What people want, need & believe
Usha Albuquerque

Market research collects info about consumers & their choices and analyses, interprets it to aid decision-making. As there are few takers for this branch of marketing, consider doing your own research on the career this summer

IN a few days we will know the actual outcome of the General Elections of 2009. But over the last couple of weeks there have been many market research studies conducted to figure out the direction of political winds. Political parties along with media houses and research organisations carried out extensive explorations to help them figure out how the voter was likely to vote and how best to maximise their chances of victory.

It is not only in the field of politics that market research is used. Advertising largely influences our choice of the cars we drive, the mobiles we use or the clothes we wear. But it is market research with its mathematical or statistical modelling, sampling techniques and psychographics that provides advertisers the scientific and measurable basis to sharp-focus their strategy. Moreover, as India is a huge country with social and cultural diversity market research plays an important role, taking into account local conditions and preferences or needs to help identify a new product or service that would cut across these diversities. For instance, where there is hard water, there would necessarily be a greater demand for washing soap than in other areas. Similarly, eating habits determine the kind of edible oil that can be sold in a particular market.

The benefit that the industrialist is looking for is very different from what the non-industrial consumer wants. The needs of the rural market are also different with buying habits being very different from urban areas. It could also involve changing concepts of lifestyle in a highly evolving society. Moreover, as a market deals with human beings, no study can guarantee a full understanding of how a human mind reacts. Hence, the need is to have sociologists, economists as well as statistical and mathematical specialists to strike a balance between statistical and research data and individual judgment.

Market research is, therefore, a marketing technique that collects information about consumers and their choices – usually through surveys – and then analyses and interprets the information before providing it to clients to aid decision-making. Every good ad plan starts with research. This department surveys the market and analyses and studies consumer behavior about a product or service. They are involved with collection of data – information about the consumer, market, existing competition and so on. The research studies provide basic information to the manufacturer for planning a new product. It acts as a decision support system widely used not only for new products and services but also for working on any marketing strategy as also for collecting data on social and development indices, voting patterns for electoral purposes and so on. There are three broad areas of work in market research: research, fieldwork and data analysis.

Research: This department handles the client, finds out about the various marketing problems, decides how to analyse and collect the data. It is further categorised as Quantitative Research (data that has to do with numbers or percentage of people to use a product or service or have an opinion about a certain subject) and Qualitative Research (data that is more in-depth and deals with motivations and reasons behind people buying or not buying a product or service). According to the responses acquired, the researcher prepares the questionnaires for conducting the research and decides upon the location and mode for the survey. The researcher also designs research reports and proposals.

Fieldwork: This department organises and manages the people that conduct the surveys, training them -- if necessary -- and briefing them in techniques that will elicit the right information. Surveys can be carried out through door-to-door interviews or by phone and mail. Sometimes, students with spare time and an interest in this work are called to carry out the fieldwork, visit homes, other cities, towns or villages and study markets.

Data analysis: This department feeds the raw data collected by the fieldwork team into the computer, developing the software for each specific problem and through statistical and other methods, analyses this data and hands it over to the researcher.

Then researchers interpret the data from the analysis, and based on this information, advise clients.

Research executives are normally MBAs with a specialisation in marketing. Those handling data interpretation would need to be post-graduates in sociology, psychology or anthropology, social work and related fields. For getting into fieldwork, a general degree would be required although economics, psychology, statistics, geography or the social sciences are preferred along with strong communication skills. With a statistics or computer background you could enter the data analysis area.

However, there are no hard and fast rules on academic requirements and it is possible to get into this field even with a general degree and a pre-disposition towards data collection, analysis and research.

Broadly, MBA programmes in sales and marketing include training in the different aspects of market research. Some courses in advertising and communications such as those offered by the Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmedabad, and the Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi, also cover subjects on market research, as do institutes for sales and marketing.

Trainee executives are usually picked up from business schools using an aptitude test comprising of mathematical, logical and statistical reasoning. Exceptional students from institutes like TISS (Tata Institute of Social Science) and graduates in mathematics and statistics from top colleges are also taken in.

As a trainee you are put through a training programme of around four to six months where you will work in all departments like research, analysis, data collection etc. You could also be asked to assist in current projects handled by the organisation. After this you join in as a research executive and grow into your specialty as time goes by.

Today, market information is required in practically every kind of organisation. Market research is the most essential tool for this purpose.

While most multi-national and marketing organisations, governments departments and research institutes handle some in-house market research operations there are market research agencies that specialise in providing this service. Some advertising agencies have also set up their own special departments in market research, so work options can be varied.

Government departments and political parties use market research to conduct opinion polls and find out polling patterns. Social and economic research organisations use market research companies to collect data. Television channels use market research to find out the popularity of programmes shown on television through television rating points (TRPs).

According to the National Council for Applied Economic Research (NCAER), India has 6.5 crore middle-class households earning over Rs 60,000 a year. This would amount to about 32.5 crore individual consumers with incomes ranging from Rs 1 lakh a year and above, buyers of different brands ranging from Ariel to Nirma, and from Haman to Imperial Leather soap. The rural market consists of 90 lakh households or five crore people with an annual income of more than Rs 25,000. The perception of the intrinsic or imposed value of product or service is very subjective and can be different for different people.

Market research, particularly today, with the help of computers, can build up a consumer database in great detail. This can help segmentation of the market or pinpointing target areas in terms of location and people, on the basis of demographic, psychographics and response-based information. This helps in direct marketing, with a door-to-door approach of properly identified potential consumers or through mailing advertising material. Such a database also helps the latest method of telemarketing or using the telephone to contact prospective consumers.

Therefore, market research has assumed major importance in the marketing mix and according to some estimates has been growing at the rate of 30 per cent per year.

This is an expanding and fast developing area and can make for a very interesting and lucrative career if you are interested in discovering human beings in their socio-economic and cultural environment, and have good communication and people skills. Additionally, this is a field not widely selected by many students. So, a wise approach could be to start doing your own research on this career explore the different areas of work in market research, take up a summer job with a market research agency and test waters. Your ‘research’ may not only surprise you, but also help you find yourself a challenging new career.

(The writer is a career expert)

After MSc Maths you can even enrol for MTech (in a host of engineering/technology disciplines including computer science at leading engineering colleges including the IITs, after taking the GATE exam.

Best bet for engineering diploma holders

Q. I did my inter in physics, chemistry and maths with 68 per cent in 2006. After this, I have done a two-year ITI course in electronics. Please tell me about Advance Training Institute for electronics and process instrumentation at Dehradun and Hyderabad.

— Jitesh Chawla

A. The Advanced Training Institutes have been specifically set up by the Directorate General of Employment & Training, Ministry of Labour, Government of India to develop trained manpower (Craft Instructors and Craftsmen) to cater to the training requirement of industries, organisations, and state directorates across the country. They offer both short and long-term courses in various engineering trades.

Here is the information on the specific Advanced training Institutes you wanted. The Advanced Training Institute for Electronics & Process Instrumentation, Green Park, Niranjanpur, Dehradun 248171 (Uttaranchal) (Ministry of Labour & Employment) offers various long and short-term courses in electronics and process instrumentation.

Advanced Training Institute for Electronics & Process Instrumentation, Ramanthapur, Hyderabad 500013 (AP) (Directorate General of Employment & Training, Ministry of Labour & Employment, GoI) offers job-oriented short-term courses in consumer electronics, industrial electronics, medical electronics, process instrumentation and IT.

Advanced Training Institute, Vidyanagar, Hyderabad 500007 (AP) (Ministry of Labour & Employment, GoI) offers craft instructor’s training programmes in the following trades: Electrician, wireman, fitter, electronic mechanic, turner, machinist, mechanic (motor vehicle).

These one-year job-oriented courses are typically meant for engineering diploma-holders in the respective disciplines.

MPhil commerce: Great scope, many choices

Q. I want to do MPhil in commerce. Please tell me about the scope and some universities.

— Chandrapal Singh

A. MPhil is normally pursued by students who wish to take up research or academics as a career option. Most universities across the country offer this course, although the criteria and admission procedure varies from institution to institution.

The main purpose of MPhil courses is to familiarise or train students for doing higher research. In fact, it is increasingly becoming a mandatory requirement for admission to PhD courses.

A master’s degree in the relevant subject is a must for all universities. In most cases at least 50 per cent marks are required, while some others ask for 55 per cent. The duration of the course is usually one year but in some universities it may extend up to two years. MPhil in commerce is offered by a very large number of universities – both through regular as well as distance learning.

For nuclear science, PG is start point

Q. I want to know about exploring opportunities in nuclear technology. I am studying in Class 12. What do I have to study to enter this field?

— Rajneesh Verma

A. India is considered a world leader in space research and atomic energy. Our achievements in these areas (as also in IT) are on par with the developed world. Virtually, all programmes in nuclear science and technology are offered at the postgraduate level (MSc, MTech and integrated PhD) for which the basic requirement is a BSc (physics) or BE/BTech degree.

Do log onto the website of Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Mumbai (www.hrdbarc.gov.in) or that of Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research, Kalpakkam (TN) — the two largest establishments of the Department of Atomic Energy — for details of some challenging career opportunities in nuclear physics for physics postgrads and engineering grads.

Age limit varies per post

Q. What is the age limit and relaxation for exams conducted by the Staff Selection Commission?

— Minakshi Gaur

A. The age limit varies according to the post. Make sure you confirm this from the respective exam notices published in the Employment News. Generally, the age limit is 18-27 years.

The upper age limit can be relaxed as follows: Five years for SC/STs, three years for OBCs and 10 years for the physically-challenged. For widows, divorced women and judicially separated women, the age limit is 35 years for UR category, 40 for SC/ST women and 38 years for OBC women.

For ex-servicemen and departmental candidates, it’s best to consult the exam notification. You could also check for details on the SSC website http://ssc.nic.in

For mech engg, take up PCM

Q. I am student of 12th class and want to become a mechanical engineer. Please guide me in detail on the subjects I should take and the scope of this profession?

— Akshay Bagrodia

A. To pursue BE/BTech (mechanical), like most other engineering disciplines, you need to have physics, chemistry and mathematics in class 11 and 12. Admission to all engineering colleges is on the basis of various competitive exams like the IIT JEE, AIEEE, BITSAT, Mah CET etc.

Have a rocking Summer of 2009!

Q. Could you please tell me how to find summer jobs?

— Rakesh Gaur

A. Approach placement agencies, scan your college notice board (some companies put up their notices on college boards) and knock on doors and approach companies directly. You could also browse job ads in newspapers & on websites (some of the relevant websites for a choice of part-time jobs — not necessarily summer jobs — are naukrihub.com, earnyourcash.com, indianclassifieds.com, hotjoblinx.com, careerbuilder.com) and use your contacts, be it family or friends.

This column appears weekly. Please send in your queries, preferably on a postcard, along with your full name, complete address and academic qualifications to: Editor, Jobs and Careers, The Tribune, Sector 29, Chandigarh-160030, or at careers @tribunemail.com

Glittering Path
Ritu Malik

DESIGNING jewellery is a unique art and offers promising career prospects despite the economic climate. Individuals fond of Jewellery, possessing knowledge of it and having a creative mind can explore career prospects in the sphere. Imaginative people with a penchant towards jewellery and designing may find this career fulfilling and satisfying.

India is the largest gems and jewellery market in the world (the domestic market is pegged at Rs 63,000 crore) but is largely in the unorganised sector with a significant focus on gold.

Most sought-after Jewellery Design and Technology Institute (JDTI), Noida and Chandigarh NIFT Campus, Hauz Khas, New Delhi Srimati Nathibai Damodar Training (SNDT) Women's University, Mumbai Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council, Rajasthan Bhavan, Jaipur Jewellery Export Promotion Council, D-15 Commerce Centre, Tardeo, Mumbai Indian Institute of Jewellery, Modern Centre, Mahalaxmi, Mumbai South Delhi Polytechnic for Women, Lajpat Nagar IV, New Delhi St Xavier's College, Geology Department, Mumbai Small Industries Service Institute, Chennai

With the entry of big players like Tanishq, Swarovski, DeBeers and D'damas, the shifting thrust on gems and stones rather than pure gold has given a big push to the organised gem and jewellery industry.

The industry involves many careers related to design, conceptualisation, execution and marketing of the completed piece that is appealing and in step with the times. Factories need professionals with specialisations in different fields like design, manufacturing, model making, casting, setting and marketing of product.

Unleash your creativity

YOUNG people getting into a career in jewellery design are often unaware about the kind of work they will be doing and are, therefore, confused about its scope and prospects. Jewellery designers work in the industry of adornments creating new styles of baubles and accessories that are in sync with trends. They are also responsible for execution of their ideas and designs, coordinating with mastercraftsmen and preparing final drawings for presentation while keeping the latest trends in mind.

India is the largest gems and jewellery market in the world & jewellery design is a profession whose time has come

Jewellery designers plan the pattern and style of jewellery. They decide which metal to use (gold, silver or platinum) and the stones (precious or semi-precious). An important aspect of designing is also to present your design in an eye-catching manner.

Most designers begin their careers as apprentices in jewellery showrooms or in family businesses. At the entry level, apprentices only design products for the mass market but later they graduate to customised jewellery. A select few talented designers evolve their inimitable style, producing a few exclusive designs that are displayed at select outlets under the designer's personal label.

Design dazzle

PROFESSIONALS prepare sketches — by hand or on the computer — to conceptualise the design. After consulting with the customer or the manufacturing team, they go ahead and fashion detail drawings, a structural model, computer simulations or a full-scale prototype.

Computer models allow superior effortlessness and flexibility in exploring a number of design alternatives, thus reducing design costs and cutting the time it takes to deliver a product to market.

Designs are created on regular or floral patterns and then generate forms by connecting different structures together. The range of raw materials is exhaustive — from economical and easily available stuff like paper, wood, terracotta and jute to highly-priced Swarovski crystals!

You can look forward to work in a number of sectors:

Designing: Designers work with jewelers and retail customers to create one-of-a-kind jewellery or for manufacturers developing new pieces for a company’s line.

Retail sales: Good salesmanship requires persistence. Be determined but not pushy. Sales professionals enjoy learning and sharing what they know with their customers.

Retail management: A career in retail, whether you own your own store or work for one, can offer enormous rewards. Most store owners and managers are true generalists, familiar with and involved in all areas of building a successful retail operation

Bench jeweller: Bench jewelers make and repair jewellery, doing work like fixing chains, sizing rings, setting diamonds and other gemstones, and hand crafting jewellery for their customers. Some bench jewelers are also designers and create one-of- a-kind pieces.

Jewellery appraising: These professionals evaluate antique and contemporary jewellery and fine watches and write careful descriptions.

Gemology/ laboratory grading: Most graders work in gemological laboratories performing quality analyses on diamonds and colored gemstones. Large retailers, manufacturers and importers also employ gemologists and graders as quality control specialists to perform similar work with finished jewellery.

Wholesale/import: Jewellery wholesalers and importers typically work as dealers or distributors. They import and supply diamonds, colored stones, watches, cultured pearls and finished jewellery.

Manufacture: There are many career options available for someone working for a manufacturer. Inside sales and customer service representatives, outside sales representatives and bench jewelers are some of the most obvious.

Education: Professional instructors bring a certain amount of techno-functional experience to their work. They use their passion for trade and skill to motivate others to join the same through education, to become successful in the jewellery training industry.

Freelancing: A typical freelance jewellery designer can make anywhere between Rs 10,000 and Rs 30,000 a month. It all depends upon the designer's creative skill and how clearly he/she can put down the designs.

Toolbox

THERE are no specific personality traits for jewellery designers. One can learn everything while getting trained. However, you do need a passion for the profession. Sense of design is also imperative. Precision and attention to detail are also equally important for a successful jeweller. Creativity, imagination and technical knowledge count as well. It's also important to have a working knowledge about manufacturing. So does having a grip on international fashion trends.

Training talk

SEVERAL institutes all over the country offer courses in jewellery design. So it shouldn't be too difficult to find one close to home. There are two types of courses typically offered — manual and computer-aided. A manual course is what a novice designer should go for. You learn how to physically draw jewellery and develop your ideas. Computer-aided courses (CAT) are for designers who have been in the field for a while and whose skills are already developed. Some institutes even let you choose between a daily course and coming in a few times a week. These courses teach designers to change hues, multiply designs.

Jewellery design is one of the most sought after professions today. It takes hard work and long hours and recognition may be slow in coming but if you are creative and persistent, you can look forward to interesting work with established designers in domestic or international market or in export houses. There is a rising demand for designers and there is no dearth of work for them now and things will only get better from here!

(The writer is CEO, Jewellery Design and Technology Institute)

To be continued

Time for a skill upgrade

Employees fear skills will be outdated in five years: Women prefer on-the-job training, men professional development courses

NINE out of 10 Indian employees in an international workplace survey said they feared that their current skills would be outdated within five years and felt that more training was vital to remain competitive in the job market.

The survey, conducted by global workforce solution provider Kelly Services comprising 100,000 people across the globe, including 5,000 from India, revealed that one third of the respondents believed that the training currently provided by their employers will not suffice to meet their future career needs.

Baby Boomers (aged 48-65) are most worried about the level of training they receive with 43 per cent stating that the same was not sufficient to upgrade skills and advance their careers. Ninety per cent of Gen Y (18-29) and Gen X (30-47) said that in the next five years their skills would need to be upgraded to keep pace.

Sixtynine respondents said that training should be a joint responsibility between an employer and employee. The preference of those surveyed is for on-the-job training (52 per cent), followed by professional development courses (33 per cent), self-initiated learning (13 per cent) and formal or college education qualification (3 per cent).

“The current economic environment has made people well aware of their skills and whether they will be sufficient to see through the recession and beyond, into a period of economic recovery”, said Dhrirent Shantilal, Senior V-P, Asia Pacific. 

More women respondents preferred on-the-job training, and men preferred professional development courses as the best method to upgrade their skills. “It is only very recently that we faced skills shortages across many industries, and unless skills and training are enhanced such situation may occur in future. Increased competition for jobs combined with technological change makes it vital that employees are assisted to become even more productive, through the best training possible,” Shantilal said. — PTI

The meltdown
Job loss can really make you sick

With jobs shrinking, the odds of reporting fair or poor health are up by 54%

LOSING a job can lead not just to financial hardships but could also increase the risk of developing health problems such as high blood pressure and heart attacks, says a new study. Even when people find a new job, there is a raised risk of developing a new health problem as a result of the job loss, the study published in the May 8 issue of Demography claimed.

“In today's economy, job loss can happen to anybody,” said Kate Strully, who conducted the research as a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health and Society scholar at the Harvard School of Public Health. “We need to be aware of the health consequences of losing our jobs and do what we can to alleviate the negative effects,” the expert added.

In the study, Strully found that “job churning,” defined as high rates of job loss but low unemployment, has negative health consequences for workers who were not already sick. For those who lost their job — white or blue collar —through no fault of their own, such as an establishment closure, the odds of reporting fair or poor health increased by 54 per cent, and among respondents with no pre-existing health conditions, it increased the odds of a new health condition by 83 per cent. Even when workers became re-employed, those workers had an increased risk of new stress-related health conditions, the study found.

Unlike the results of job loss due to an establishment closure, when health effects were analysed based on workers who were fired or laid off, significant differences were found based on the workers' occupations. While being fired or laid off or leaving a job voluntarily more than doubles the odds of a fair or poor health report among blue-collar workers, such job displacements have no significant association with the health reports of white-collar workers. The reasons for this disparity are unclear based on the study results.

The study was conducted based on data from the U.S. Panel Study of Income Dynamics, a nationally representative survey from 1999, 2001 and 2003. The study looked at establishment closures that included a range of occupations, including managerial or professional positions (30 per cent displacement), sales, clerical, and craft jobs, (33 per cent displacement), a machine operator jobs (20 per cent displacement), and service positions (13 per cent displacement). — ANI

The meltdown
Men struggling more

MEN are struggling more to cope with the emotional impact of recession as compared to women, a new survey in Britain has revealed. According to the survey, almost 40 per cent of male respondents have admitted to feeling low with job security, work and money playing on their minds — yet, men are unlikely to talk about their feelings than women.

In fact, only 29 per cent of men would talk to friends about their problems as compared to 53 per cent of women and they were also less likely to talk to their family. Men were also less likely to seek out professional help and a third would feel embarrassed about it, the survey found.

And 5 per cent of men said that they had experienced suicidal thoughts compared with 2 per cent of women, the poll of 2,000 adults in Britain has revealed. Paul Farmer of Mind, which commissioned the survey told BBC News portal: “The recession is clearly having a detrimental impact on the nation's mental health but men in particular are struggling with the emotional impact.

“Being a breadwinner is something that's still crucial to the male psyche so if a man loses his job he loses a large part of his identity putting his mental wellbeing in jeopardy. The problem is too many men wrongly believe that admitting mental distress makes them weak and this kind of self stigma can cost lives.” — PTI