BATCH : SS 10-13 COURSE : UG GUIDELINES FOR PROJECT THESIS (STEPS INVOLVED)

1. BATCH : SS 10-13 COURSE : UG GUIDELINES FOR PROJECT THESIS (STEPS INVOLVED)

2. INTRODUCTION • Now that you have completed your classroom studies, the Institute would like to train you further towards becoming an efficient and effective manager. Thus now you would be required to demonstrate your ability and potential to do independent thinking and understand a real life managerial issue in your chosen functional area of management, viz, Finance, HRM, Marketing, Marcom & IT. Moreover, you are expected to suggest solution to this kind of problem or at least report the existing solution. How do you go about accomplishing this task? Well, the guidelines follow for your perusal and usage.

3. OBJECTIVE • To help you develop ability to apply multidisciplinary concepts, tools, and techniques to focus on organizational problems and arrive at/report solutions. The aim is essentially to test your ability to apply your knowledge and skills after having studied management oriented subjects for 4 semesters, to a real life situation.

4. TYPES OF PROJECT • Comprehensive case study: It covers single organization/ multifunctional area problem formulation, analysis, and recommendation. • Interorganisational study: It aims at inter firm/ comparison/ validation of theory/survey of management practices. • Field study: Empirical study pertaining to functional areas.

5. PROJECT FORMULATION PROJECT MENTOR & EVALUATOR • Will be assigned by the college. You can take guidance from them as & when required. • You are required to prepare synopsis in the format provided. LENGTH OF THE REPORT • Normally your report should contain 15000 - 20,000 words, i.e. roughly 45-50 typewritten sheets. You will have to justify a shorter or a lengthier submission which in any case cannot go beyond a ± 5% variation.

6. SEQUENCE OF EVENTS 1. Think of a topic you want to prepare a project report on 2. Submission of Thesis synopsis ( Max 2 pages) in hard copy in library for approval. 3. Approval of thesis synopsis by allotment of Registration Number sent through email. 4. Do your own research. The research will essentially involve collection, collation, and analysis of primary & secondary information. A report based purely on secondary data will not be accepted. 5. Submission of Final Project Thesis.

7. STRUCTURE OF THE REPORT THE PRELIMINARIES • Title Page • Abstract • Thesis Topic approval letter sent over email • Synopsis • Acknowledgments • Table of Contents • List of Figures & Tables GENERAL PROJECT THESIS CONTENT • Executive summary • Introduction • Research objectives & Methodology • Body of the report : Literature Review, Findings & Analysis • Conclusions & Recommendations • Bibliography • Appendices

8. 1. Title Page: It will have the following information: Capital letters in Golden color; Portrait format • Name of the Institute, logo. • Title of the report • Submitted to: Name of the guide • Submitted by: Name of the student, class, roll number, project thesis id number, batch (In the middle)

9. 2.Executive Summary/Abstract • This is a summary of the completed paper, from introduction to conclusion, in about 300 words. Broadly, it defines the concepts studied, states the purpose of the study, describes its scope and analytical tools used to arrive at the conclusions, and then states key findings. This section is written AFTER you have written your complete report. One example of the executive summary: • CRM is a philosophy that directs the organization to build its processes around its customers’ needs. The call centre (CC) is a CRM-embedded automation that builds long term, strategic relationship with its customers. It assures high volume performance for organizations, and fast, consistent service for their customers. Banks and other financial service providers can benefit most because they deal in information and funds that are electronically transacted. The CC is a technology cum attitude driven alternative to existing channels of the providers. American providers have put up a sterling performance in cc for their Indian counterparts. Indian organization have just made an entry, but awareness and interest in the gains in its business applications are steadily increasing. The cc is a strategic investment, and therefore must be driven by top management. However, process changes, technology integration and absorption, and regular cultural training are vital for success of the investment.

10. 4.Table of ContentsHere titles of chapters along with their corresponding page numbers are mentioned. 3. Acknowledgement • Here you will talk about your report (in not more than 100-150 words) and acknowledge the contribution of various sources (teachers, professionals from the organization, friends, libraries, etc.) who helped you in completing the report.

11. 5. Introduction • You will introduce the subject matter of your project here in 1-2 pages. This must describe the topic and the problem. The first thing is your problem statement. Emphasize the problem area and its related effects. State the main objective of your exercise here. One example of the way Introduction is written is given below: • Depreciation is a method of spreading the cost of a fixed asset over its economic life. The economic life of a fixed asset is greater than the accountancy periods across which financial statements are made and presented to stakeholders. Depreciation therefore allocates the cost of the asset to the accounting periods benefitting its use. Companies adopt different methods of depreciation, and may change these methods from time to time. Consequently, readers arrive at different conclusions, when they read the financial statements…….. (Note: This is an abridged from only of Introduction and is in regular font size of 12’ Times New Roman)

12. 6. Methodology • You have to begin with by doing desk based (secondary sources centered) research. Then you have to administer questionnaire / conduct interviews to collect primary data/ responses. If you had chosen either of them, give your justification for doing so, this section is written in past tense. You have to describe new process used, if any. To illustrate • The sample was drawn from Business Today’s list of 500 largest companies (Sep 22 – October 6,2011). Out of these, only the largest 200 in terms of size of assets were covered, provided they were at least 20 years old, as on 31 March 2009. Data was collected through a structured questionnaire sent to the CEO/CFO/ Director (Finance) in these companies. The data was analysed using factor analysis

13. 7. Body of the report • Here you will write the main body of your report (20-25 pages). In this section you provide all the details including your findings with particular reference to the problem areas. Undertake and report statistical analysis here. Emphasize areas of conformance /divergence from concepts, assumptions and practices. For example, the following form part of the main text of 2 different reports: • ………81% of the respondents listed five factors to be of crucial importance (see Table – 3 below) • This identified 11 key areas which organizations must build for competing successfully in the global market. These are indicated in Table – 6 below.

14. 8. Conclusion • In this section you will highlight the main points of your project report and draw your own conclusion. You may even make suggestions. Consolidate your findings. Do make recommendations towards a better system. Critically analyse your report. Also report limitations like size and quality sample, etc. One report, for example, concluded: • Although Deming emphasized the need to adopt an employee centric approach to implement TQM, the study showed that the companies in our study implemented TQM successfully without undue dependence on their people. This contradicted the popular view that TQM is effective only if all the people in the organization participated in the exercise. The study was limited to one large metropolis, and respondents were wihin a narrow age group of 35-45. A broader sample is recommended for better results.

15. 9. Tables and figures • Any detailed facts and figures which do not form the part of the main text can be included here. (These pages are in addition to 30-35 page report) Remember, these statistics are the ones which have NOT been already incorporated at different places in the main body of the Essay

16. 10.Bibliography • You will quote here all the books, articles and web based sources. Without this listing your report will be rejected immediately. It is of utmost importance that you document all your primary sources and the secondary references while you are researching for your report. DO NOT wait till the stage of writing since you would not be able to retrieve these sources at that stage. A minimum of 10 references must be provided, the use of which in your report will be cross checked by the evaluator. Any fraudulent mention (meaning, no actual use of the quoted reference for writing the report) will summarily invite an instant rejection of the report. You have to follow the following style: Books: • Bowersox, Donald J. (2008): “Logistics Management.” Tata McGraw Hill, New Delhi Journals and other articles: • Schemenner, R. W (1999): “Company information and Share Prices Movement” Journal of Finance & Economics, Vol. 21, No. 1, PP 83-104 Online Resources: • “Measuring Marketing at Retail in Chain Drugsstores.” http://www.popai.com (accessed on September 10, 2011) Reporting of references any other way will invite penalty

17. You have to compulsorily follow the following format:

18. REPORT WRITING: DETAILED GUIDELINESREPORT WRITING: TITLE PAGE The Title Page • Allows the reader to easily identify the context /coverage of the report • Has details of: - Title of the report - Your name and identity (registration number, batch, etc.) - To whom it is addressed, including the course it is submitted for - Date of submission • Is visible even before opening the report

19. REPORT WRITING: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY • Allows reader to get an overview of the report before focusing on the details • Gives a summary of the whole report and not the introduction or recommendations alone • Focuses on FINDINGS and NOT on STRUCTURE of the report • Includes a brief statement of the original problem and the main argument or evidence that have led you to your conclusions • Is only one page long • Is best written after you have finished writing the main body of the report • Is placed even before the contents page

20. REPORT WRITING: CONTENTS LIST • Shows major and minor section headings • Gives the page on which each section starts • Also gives titles of any attached appendices REPORT WRITING: INTRODUCTION • Is written to orient the reader to the subject of the report • Is not merely paraphrasing of the title; goes beyond • Addresses the following questions: - Why is the topic important? - What is the purpose of the report? - What is the main argument contained? - On what evidence is the main argument based? - How is the argument structured? - What are the implications of the argument?

21. REPORT WRITING: MAIN BODY • Usually contains a number of major and minor sections • Aims to develop arguments, based on evidence that build up to your eventual conclusions • Incorporates diagrams/tables/figures to support and clarify the text • Refers to more detailed analysis which is in the appendices at the appropriate point in the main body REPORT WRITING: CONCLUSIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS • Should follow on naturally from the arguments raised in the main body • Should contain no surprises or new material • Recommendations deal with the implementation of the conclusions • Recommendations are action oriented • Recommendations are given in order of priority • Recommendations have to be in consistency with the prevailing conditions of the environment and the organization. 21

22. REPORT WRITING: APPENDICES • Contain detailed evidence for those readers who want further details, or for those wanting more information before they are convinced of your arguments. • Are referred through letter (A,B,C…….) and not numbers (1,2,3…..) REPORT WRITING: REFERENCES • List of all secondary data used, but NOT primary sources • It also includes nowadays the web based sources

23. LAYOUT REQUIREMENTS • Spacing - 1.5 Inch space or Double space throughout • Exceptions: Title page and approval page, Table of contents, Captions, table or figure headings, Extensive quotations, Footnotes or endnotes, Entries in reference section, Appendices. • Font - Preferably bookman old style or else any standard font is acceptable ; Use the same font throughout; Use font size 12 • Exceptions: Captions (not smaller than 9 point), Headings (not larger than 20 point) • Header and Footer - The Header should include the Institute’s Logo with Name ( in center) • The footer should include the Student’s Batch ( Extreme left) and Project Thesis Alumni Id Number ( Extreme Right ) • Margins - Pages must have at least:1.5 inch left margin ; 1 inch top, bottom and right margins • Paper - 8.5 X 11 inches (A-4 Size) , White bond,25% (or higher) cotton content. • Overall Appearance - All corrections should be made before final copy is printed in bounded form ( black colour) • Printing the Final Copy - Print must be sharp and of uniform darkness ; One side only.

24. ILLUSTRATIVE LIST OF TOPICS (IMP: You are entirely free to select any other topic )

25. Finance Sample topics • Foreign exchange rate fluctuations and Indian textile exports • Leasing finance and its influence on automobile sector • Industrial sickness in engineering industry: causes and remedies • Electronic fund transfer: opportunities, applications, and challenges • Credit rating agencies in India: case study of CRISIL • Funding options of corporate sector-a comparative analysis • Merchant banking in India: A case study • Financial risk reduction in international trade • Venture capital and its scope in India. • The GAAP and its application in India.

26. HRM Sample topics • Computerisation and its effect on employees morale: Case study of SBI • Compensation trends for middle management during 2011 • Job satisfaction in an organization: case study of Infosys • Stress and its causes in workplace • Organisational restructuring strategies and actions: case study of Marico • Role of TQM in HRD • Performance appraisal and management in entertainment industry • Indian managers and their skill development in new business environment • Motivating sales executives: Experience of HUL • Reward system and its impact on productivity improvement: A case study of TCS

27. Marketing Sample topics • Brand awareness and purchase behaviour for branded biscuits • Marketing strategy of fast food chains : study of McDonald's • Aftershave lotion: The scope for a new entrant • Buying process of a prospective buyer of Car in A segment • Study of adoption of fashion among college going youth in Delhi • Advertising on internet by booksellers: Issues and future • Media planning and advertising effectiveness • India's foreign trade in textile and clothing: segments and potential, 2012 • Vendor selection factors: case study of Escorts

28. Project Thesis Deadlines Submission of synopsis in Hard copy : By – 15th March 2013 Submission of Final Thesis : By – 15th May 2013 One Hard copy + One soft copy)

29. Contact : Thesis queries related to Marketing & Human Resource area : Dipti Sharma (dipti.sharma@iipm.edu ; Ph No : 42789995 ) Thesis queries related to Finance area : Ramakar Jha (ramakar.jha@iipm.edu Aamir Hossain (amir.hossain@iipm.edu ) Any other query contact Krishna Rai ( projectthesis1012@gmail.com) Ph. No : 30168408