You have a series of assignments that are reasonably well defined. I will not repeat them here. Below, you will find rubrics that identify what I will be looking for in evaluating your work. You, as an individual or a group, will be well advised to keep these in mind. When you read the rubrics do not think that there is only one way of completing the assigned work. Within the framework of the rubric, each assignment will reflect your thought processes in analyzing and synthesizing acquired knowledge and gathered information. Do not approach them as prescriptions but as road maps.

Rubric for the exams

All three exams are of multiple-choice type. Various types of questions will test how well you are acquiring, constructing, and absorbing new material. There will be knowledge, comprehension, and application type questions. The first kind is the simplest and easiest to answer as they test whether you simply understood the concept in question. The second kind, comprehension type will test the depth of your understanding and constructing your own knowledge. This type of questions will likely present a concept in ways that are different from the way explained in the book or in our discussions. The last kind of questions will require that you know what piece of knowledge (tool) to pick up from your tool chest and how to apply it to a given situation.

The grading is purely objective and at the end of the exam I will give you the answer key. The main purpose of this is not to help you calculate your exam score. Rather, I would very much like you to find out what questions you might have missed, refer to the page number given in the book, and understand why you might have answered it incorrectly. That is good learning, deep learning.

Rubric for the research proposal

The research proposal will establish the scope of the work your group will undertake with a well-defined purpose. An ill-conceived proposal will make you go around a circle without accomplishing much, either in the assignment or in your learning. A well prepared research proposal will have the following qualities:

1. The client and the relevant division of the organization is clearly identified
2. The marketing decision the client wishes to make is clearly articulated. Background information and the marketing decision that needs additional and specific information. This provides the context of your research. Make sure to state it clearly in your proposal. You may not conduct research to see “what’s out there”.
3. The reasons for not being able to make the decision and what kind of information they may need are identified and articulated. Research objectives, how will research improve the quality of the decision to be made? You will need to specify what decision questions your research must address so that the managers can make a better marketing decision.
4. The information needs are suitable for survey research as you are required conduct this type of research, what information needs to be generated and what data collection methods should be used. In these stages, the research questions, related to the marketing decision, are not confused with survey questions you may ask.
5. Addresses the sample design, sample size and selection method. Early in the semester you may not be equipped to determine the sample size properly. However, you should read ahead those chapters pertaining to these issues and have a tentative method of handling them. You may modify them as you construct new knowledge.
6. Addresses the research methodology, a simple matter since you will all conduct survey research and most likely a descriptive research.
7. Includes a time table of landmarks. Refer to what you need to turn in as progress reports as a starting point.
8. Addresses the relevant costs even if they are minimal. In real-life, managers will make a cost-benefit comparison before they commission the research.
9. The proposal is written using the document template required in this course
10. The writing is not in the style of answering exam questions but rather in the style of a well-written report

All this need not be more than 1-3 pages of content excluding the cover and other pages as part of what you submit.

Rubric for the completed research report

The result of your research needs to be communicated to the marketing decision makers in a way that is comprehensive, easy to understand, and has sufficient depth. A well-prepared report has the following qualities:

1. Provides sufficient background information to place the marketing problem in context
2. Establishes the marketing problem that is related to a marketing decision. This is a critical starting point and will establish the boundaries of investigations. Therefore, the report should establish the marketing problem very clearly
3. Articulates the information needs based on exploratory research using interviews with the decision makers, secondary data, related library research.
4. Identifies what needs to be measured to provide the needed information. Remember, “information” is not the “age of the consumers” but more likely “identification of the target audience” one attribute of which may be age.
5. Properly operationalizes the concepts to identify the variables that will be measured. Remember, “brand preference” cannot be measured but “brands purchased for the last three times” can be. The first one is a concept, the second, a variable.
6. Presents and uses a questionnaire and delivery method suitable to measure the variables identified to generate the information needed.
7. The questionnaire is of professional quality, prepared using SurveyPro, for either a paper-and-pencil survey or an online survey
8. Using SPSS, the the collected data are analyzed and converted to meaningful information for the decision makers to use
9. The report is written using the document template required in this course
10. The writing is not in the style of answering exam questions but rather in the style of a well-written report
11. All the tables, charts, graphs are created and presented at the highest quality

Rubric for the end of semester group presentation

Presentation of findings is one of the important part of conducting research. Consider yourselves hired outside researchers, paid to do the job. Your presentation should be of very high quality and you should present your material to an audience who may or may not read your entire report. A high quality group presentation has the following qualities:

1. The presenters are presentable, the appearance should be suitable for a professional presentation. Your attire and your care of your professional appearance are indicators of how much you care about your work as well. Dress for success, what you may wear for a job interview will be appropriate.
2. The presentation starts on time and uses all the allotted 20 minute period
3. The presentation delivery is clear, not rushed, loud enough with confidence, with eye contact with the audience (not only with me)
4. The delivery is not merely reading from the report or the note cards, preparation and practice will be visible in your delivery. You need to convey your full grasp of what is being presented.
5. The transfer to the next presenter is done smoothly and comfortably.
6. The presentation visuals are of high quality and suitable for the client, easy to read, not cluttered. Presentation slides are talking points and to provide a mental map for the audience to follow, not your notes from which you simply read. Do not let PowerPoint to automatically size the font to make the content fit on the page. If you have more than 5-7 points on a slide, that is probably too much.
7. Questions from the audience are handled professionally. Not knowing the answer is sometimes quite alright, in fact better than trying to make up one.

Rubric for group work

Group work is an integral part of the course, and an almost certain part of your professional life. When groups work well, it could be a rewarding experience. When they don’t, it could be extremely frustrating. The move from the latter to the former is not highly time consuming or one that requires extreme effort. If all the members agree and commit to using the group experience as a learning tool, participate fully, and carry their own weight, the group will function smoothly and produce a good learning experience. I expect the following from your group work and will use these standards in evaluating your grade in this arena.

1. Group selects a contact person
2. A standing meeting is scheduled no less than every other week for at least one hour. As the semester progresses, the time requirement will increase.
3. Group meets on time, with a previously determined agenda, takes attendance, keeps notes of the meetings to distribute to all the members and one copy to me
4. At each meeting an assessment of the prior work is done, the future work is established, members are assigned tasks and clearly defined deliverables for the following meeting