 2019).

However, it is clear that the importance of identifying and formulating a research problem has been formalised in academic circles. Studies have been carried out on this topic such as, Oyediran (2019), Alvesson and Sandberg (2011), Shoket (2014), Simmi, Tanu & John (2019), Kebritchi (2017), and Bryman (2007), among others. Surprisingly, there are limited existing studies on this topic that contains a comprehensive discussion and presentation of the identification of research problems, as well as the proper way of writing a problem statement, particularly in management sciences research. Further, books on research methods does not appear to place enough emphasis on it. Its treatment is usually both precise and scanty.

Researchers frequently asks these questions, “How can I come up with a researchable problem?”  “How do I know it is a valuable research problem that the panel will accept?” “How do I write a problem statement appropriately?” This paper is an attempt to provide answers to these questions. This study is proposed as a systematic exposition to shed more light on this subject.

Research Objective

The specific objective of this study is to:

Explore research problem identification and formulation in management sciences research.

METHODOLOGY

This study utilised exploratory research design and it relies on secondary data gathered from various publications, journals, textbooks, and internet sources that focused on research problem.

Conceptual Review

Research Problem

Nixon (2019) asserts that organisational issues or opportunities serve as the basis for research problems. If there is a problem, it means that the organisation is not operating at its best. In other words, problems occur when there is a mismatch or gap between the current state (of an organisational procedure, system, sub-system, process, etc.) and the desired state (Nixon, 2019). When a manager identifies a problem, they want to solve it. When a researcher discovers a gap, it is classified as a research problem, which should be, addressed (Simmi, Tanu & John, 2019).

A research problem is a statement about an area of concern, a condition that needs to be improved, a difficulty that needs to be solved, or a perplexing question that exists in scholarly literature, theory, or practise and shows a requirement for significant comprehension and intentional investigation (Sanjay, 2015). The research problem, according to Bryman (2007), is the heart of a study. It is a concise, specific statement of the area of concern or investigation that is supported by evidence. It propels research questions and processes while also providing a structure to comprehend research findings (Kebritchi, 2017). The research problem is a gap in existing knowledge that the researcher desires to be filled, a problem with a well-known and well-documented process or practise requiring a solution, or some unforeseen occurrences or prior results that suggest the need for additional investigation (Oyediran, 2019). The approach can be theoretical or practical, and the type of problem addressed is determined by the type of research desired (Antony, 2022).

Researchers should not, in any case, duplicate the opinions of others previously stated, pose a question that is far too broad to be answered within the scope of their research, or be so unclear that the reader is confused of their reasons for conducting the study (Oyediran, 2019). To avoid such problems, researchers must define the research problem clearly, contextualise it, and emphasise its significance to their field of study, the larger research community, or even the general public (Antony, 2022). According to Padede (2018), defining a research problem serves three purposes: It highlights the importance of the research topic. it helps the researcher in correctly defining the parameters of the investigation  by placing the problem in a specific context. It serves as a framework for future presentations of the results.

The research problem defines how the researcher will answer the question “So what?” The question “So what?” refers to a research problem that has passed the relevancy test (reliability and accuracy of a measurement procedure). Answering the “So what?” question requires the researchers to demonstrate not only that they have researched the material, but also that they have considered its significance (Sivarkuma & Szalinski, 2016).According to Sivarkuma and Szalinski (2016), research problems for business and management research could include existing business problems for which a manager requires a solution, and situations that can be viewed as opportunities for the organisation, for which the manager may not require an immediate solution. Hence, in this study, research problem is defined as a gap between the current and desired states as well as a brief and concise statement of a challenge or question, with the goal of eliciting a solution or answer.

When analysing a problematic situation, Shoket (2014) stated that an investigator should perform the following major tasks

• Gathering facts that may be relevant to the problem.
• Determining whether the facts are relevant.
• Tracing any relationship between facts that may reveal the key difficulty.
• Proposing various explanations for the source of the difficulty.
• Using observation and analysis, determine whether these explanations are relevant to the problem.
• Tracing the relationship between explanations that may provide insight into the problem.

Types of Research Problem

There are three types of research problems: Exploratory (relates to issues that need to be studied), Relational (research questions that focus on the relationship between two or more variables), and Causal research (problems that look at cause and effect) (Walia & Chetty, 2020).

Exploratory Research Problem: This addresses questions such as ‘what is?’ with the goal of describing a specific phenomenon’s situation, state, or existence. They make an attempt to depict what already exists in a group or population.  Example, ‘What are the primary factors influencing consumer purchasing decisions?’ (Walia & Chetty, 2020).   Cross-sectional studies and longitudinal studies are used to collect data on these issues. However, data collection methods such as mail, online or offline surveys, and interviews can be used in both cases (Walia & Chetty, 2020). When conducting exploratory research, variables and hypotheses cannot be manipulated because they are usually non-directional (Hashimi, 2015).

Causal Research Problem: According to Walia and Chetty (2020), the goal of this type of research problem is to determine the extent and nature of cause and effect relationships. Such research questions help to determine the impact of various changes on existing norms and processes. As a result, they can recognise patterns in the relationships between various elements (Walia & Chetty, 2020). Experiments are the most commonly used method of gathering primary data in such cases. In this case, the hypothesis is usually directional, explaining how one factor influences the behaviour of another (Sharma, 2015). Such studies enable the researcher to manipulate the variables to his or her liking. There are two methods for collecting data for causal research: laboratory experiments and field experiments (Muhammad &Kabir, 2018).

Relational Research Problem: Based on this research problem, some kind of relationship between two variables must be investigated. The objective is to investigate the qualities or characteristics that are related in some way (Sharma, 2015). As a result, using more than one variable to describe the relationship between them is required in this type of research problem (Shoket, 2014).

The following considerations should be made when selecting a research problem type.

Identifying the concepts and terms that comprise the topic is the first step in determining the appropriate problem type, this entails determining the variables of the study (Alvesson& Sandberg, 2013). An exploratory research problem, for example, has only one variable. It is most likely relational or causal research if there are two variables (Walia & Chetty, 2020).

The second step is to conduct a literature review in order to improve the method of investigation and determine the best methods of analysis (Walliman, 2011). For instance, how much research has been done on this subject? What methods and data were used by previous researchers? What did their investigation omit? What factors did they employ? The answers to these questions will be useful in developing the best research strategy (Walia & Chetty, 2020; Padede, 2018).

The third step is to look for resources that will assist the researcher in broadening, revising, and strengthening their initial ideas. A more in-depth examination of the research will answer critical questions like, “Is a relational approach better than an investigative approach?” How will removing a few variables affect the study’s outcome? (Muhammad & Kabir, 2018; Padede, 2018).

SOURCES OF RESEARCH PROBLEMS

According to Nixon (2019), each researcher selects a problem based on his or her own needs and objectives. It is difficult, if not impossible, to identify a specific problem or issue without a frame of reference (experience, theory, group of concepts, etc.). That is, regardless of the problem or issue under consideration by the researcher, certain influences will inform how the researcher describes and explains the problem to the audience (Nixon, 2019). However, the following are some useful resources to help researchers identify a suitable and significant problem.

Empirical Deductions

This relates to research problems originated or based on observation or experience, such as:

Personal Experience: Everyday experiences of the researcher can inspire good research questions. Researchers can think critically about their personal experiences and/or frustrations with a societal, community, or neighbourhood issue (Kebritchi, 2017). This can be obtained, for example, from deliberate observations of certain relationships that have no clear explanation, or from witnessing an event that appears harmful to a person or group or that is unusual (Ezeogu, 2016).

Interviewing Practitioners: Discussions with practitioners and experts in the field, such as teachers, social workers, health care providers, and so on, provide an opportunity to identify practical, “real world” problems that might have been understudied or ignored within academic circles (Ellis &Yair, 2018). This approach also provides some practical knowledge that may be useful in the process of designing and conducting a study (Ellis &Yair, 2018).

Intuition: Traditionally, intuitions have been regarded as both good sources of knowledge and sources of new research problems. The reflective mind is believed to be a good source of ideas for developing an interesting research problem (Shama, 2015).

Exposure to Field Situations: Researchers gain a wide range of experience during field exposure, which can provide a wealth of ideas for developing research problems (Antony, 2019).

Current events reported in the media : A phenomenon may be noticed in a specific society or community before it is recognised by the media. Thus, prospective researchers must keep an eye out for events, activities, or innovations that are becoming popular in practise or are being reported in popular media (Nixon, 2019). Those things could be the next big ‘thing’ that defines research across multiple disciplines (Nixon, 2019).

Organisational Stakeholders : Clients, suppliers, and other partners within an organisation may express needs that do not have an obvious solution. This may necessitate some research (Nixon, 2019).

Theoretical Deductions:

This refers to deductions from social philosophy or generalisations embodied in everyday life in a society with which the researcher is familiar. These deductions from human behaviour are then fitted within an empirical frame of reference through research (Muhammad &Kabir, 2018). A theory can be used to create a research problem or hypothesis that expresses the expected outcomes in specific empirical situations. A systematic investigation can be designed and carried out to determine whether empirical data confirm or reject the hypothesis and the theory (Walliman, 2011).

iii.         Conceptual Deductions:

Identifying and reading about key concepts that emerge whenever the researcher encounters perplexing issues is a good source of research problems (Muhammad &Kabir, 2018). Furthermore, a thorough review of relevant research related to the researcher’s overall area of interest can frequently lead to the selection of a research problem. This may reveal where there are still gaps in a subject’s understanding (Nixon, 2019). Research may be conducted to: fill such knowledge gaps; determine whether previous study methodologies can be adapted to solve other problems; and determine whether a similar study could be conducted in a different subject area or applied to a different study sample (i.e., different groups of people) (Sanjay, 2015). A body of knowledge should be built on the foundation of solid research findings. Authors frequently conclude their studies by mentioning implications for future research or problems that need to be addressed. This is typically based on previous research flaws, which can be a useful source of problems to investigate (Nixon, 2019

Conceptualisation of Research Problem in Management Sciences

The steps for conceptualising a research problem in management sciences identified by Nixon (2019) are illustrated below.

Fig. 1 Conceptual Model of Statement of Problem

Source:  Adopted from Nixon (2019)

Step 1:  Observation of a Puzzling Event (Undesired State)

A study can be problem- or opportunity-based (Padede, 2018). A researcher may notice changes (attitudes, feelings, and actions) in the external environment (workplace, organisation, society, family, etc.) that are difficult to explain in terms of their implications. Such changes perplex researchers because they are not desired (Nixon, 2019). A researcher attempts to better understand the problem when confronted with such perplexing events/observations by first identifying and reading about the key concepts that ‘pop up’ in relation to the issue from time to time(Awal, 2019).Second, the researcher investigates the history of the issue to determine why it is so perplexing.  A quest for conceptual clarity, on the other hand, is motivated by the researcher’s background, which influences the theories used to describe and explain the problem (Awal, 2019).

Step 2: Linking the Puzzling Event to the Problem Context

In addition to determining the background of the perplexing problem and conceptual clarity, a researcher attempts to relate the broad concepts of the issue to a specific problem situation/context (Padede, 2018). According to Daellenbach and Mc Nickle (2015), context is the sum of all factors that can or may influence or shape the problem or issue under consideration.A researcher should focus on those aspects of the problem context that affect the measure of performance directly or indirectly and over which the researcher has no immediate control when describing the problem context (Nixon, 2019).

Step 3:Critical review of literature

The researcher is first confronted with observations of a perplexing event, and then conducts an intensive and extensive review of literature to obtain a conceptual clarity, background of the issue, and problem context (Padede, 2018). The researcher should also consider whether previous research groups have attempted to solve problems related to that issue, as well as any aspects of that issue that have not been addressed (Padede, 2018).

Step 4: Explanation of the Problem

Following that, the researcher clarifies the topic, structures the problem adequately, and envisions specific propositions or hypotheses that warrant further investigation (Olayemi, 2021). This process allows for a critical analysis of the problem by employing an “old” theory that can be used to tentatively structure the problem (Olayemi, 2021).  In contrast, the “old” theory may not fully explain the problem. To validate the “old” theory, other research methods (deduction and induction) will be used (Ochara, 2019; Olayemi, 2021).

Step 5: Generation of Propositions/Hypotheses/Research Questions

When the a researcher has developed an understanding of the study’s background, conceptual clarity, and a critical review of literature, the result will be a conceptual/theoretical framework that serves as the foundation for developing  propositions, hypotheses, and research questions for the perplexing issue/problem (Nixon, 2019; Muhammad &Kabir, 2018). Part of the outcome of the critical review of literature is the selection of an “old” theory that is used to tentatively describe and explain the problem without excluding new facts that may not have been included in the “old” theory (Nixon, 2019; Indeed Editorial Team, 2021).

Considerations in Formulating a Research Problem

A few factors must be considered by the researcher when formulating a research problem for a study. The following factors will make the research process more manageable and keep the researcher motivated.

• Interest : This is the most essential criterion to consider when identifying and formulating a research problem (Mahyuddin, Nasution, &Indra, 2019). The entire research process is typically time consuming and labour intensive. If the topic chosen does not pique the researcher’s interest, it will be difficult to maintain motivation to write (Mahyuddin, Nasution, &Indra, 2019; Shoket, 2014).Before developing a research problem, researchers must ensure that they have an extent of expertise in the field. They will conduct the study using the information they gathered as well as assistance from their supervisors (Mahyuddin, Nasution, & Indra, 2019; Shoket, 2014).
• Data Availability: If the research title necessitates the collection of information (journal, reports, proceedings) before finalisation, the researcher must ensure that these materials are available and in the appropriate format (Rashid, 2022; Sharma, 2015; Shoket, 2014).
• Relevance: Researchers should always select a topic that is relevant to their interests and profession. They must ensure that their research contributes to the existing body of knowledge. Of course, this will assist them in maintaining their interest all through the study period (Mahyuddin, Nasution & Indra, 2019; Muhammad &Kabir, 2018; Rashid, 2022).
• Ethics: When developing a research problem, researchers should consider some ethical issues. It is critical to follow ethical guidelines when developing a research problem in order to establish the research’s validity (Rashid, 2022; Akhtar, 2014).

Evaluation of Research Problems 

After identifying and formulating a potential research problem, the researcher must evaluate it to ensure that it is suitable for research. A research problem is considered appropriate if it is supported by the literature, significant, timely, novel, specific, and researchable. Stronger research problems are more likely to be published, presented, and successfully applied (Kebritchi, 2017).

• Supported by the Literature: The research problem should be topical and backed up by several current peer-reviewed studies (Kebritchi, 2017). Regardless of whether the identified problem is based on a single journal article or dissertation recommendation, the researcher must carry out a literature search to make sure that it has been confirmed by other researchers, as well as additional research to address the problem (Awal, 2021; Kebritchi, 2017; Akhtar, 2014).
• Significant: The research problem should be beneficial to the field. The impact can be both practical and conceptual, with the work advancing the field by filling a knowledge gap (Kebritchi, 2017).
• Timely: The research problem ought to be pertinent to present-day field needs and well suited to the current state of the field’s issues (Ezeogu, 2016). Examine the subjects covered in current field journals. Examine requests from appropriate disciplinary organisations. Examine the research agenda’s centre and focus areas. Identifying a current issue in the field and supporting it with recent literature can help to justify the problem’s timeliness (Ezeogu, 2016).
• Novel: The research problem should be unique and original. Its goal should be to fill a knowledge or application gap (Nixon, 2019). A comprehensive review of the literature can help the researcher determine whether the problem has previously been solved with a specific sample and/or context (Kebritchi, 2017). Speaking with subject matter experts can shed light on a problem (Ezeogu, 2016). The replication of an existing study warrants further discussion of value, but novelty can be found in determining whether an already-solved problem holds true in a new sample and/or context (Mahyuddin, Nasution, &Indra, 2019; Shoket, 2014; Kebritchi, 2017).
• Specific and Clear: The research problem should be specific enough to guide the study, pose research questions, and select the best research method and design. Vague research problems may be ineffective in terms of defining the scope of the study or developing research questions (McCombes, 2021; Shoket, 2014; Kebritchi, 2017).
• Researchable: To solve research problems, the scientific method is used. This means that research-ability, or the feasibility of the problem, is likewise as important as all other characteristics (McCombes, 2021). The researcher should be able to solve the problem using his or her abilities as well as the available research methods, designs, research sites, resources, and timeframe. If a research problem possesses all of the characteristics listed above but is not researchable, it may not be an appropriate research problem (Amar, 2017).

Research Problem Statement

Following the identification of the research problem for a project, researchers must write a problem statement, which is the cornerstone of management sciences research and any other research  (Miles, 2019; McCombes, 2021).A problem statement is primarily a statement of a problem in a field that has been documented, verified, and supported by literature and is having an adverse or negative impact on some elements of the field (Ellis &Yair, 2018). The goal of research is for the researcher to look at a problem and potentially come up with a solution or some kind of innovation that will either solve or reduce the problem and benefit those in that field (Mahyuddin, Nasution & Indra, 2019). A problem statement is a concise description or overview of the problem or problems that a project intends to address. The problem statement specifies the current state, the desired future state, and any gaps that exist (Mahyuddin et al., 2019). A problem statement is a useful communication tool that serves to make sure everyone involved in a project comprehends the problem and why the project is essential (Muhammad &Kabir, 2018).

Writing a problem statement in management science research can assist researchers in contextualising and comprehending the significance of the research problem (Muhammad &Kabir, 2018). A problem statement can be a number of paragraphs long and be used as the foundation for a research proposal, or it may be summed up in a few sentences in the introduction section of the paper or thesis (Mc Combes, 2021). The problem statement will vary based on if the researcher deals with a practical real-world issue or a theoretical scientific issue. However, all problem statements follow the same procedure (Kirsten, 2016).

A problem statement’s purpose includes the following as highlighted by Mc Combes (2021):

• Put the issue into context (what is already known?)
• Describe the specific issue that the research will address (what information is required to be known?)
• Demonstrate the problem’s relevance (why is it important to know about it?)
• Set the research objectives (what will be done to find out?)
• Provides a framework for reporting the findings, indicating what is likely to be required to conduct the study and explaining how the findings will present this information.

Characteristics of Problem Statement

• Some characteristics of problem statement as highlighted by (Kirsten, 2016) includes:
• Clarity and precision (a well-written statement avoids broad generalisations and irresponsible assertions).
• Identifying what will be studied while steering clear of the use of value-laden words and terms.
• Identifying an overarching question as well as key factors or variables.
• Identifying key concepts and terms.
• Articulation of the study’s boundaries or parameters.
• It is limited in scope, but it does have some generalisability in terms of applicability and bringing results into general use.
• Communication of the study’s importance, benefits, and justification (irrespective of the type of research, it is critical to address the “so what” question by demonstrating that the research is not trivial).
• It is unique and has not been addressed previously (for example, it addresses a different research question or is applied in a novel way).
• Can be found in the literature. It must be significant, as demonstrated by the literature.
• It is neither the researcher’s opinion nor a problem that the researcher believes exists, but it should have an adverse effect on some aspect of their field.

Parts of a Problem Statement

Kirsten (2016) identified two major parts of problem statement, which are as follows:

The General Problem: This is essentially a general problem statement that serves as the introduction to the problem statement. It helps to set the tone for the gravity of the situation. It is necessary as a foundation for gaining a better understanding of the specific problem (This is essentially a general problem statement that serves as the introduction to the problem statement. It helps to set the tone for the gravity of the situation. It is necessary as a foundation for gaining a better understanding of the specific problem (Kirsten, 2016; Amar, 2017).The general problem comes before the specific problem in the problem statement (Kirsten, 2016). The researcher should describe the general problem that the study will address based on defined needs or gaps in the literature when writing the problem statement (Miles, 2019).

The Specific (Localised) Problem /Gap : Kirsten (2016) defines this as the specific issues that the researcher wishes to address. It reveals how a general problem affects a specific organisation or population, allowing the researcher to aid in the research (Kirsten, 2016). The researcher must spell out the specific problem(s) in a problem statement, citing sources to prove that it is a problem (Miles, 2019). The researcher must specify the scope of the problem, including where and for whom the problem will be researched, as well as the public who will be affected if the problem is not solved or who will benefit if it is solved. Furthermore, how the problem is related to business (Kirsten, 2016).

Flow of Ideas in a Problem Statement in a Research Paper

Fischler (2019) highlighted the following model of idea flow in a problem statement in a research paper or thesis.

Fig 2. Flow of Ideas in the Problem Statement

Source: Adopted from Fischler (2019)

• The Topic: This is a synopsis of the proposed research area. It must contain at least two sentences (Fischler, 2019).
• The General Problem: This is a point of contention, concern, or conflict (a gap between what is desired and what is observed). It ought to incorporate the most pertinent reference to back up the claim(Kirsten, 2016; Fischler, 2019).
• Background and Justification : The evidence and relevance from the literature and published or archival data demonstrating the existence of the problem. At least two references should be included. Researchers should also have a theoretical basis for their research(Kirsten, 2016; Fischler, 2019).
• Deficiencies in the Evidence/Gap/ localised problem : It should include a brief discussion of the area of need (in relation to the overall problem) and the lack of evidence in the literature (Mc Combes, 2021; Kirsten, 2016; Fischler, 2019).
• Audience: It must address who is affected and who benefits (Fischler, 2019).
• Purpose of the Study: Make a sentence that begins, “The purpose of this study is…” The researcher must clearly identify and define the study’s central concepts or ideas (Fischler, 2019).

Identifying the research problem, is the issue being addressed in this study, it is the first and most important step in undertaking a research. A research problem is derived from a topic, or the broad subject matter addressed in a study. Given that a topic is chosen based on factors such as interests, expertise, relevance, data availability, manageability, contribution to literature, and ethics, the research problem is assumed to meet these criteria. The presence of these factors may indicate that the problem can and should be investigated. This article discussed the issue with identification of research problem for novice and burgeoning researchers. It discussed the sources and types of research problem. The article provided a conceptual models and tools for helping researchers with formulating the research problem as well as criteria for evaluating the research problem. This article contributes to the research method literature by emphasising the significance of research problem identification and the critical factors.

It also discussed the research problem statement, which is succinctly stated in one or more concise paragraph but not exceeds one page by including five elements.  The five elements includes the topic, research problem, justification for research problem, deficiencies in the evidence/ gap, relating discussions to audience, and purpose.  The study in addition provided a conceptual model for the flow of ideas in the research problem statement. The development of the problem statement is an integral part of the research endeavor. Possibly future studies in research methods and strategies could provide further development on problem statement in research.

RECOMMENDATIONS

The following recommendations are made based on the findings of the study.

• Researchers should identify and formulate appropriate research problem with the aid of the model of the study because the research problem is the foundation for all types of research.
• Researchers should be more cognizant of research problem identification and appropriate methods for developing a problem statement by publishing articles on the subject in peer-reviewed journals.
• Adeyeye, T. C. (2019). The impact of technological innovation on organisational performance. Industrial Engineering Letters, 4(3), 97-101.
• Ahsanullah, M., Najibullah, N., & Sarwar, E. (2021). The impact of organisational culture on employee’s performance: An overview. International Journal of Management (IJM), 11(8), 879-888.
• Akhtar, I. (2014). Problem formulation in social science research. International Journal of Research (IJR), 1(11), 1210-1216
• Akinyele, S. T., Akinyele, E. F.,& Joseph, A. D. (2021). Technopreneurship and performance of women entrepreneurs in small-scale enterprise: A study of selected firms in Ado Odo Ota. International Journal of Humanities & Social Sciences, 22 (4), 149-172.
• Alvesson, M.,& Sandberg, J. (2013). Constructing research questions: Doing interesting research. London, Sage.
• Alvesson, M.,& Sandberg, J. (2013). Generating research questions through problematisation. Academy of Management Review, 36 (2), 247–254.
• Amar, K. T. (2017). Research methodology. Retrieved from: https://www.lkouniv.ac.in/site/writereaddata/site Content/202004161028054465pravish_its_Research_Methdology.pdf
• Amineh, A. K., Hani, J. I., Ahmad, R. S., & Suliman, R. S. (2021). The effect of business model innovation on organisation performance. Management Science Letters, 11(2), 1481–1488.
• Antony, W. (2019). Five sources of a research problem: The complete guide. Retrieved from: https://www.helpforassessment.com/blog/sources-of-a-research-problem/
• Awal, A. (2019). Seven basic steps in formulating a research problem. Retrieved from: https://www.campuscareerclub.com/steps-in-formulating-a-research-problem/
• Bryman, A. (2007).The research question in social research: What is its role?”  International Journal of Social Research Methodology , 10 (1), 5-20.
• Daellenbach, H. G., & Mc Nickle, D. C. (2015). Management science decision making through systems thinking. Palgrave Macmillan, New York.
• Ellis, T. J., & Yair, L. N. (2018). Framework of problem-based research: A guide for novice researchers on the development of a research-worthy problem. Informing Science: the International Journal of an Emerging Trans-discipline, 11 (1), 17-33.
• Ezeogu, L. I. (2016). Selecting and defining a research problem. Retrieved June 24, 2022 from: https://oer.unizik.edu.ng/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2017/11/selecting-and-defining-a-research-problem.pdf
• Fischler, A. (2019). From problem statement to research questions. Retrieved May 7, 2022 from: https://education.nova.edu/Resources/uploads/ app/35/files/ arc_doc /from_problem_ statement_to_research_questions.pdf
• Gallupe, R. B. (2007). Research contributions: The tyranny of methodologies in information systems research. ACM SIGMIS Database, 38(3), 46–57.
• Kirsten, K. (City U Doctoral Studies). (2016, July 19). The problem statement (Video). YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8h3zhfUVqJo
• Kowo, S. A., Akinbola, O. A. & Akinrinola, O. (2019). The impact of process innovation on organisational performance. ACTA Univesitatis Danubius, 15(2), 115-132.
• Hashimi, H. (2015). Types of research questions. Nursing, 4(3), 23–25.
• Indeed Editorial Team (2021). How to formulate research problems in six steps. Retrieved August 4, 2022 from: https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/research-problem.
• Kebritchi, M. (2017). How to Identify an Appropriate Research Problem. Retrieved July 23, 2022 from: https://research.phoenix.edu/blog/how-identify-appropriate-research-problem
• Mahyuddin, K. M., Nasution, O. &Indra, A. (2019). Design of the research problem statement Journal of Physics: Conference Series 1235 012115
• McCombes, S. (2021). Write a problem statement for your research in three steps. Retrieved April 4, 2022 from: https: //www.scribbr.com/research-process/problem-statement/
• Miles, D. A. (2019). Problem statement development: How to write a problem statement in a dissertation. Retrieved June 7, 2022 from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/333648926
• Mohammad, Q., & Ahmad, A. (2021). The impact of knowledge management on organisational performance: An empirical study of Kuwait University. Eurasian Journal of Business and Management, 3(4), 36-54.
• Muhammad, S., & Kabir, S. (2018). Problem formulation and objective determination. Retrieved July 26, 2022 from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/325847015
• Nixon, M. O. (2019). What is your research problem: Discovering a research(able) problem and topic. Retrieved May 24, 2022 from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/332108258
• Olayemi, O. (2021). Five steps to formulate a research problem: Research methodology. Retrieved May 24, 2022 from: https://www.projecttopics.org/5-steps-to-formulate-a-research-problem-research-methodology.html
• Oyediran, K. K. (2019). Understanding problem identification in research using analogies. African Journal of Educational Studies in Mathematics and Sciences, 15(2), 35-42.
• Pardede, P. (2018). Identifying and formulating the research problem. Research in ELT, 1(10), 1–13.
• Rashid, H. A. (2022). Research methodology: Formulating a research problem. Retrieved December 4, 2022 from: https://limbd.org/formulating-a-research-problem-importance-sources-considerations-in-selecting-and-steps-in-formulating-a-research-problem-formulation-of-research-objectives/
• Sanjay, K. (2015). Understanding the issues involved in the selection of a research problem in social sciences: An explorative study. Journal of Business Management & Social Sciences Research (JBM&SSR), 4(11), 645-651.
• Sharma, S. L. (2015). Identification and formulation of research problem. Journal of the Indian Law Institute, 24 (2/3), 662-668.
• Shoket, M. (2014). Research problem: Identification and formulation. International Journal of Research (IJR), 1(4), 512-518.
• Simmi K. R., Tanu, A.,& John, R. (2019). Formulation of research question – stepwise approach. Journal of Indian Association of Pediatric Surgeons 24(1): 15–20.
• Sivakumar, S., & Szalinski, C. (2016). How to choose a research area. Retrieved March 15, 2022 from: https://www.ascb.org/compass/compass -points/choose-research-area/
• Suleman, A., & Ogbette, A. S. (2019). Human resource management: Implications of outsourcing in public organisations in Nigeria. Public Policy and Administration Research, 9(2), 27-31.
• UR Office of Arizona University. (2018). Identify Your Research Interests. Retrieved August 28, from: https://ur.arizona.edu/content/identify-your-research-interests
• Walia, A., & Chetty, P. (2020). Different types of research problems and their examples. Retrieved May 15, 2022 from: https://www.projectguru.in/research-problem-types-and-example/
• Walliman, N. (2011). Your research project: Designing and planning your work. Third edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

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How to identify and resolve research problems

Updated July 12, 2023

In this article, we’re going to take you through one of the most pertinent parts of conducting research: a research problem (also known as a research problem statement).

When trying to formulate a good research statement, and understand how to solve it for complex projects, it can be difficult to know where to start.

Not only are there multiple perspectives (from stakeholders to project marketers who want answers), you have to consider the particular context of the research topic: is it timely, is it relevant and most importantly of all, is it valuable?

In other words: are you looking at a research worthy problem?

The fact is, a well-defined, precise, and goal-centric research problem will keep your researchers, stakeholders, and business-focused and your results actionable.

And when it works well, it's a powerful tool to identify practical solutions that can drive change and secure buy-in from your workforce.

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What is a research problem?

In social research methodology and behavioral sciences , a research problem establishes the direction of research, often relating to a specific topic or opportunity for discussion.

For example: climate change and sustainability, analyzing moral dilemmas or wage disparity amongst classes could all be areas that the research problem focuses on.

As well as outlining the topic and/or opportunity, a research problem will explain:

• why the area/issue needs to be addressed,
• why the area/issue is of importance,
• the parameters of the research study
• the research objective
• the reporting framework for the results and
• what the overall benefit of doing so will provide (whether to society as a whole or other researchers and projects).

Having identified the main topic or opportunity for discussion, you can then narrow it down into one or several specific questions that can be scrutinized and answered through the research process.

What are research questions?

Generating research questions underpinning your study usually starts with problems that require further research and understanding while fulfilling the objectives of the study.

A good problem statement begins by asking deeper questions to gain insights about a specific topic.

For example, using the problems above, our questions could be:

"How will climate change policies influence sustainability standards across specific geographies?"

"What measures can be taken to address wage disparity without increasing inflation?"

Developing a research worthy problem is the first step - and one of the most important - in any kind of research.

It’s also a task that will come up again and again because any business research process is cyclical. New questions arise as you iterate and progress through discovering, refining, and improving your products and processes. A research question can also be referred to as a "problem statement".

Note: good research supports multiple perspectives through empirical data. It’s focused on key concepts rather than a broad area, providing readily actionable insight and areas for further research.

Research question or research problem?

As we've highlighted, the terms “research question” and “research problem” are often used interchangeably, becoming a vague or broad proposition for many.

The term "problem statement" is far more representative, but finds little use among academics.

Instead, some researchers think in terms of a single research problem and several research questions that arise from it.

As mentioned above, the questions are lines of inquiry to explore in trying to solve the overarching research problem.

Ultimately, this provides a more meaningful understanding of a topic area.

It may be useful to think of questions and problems as coming out of your business data – that’s the O-data (otherwise known as operational data) like sales figures and website metrics.

What's an example of a research problem?

Your overall research problem could be: "How do we improve sales across EMEA and reduce lost deals?"

This research problem then has a subset of questions, such as:

"Why do sales peak at certain times of the day?"

"Why are customers abandoning their online carts at the point of sale?"

As well as helping you to solve business problems, research problems (and associated questions) help you to think critically about topics and/or issues (business or otherwise). You can also use your old research to aid future research -- a good example is laying the foundation for comparative trend reports or a complex research project.

(Also, if you want to see the bigger picture when it comes to research problems, why not check out our ultimate guide to market research? In it you'll find out: what effective market research looks like, the use cases for market research, carrying out a research study, and how to examine and action research findings).

The research process: why are research problems important?

A research problem has two essential roles in setting your research project on a course for success.

1. They set the scope

The research problem defines what problem or opportunity you’re looking at and what your research goals are. It stops you from getting side-tracked or allowing the scope of research to creep off-course .

Without a strong research problem or problem statement, your team could end up spending resources unnecessarily, or coming up with results that aren’t actionable - or worse, harmful to your business - because the field of study is too broad.

2. They tie your work to business goals and actions

To formulate a research problem in terms of business decisions means you always have clarity on what’s needed to make those decisions. You can show the effects of what you’ve studied using real outcomes.

Then, by focusing your research problem statement on a series of questions tied to business objectives, you can reduce the risk of the research being unactionable or inaccurate.

It's also worth examining research or other scholarly literature (you’ll find plenty of similar, pertinent research online) to see how others have explored specific topics and noting implications that could have for your research.

Four steps to defining your research problem

Image credit: http://myfreeschooltanzania.blogspot.com/2014/11/defining-research-problem.html

1. Observe and identify

Businesses today have so much data that it can be difficult to know which problems to address first. Researchers also have business stakeholders who come to them with problems they would like to have explored. A researcher’s job is to sift through these inputs and discover exactly what higher-level trends and key concepts are worth investing in.

This often means asking questions and doing some initial investigation to decide which avenues to pursue. This could mean gathering interdisciplinary perspectives identifying additional expertise and contextual information.

Sometimes, a small-scale preliminary study might be worth doing to help get a more comprehensive understanding of the business context and needs, and to make sure your research problem addresses the most critical questions.

This could take the form of qualitative research using a few in-depth interviews , an environmental scan, or reviewing relevant literature.

The sales manager of a sportswear company has a problem: sales of trail running shoes are down year-on-year and she isn’t sure why. She approaches the company’s research team for input and they begin asking questions within the company and reviewing their knowledge of the wider market.

2. Review the key factors involved

As a marketing researcher, you must work closely with your team of researchers to define and test the influencing factors and the wider context involved in your study. These might include demographic and economic trends or the business environment affecting the question at hand. This is referred to as a relational research problem.

To do this, you have to identify the factors that will affect the research and begin formulating different methods to control them.

You also need to consider the relationships between factors and the degree of control you have over them. For example, you may be able to control the loading speed of your website but you can’t control the fluctuations of the stock market.

Doing this will help you determine whether the findings of your project will produce enough information to be worth the cost.

You need to determine:

• which factors affect the solution to the research proposal.
• which ones can be controlled and used for the purposes of the company, and to what extent.
• the functional relationships between the factors.
• which ones are critical to the solution of the research study.

The research team at the running shoe company is hard at work. They explore the factors involved and the context of why YoY sales are down for trail shoes, including things like what the company’s competitors are doing, what the weather has been like – affecting outdoor exercise – and the relative spend on marketing for the brand from year to year.

The final factor is within the company’s control, although the first two are not. They check the figures and determine marketing spend has a significant impact on the company.

3. Prioritize

Once you and your research team have a few observations, prioritize them based on their business impact and importance. It may be that you can answer more than one question with a single study, but don’t do it at the risk of losing focus on your overarching research problem.

Questions to ask:

• Who? Who are the people with the problem? Are they end-users, stakeholders, teams within your business? Have you validated the information to see what the scale of the problem is?
• What? What is its nature and what is the supporting evidence?
• Why? What is the business case for solving the problem? How will it help?
• Where? How does the problem manifest and where is it observed?

To help you understand all dimensions, you might want to consider focus groups or preliminary interviews with external (including consumers and existing customers) and internal (salespeople, managers, and other stakeholders) parties to provide what is sometimes much-needed insight into a particular set of questions or problems.

After observing and investigating, the running shoe researchers come up with a few candidate questions, including:

• What is the relationship between US average temperatures and sales of our products year on year?
• At present, how does our customer base rank Competitor X and Competitor Y’s trail running shoe compared to our brand?
• What is the relationship between marketing spend and trail shoe product sales over the last 12 months?

They opt for the final question, because the variables involved are fully within the company’s control, and based on their initial research and stakeholder input, seem the most likely cause of the dive in sales. The research question is specific enough to keep the work on course towards an actionable result, but it allows for a few different avenues to be explored, such as the different budget allocations of offline and online marketing and the kinds of messaging used.

Get feedback from the key teams within your business to make sure everyone is aligned and has the same understanding of the research problem and questions, and the actions you hope to take based on the results. Now is also a good time to demonstrate the ROI of your research and lay out its potential benefits to your stakeholders.

Different groups may have different goals and perspectives on the issue. This step is vital for getting the necessary buy-in and pushing the project forward.

The running shoe company researchers now have everything they need to begin. They call a meeting with the sales manager and consult with the product team, marketing team, and C-suite to make sure everyone is aligned and has bought into the direction of the research topic. They identify and agree that the likely course of action will be a rethink of how marketing resources are allocated, and potentially testing out some new channels and messaging strategies .

Can you explore a broad area and is it practical to do so?

A broader research problem or report can be a great way to bring attention to prevalent issues, societal or otherwise, but are often undertaken by those with the resources to do so.

Take a typical government cybersecurity breach survey, for example. Most of these reports raise awareness of cybercrime, from the day-to-day threats businesses face to what security measures some organizations are taking. What these reports don't do, however, is provide actionable advice - mostly because every organization is different.

The point here is that while some researchers will explore a very complex issue in detail, others will provide only a snapshot to maintain interest and encourage further investigation. The "value" of the data is wholly determined by the recipients of it - and what information you choose to include.

To summarize, it can be practical to undertake a broader research problem, certainly, but it may not be possible to cover everything or provide the detail your audience needs. Likewise, a more systematic investigation of an issue or topic will be more valuable, but you may also find that you cover far less ground.

It's important to think about your research objectives and expected findings before going ahead.

Ensuring your research project is a success

A complex research project can be made significantly easier with clear research objectives, a descriptive research problem, and a central focus. All of which we've outlined in this article.

If you have previous research, even better. Use it as a benchmark

Remember: what separates a good research paper from an average one is actually very simple: valuable, empirical data that explores a prevalent societal or business issue and provides actionable insights.

And we can help.

Sophisticated research made simple with Qualtrics

Trusted by the world's best brands, our platform enables researchers from academic to corporate to tackle the hardest challenges and deliver the results that matter.

Our CoreXM platform supports the methods that define superior research and delivers insights in real-time. It's easy to use (thanks to drag-and-drop functionality) and requires no coding, meaning you'll be capturing data and gleaning insights in no time.

It also excels in flexibility; you can track consumer behavior across segments , benchmark your company versus competitors , carry out complex academic research, and do much more, all from one system.

It's one platform with endless applications, so no matter your research problem, we've got the tools to help you solve it. And if you don't have a team of research experts in-house, our market research team has the practical knowledge and tools to help design the surveys and find the respondents you need.

Of course, you may want to know where to begin with your own market research . If you're struggling, make sure to download our ultimate guide using the link below.

It's got everything you need and there’s always information in our research methods knowledge base.

Scott Smith

Scott Smith, Ph.D. is a contributor to the Qualtrics blog.

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Research Problem – Definition, Steps & Tips

Published by Jamie Walker at August 12th, 2021 , Revised On October 3, 2023

Once you have chosen a research topic, the next stage is to explain the research problem: the detailed issue, ambiguity of the research, gap analysis, or gaps in knowledge and findings that you will discuss.

Here, in this article, we explore a research problem in a dissertation or an essay with some research problem examples to help you better understand how and when you should write a research problem.

“A research problem is a specific statement relating to an area of concern and is contingent on the type of research. Some research studies focus on theoretical and practical problems, while some focus on only one.”

The problem statement in the dissertation, essay, research paper, and other academic papers should be clearly stated and intended to expand information, knowledge, and contribution to change.

This article will assist in identifying and elaborating a research problem if you are unsure how to define your research problem. The most notable challenge in the research process is to formulate and identify a research problem. Formulating a problem statement and research questions while finalizing the research proposal or introduction for your dissertation or thesis is necessary.

Why is Research Problem Critical?

An interesting research topic is only the first step. The real challenge of the research process is to develop a well-rounded research problem.

A well-formulated research problem helps understand the research procedure; without it, your research will appear unforeseeable and awkward.

Research is a procedure based on a sequence and a research problem aids in following and completing the research in a sequence. Repetition of existing literature is something that should be avoided in research.

Therefore research problem in a dissertation or an essay needs to be well thought out and presented with a clear purpose. Hence, your research work contributes more value to existing knowledge. You need to be well aware of the problem so you can present logical solutions.

Formulating a research problem is the first step of conducting research, whether you are writing an essay, research paper,   dissertation , or  research proposal .

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Step 1: Identifying Problem Area – What is Research Problem

The most significant step in any research is to look for  unexplored areas, topics, and controversies . You aim to find gaps that your work will fill. Here are some research problem examples for you to better understand the concept.

Practical Research Problems

To conduct practical research, you will need practical research problems that are typically identified by analysing reports, previous research studies, and interactions with the experienced personals of pertinent disciplines. You might search for:

• Problems with performance or competence in an organization
• Institutional practices that could be enhanced
• Practitioners of relevant fields and their areas of concern
• Problems confronted by specific groups of people within your area of study

If your research work relates to an internship or a job, then it will be critical for you to identify a research problem that addresses certain issues faced by the firm the job or internship pertains to.

Examples of Practical Research Problems

Decreased voter participation in county A, as compared to the rest of the country.

The high employee turnover rate of department X of company Y influenced efficiency and team performance.

A charity institution, Y, suffers a lack of funding resulting in budget cuts for its programmes.

Theoretical Research Problems

Theoretical research relates to predicting, explaining, and understanding various phenomena. It also expands and challenges existing information and knowledge.

Identification of a research problem in theoretical research is achieved by analysing theories and fresh research literature relating to a broad area of research. This practice helps to find gaps in the research done by others and endorse the argument of your topic.

Here are some questions that you should bear in mind.

• A case or framework that has not been deeply analysed
• An ambiguity between more than one viewpoints
• An unstudied condition or relationships
• A problematic issue that needs to be addressed

Theoretical issues often contain practical implications, but immediate issues are often not resolved by these results. If that is the case, you might want to adopt a different research approach  to achieve the desired outcomes.

Examples of Theoretical Research Problems

Long-term Vitamin D deficiency affects cardiac patients are not well researched.

The relationship between races, sex, and income imbalances needs to be studied with reference to the economy of a specific country or region.

The disagreement among historians of Scottish nationalism regarding the contributions of Imperial Britain in the creation of the national identity for Scotland.

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Step 2: Understanding the Research Problem

The researcher further investigates the selected area of research to find knowledge and information relating to the research problem to address the findings in the research.

Background and Rationale

• Population influenced by the problem?
• Is it a persistent problem, or is it recently revealed?
• Research that has already been conducted on this problem?
• Any proposed solution to the problem?
• Recent arguments concerning the problem, what are the gaps in the problem?

How to Write a First Class Dissertation Proposal or Research Proposal

Particularity and Suitability

• What specific place, time, and/or people will be focused on?
• Any aspects of research that you may not be able to deal with?
• What will be the concerns if the problem remains unresolved?
• What are the benefices of the problem resolution (e.g. future researcher or organisation’s management)?

Example of a Specific Research Problem

A non-profit institution X has been examined on their existing support base retention, but the existing research does not incorporate an understanding of how to effectively target new donors. To continue their work, the institution needs more research and find strategies for effective fundraising.

Once the problem is narrowed down, the next stage is to propose a problem statement and hypothesis or research questions.

If you are unsure about what a research problem is and how to define the research problem, then you might want to take advantage of our dissertation proposal writing service. You may also want to take a look at our essay writing service if you need help with identifying a research problem for your essay.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is research problem with example.

A research problem is a specific challenge that requires investigation. Example: “What is the impact of social media on mental health among adolescents?” This problem drives research to analyse the relationship between social media use and mental well-being in young people.

How many types of research problems do we have?

• Descriptive: Describing phenomena as they exist.
• Explanatory: Understanding causes and effects.
• Exploratory: Investigating little-understood phenomena.
• Predictive: Forecasting future outcomes.
• Prescriptive: Recommending actions.
• Normative: Describing what ought to be.

What are the principles of the research problem?

• Relevance: Addresses a significant issue.
• Re searchability: Amenable to empirical investigation.
• Clarity: Clearly defined without ambiguity.
• Specificity: Narrowly framed, avoiding vagueness.
• Feasibility: Realistic to conduct with available resources.
• Novelty: Offers new insights or challenges existing knowledge.
• Ethical considerations: Respect rights, dignity, and safety.

Why is research problem important?

A research problem is crucial because it identifies knowledge gaps, directs the inquiry’s focus, and forms the foundation for generating hypotheses or questions. It drives the methodology and determination of study relevance, ensuring that research contributes meaningfully to academic discourse and potentially addresses real-world challenges.

How do you write a research problem?

To write a research problem, identify a knowledge gap or an unresolved issue in your field. Start with a broad topic, then narrow it down. Clearly articulate the problem in a concise statement, ensuring it’s researchable, significant, and relevant. Ground it in the existing literature to highlight its importance and context.

How can we solve research problem?

To solve a research problem, start by conducting a thorough literature review. Formulate hypotheses or research questions. Choose an appropriate research methodology. Collect and analyse data systematically. Interpret findings in the context of existing knowledge. Ensure validity and reliability, and discuss implications, limitations, and potential future research directions.

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Research Problem Statement — Find out how to write an impactful one!

Table of Contents

What Is a Research Problem Statement?

A research problem statement is a clear, concise, and specific statement that describes the issue or problem that the research project addresses. It should be written in a way that is easily understandable to both experts and non-experts in the field.

To write a research problem statement, you should:

• Identify the general area of interest: Start by identifying the general area of research that interests you.
• Define the specific problem: Narrow down the general area of interest to a specific problem or issue.
• Explain the significance of the problem: Provide context for the problem by explaining why it is important to study and what gap in current knowledge or understanding it fills.
• Provide a clear and concise statement: State the problem in a clear and concise manner, making sure to use language that is easily understood by your intended audience.
• Use a scientific and objective tone: The problem statement should be written in a neutral and objective tone, avoiding any subjective language and personal bias .

An Example of a Research Problem Statement

“The increasing prevalence of obesity in children is a growing public health concern. Despite the availability of information on healthy eating and physical activity, many children are still not engaging in healthy lifestyle behaviors. The problem this study addresses is the lack of understanding of the barriers and facilitators to healthy lifestyle behaviors in children.”

When to Write a Problem Statement in Research?

A research problem statement should be written at the beginning of the research process, before any data collection or analysis takes place. This is because the statement sets the foundation for the entire research project by clearly defining the problem that the research is trying to address.

Writing a problem statement early in the research process helps to guide the research design and methodology , and ensures that the research is focused on addressing the specific problem at hand. It also helps to ensure that the research is relevant and addresses a gap in current knowledge or understanding.

In addition, a well-written problem statement effectively communicates the purpose and significance of the research to potential funders, collaborators, and other stakeholders. It also generates interest and support for the research project.

It’s also important to note that, during the research process, the statement can be refined or updated as new information is discovered or as the research progresses. This is normal and it’s a good idea to revise the statement as needed to ensure that it remains clear and concise and that it accurately reflects the current focus of the research project.

What Does a Research Problem Statement Include?

A research problem statement typically includes the following elements:

1. The research topic:

The general area of interest or field of study that the research project addresses.

2. The specific problem or issue:

A clear and concise statement of the problem or issue that the research project aims to address.

3. The significance of the problem:

A discussion of why the problem is important and what gap in current knowledge or understanding it fills.

4. The research questions:

A set of questions that the research project aims to answer, in order to address the problem or issue.

5. The research objectives:

A set of specific and measurable objectives that the research project aims to achieve.

6. The scope of the research:

A description of the specific population, setting, or context that the research project will focus on.

7. The theoretical framework:

A discussion of the theoretical concepts and principles that inform the research project.

8. The research design:

A description of the research methodologies that will be used to collect and analyze data in order to address the research questions and objectives.

It’s important to note that the problem statement is usually brief and concise, typically a few sentences or a short paragraph. But it should provide enough information to convey the main idea of the research project.

Important Features of Research Problem Statement

The problem statement should be clear and easy to understand. Write it in a way that is accessible to both experts and non-experts in the field.

2. Specificity

The statement should be specific and clearly define the problem or issue that the research project aims to address. It should be narrow enough to be manageable, but broad enough to be of interest to others in the field.

3. Significance

The statement should explain why the problem is important and what gap in current knowledge or understanding it fills. It should provide context for the research project and help to justify its importance.

4. Relevance

The statement should be relevant to the field of study and address an issue that is currently of concern to researchers.

5. Research questions

The statement should include a set of research questions that the research project aims to answer in order to address the problem or issue.

6. Research objectives

The statement should include a set of specific and measurable objectives that the research project aims to achieve.

The statement should define the specific population, setting, or context that the research project will focus on.

8. Theoretical framework

The statement should provide an overview of the theoretical concepts and principles that inform the research project.

9. Research design

The statement should provide an overview of the research methodologies. This will be useful collect and analyze data in order to address the research questions and objectives.

Difference Between a Thesis Statement and a Problem Statement

A thesis statement and a problem statement are related but distinct elements of a research project.

A thesis statement is a statement that summarizes the central argument or claim of a research paper or essay. It presents the main idea of the paper and sets the direction for the rest of the content. It’s usually located at the end of the introduction, and it’s often one sentence.

A problem statement, on the other hand, is a statement that describes a specific problem or issue that the research project aims to address. It sets the foundation for the entire research project by clearly defining the research problem. It is usually located at the beginning of a research paper or proposal, and is of one or a few paragraphs.

In summary, a thesis statement is a summary of the main point or key argument of the research paper. A problem statement describes the specific issue that the research project aims to address. A thesis statement is more focused on the final outcome of the research. While a problem statement is focused on the current state of knowledge and the gap in understanding that the research project aims to fill.

In Conclusion

A problem statement is a critical component of the research project, as it provides a clear and concise roadmap for the research, and helps to ensure that the research is well-designed and addresses a significant and relevant issue.

We hope this blog has clarified your doubts and confusion associated with research problem statement and helps you write an effective statement for your research project!

comprehensive contents. thanks!

Very good writing and easy to understand

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This has opened up my mind, Systematically outlined steps.

Wow I’ve gained Alot from this!

WOW…This was much helpful.

Good and straightforward explanations with ease of understanding for all the students and teachers alike.

Beautiful work

I enjoy and understand every bit of the explanations on each topic. Kudos to the team.

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Home » Research Problem – Examples, Types and Guide

Research Problem – Examples, Types and Guide

Table of Contents

Research Problem

Definition:

Research problem is a specific and well-defined issue or question that a researcher seeks to investigate through research. It is the starting point of any research project, as it sets the direction, scope, and purpose of the study.

Types of Research Problems

Types of Research Problems are as follows:

Descriptive problems

These problems involve describing or documenting a particular phenomenon, event, or situation. For example, a researcher might investigate the demographics of a particular population, such as their age, gender, income, and education.

Exploratory problems

These problems are designed to explore a particular topic or issue in depth, often with the goal of generating new ideas or hypotheses. For example, a researcher might explore the factors that contribute to job satisfaction among employees in a particular industry.

Explanatory Problems

These problems seek to explain why a particular phenomenon or event occurs, and they typically involve testing hypotheses or theories. For example, a researcher might investigate the relationship between exercise and mental health, with the goal of determining whether exercise has a causal effect on mental health.

Predictive Problems

These problems involve making predictions or forecasts about future events or trends. For example, a researcher might investigate the factors that predict future success in a particular field or industry.

Evaluative Problems

These problems involve assessing the effectiveness of a particular intervention, program, or policy. For example, a researcher might evaluate the impact of a new teaching method on student learning outcomes.

How to Define a Research Problem

Defining a research problem involves identifying a specific question or issue that a researcher seeks to address through a research study. Here are the steps to follow when defining a research problem:

• Identify a broad research topic : Start by identifying a broad topic that you are interested in researching. This could be based on your personal interests, observations, or gaps in the existing literature.
• Conduct a literature review : Once you have identified a broad topic, conduct a thorough literature review to identify the current state of knowledge in the field. This will help you identify gaps or inconsistencies in the existing research that can be addressed through your study.
• Refine the research question: Based on the gaps or inconsistencies identified in the literature review, refine your research question to a specific, clear, and well-defined problem statement. Your research question should be feasible, relevant, and important to the field of study.
• Develop a hypothesis: Based on the research question, develop a hypothesis that states the expected relationship between variables.
• Define the scope and limitations: Clearly define the scope and limitations of your research problem. This will help you focus your study and ensure that your research objectives are achievable.
• Get feedback: Get feedback from your advisor or colleagues to ensure that your research problem is clear, feasible, and relevant to the field of study.

Components of a Research Problem

The components of a research problem typically include the following:

• Topic : The general subject or area of interest that the research will explore.
• Research Question : A clear and specific question that the research seeks to answer or investigate.
• Objective : A statement that describes the purpose of the research, what it aims to achieve, and the expected outcomes.
• Hypothesis : An educated guess or prediction about the relationship between variables, which is tested during the research.
• Variables : The factors or elements that are being studied, measured, or manipulated in the research.
• Methodology : The overall approach and methods that will be used to conduct the research.
• Scope and Limitations : A description of the boundaries and parameters of the research, including what will be included and excluded, and any potential constraints or limitations.
• Significance: A statement that explains the potential value or impact of the research, its contribution to the field of study, and how it will add to the existing knowledge.

Research Problem Examples

Following are some Research Problem Examples:

Research Problem Examples in Psychology are as follows:

• Exploring the impact of social media on adolescent mental health.
• Investigating the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral therapy for treating anxiety disorders.
• Studying the impact of prenatal stress on child development outcomes.
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to addiction and relapse in substance abuse treatment.
• Examining the impact of personality traits on romantic relationships.

Research Problem Examples in Sociology are as follows:

• Investigating the relationship between social support and mental health outcomes in marginalized communities.
• Studying the impact of globalization on labor markets and employment opportunities.
• Analyzing the causes and consequences of gentrification in urban neighborhoods.
• Investigating the impact of family structure on social mobility and economic outcomes.
• Examining the effects of social capital on community development and resilience.

Research Problem Examples in Economics are as follows:

• Studying the effects of trade policies on economic growth and development.
• Analyzing the impact of automation and artificial intelligence on labor markets and employment opportunities.
• Investigating the factors that contribute to economic inequality and poverty.
• Examining the impact of fiscal and monetary policies on inflation and economic stability.
• Studying the relationship between education and economic outcomes, such as income and employment.

Political Science

Research Problem Examples in Political Science are as follows:

• Analyzing the causes and consequences of political polarization and partisan behavior.
• Investigating the impact of social movements on political change and policymaking.
• Studying the role of media and communication in shaping public opinion and political discourse.
• Examining the effectiveness of electoral systems in promoting democratic governance and representation.
• Investigating the impact of international organizations and agreements on global governance and security.

Environmental Science

Research Problem Examples in Environmental Science are as follows:

• Studying the impact of air pollution on human health and well-being.
• Investigating the effects of deforestation on climate change and biodiversity loss.
• Analyzing the impact of ocean acidification on marine ecosystems and food webs.
• Studying the relationship between urban development and ecological resilience.
• Examining the effectiveness of environmental policies and regulations in promoting sustainability and conservation.

Research Problem Examples in Education are as follows:

• Investigating the impact of teacher training and professional development on student learning outcomes.
• Studying the effectiveness of technology-enhanced learning in promoting student engagement and achievement.
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to achievement gaps and educational inequality.
• Examining the impact of parental involvement on student motivation and achievement.
• Studying the effectiveness of alternative educational models, such as homeschooling and online learning.

Research Problem Examples in History are as follows:

• Analyzing the social and economic factors that contributed to the rise and fall of ancient civilizations.
• Investigating the impact of colonialism on indigenous societies and cultures.
• Studying the role of religion in shaping political and social movements throughout history.
• Analyzing the impact of the Industrial Revolution on economic and social structures.
• Examining the causes and consequences of global conflicts, such as World War I and II.

Research Problem Examples in Business are as follows:

• Studying the impact of corporate social responsibility on brand reputation and consumer behavior.
• Investigating the effectiveness of leadership development programs in improving organizational performance and employee satisfaction.
• Analyzing the factors that contribute to successful entrepreneurship and small business development.
• Examining the impact of mergers and acquisitions on market competition and consumer welfare.
• Studying the effectiveness of marketing strategies and advertising campaigns in promoting brand awareness and sales.

Research Problem Example for Students

An Example of a Research Problem for Students could be:

“How does social media usage affect the academic performance of high school students?”

This research problem is specific, measurable, and relevant. It is specific because it focuses on a particular area of interest, which is the impact of social media on academic performance. It is measurable because the researcher can collect data on social media usage and academic performance to evaluate the relationship between the two variables. It is relevant because it addresses a current and important issue that affects high school students.

To conduct research on this problem, the researcher could use various methods, such as surveys, interviews, and statistical analysis of academic records. The results of the study could provide insights into the relationship between social media usage and academic performance, which could help educators and parents develop effective strategies for managing social media use among students.

Another example of a research problem for students:

“Does participation in extracurricular activities impact the academic performance of middle school students?”

This research problem is also specific, measurable, and relevant. It is specific because it focuses on a particular type of activity, extracurricular activities, and its impact on academic performance. It is measurable because the researcher can collect data on students’ participation in extracurricular activities and their academic performance to evaluate the relationship between the two variables. It is relevant because extracurricular activities are an essential part of the middle school experience, and their impact on academic performance is a topic of interest to educators and parents.

To conduct research on this problem, the researcher could use surveys, interviews, and academic records analysis. The results of the study could provide insights into the relationship between extracurricular activities and academic performance, which could help educators and parents make informed decisions about the types of activities that are most beneficial for middle school students.

Applications of Research Problem

Applications of Research Problem are as follows:

• Academic research: Research problems are used to guide academic research in various fields, including social sciences, natural sciences, humanities, and engineering. Researchers use research problems to identify gaps in knowledge, address theoretical or practical problems, and explore new areas of study.
• Business research : Research problems are used to guide business research, including market research, consumer behavior research, and organizational research. Researchers use research problems to identify business challenges, explore opportunities, and develop strategies for business growth and success.
• Healthcare research : Research problems are used to guide healthcare research, including medical research, clinical research, and health services research. Researchers use research problems to identify healthcare challenges, develop new treatments and interventions, and improve healthcare delivery and outcomes.
• Public policy research : Research problems are used to guide public policy research, including policy analysis, program evaluation, and policy development. Researchers use research problems to identify social issues, assess the effectiveness of existing policies and programs, and develop new policies and programs to address societal challenges.
• Environmental research : Research problems are used to guide environmental research, including environmental science, ecology, and environmental management. Researchers use research problems to identify environmental challenges, assess the impact of human activities on the environment, and develop sustainable solutions to protect the environment.

Purpose of Research Problems

The purpose of research problems is to identify an area of study that requires further investigation and to formulate a clear, concise and specific research question. A research problem defines the specific issue or problem that needs to be addressed and serves as the foundation for the research project.

Identifying a research problem is important because it helps to establish the direction of the research and sets the stage for the research design, methods, and analysis. It also ensures that the research is relevant and contributes to the existing body of knowledge in the field.

A well-formulated research problem should:

• Clearly define the specific issue or problem that needs to be investigated
• Be specific and narrow enough to be manageable in terms of time, resources, and scope
• Be relevant to the field of study and contribute to the existing body of knowledge
• Be feasible and realistic in terms of available data, resources, and research methods
• Be interesting and intellectually stimulating for the researcher and potential readers or audiences.

Characteristics of Research Problem

The characteristics of a research problem refer to the specific features that a problem must possess to qualify as a suitable research topic. Some of the key characteristics of a research problem are:

• Clarity : A research problem should be clearly defined and stated in a way that it is easily understood by the researcher and other readers. The problem should be specific, unambiguous, and easy to comprehend.
• Relevance : A research problem should be relevant to the field of study, and it should contribute to the existing body of knowledge. The problem should address a gap in knowledge, a theoretical or practical problem, or a real-world issue that requires further investigation.
• Feasibility : A research problem should be feasible in terms of the availability of data, resources, and research methods. It should be realistic and practical to conduct the study within the available time, budget, and resources.
• Novelty : A research problem should be novel or original in some way. It should represent a new or innovative perspective on an existing problem, or it should explore a new area of study or apply an existing theory to a new context.
• Importance : A research problem should be important or significant in terms of its potential impact on the field or society. It should have the potential to produce new knowledge, advance existing theories, or address a pressing societal issue.
• Manageability : A research problem should be manageable in terms of its scope and complexity. It should be specific enough to be investigated within the available time and resources, and it should be broad enough to provide meaningful results.

Advantages of Research Problem

The advantages of a well-defined research problem are as follows:

• Focus : A research problem provides a clear and focused direction for the research study. It ensures that the study stays on track and does not deviate from the research question.
• Clarity : A research problem provides clarity and specificity to the research question. It ensures that the research is not too broad or too narrow and that the research objectives are clearly defined.
• Relevance : A research problem ensures that the research study is relevant to the field of study and contributes to the existing body of knowledge. It addresses gaps in knowledge, theoretical or practical problems, or real-world issues that require further investigation.
• Feasibility : A research problem ensures that the research study is feasible in terms of the availability of data, resources, and research methods. It ensures that the research is realistic and practical to conduct within the available time, budget, and resources.
• Novelty : A research problem ensures that the research study is original and innovative. It represents a new or unique perspective on an existing problem, explores a new area of study, or applies an existing theory to a new context.
• Importance : A research problem ensures that the research study is important and significant in terms of its potential impact on the field or society. It has the potential to produce new knowledge, advance existing theories, or address a pressing societal issue.
• Rigor : A research problem ensures that the research study is rigorous and follows established research methods and practices. It ensures that the research is conducted in a systematic, objective, and unbiased manner.

About the author

Muhammad Hassan

Researcher, Academic Writer, Web developer

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• 07 July 2021

Research managers are essential to a healthy research culture

You have full access to this article via your institution.

A poster session at an international conference for research managers in Edinburgh in 2018. More academic administrators are getting involved with the scholarly side of their subject. Credit: Malcolm Cochrane Photography

In the space of three decades, academic research management has become an attractive career prospect for researchers around the world. Once focused principally on helping academics to manage funding, research managers and administrators (RMAs) are now part of a globally recognized profession that spans the research spectrum. There are some 20,000 RMAs working in universities; most are in high-income countries, but expansion is under way in lower-income nations, particularly in Africa.

The role has evolved as research has become more complex, and this, in turn, is attracting more candidates with research-level qualifications and experience. Today’s managers and administrators need knowledge and experience of open science, equality and diversity, ethics and public engagement — as well as of more conventional areas such as accounting, project management and research policy.

RMA courses and qualifications are now offered by universities and by some of the 20 national and regional professional associations belonging to the International Network of Research Management Societies (INORMS).

‘We’re problem solvers’: research administrators offer guidance to working scientists

But, as we report in this issue , tensions between RMAs and the researchers they work with are not uncommon. There are still those who regard the academic as ‘king’ and the RMA as little more than research support. Meanwhile, at some institutions, university leaders expect RMAs to monitor academics’ performance metrics — such as targets for publishing and research income — which can be stressful for both researchers and managers .

As a result, RMAs and their professional organizations are becoming advocates for responsible research. And they are embracing the academic study of research management and administration. This is helping to establish good practice, as well as professional standards that can be used to hold universities and publishers to account.

For example, members of INORMS are taking a lead in addressing how university league tables might be improved to make them fairer and more transparent . And the UK research managers association, ARMA, has been involved in an independent review on the use of metrics in research evaluation, a project called the Metric Tide. This year also saw the launch by management professionals of the Journal of Research Management and Administration .

These are welcome developments. RMAs are crucial to the research enterprise. Moreover, their involvement in active scholarship is essential to achieving the aims set out above. Researchers and managers must work collegially and respectfully to make the research environment happier and more productive.

Nature 595 , 150 (2021)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-021-01823-0

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Can machines automate strategy development? The short answer is no. However, there are numerous aspects of strategists’ work where AI and advanced analytics tools can already bring enormous value. Yuval Atsmon is a senior partner who leads the new McKinsey Center for Strategy Innovation, which studies ways new technologies can augment the timeless principles of strategy. In this episode of the Inside the Strategy Room podcast, he explains how artificial intelligence is already transforming strategy and what’s on the horizon. This is an edited transcript of the discussion. For more conversations on the strategy issues that matter, follow the series on your preferred podcast platform .

Joanna Pachner: What does artificial intelligence mean in the context of strategy?

Yuval Atsmon: When people talk about artificial intelligence, they include everything to do with analytics, automation, and data analysis. Marvin Minsky, the pioneer of artificial intelligence research in the 1960s, talked about AI as a “suitcase word”—a term into which you can stuff whatever you want—and that still seems to be the case. We are comfortable with that because we think companies should use all the capabilities of more traditional analysis while increasing automation in strategy that can free up management or analyst time and, gradually, introducing tools that can augment human thinking.

Joanna Pachner: AI has been embraced by many business functions, but strategy seems to be largely immune to its charms. Why do you think that is?

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Yuval Atsmon: You’re right about the limited adoption. Only 7 percent of respondents to our survey about the use of AI say they use it in strategy or even financial planning, whereas in areas like marketing, supply chain, and service operations, it’s 25 or 30 percent. One reason adoption is lagging is that strategy is one of the most integrative conceptual practices. When executives think about strategy automation, many are looking too far ahead—at AI capabilities that would decide, in place of the business leader, what the right strategy is. They are missing opportunities to use AI in the building blocks of strategy that could significantly improve outcomes.

I like to use the analogy to virtual assistants. Many of us use Alexa or Siri but very few people use these tools to do more than dictate a text message or shut off the lights. We don’t feel comfortable with the technology’s ability to understand the context in more sophisticated applications. AI in strategy is similar: it’s hard for AI to know everything an executive knows, but it can help executives with certain tasks.

When executives think about strategy automation, many are looking too far ahead—at AI deciding the right strategy. They are missing opportunities to use AI in the building blocks of strategy.

Joanna Pachner: What kind of tasks can AI help strategists execute today?

Yuval Atsmon: We talk about six stages of AI development. The earliest is simple analytics, which we refer to as descriptive intelligence. Companies use dashboards for competitive analysis or to study performance in different parts of the business that are automatically updated. Some have interactive capabilities for refinement and testing.

The second level is diagnostic intelligence, which is the ability to look backward at the business and understand root causes and drivers of performance. The level after that is predictive intelligence: being able to anticipate certain scenarios or options and the value of things in the future based on momentum from the past as well as signals picked in the market. Both diagnostics and prediction are areas that AI can greatly improve today. The tools can augment executives’ analysis and become areas where you develop capabilities. For example, on diagnostic intelligence, you can organize your portfolio into segments to understand granularly where performance is coming from and do it in a much more continuous way than analysts could. You can try 20 different ways in an hour versus deploying one hundred analysts to tackle the problem.

Predictive AI is both more difficult and more risky. Executives shouldn’t fully rely on predictive AI, but it provides another systematic viewpoint in the room. Because strategic decisions have significant consequences, a key consideration is to use AI transparently in the sense of understanding why it is making a certain prediction and what extrapolations it is making from which information. You can then assess if you trust the prediction or not. You can even use AI to track the evolution of the assumptions for that prediction.

Those are the levels available today. The next three levels will take time to develop. There are some early examples of AI advising actions for executives’ consideration that would be value-creating based on the analysis. From there, you go to delegating certain decision authority to AI, with constraints and supervision. Eventually, there is the point where fully autonomous AI analyzes and decides with no human interaction.

Because strategic decisions have significant consequences, you need to understand why AI is making a certain prediction and what extrapolations it’s making from which information.

Joanna Pachner: What kind of businesses or industries could gain the greatest benefits from embracing AI at its current level of sophistication?

Yuval Atsmon: Every business probably has some opportunity to use AI more than it does today. The first thing to look at is the availability of data. Do you have performance data that can be organized in a systematic way? Companies that have deep data on their portfolios down to business line, SKU, inventory, and raw ingredients have the biggest opportunities to use machines to gain granular insights that humans could not.

Companies whose strategies rely on a few big decisions with limited data would get less from AI. Likewise, those facing a lot of volatility and vulnerability to external events would benefit less than companies with controlled and systematic portfolios, although they could deploy AI to better predict those external events and identify what they can and cannot control.

Third, the velocity of decisions matters. Most companies develop strategies every three to five years, which then become annual budgets. If you think about strategy in that way, the role of AI is relatively limited other than potentially accelerating analyses that are inputs into the strategy. However, some companies regularly revisit big decisions they made based on assumptions about the world that may have since changed, affecting the projected ROI of initiatives. Such shifts would affect how you deploy talent and executive time, how you spend money and focus sales efforts, and AI can be valuable in guiding that. The value of AI is even bigger when you can make decisions close to the time of deploying resources, because AI can signal that your previous assumptions have changed from when you made your plan.

Joanna Pachner: Can you provide any examples of companies employing AI to address specific strategic challenges?

Yuval Atsmon: Some of the most innovative users of AI, not coincidentally, are AI- and digital-native companies. Some of these companies have seen massive benefits from AI and have increased its usage in other areas of the business. One mobility player adjusts its financial planning based on pricing patterns it observes in the market. Its business has relatively high flexibility to demand but less so to supply, so the company uses AI to continuously signal back when pricing dynamics are trending in a way that would affect profitability or where demand is rising. This allows the company to quickly react to create more capacity because its profitability is highly sensitive to keeping demand and supply in equilibrium.

Joanna Pachner: Given how quickly things change today, doesn’t AI seem to be more a tactical than a strategic tool, providing time-sensitive input on isolated elements of strategy?

Yuval Atsmon: It’s interesting that you make the distinction between strategic and tactical. Of course, every decision can be broken down into smaller ones, and where AI can be affordably used in strategy today is for building blocks of the strategy. It might feel tactical, but it can make a massive difference. One of the world’s leading investment firms, for example, has started to use AI to scan for certain patterns rather than scanning individual companies directly. AI looks for consumer mobile usage that suggests a company’s technology is catching on quickly, giving the firm an opportunity to invest in that company before others do. That created a significant strategic edge for them, even though the tool itself may be relatively tactical.

Joanna Pachner: McKinsey has written a lot about cognitive biases  and social dynamics that can skew decision making. Can AI help with these challenges?

Yuval Atsmon: When we talk to executives about using AI in strategy development, the first reaction we get is, “Those are really big decisions; what if AI gets them wrong?” The first answer is that humans also get them wrong—a lot. [Amos] Tversky, [Daniel] Kahneman, and others have proven that some of those errors are systemic, observable, and predictable. The first thing AI can do is spot situations likely to give rise to biases. For example, imagine that AI is listening in on a strategy session where the CEO proposes something and everyone says “Aye” without debate and discussion. AI could inform the room, “We might have a sunflower bias here,” which could trigger more conversation and remind the CEO that it’s in their own interest to encourage some devil’s advocacy.

We also often see confirmation bias, where people focus their analysis on proving the wisdom of what they already want to do, as opposed to looking for a fact-based reality. Just having AI perform a default analysis that doesn’t aim to satisfy the boss is useful, and the team can then try to understand why that is different than the management hypothesis, triggering a much richer debate.

In terms of social dynamics, agency problems can create conflicts of interest. Every business unit [BU] leader thinks that their BU should get the most resources and will deliver the most value, or at least they feel they should advocate for their business. AI provides a neutral way based on systematic data to manage those debates. It’s also useful for executives with decision authority, since we all know that short-term pressures and the need to make the quarterly and annual numbers lead people to make different decisions on the 31st of December than they do on January 1st or October 1st. Like the story of Ulysses and the sirens, you can use AI to remind you that you wanted something different three months earlier. The CEO still decides; AI can just provide that extra nudge.

Joanna Pachner: It’s like you have Spock next to you, who is dispassionate and purely analytical.

Yuval Atsmon: That is not a bad analogy—for Star Trek fans anyway.

Joanna Pachner: Do you have a favorite application of AI in strategy?

Yuval Atsmon: I have worked a lot on resource allocation, and one of the challenges, which we call the hockey stick phenomenon, is that executives are always overly optimistic about what will happen. They know that resource allocation will inevitably be defined by what you believe about the future, not necessarily by past performance. AI can provide an objective prediction of performance starting from a default momentum case: based on everything that happened in the past and some indicators about the future, what is the forecast of performance if we do nothing? This is before we say, “But I will hire these people and develop this new product and improve my marketing”— things that every executive thinks will help them overdeliver relative to the past. The neutral momentum case, which AI can calculate in a cold, Spock-like manner, can change the dynamics of the resource allocation discussion. It’s a form of predictive intelligence accessible today and while it’s not meant to be definitive, it provides a basis for better decisions.

Joanna Pachner: Do you see access to technology talent as one of the obstacles to the adoption of AI in strategy, especially at large companies?

Yuval Atsmon: I would make a distinction. If you mean machine-learning and data science talent or software engineers who build the digital tools, they are definitely not easy to get. However, companies can increasingly use platforms that provide access to AI tools and require less from individual companies. Also, this domain of strategy is exciting—it’s cutting-edge, so it’s probably easier to get technology talent for that than it might be for manufacturing work.

The bigger challenge, ironically, is finding strategists or people with business expertise to contribute to the effort. You will not solve strategy problems with AI without the involvement of people who understand the customer experience and what you are trying to achieve. Those who know best, like senior executives, don’t have time to be product managers for the AI team. An even bigger constraint is that, in some cases, you are asking people to get involved in an initiative that may make their jobs less important. There could be plenty of opportunities for incorpo­rating AI into existing jobs, but it’s something companies need to reflect on. The best approach may be to create a digital factory where a different team tests and builds AI applications, with oversight from senior stakeholders.

The big challenge is finding strategists to contribute to the AI effort. You are asking people to get involved in an initiative that may make their jobs less important.

Joanna Pachner: Do you think this worry about job security and the potential that AI will automate strategy is realistic?

Yuval Atsmon: The question of whether AI will replace human judgment and put humanity out of its job is a big one that I would leave for other experts.

The pertinent question is shorter-term automation. Because of its complexity, strategy would be one of the later domains to be affected by automation, but we are seeing it in many other domains. However, the trend for more than two hundred years has been that automation creates new jobs, although ones requiring different skills. That doesn’t take away the fear some people have of a machine exposing their mistakes or doing their job better than they do it.

Joanna Pachner: We recently published an article about strategic courage in an age of volatility  that talked about three types of edge business leaders need to develop. One of them is an edge in insights. Do you think AI has a role to play in furnishing a proprietary insight edge?

Yuval Atsmon: One of the challenges most strategists face is the overwhelming complexity of the world we operate in—the number of unknowns, the information overload. At one level, it may seem that AI will provide another layer of complexity. In reality, it can be a sharp knife that cuts through some of the clutter. The question to ask is, Can AI simplify my life by giving me sharper, more timely insights more easily?

Joanna Pachner: You have been working in strategy for a long time. What sparked your interest in exploring this intersection of strategy and new technology?

Yuval Atsmon: I have always been intrigued by things at the boundaries of what seems possible. Science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke’s second law is that to discover the limits of the possible, you have to venture a little past them into the impossible, and I find that particularly alluring in this arena.

AI in strategy is in very nascent stages but could be very consequential for companies and for the profession. For a top executive, strategic decisions are the biggest way to influence the business, other than maybe building the top team, and it is amazing how little technology is leveraged in that process today. It’s conceivable that competitive advantage will increasingly rest in having executives who know how to apply AI well. In some domains, like investment, that is already happening, and the difference in returns can be staggering. I find helping companies be part of that evolution very exciting.

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The use of generative AI in research: a production management case study from the aviation industry

• Published: 10 May 2024

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• R. O. Walton   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-6630-4141 1 &
• D. V. Watkins 1  

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Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI) marks a groundbreaking shift in research. Unlike traditional AI, GAI can generate novel insights and content using natural language processing. Using case study methodology, this paper explored GAI's application in identifying research gaps in aviation's use of Additive Manufacturing (AM), focusing on Design Optimization. Recent advances, such as ChatGPT-4, enable GAI to process extensive data and recognize complex patterns. The research method includes paper selection, GAI-driven gap analysis, and thematic extraction. Generative AI uncovered research domains but has limitations in content attribution and accuracy. Nevertheless, GAI promises to revolutionize knowledge discovery and problem-solving across various fields.

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Walton, R.O., Watkins, D.V. The use of generative AI in research: a production management case study from the aviation industry. J Market Anal (2024). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41270-024-00317-y

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10 headache-inducing resource management challenges (and how the pros solve them)

Tactical advice from people planning pros about overcoming resource management challenges like optimal resourcing, balancing team workloads, and task prioritization.

Assign the best team for the job, every time

Stella Inabo,   Content Marketer

There’s no shortage of analogies to describe the challenges of resource management —from playing Tetris to being an air traffic controller.

Yet none of them fully capture the issues that come with managing who can handle what work and when. Beyond planning your team’s time, you must match the right people to the right projects, measure (hard to grasp) utilization rates , distribute workloads effectively, and juggle shifting priorities.

It’s a lot. 

To help you manage these common challenges, we turned to the people who have solved these issues before: our customers. You’re about to read advice and tactical tips from several people planning pros, including a team of capacity planners managing 200+ people, a busy accounting firm that always hires at the right time, and a senior resource manager who fields more than 60 resource requests weekly. 

Read on to find out how they tackle challenges like: 

Managing and balancing heavy workloads

Gauging resource capacity

Lack of visibility into resource utilization

Keeping track of skills

Changing project priorities and requirements

Unrealistic project deadlines

Identifying the optimal method to track time spent on tasks

Finding the right tool to manage your people

Reluctance to adopt new technology

Sharing resources

1. Managing and balancing heavy workloads

⚠️Warning sign: team members are constantly overwhelmed with work 

In a recent poll we conducted on LinkedIn, people planners voted workload management as their biggest headache 😩 in resource management.

Workload management gives a majority of our people planners a headache

For Pascal Josephy, the Managing Director of novu , this resource management issue is all too familiar. 

“We can’t give employees more work than they can handle, but we also need to make sure every employee has a project so their schedules are full. At the same time, we have to be careful not to promise too much to our clients so that our employees aren’t overwhelmed.”

How to fix it 

To manage workloads effectively, you can follow a practical approach like the one used at the consultancy firm Accounts & Legal . Here’s a simple breakdown of their initiatives:

1. Monthly planning meetings

The Accounts & Legal team meets monthly to plan their workloads, which involves setting up all the tasks in Float. By planning ahead, they can distribute tasks evenly before the month starts, ensuring that everyone knows what they need to do and that the work is manageable.

Need to plan work a month ahead? Schedule long-term work easily in Float

2. Daily check-ins

The firm holds daily check-ins to monitor task progress and workloads. Open communication helps address delays or issues early on, making it easier to adjust workloads before they become a problem.

3. Monitoring capacity by role

Monitoring capacity by job role helps Accounts and Legal quickly identify when people with specific skills are nearing their limit. This allows the team to proactively decide whether to hire more staff or adjust the workload among the existing staff.

Clara Tooth, Manager at Accounts and Legal, relies on Float to stay on top of team workload

2. Gauging resource capacity

⚠️Warning sign: little to no idea of team capacity

Whenever we talk to our customers about resource management, capacity often comes up, especially how hard it is to determine or track it. 

For example, Emily Feliciano, Senior Creative Resource Manager at Atlassian, used to rely mostly on meetings and feedback from her team to gauge capacity, but she still found the process inefficient. She explains: “My brain remembered where things were and how many things people were working on. I was in so many meetings to ensure I was up to date on every single thing that happened and understood each designer’s needs. All I had was to trust their word. So if they told me they were maxed out, I knew that’s sort of where we were. It was a very long process.”

However, Justin West, a former program manager at A–B , points out that it is difficult to quantify capacity simply based on a team member’s word: “A lot of people say that they might be busy, but we have no way of quantifying that.” 

When capacity is unknown, it’s hard to gauge how much work your team could potentially take on and where the bottlenecks might be.

How to fix it

Here are some tactics to make capacity less nebulous: 

1. Establish baseline capacity for each team member

A common error in resource capacity planning is having unrealistic expectations about team members’ availability—like expecting the team to have 40 hours a week available to work without accounting for time spent on administrative tasks, sick leave, personal time off, and unexpected work requests.

Michael Luchen, our Director of Product here at Float, suggests that administrative work and management tasks should also be accounted for when planning capacity. “For example, if the design lead has to do admin work for an hour or two a day and then meet with team members for another hour, that should be allocated on their schedule.”

Recently, the content team started blocking out time for admin tasks–spot the bright green blocks 🟩

2. Use the right tools to track and plan capacity

Using the appropriate tools to manage schedules can make a big difference. For instance, project management tools don’t usually track availability, which means you might be left in the dark about your team’s capacity.

Before switching to Float, the team at STORM +SHELTER used Asana to schedule work, but the tool didn’t surface actual team capacity or give a clear view of the team workload and schedules. 

As Co-CEO Nick Patterson told us: “It was really difficult for us to get a big picture, look at how busy we were, who was being scheduled on what, especially if multiple tasks were going on in one day.”

3. Lack of visibility into resource utilization

⚠️Warning sign: not knowing what your team is spending their time on

When managers don’t have a clear view of what their team is working on and how much time they spend on tasks, they can’t accurately assess whether their team members are overworked or underutilized. 

Feliciano experienced this challenge firsthand when she started at Atlassian. Coming from an agency background where she used timesheets to track resource utilization, she found it particularly difficult to manage in-house people without dedicated tools. 

"When you have an internal team with no set hours or budgets, it becomes very challenging to track the amount of work someone is doing, how much effort they’re putting in, and at what point we should start to be concerned with their utilization, whether that’s lower or really high.”

To make informed decisions about prioritizing tasks and distributing workloads evenly, you can: 

1. Use a resource management tool to measure and optimize utilization rates

Timesheets are not the only way to track team utilization. 

For instance, Feliciano now relies on Float’s visual schedule to get a clear picture of her team’s utilization. 

“Unlike rigid timesheet tracking, Float allows a more intuitive approach to managing tasks. It lets me work on both detailed and high-level tasks while giving a comprehensive overview. This helps me understand team capacity and ensure it stays balanced, avoiding burnout and underutilization.”

Aided by eye-catching capacity indicators, Emily Feliciano can keep resource utilization at the right level

2. Monitor capacity indicators

Using Float, Feliciano also uses features like overtime alerts, which help her easily spot when utilization is too low or excessively high. These indicators help her take timely actions to rebalance the workload before it becomes a problem.

Float lets you spot when your team is stretched past capacity

3. Assess actual workloads

Besides looking at schedules, Feliciano examines the actual tasks assigned to each team member to determine if their number and weight accurately reflect capacity. Someone with ten tasks might be under-utilized if the tasks are simple or short—whereas someone with just one task might be at risk of overutilization if that task is particularly demanding.

4. Keeping track of skills

⚠️Warning sign: you have no idea who has which skills on your team

Keeping track of each team member’s skills becomes more challenging as organizations grow. It’s much harder to know who does what in a team of 200 compared to a team of just 10 🫠

Maike Jahnens is the Head of Financial Operations and Capacity Management at Scholz & Friends and is in charge of over 200 creatives. She told us: “It’s quite difficult to get to know everyone on a big international team. Sometimes, you see people in the office. You don’t know their roles and their names.”

If you’re in charge of an expanding team, here’s how to keep track of them: 

Store information about skills in a centralized tool 

​​Storing information about roles, specialized skillsets, and task-relevant certifications in a centralized tool can significantly help manage large teams. 

For example, the Scholz & Friends team uses People Tags in Float to keep track of the 200+ creatives on their team. 

With this tagging system, “you can see the person’s skill. You can just click [to find] a motion designer or a copywriter. And you have the list of everyone over offices. You know who speaks English and who speaks Spanish. You can see that very fast and help out if someone is in need of a specific skill set,” explains Jahnens. 

These insights offer Scholz & Friends two key advantages: they make managing a large, diverse team easier by quickly identifying the right skills across offices and ensuring that all team members are engaged in work they enjoy.

People tags help you keep track of what skills the people on your team have

5. Changing project priorities and requirements

⚠️ Warning sign: consistently reassigning team members between projects

Managers often have to become expert jugglers to balance shifting project priorities . 

Alek Thomas, the head of projects at full-service agency Impression, explains: “The greatest challenge in this role is keeping all multiple plates spinning. We receive numerous requests from clients, have various goals we want to achieve, and need to convey complex technical details. Juggling all these elements is tricky.”

For Feliciano at Atlassian, new projects frequently arrive while others are still in progress, complicating project prioritization. On average, she receives over 60 resource requests in a week. 

“Part of my struggle in my role is understanding prioritization and the impact of [incoming] work against what we already have in flight,” says Feliciano. 

Here are some tactics how to help you handle changing priorities (and reduce context switching, disrupted work, and increased stress for your team members) : 

1. Allocate time for ad-hoc work

It's almost impossible to stop priorities from changing; unexpected tasks will always come up.

But you can prepare by allocating time for unforeseen tasks, which gives your team the flexibility and adaptability they need to take on unexpected work without disrupting their scheduled projects too much. 

For example, the engineering team at Float blocks out time on its team members’ calendars to account for potential and unforeseen customer issues. Blocking out time for ad-hoc tasks reduces disruptions in the team’s schedule. 

2. Negotiate resources and push out timelines

If a new project comes in and the team is already at capacity, Feliciano suggests evaluating the new project’s importance by asking key questions: 

• What is the priority of this work? 
• Is there a significant budget attached? 
• Are we trying to fix a relationship with a client?
• Is this a new opportunity with a potential client we’ve been wanting to work with?

Understanding the new project’s importance and urgency helps decide how to accommodate it.

If the project is critical, the next step is identifying the ideal team members for the job and negotiating timelines for the current projects they are working on. 

“Nine times out of 10, I am able to push out project timelines to accommodate new work,” she says. “Especially if I have leadership backing or if I can explain the project has a huge budget.”

6. Unrealistic project deadlines

⚠️Warning signs: consistently missing due dates

Tight and unrealistic deadlines can stress your team and jeopardize successful project delivery. Also, when schedules are packed, team members may struggle to handle unexpected issues. 

Japie Stoppelenburg, the founder of Truus , points out: “Project teams tend to schedule everyone’s day very tightly, fitting in four tasks in one day and really trying to pack it all in. However, this isn’t ideal because it puts people under pressure, causing stress and making it hard for them to improve their work.”

Here’s how some of our customers ensure their teams have achievable deadlines: 

1. Use scenario planning for realistic deadlines

Angela Faunce Leaf, Executive Producer, Integrated Production at Tilt Creative + Production , proactively maps out future projects in Float to avoid surprises. Even if she’s unsure when a resource will be needed, she works on project planning ahead of time by creating a Tentative Project and using placeholders. Once more details are available, she updates the project with the appropriate team members and their available bandwidth.

You can start planning projects before they are confirmed by setting them as tentative in Float

2. Use historical data to scope out timelines

Consult team members who have experience with similar projects. They can provide more accurate estimates based on their past experiences. 

Historical data from your resource planning tool can also be a valuable reference. In Float, you can compare logged versus scheduled time to get a better sense of where you may have previously encountered capacity and resource conflicts. 

Float lets you compare logged vs scheduled time to see if a project took longer than planned

7. Identifying the optimal method to track time spent on tasks

⚠️Warning sign: you can’t tell how much time your team spends on work

Your approach to work may require adopting a dedicated method for measuring time and utilization rates, and finding the right one can be challenging.

For instance, Stoppelenburg doesn’t believe in time-tracking for creative work; “I think it’s common for most agencies to have employees track their time. I don’t believe in that. I think it creates the wrong environment for a creative agency. I don’t want the creatives to worry about their hours or their time tracking. I just want them to deliver.”

Tiago Duarte, the Project Management Lead at Significa , shares the same view: “We don’t track time because productivity can vary greatly in creative work, particularly in design. Sometimes, a team member might work 10 hours without producing tangible results, while at other times, just one hour of work could yield two days’ worth of output.”

If you, too, do not use time logs, here are some alternative methods to gather data and plan the right projects: 

1. Plan your team’s time in blocks, not hours 

Stoppelenburg’s approach involves scheduling time in high-level blocks based on estimates provided by senior creatives and account managers. 

He explains: “We schedule high-level blocks of time based on estimates... Creatives try to follow the scheduled estimates as best they can. If they’re done earlier, they’ll let us know, and we might make some extra money in the process. If they take a little longer, our philosophy is that it will probably balance itself out with the times they were done earlier.”

This method allows for the flexibility necessary for the creative process while still maintaining timelines for project completion. 

Scheduling in Float is flexible, letting you assign work the way you want

2. Adjust and balance over time

“If someone consistently needs more time than they’ve been scheduled, the project managers examine whether the estimates are too low or if the person needs to find a way to speed up,” adds Stoppelenburg. 

This ongoing evaluation helps ensure that the scheduling remains realistic and adjusts to the team members’ actual pace and productivity.

8. Finding the right tool

⚠️Warning sign: your team is outgrowing spreadsheets  

Without the right resource management tool, you might find it difficult to do your job effectively. 

For example: spreadsheets might work up to a certain point, but as your team and project complexity start growing, you’re likely to spend hours in manual work that’s prone to error. 

Martin Mattli, Head of Operations and Quality Management at Apps with Love , told us how inefficient and time-consuming using spreadsheets to plan resources was: “It was a lot of work as we needed to manually add in absences, vacations, and public holidays for each employee, and it was just so exhausting.”

Float streamlines Martin’s resource management workflow.—look at that beautifully colour-coded Schedule!

The solution to this one is quite straightforward 👇

Use a built-for-purpose resource management tool like Float

A dedicated resource management solution gives you a centralized platform for managing and tracking capacity, schedules, and project information. Your resource plans become more accurate, and you can make changes on the fly based on real-time data.

“Float is effectively the most nimble and aesthetically appealing tool on the market,” according to Emily Feliciano, Senior Creative Resource Manager at Atlassian.

9. Reluctance to adopt new tech

⚠️Warning sign: team members are reluctant to switch to dedicated resource planning tools

Implementing a resource management too l is just the first step. The next challenge is overcoming resistance and persuading everyone to drop their old ways of resourcing. 

Take the A—B team’s transition to using Float for time tracking as part of their resource planning improvements. Even though his team was excited about the new tool, West told us that cultural change didn’t come easy: “The hardest part is the cultural change when you’re going from an organization that’s not really used to time tracking or hasn’t been [logging time] consistently to one where it’s now a requirement. Anyone in any organization can attest to that being difficult.”

Here are some steps to take to encourage your team to adopt new resource management software —and the processes that come with it:

1. Choose an intuitive tool

Pick a tool that is easy to use to minimize resistance. West chose Float for its user-friendly features, like pre-filled timesheets and an in-app timer, which allowed the team to track time effortlessly throughout the day rather than remembering everything at the end of the week.

Time tracking in Float is really as easy as clicking a button

2. Make a strong case for the tool and involve people in the process

West successfully got people on board by clearly explaining how time tracking could protect the team’s well-being and enhance project profitability. This approach helped team members see the advantages of adopting a new solution compared to keeping things as they were. 

Additionally, by keeping communication open before and after rolling out the new tool, West ensured that everyone was aligned and understood the process, which reduced resistance and confusion.

10. Sharing resources

⚠️Warning signs: consistent double booking and schedule conflicts

Effective resource management requires constant work to ensure everyone is aligned on how projects will be resourced. This includes getting stakeholders who compete for team members to agree on resource allocations. Without a clear consensus on who is responsible for what tasks and when, projects can stall.

Get a consensus on resourcing by: 

1. Planning your team’s time in a central schedule

By using the central schedule in Float, the accounts and project teams at Social Chain can see all scheduled activities. This transparency allows them to efficiently plan campaigns without overlapping, considering both current and future workloads.

2. Having open and regular discussions about the allocation of resources

Regular meetings are crucial for managing resource allocations effectively. For instance, The Scholz and Friends team holds regular discussions to ensure everyone understands their roles and the resources available.

Not all discussions have to be synchronous. For example, the Flight Story team uses Slack to manage and negotiate resources. They request project assistance in a dedicated channel and collaboratively figure out solutions. This method encourages effective communication and allows for flexible resource management.

Try the #1 tool trusted by 4,500+ of the world’s top teams

Keen to learn why teams like Atlassian, Scholz & Friends, STORM+SHELTER, and Flight Story choose Float for their resource management? Kick off a free 14-day trial and find out! 

Challenges are easier to handle with the right tools and processes

Whether it is a sudden change in capacity, several new projects coming in, or balancing increasing workloads, resource management issues are sure to show up. 

What has helped our customers continue delivering projects is having effective processes and a tool they can rely on (that’s us 👋).

Will Float work for you as well as it does for them? We have a feeling it will! Float can help you monitor and plan team capacity, plan for incoming projects, forecast resource needs, keep track of utilization rates, and spot the need to adjust workloads.  

Why don’t you give it a try and see for yourself ?

Some FAQs about the challenges of resource management

What steps can organizations take to improve resource management.

Organizations can improve resource management by:

1. Tracking resource availability and utilization in a resource management tool

2. Holding regular meetings to update and rearrange how resources are used

3. Tracking capacity and ensuring resource utilization is at a sustainable level 

4. Managing risks by creating contingency plans e.g. allocating time for ad hoc work to accommodate emergencies 

5. Using project data to determine deadlines

What technologies can help reduce challenges in resource management?

Tools built for resource management give a unified view of all resources and their allocations, enabling managers to assess availability and capacity quickly. They also automate the scheduling process so that resources can be easily assigned to projects based on availability, skill sets, and project priorities. Data from projects managed using these tools can improve future planning.

How can businesses identify issues with resource management?

Businesses can identify resource management issues through the following indicators:

1. High or low resource utilization rates 

2. Consistent project delays or cost overruns

3. Negative sentiment from employees about workload or capacity 

4. A mismatch between skills and project requirements 

5. High turnover rates of workers

6. High dependency on external resources

7. Inaccurate resource forecasting

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E-Waste: A Global Problem, Its Impacts, and Solutions

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Research output : Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

E-waste is a major global problem linked to the use, and discard of, electronic and electric devices. While the volume of these obsolete devices continues to increase and accumulate, the means and approaches currently used to reuse, dispose of, recycle, and address this continues to vary widely in terms of availability, effectiveness, and value. The issues relating to e-waste management include those emanating from managerial, environmental, labor, and health perspectives. This article aims to present an overview of the key considerations related to the e-waste dilemma, and also proposes issues, challenges, and solutions to addressing the problem. A focus on the factors and variables affecting e-waste management, together with a global framework of e-waste management methods and strategies, are then followed by recommendations and viable areas for future research.

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• Electronic Waste Engineering & Materials Science 100%
• E-Waste Business & Economics 90%
• Waste management Engineering & Materials Science 59%
• Waste Management Business & Economics 44%
• Discards Business & Economics 17%
• Recycle Business & Economics 15%
• Reuse Business & Economics 14%
• Management Methods Business & Economics 13%

T1 - E-Waste

T2 - A Global Problem, Its Impacts, and Solutions

AU - Hsu, Jeffrey

AU - Wang, John

AU - Stern, Mel

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2024 IGI Global. All rights reserved.

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AB - E-waste is a major global problem linked to the use, and discard of, electronic and electric devices. While the volume of these obsolete devices continues to increase and accumulate, the means and approaches currently used to reuse, dispose of, recycle, and address this continues to vary widely in terms of availability, effectiveness, and value. The issues relating to e-waste management include those emanating from managerial, environmental, labor, and health perspectives. This article aims to present an overview of the key considerations related to the e-waste dilemma, and also proposes issues, challenges, and solutions to addressing the problem. A focus on the factors and variables affecting e-waste management, together with a global framework of e-waste management methods and strategies, are then followed by recommendations and viable areas for future research.

KW - cultural differences

KW - e-waste

KW - electrical and electronic equipment

KW - environmental impacts

KW - global regulations

KW - impacts of technology

KW - recycling

KW - resource recovery

KW - sustainability

KW - waste management

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85185395555&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.4018/JGIM.337134

DO - 10.4018/JGIM.337134

M3 - Article

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JO - Journal of Global Information Management

JF - Journal of Global Information Management

• Product Management Tutorial
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5 common mistakes to avoid in user research in Product Management

User research in product management is really important. But sometimes people make mistakes that can mess it up. Like not setting clear goals for the research, using the wrong methods, picking the wrong people to ask questions, not asking the right questions, and forgetting to look at the data properly. These mistakes can make the research not very useful. But if we avoid them, we can learn a lot about what users want and make better products that they’ll like more.

5 Common Mistakes to Avoid in User Research in Product Management

Here are the 5 Common Mistakes that can be Avoid in User Research in Product Management:

Mistake 1: Not defining a clear research goal

When we don’t have a clear research goal, it means we’re starting user research without knowing exactly what we want to find out. This mistake can waste time and effort because we might end up collecting information that doesn’t help us. Without a clear goal, we might ask the wrong questions or get data that doesn’t give us useful insights for our product. To avoid this, it’s important to take the time to decide what we want to learn from our research. This means figuring out the main questions we need answers to or setting specific goals for what we want to achieve. By doing this, we can make sure our research is focused and helpful for making decisions about our product.

Mistake 2: Not choosing the right research method

This mistake means using a research method that doesn’t fit what we’re trying to learn. This can lead to incomplete or wrong information, which makes it hard to make good decisions about our product. Different research methods, like talking to people, asking questions, or watching how they use things, have different strengths and weaknesses. If we pick the wrong one, we might waste time and money without getting useful data. To avoid this, we need to think about what we want to learn, the kind of information we need, and who we’re trying to learn from. By picking the best method for our goals, we can make sure we get the right information to help us improve our product.

Mistake 3: Not recruiting the right participants

This mistake happens when we choose the wrong people for our research. When we don’t recruit the right participants, we miss out on getting insights that truly represent our target users. This can lead to decisions about our product that don’t match what our users want or need. Whether it’s because we pick people who aren’t like our typical users or we forget to include important groups like older adults or students, it means we’re not getting the full picture. To avoid this, we need to think carefully about who we want to include in our research and make sure they’re a good match for our target audience. By recruiting the right participants, we can get the information we need to make our product better for the people who will use it.

Mistake 4: Not asking the right questions

This mistake happens when we don’t ask the questions that will give us the information we need. When we don’t ask the right questions, we miss out on getting important insights that could help us make better decisions about our product. This can lead to us making choices that don’t match what our users want or need. Whether it’s because our questions are too vague, or leading, or we forget to ask about important things, it means we’re not getting the whole story. To avoid this, we need to think carefully about what we want to know and make sure our questions will give us the answers we’re looking for. By asking the right questions, we can get the information we need to make our product better for our users.

Mistake 5: Not analyzing and synthesizing the data

This mistake happens when we gather data from our research but don’t take the time to carefully look at it and put it together to find important things. When we don’t analyze and synthesize the data, we miss out on understanding what it’s telling us about our users and our product. This can lead to us making decisions without all the information we need or missing chances to make our product better. Whether it’s because we’re busy, don’t know how to do it, or just forget, not analyzing and synthesizing the data means we’re not using it to help us improve our product. To avoid this, we need to take the time to carefully look at the data we’ve collected and think about what it means for our product. By doing this, we can make better decisions and create products that work well for our users.

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In conclusion, good user research is important for making products that people like. By avoiding common mistakes like not setting clear research goals, picking the right research methods, choosing the right people for our research, asking the right questions, and looking carefully at the data, we can make sure our products meet users’ needs. When we focus on what users want and keep improving our research, we can create products that work well and make users happy. So, by putting effort into user research, we can make better decisions and build successful products.

FAQs: 5 Common Mistakes to Avoid in User Research in Product Management

Why is user research important in product management.

User research helps us figure out what users need and want, making sure our products actually solve their problems and meet their expectations.

How often should we do user research?

It’s best to keep doing user research regularly, all through making the product. This way, we stay updated on what users want and need.

In what ways can we do user research?

We can talk to users, ask them questions, watch how they use things, and even have them try out our product and give feedback. All these ways help us understand what users want.

What do we do with the feedback from user research?

We carefully listen to what users say and use their feedback to improve our product. This helps us make something that users really like.

How can we make sure our user research works well?

To do good user research, we talk to lots of different users, ask questions that let them share their thoughts freely, and pay attention to what they actually do. And we keep learning and improving how we do research.

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