Tom H. C. Anderson - More Than Market Research

This week I received a couple of newly published marketing text books in the mail. From time to time Anderson Analytics has contributed various material on both new research techniques and case studies. 

One of the text books, Business Research Methods 10^e by Donald R Cooper and Pamela S Schindler, McGraw-Hill © 2008 is part of the McGraw-Hill/Irwin Series on Operations and Decision Sciences. The Anderson Analytics information in this edition includes:

-Anderson Analytics’ projective techniques (particularly among youth/GenX2Z) pp169

-Anderson Analytics text mining techniques AA-Text^SM (Starwood Hotels Case) pp 221

- Anderson Analytics Audio Mining using IVR telephone methodology p.235

-Intro to Chapter 13 Questionnaires and Instruments pp.329

While I understand this text was launched in November 2007 it won’t really hit most classrooms in US Universities until summer and fall semesters of 2008. At 746 pages it retails for just over $150 on Amazon.

Another textbook I also received this week is called Qualitative Market Research – Approaches and Applications, edited by K Suresh published by IFCAI Books/IFCAI University Press © 2007. Myself and Anna Song PhD here at Anderson are responsible for Chapter 3 “Next Generation Projective Techniques”. Not yet on Amazon this can be purchased from IFCAI and I understand it will actually be used extensively by graduate students in Asia (especially India).

Taking a look at these texts made me think back to all the text books I’ve had to read in college and graduate schools. It’s funny, it’s not the particularly good text books that first pop into mind, but rather one of the ones I was angry about buying. This was a text one of my undergraduate management professors made us buy. If I recall correctly it cost at least $50 or more at the time, and it was a very small/short book on managing a performing arts theater. The professor himself had written the book several years before. I remember feeling rather angry about having to purchase a book which it seemed to me was too specific to be of much use, and also I felt like I was being forced to purchase a book simply to line the professors pockets. 

Happily I can say that’s not the case with the texts Anderson Analytics contributed to this past year. Business Research Methods by Cooper and Schindler is very well researched and updated regularly.

Qualitative Market Research – Approaches and Applications also has significant input from a few other market research firms such as AC Nielsen, and at $16.50 is a bargain. 

This made me think a bit about the role private industry should play in academia. Having studied in graduate programs both in Europe and the US I would say the separation between private industry and academia is more pronounced in Europe especially in Sweden where there is almost a sort of contempt for business being involved in Academia.  While this separation has its plusses and minuses (I’ve never understood why sports plays such a huge role in US schools for instance), I do think business should have some role in educating the next generation.

Most business school university professors here in the US have relatively little real world business experience. Many entered their respective PhD programs directly after undergraduate school, or after just a short stint in private industry or government. Most of their current subject knowledge seems to come from reading trade magazines and other publications and through limited contacts in business. There are exceptions of course, but I’m speaking more generally now.

So my questions are, specifically in our field: 

What role should we as market research professionals play in shaping the curriculum of future marketers?

Should organizations such as ESOMAR, AMA, ARF, MRA be in the text book publishing business?

Should Universities make a greater effort to recruit professors with more real world experience?

Surely by reaching out to academia in some way we could help shape opinion and increase the brand image of our field among the next generation of leaders. As for Anderson Analytics, we plan to continue to do our part by contributing to marketing text books and speaking at university events from time to time. I’d be curious to hear your opinions on the questions above. 

Tom

Tom H. C. Anderson

Managing Partner

Anderson Analytics, LLC