Hypothesis Formulation -- Sarang S. Bhola

 

Hypothesis Formulation:

Diagram of hypothesis formulation has three major interconnected parts, first is the extreme left three vertical boxes which lead to the second part with three horizontal boxes at the middle with interconnecting four boxes and the third part is two boxes at extreme right.  These parts are labeled as,

1.      Stimulation – towards research.

2.      Systemization – from research issues to hypothesis.

3.      Sustenance – research protocol.

 Curiosity and anxiety to address social issues or management problems in pursuit of getting solutions or model building is the basic purpose of research. Getting a research degree or publication and the like is not the basic purpose behind research but these are the bi-products. Model building helps resolving current problems faced by industry or society at large. Any tested model as an outcome of research has its limits of operation, since they are proposed in defined social or industrial environment.

Two generous sources of social issues are one theory and second is observation. Theory arouses questions into the mind of researcher which leads to putting forth hypothesis to test termed as deductive source of hypothesis. Readings from existing literature, unproved theories reported in literature, a hypothetical theoretical construct, words of wisdom of stalwarts, theoretical construct out of spatial visualization by scholar’s leads to set hypothesis. Hypothesis is tested on the data collected from population.

Hypothesis formulation on the basis of observation is termed as an inductive approach to formulate hypothesis. Observation over a period of time into any social or managerial issues recognizes a pattern of problems. These repetitions into patterns lead to formulating a hypothesis and facilitating variables to test the hypothesis. The results of hypothesis testing contribute to existed theory.

Genuine researcheris one who noticessocial or managerial problems into theory or through observationin the field and hunts for its causes probing in depth applying the research science. The people who give up such issues by merely overlooking them or answering questions just to get rid of are not researchers.

The second part of diagram is labeled as systemization. Four steps in the body influenced by three actions help channelize the curiosity and anxiety of researcher towards a definite end i.e. formulation of hypothesis.  Research issue is a detailed description of a social or managerial problem which one has read or observed in the field. The issue is multidimensional and involves many dimensions simultaneously hence, become complex and cannot be taken for research as it is. A research issue raises varied questions into the mind of researcher. Literature review helps downsize the number of questions for which the answers are already reported by researchers. This process facilitates closing gaps in the research i.e. what has been done and what is yet to be done. The array of questions are then categorized on the basis of similarities and arranged according to the priority to address. The basis of categorization or similarities could be functional areas of management or nature of problems and the like. The top priority set of research questions are selected for the study out of which a tentative title is proposed. The statement of research problem details the exact problem under study. Research problem is derived from research issues. Hypotheses are the answers to the questions considered in statement of research problem. A general question is oftenasked is how many hypotheses one should have for a research, a simple answer to it is, number of hypotheses depends on the number of questions to answer. To term an answer to a research question as an hypothesis it must satisfy all theoretical characteristics of hypothesis.  Objectives are derived from hypothesis. In a few cases where formulating hypothesis is difficult especially in the case of exploratory research design, objectives are set on the basis of research issues and statement of research problem and research protocol is designed to attain objectives. 

The third part of diagram is sustenance, a plan to carry on research in scientific manner. Research protocol is a plan or a blue print to conduct research. At the end of research protocol a tentative title for research takes final shape.

 

 

MISSION ENTREPRENEURSHIP -- Sarang S. Bhola

The pandemic Covid-19 has forced us to change our behavior and routine practices. It is also evident that we have been adapting to these changes. My previous write up--- challenge plan ‘A’ gently directs readers especially technocrats and students seeking professional education to take up entrepreneurship as a career option. Present environment is carving path to forced entrepreneurship since the entire job market in the world is shrinking. ‘Entrepreneur is born or made’ is a discussion altogether.

Here are few MTS entrepreneurship options: (MTS – stands for Manufacturing, Trading and Service)

Manufacturing Entrepreneurship:

1. Manufacturing entire import substitute products preferably using domestic resources and at lower cost than imports has abundant scope.
2.  Processing of agriculture raw material to add values at the farm site only.
3. Tea stall serving jaggery based tea, few auyrvedic property formulations served by clean and hygienic environment.
4. Equipment's for keeping sanitizer and temperature gun.
5. Material handling equipments.
6. Supplying quality food Tiffin’s.
7. Milk processing plants at village or cluster village level. 
8. Non-farm sector businesses at feeder village level. 
9. Small oil extraction plants --- processing oil seeds at local level. 
10. Wineries at Sangli, Nashik district. 
11. Loan licensing in food sector. 
12. Processing of Ayurvedic property plants --- aromatic oil extraction plants.

Trading Entrepreneurship:

1. Establishing Farm to home supply chain  - from rural to urban 
2. Processed and packaged organic vegetables --- delivered online direct to customers. 
3. Establishing Farm dairy to home supply chain – milk and milk based products. 
4. Establishing supply chain to rural market– from urban to rural.
5. Trading on wheels – retail bazaar on wheels, food truck, flesh truck, vegetables on wheels, fruits on wheels, refreshment on the wheels and evening desserts on wheels.

Service Sector Entrepreneurship:

1. Training related to ----- supply chain management, living safety life, social distancing and disaster management to people, basic medical education, Stress management and Career post Covid. Train to untrained in desired skills. 
2. Research and Development in ---- New business models using online platforms, new software’s supporting online platforms.
3. Consultation in --- International Business, Digital Marketing, Cyber Crime, Supply Chain, Rural Industry, Market Research. 
4. Agro based Services --- Entire agro based services. 
5. Tourism- Exploration and marketing of unexplored local tourist destinations. Village, rural and agro tourism.

Lakhs of skilled labour, self employed people, minor entrepreneurs have migrated out of Maharashtra and also within a state. No guarantee of their return and resume work. This has created a vacuum in the economy. The local unemployed youths have tremendous opportunity to leverage this vacuum. Little professional training is needed that can be provided by local management school. Somewhere the help of technical training schools like ITI and diploma colleges is also needed for hard skill building.

Entrepreneurship is Social Praise:

Present environment is supportive to take up entrepreneurship. The only thing needed is 360 degree momentum. Society has a greater role to play in it. The momentum has to be extended from educational institutions, supportive institutions, family and society.

Only four questions to answer.

1. Will the parents support their kids for entrepreneurship?
2. Will bureaucrats take entrepreneurship development as a philanthropic mission? 
3. Will a compatible girl marry with budding entrepreneur / agripreneur? 
4.  Will a society recognize this new entrepreneur?

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Family has to give unconditional support and be a stakeholder in the business by children. Surprisingly, youths from few business communities are not continuing traditional entrepreneurship because of not getting social support and this is quite evident from the fact that they are not getting suitable marital proposals. Girls do not prefer to marry with budding entrepreneur but an employee earning reasonably fat salaries and preferably stays at metropolitan society. Need is that, even the modern Girl, alongside her husband, takes up her own Entrepreneurship occupation which offers her flexibility and financial freedom. She can also explore option of involving in her husband’s enterprise. Society also praises employees and bureaucrats only. Banners, hoarding and news in the dailies flashes for candidate secure employment ----- any kind of employment through UPSC, MPSC and such competitive examinations. Same praise has not seen coming towards the much deserving Entrepreneurs. Time is to change this situation and for Good!

Supportive institutions like licensing bodies of government, financial institutions, and consultants (CA, Lawyers, Management, Taxation, Technology, and R&D) should extend their time generously to budding entrepreneurs. Their association with educational institution and joint efforts to motivate and support students towards entrepreneurship would bring miracles. 

Entrepreneurial Education:

Unfortunately educational institutions are also not supportive towards entrepreneurship. Hardly any Higher Educational Institution(HEI) affiliated to State Universities have active ED & Incubation cell. This is the high time HEI should set up entrepreneurship and incubation center. The HEI instead of giving importance only to competitive examination centers should redirect considerable resources to entrepreneur and incubation center. Incubate the aforementioned entrepreneurial avenues and serve the nation in real sense. The role of research on finding out entrepreneurial opportunity and preparation of feasibility report is pivotal. Apex educational bodies must extend special funds to this endeavor by HEI to entrepreneurial incubation and research. The entrepreneur alumni should be given ceremonial rewards. Such alumni are better examples before students.

The positive answers to aforementioned questions would bring dream of Self reliance India come true. Mission Entrepreneurial India should be taken as missions; India had taken up earlier like Green Revolution, Operation Flood and the like.

(This write up is powered by Mr. Abhay Kardeguddi (CEO and Chief Consultant-Trainer - Niva Growth Consultants -- Pune , Dubai , London.)   and Atul Shah (Psychotherapist, Risk Management Planner, Life Coach from Satara). The write up has reviewed by Mr. Sudhir Apte – a senior Entrepreneur from Satara)

Sarang S. Bhola

Associate Professor, Karmaveer Bhaurao Patil Institute of

Management Studies and Research, Satara, Maharashtra, India – 415 015.

Chairman BOS in Management, Shivaji University, Kolhapur, Maharashtra, India - 416004.