Applied Research: Cases
Consider the following two situations cited in Business Week.
1. Oxford Health Plans Inc. saw trouble brewing. It was a company in distress experiencing computer problems. Turnover among Oxford‘s programmers was unusually high and processing of claims became a big nightmare. Clients started cancelling their policies, claims for bypass surgery and such were way up, and premiums paid out relative to clients‘ medical expenses, on a percentage basis, was close to 85%.
2. Xerox is insular and isn‘t ready for the increasingly competitive, high-tech world. Xerox still relies on old-fashioned and slow-selling analogue copiers for more than half its revenue and despite its double-digit growth in digital products and services, its sales rose just 4%.
Oxford Case:
It is obvious that Oxford has a multitude of problems and an outside consultant–researcher would perhaps be able to design a scientific study that would look into them. Presumably, this would be a lengthy investigation n that could result in several different recommended solutions. The company manager could then consider them, make the right decision, and thereby solve Oxford‘s problems.
Xerox Case:
In the second situation, Xerox also needs to look into the efficacy of the analogue technology used in copiers and examine what should be done to increase efficiency and promote its sales. The two preceding examples illustrate the need for applied research, whereby existing problems can be solved through investigation and good managerial decision making.
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