Research Proposal

Your next writing assignment will be a memo to your instructor for the final report.

Steps to Take in Completing this Assignment:

• Identify the decision-maker or group of decision-makers to whom you will write your final report

• Describe the specific problem you are attempting to address.

• Prepare some primary research for your report.

• Write a memo to your instructor using the template provided below.

The Role of this Assignment for your Research Report:

This assignment is designed to help you put together the final paper in WRTG 394.

Remember, your final paper in WRTG 394 will be a report in which you do the following:

• define a problem in your workplace or community persuasively and accurately

• propose a solution or solutions to the problem or issue

Previous assignments in the class pointed out some sample topics for the report:

• a report to your manager at work suggesting that more teleworking options be given to employees at your workplace

• a report to your supervisor at work suggesting that email be used less frequently for communication and that another application be used to improve communication.

• a report to your manager at work suggesting that your office become paperless

• a report to the board of directors at your townhouse community to argue that the playground area in your community should be renovated

• a report to the manager of your unit at work noting that recycling facilities in the workplace should be improved

For writing assignment #2, you completed a background and synthesis of the literature on your topic. For this writing assignment, you are going to identify the specific needs in your workplace or community that will be identified for your final report.

Examples of Primary Research for Specific Topics:

• If you write a report to your manager at work suggesting that more teleworking options be given to employees at your workplace, you cannot simply prepare a report on teleworking. You must show that teleworking will solve a specific problem or problems in your organization.

• If you write a a report to your supervisor at work suggesting that email be used less frequently for communication and that another application be used to improve communication, you cannot simply prepare a report on the benefits of social media in the workplace. You must show that your specific office has problems in communicating by email and indicate the benefits of using alternative communication systems for your workplace environment.

• If you write a report to your manager at work suggesting that your office become paperless, you cannot simply prepare a report on the benefits of a paperless office. You must show that your specific office can go paperless and indicate the benefits of your specific office going paperless.

• If you write a report to the board of directors at your townhouse community to argue that the playground area in your community should be renovated, you cannot simply prepare a report on the benefits of a playground for a neighborhood. You must show that your specific neighborhood will benefit from renovations in its playground.

• If you write a report to the manager of your unit at work noting that recycling facilities in the workplace should be improved, you cannot simply prepare a report on the benefits of recycling or of good recycling facilities in offices. You must show that your specific work environment lacks adequate recycling facilities and show how it will benefit from improved recycling facilities.

Advice on Describing the Specific Problem:

When describing the problem you will be addressing, be specific. Remember the following:

• If you are proposing that teleworking be offered as an option to employees, you have to show why the lack of a teleworking option is a problem now.

• If you are proposing that email be used less frequently for communication and that another application be used to improve communication, you have to show why the lack of other communication methods and the reliance on email is a problem now.

• If you are proposing that your office transition to a paperless office, you have to show why the dependence on hard-copy documents is a problem now.

• If you are proposing that the playground in your townhouse community be renovated, you have to show why the current playground is a problem now or that the lack of a playground is a problem now. If you are proposing that teleworking be offered as an option to employees, you have to show why the lack of a teleworking option is a problem now.

• If you are proposing that your work unit establish more effective recycling facilities, you have to show why the current recycling arrangement is a problem now.

Advice on Conducting Primary Research:

When considering primary research, consider the various forms of research outlined in the chapters from Markel and Bovee and Thill. Consider the following examples:

• For a report on teleworking, you might conduct interviews with fellow workers on the topic to see how and why they might benefit from teleworking.

• If you are proposing that email be used less frequently for communication and that another application be used to improve communication, you might interview fellow employees on the situation, and you might take screen captures of alternative communication tools to illustrate how they work and would improve communication in your office.

• For a report on transitioning to a paperless office, you might take pictures of your office environment showing the clutter or unsafe environment that hard-copy files create.

• For a report on building a playground area in the community, you might take pictures of the community area to show where such a playground could be built, and you might interview residents who have children to get their perspective on the playground idea.

• For a report on recycling facilities, you might take pictures of the office environment to show that current recycling facilities are inadequate, and you might interview fellow workers about whether they find it easy to recycle materials at your office.

Template for Submitting Your Proposal

[Note: Please use the format outlined below. You can copy and paste the template into a Word document. Then you would write in your own text where you see the bracketed blue-text instructions. Use black text for your memo.]

To: [Your instructor's name]

From: [Your Name]

Date: [Today's Date]

Subject: [Project Title Name]

Summary

[Provide a brief summary identifying the purpose of writing this memo.]

What the Problem Is

[In one paragraph, identify and describe the problem to which you are going to propose a solution.]

Why This Problem Needs to be Investigated

[In one or two paragraphs, describe the reasons you think this problem is important.]

Preliminary Ideas for Solving the Problem

[In one or two paragraphs, describe alternative approaches to the problem/situation you are describing.]

What Research Has Been Conducted about the Problem

[In one or two paragraphs, describe secondary research you have conducted and primary research you have conducted on the problem and solution.

Conclusion

[In one or two sentences, conclude your memo.]

Length of your memo:

Your memo should be approximately 1000-1300 words in length.

After you write the memo, your instructor will give you feedback. Your instructor might approve your topic as a very strong one, might approve your topic but make recommendations to it for adjustment, or might not approve the topic because of problems with its focus, its clarity in defining the problem, or other reasons.

You will find that writing up the proposal will be invaluable in eventual putting together your final research-based report. You will be able to apply the scholarly research you conducted for writing assignment #2 to your specific proposal and evidence of the problem that you have gathered for writing assignment #3.

Topics to Help You Come Up with Ideas on this Assignment:

Some possible workplace research topics are the following. These are examples to help you get started. Please contact your instructor to have other topic ideas approved.

• Going to a wireless network

• Going to a paperless office

• Switching from Windows to Linux (or other similar switch)

• Installing/upgrading company firewall

• Establishing a drug policy

• Establishing an employee leave donation program

• Establishing an equipment donation program for used computers, etc.

• Establishing a company recycling program (paper, etc.)

• Education/retraining for your employees

• Establishing a program for millennial workers (e.g., training on certain aspects of etiquette, on understanding other generations, etc.)

• Designing a training program for workplace safety issues

• Redesigning employee performance evaluations

• Developing a work-at-home (telecommuting) policy

• Developing a flex-time policy

• Establishing on-site day care or providing other child care benefits

• Providing gym membership or creating an on-site workout facility

• Creating or revising a charitable contribution policy

• Creating or improving a tuition assistance program

• Accommodations needed for employee/s with specific health issues (for example, migraines)

• Establishing a Habitat for Humanity (or other group) chapter at your organization

Some students have chosen topics outside of their workplaces, such as the following:

• Starting a neighborhood watch program

• Starting a mentor program at your place of worship

• Getting additional lighting in the neighborhood

• Changing traffic patterns around your child's school

• Starting a PTA website for your child's school

• Installing a tot lot in your neighborhood

• Constructing a crying baby room at your place of worship

• Offering ESL courses at your church

• Increasing participation in a military Family Support Group

• Introducing a youth sports program to a school or community.