June 2011

In all fields, mastering the basics is a fundamental step in capably performing your role and developing your own personal approach.

In business research, mastering the basics includes:

Grasping the research task
Before you put your fingers to the keyboard, or call on a contact, make sure you have a good, firm understanding on what you are looking for in your business research project.

Time & budget
More time and more money would always be helpful, but it is very important to develop techniques to reliably forecast and stick to the time and budget parameters of your research project.

Best sources
Knowing the strengths and limitations of your preferred sources helps to save time and zero in on where you are most likely to find the information you are looking for.  Your best sources are a mix of tried and tested favourites, and new sources that might fit the bill for your next research project.

Check for reliability
There are a lot of tools that collate information from various sources.  In mastering the basics, it becomes second nature to check the reliability and the source of the information that is being collated.

Meet deadlines
Despite best intentions, research projects can often take unexpected twists and turns in trying to track down elusive information.  You need to allow for a few detours in your research, while always keeping an eye on the deadline.

The basics are fundamental to delivering good results, and mastering the basics is an ongoing learning experience.