Running head: Unit 5-2

Dimitrios V. Siskos
This paper is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for Quantitative Research MethodologyUnit 5-2
SMC University
School of Management
Dr. Albert Widman
May 19, 2013

Table of Contents
Research problem.................................................................................................... 3
Significance of research.. ........................................................................................ 3
Qualitative Research questions ..... ....................................................................... 4
Qualitative approach and rationale...................................................................... 4
Population, sampling strategy.. ............................................................................. 5
Data collection methods.......................................................................................... 5
Credibility and utility.. ........................................................................................... 6
Data analysis methods.. .......................................................................................... 6
Role of the researcher.. ........................................................................................... 6
Data presentation strategy.................................................................................................. 7
References ............................................................................................................................. 8

Research topic: Measuring and improving performance in Greek family wine and spirits industries.

Research problem
According to ICAPs list, family businesses are the backbone of the Greek economy, with families
owning or controlling 80 percent of all businesses. The same stands for the 150 Greek family wine and spirits
industries, which face many challenges nowadays as the need for faster and more efficient services, access to
capital, direct and timely purchase of the raw material (grape) and the desire for continuous improvement of
service quality (Adams, 2012). All these lead them to start thinking about measuring and improving their
performance in a more professional way. Hienerth and Kessler (2006) refer that the problems associated with
measuring and improving performance within this type of businesses are primarily caused by the lack of
comparable data due to the ambiguity of success and by the subjective biases. Banda (2013) states a more
qualitative approach when considering how to measure and improve performance in family businesses,
inferring that it is expected to focus on the interpersonal relationships as long as these are what make a family
business unique. The study will rely mostly on attitudinal data between family members and executives
rather on accounting methods, in order to measure their impact on business results.

Significance of research
Given the global economic crisis and considering the tsunami of recession that has flooded Greek
economy, it seems quite obvious why wine and spirits industry studies increasingly attract attention in
academia and industries. Greece holds the 13th position in the global wine production by 400,000 liters and
has, proportionally, one of the largest numbers of wineries (150) than any other EU member-state
(Kyriazopoulos P., 2007). Besides the popularity of such kind of business form and its contribution to wealth
creation (Wang, 2005), Greek society needs solutions on how to increase job generation and improve
regional competitiveness.

This study represents an ongoing exploration into the role of Greek family wine and spirits industries
and the special conditions that apply inside them when trying to reach success. In the finance science and
practice, the results of this study will serve as a contribution to the new knowledge business owners and
financial analysts require.

Qualitative Research questions

This research attempts to answer one main question: Do Greek family wine and spirits industries
perceive the value of measuring and improving performance differently from non family ones?
Further this research provides answers to two sub-questions:
1. How do interpersonal relationships between family members and executives in wine and spirits industries
affect business results in Greece?
2. What competences do family businesses in the Greek wine and spirits industry report as essential to the
effective performance management of those businesses?

Qualitative approach and rationale

The study aims to investigate the way Greek family wine and spirits businesses should consider
measuring and improving processes along with the interactions applied to the phenomenon between family
members and executives. To succeed in this, it is required to focus on the existing experiences of the
aforementioned individuals and, consequently, determine the perceptions under which these experiences
originate. Some of the main characteristics of the phenomenological approach is to focus on the lived
experiences of individuals (Sun, 2009), as well as to identify phenomena through how they are perceived by
the actors in a situation (Lester, 1999). Adding an interpretive dimension to this phenomenological research,
it can be used as the basis for practical theory from wine and spirits businesses to become more competitive
and to optimize their functionality, hence, profitability.

Population, sampling strategy

The researcher will use ICAPs list to select 30 out of 150 Greek family wine and spirits companies in
northern Greece. The sample for the current study consists of 30 financial executives who work in these
industries and 30 family members who are the owners. According to Kleiman (2004), purposeful and
criterion sampling methods are particularly suited to the phenomenological inquiry. As such, the current
research will employ the two aforementioned strategies for sampling. During the purposeful sampling
strategy, the researcher will invite via e-mail the individuals to ensure that they are able to share personal
knowledge and inform an understanding of the research problem (Creswell, 2007). In order to make sure that
criterion sampling would work effectively, it is important the participants to share two certain characteristics:
a) have an extensive experience in factors that affect business performance and b) have a frequent interaction
with the other side (owners or executives).

Data collection methods

Similar to Kaur and Garg (2010), the 60 individuals selected for interviews will contacted by phone to
inform them about the place of the interviews. It will be a quiet and private meeting room in a central hotel.
The researcher will ask for a sponsor to cover this cost, probably a winery industry which shall not
participate in the procedures so as to not to bias results. Moreover, he will compensate the participants in the
focus groups for their time offering gift certificates, one meal and some bottles of wine also sponsored by the
aforementioned winery. After accepting the invitation, the participants will be interviewed on two focus
groups of 7 people who are unfamiliar with each other to ensure trustworthiness and objectivity. Because that
the focus groups will last for little more than one or two hours, the researcher will only have time for five
open-ended questions. The first focus group will consist of family members who own different winery
businesses and the second one, of financial executives who work in them.

Credibility and utility

During the in-depth interviews, the researcher will build an individual report per participant which will
depict their experience to the phenomenon, their aspects about the examined relationship and their
recommendations for improving performance in such industries. To enhance the credibility of the study
member checking will be used, asking the participants via e-mail to check, confirm or alter that profile for
accuracy and clarity (Park, 2006). Moreover, the aforementioned multiple data sources will support
credibility, utility and trustworthiness of the study (Leavy, Saldana & Beretvas, 2011).

Data analysis methods

Although it is considered to be time demanding, transcript-based analysis will be used for the
transcription of videotapes (Onwuegbuzie, Dickinson, Leech and Zoran, 2009). The videotaped focus groups
interviews will be transcribed into text format using Microsoft Word, and then will be loaded in a CAQDAS
tool like N-Vivo, to organize and code them (Park, 2006). Because focus groups data are analyzed one at a
time, a constant comparison analysis will effectively serve to compare findings (Charmaz, 2000). Following
the three major stages of constant comparison analysis as Strauss & Cobin (1998) suggest, the researcher will
initially use open coding to separate data into small units, attaching a code to them. Then, axial coding will
used to group these codes into categories. At last, the researcher will compare specific incidents of data,
developing concepts that express the content of the groups.

Role of the researcher

Acting as a human instrument (Denzin & Lincoln, 2003), the researcher will initially describe himself
to participants informing them that he works in a similar industry (in the financial department). He will also
disclose relevant aspects of self, as that his lived experiences qualify his ability to conduct the research even
if they might influence his judgment altering the outcomes. In order to reduce such bias, the researcher will
clearly define both risk and outcome, as well as he will use standardized protocols during the data collection

(Pannucci & Wilkins, 2011). During the in-depth interviews, the role of the researcher will vary. In the
beginning, his role will be emic as he will fully participate asking probing questions and interacting with the
participants. Later, his role will become more etic seeing the procedure from an outside view and becoming
an objective observant (Punch, 1998).

Data presentation strategy

Prior to presentation, the researcher will give emphasis on respondents anonymity defining that when
speaking about an owner, it will referred as the owner and regarding an executive, it will referred as the
executive. The data will come from different sources; notes, videotapes, publicly accessible sites and blogs
will be mixed to validate the claims that will arise from the survey. In order to facilitate readers, the author
will adopt a most simple to most complex technique. The presentation of data will start with the simplest
discovered example, perhaps by describing the existing relationship of an owner and an executive in such
industries and its impact on business performance. Combining the codes from data analysis into over-arching
themes that depict data, he will present exemplars that show the different perspectives which will probably
occur, due to the different nature of participants within the two focus groups. As the complexity of each
example or exemplar presented increases, the reader will have a better chance of following the presentation
(Chenail, 1995). Later, he will suggest an unfolding of the research results using business words and phrases
(Charmaz, 2008) that mainly used in daily work routine by the participants and therefore, sounds familiar to
them. As the data presentation will move forward, the transition from one exemplar to another will best relate
the research outcomes and suggestions with the research questions.

References
Adams, J. (2012, August 23). Can the social care white paper drive up quality? Guardian Professional
Banda B., (2013). Strategic Decision Making in a Family Business. Useful Information for the Business
Owner. Retrieved from: http://www.bandagroup.com/ideas/advisor-2013-winter.html.
Charmaz K., (2000). Grounded Theory Methodology: Objectivist and Constructivist Qualitative Methods.
Pp. 509-535 in Handbook of Qualitative Research, 2nd Edition, edited by N. K. Denzin and Y.S.
Lincoln. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Chenail, R. J. (1995). Recursive frame analysis. The Qualitative Report 2(2). Retrieved May 12, 2013, from
http://www.nova.edu/ssss/QR/QR1-2/rfa.html
Creswell, J. W. (2007). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five traditions (2nd Ed).
Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Hienerth C., Keler A. (2006). Measuring Success in Family Businesses: The Concept of Configurational Fit.
Family Business Review 19 (2): 115-134.
Kaur R, Garg S. (2010). Domestic violence against women: a qualitative study in a rural community. AsiaPacific Journal of Public Health 22(2):242-51.
Kitzinger J. (1995), Introducing focus groups, British Medical Journal 311.
Kleiman S. (2004). Phenomenology: To wonder and search for meanings. Retrieved April 26, 2013, from
http://www.redorbit.com/news/display/?id=90996
Krueger, R. A. (1994). Focus groups: A practical guide for applied research (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA:
Sage.
Kyriazopoulos P. and Samanta-Rounti I., "Problems and Opportunities of the Relationships between the First
and Second Generation of Self-Managing Family Businesses", 7th International Congress Marketing
Trends, Venice, Italy (accessed 13/4/2008; www.escp-eap.net/conferences/marketing).
Leavy P., Saldana J., Beretvas N. (2011). Fundamentals of Qualitative Research, Oxford University Press,
USA

Lester, S (1999). An introduction to phenomenological research, Taunton UK, Stan Lester Developments
(www.sld.demon.co.uk/resmethy.pdf, accessed [14/05/2013])
Mills, G. E. (2003). Action research: A guide for the teacher researcher. Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Merrill/Prentice Hall.
Onwuegbuzie, A. J., Slate, J. R., Leech, N. L., & Collins, K. M. T. (2009). Mixed data analysis: Advanced
integration techniques. International Journal of Multiple Research Approaches, 3, 13-33.
Pannucci C., Wilkins E., (2011). Identifying and avoiding bias in research. Plast Reconstr Surg., 126(2), 61925. doi: 10.1097/PRS.0b013e3181de24bc.
Park M., (2006). The lived experience of Asian international students in online learning environments in
higher education. Unpublished manuscript.
Strauss A., Corbin J. (1998) Basics of Qualitative Research Techniques and Procedures for Developing
Grounded Theory (2nd edition). Sage Publications: London.
Sun, T. (2009). Mixed Methods Research: Strengths of two methods combined. SMC University.
Wang Y. (2005) Measuring Performance in Small and Medium Sized Family Businesses, Conference
Proceedings, 28th ISBE National Small Firms Research and Policy Conference, University of Central
Lancashire and Lancaster University, November 1-3, 2005.
Utrilla P., Torraleja F., (2012). Family businesses: How to measure their performance. African Journal of
Business Management Vol. 6(12), pp. 4612-4621