As we wrap up the first quarter of 2012 (where does the time go?  I’m still somewhere in mid- February myself), I thought we could take a look back at some of the one-off poll question our members have posted on our Primary Research Forum.

These questions cover a broad terrain, from global research to ad testing budgets, so hopefully there is something here for everyone.  Let’s get to the numbers:

Incorporating New Methods: An Informal Priority

It seems that identifying and incorporating new methods is definitely a priority for researchers, but the vast majority of respondents are doing so informally.  Only a few members say that they have a formal process for learning about and incorporating new methodologies: 

If you would like to join the ranks of those with a formalized methodology innovation process, check out how Unilever uses a standardized process to identify, develop, and deploy innovation in research methodology.

Global Research: Still More Room to Run

An MREB member from a global organization recently asked his peers to rate their focus on global research efforts, wondering if folks would consider themselves to be:

• Emerging; we have dedicated staff but struggle to integrate both teams and learnings across markets
• Average; we have staff dedicated to global research and outsource to local suppliers; we try to regularly share knowledge across markets
• Superior; we align researchers to geographic markets based on business need instead of location; we proactively share customer and market knowledge across regions; and we empower local teams to handle certain parts of the research process independently

MREB members, see how research departments at DuPont, Reckitt Benckiser, and Unilever support global business needs.

Ad Research: A Smaller Part of the Advertising Budget than you May Expect

When asked what percentage of the total advertising budget is spent on research, almost half said less than 3%, and the vast majority noted that it was fewer than 5%.  Visit our site to access more benchmarking numbers on budget and staff size.

Customer Journey Maps: Research Enters the Realm of Cartography

Finally, we saw a question earlier this year on developing customer touchpoint maps.  While many companies do not have this type of project in place, those who do often call on research to manage the heavy lifting.

For those interested in customer mapping initiatives, stay tuned over the next few months.  We are currently working on a whitepaper about research’s role in building a customer journey framework.

I hope you enjoyed this overview of our Q1 discussions poll results.  If you have your own question to ask please pop over to our forum.  We’ll see you there!

Other Poll Results Blogs:

• Trends in Data Collection and Research Methodology
• Research Communication Trends
• Dispersed Research Teams
• Research-A Strategic Partner?

We hear from a great many of our member companies that in this slow-growth economic environment, they are looking to new markets for growth, which often means an increased international focus.  Global success, however, doesn’t come easy.  McKinsey & Company recently published an article entitled, “Understanding your globalization penalty,” based on research showing that multinational companies are generally less healthy (e.g., innovative, aligned around common goals) than their less global counterparts. 

The latest cross-functional research effort here at the Corporate Executive Board provides additional insight into the source of the difficulty – and potential solutions.  Too many international growth efforts focus only on market-level investments, failing to address how corporate center functions need to adapt.  Members can download this study and review support resources here.

So, is your company – and is your team – ready to capture global opportunities?  I can recommend four ways to address this question:

1)      Take CEB’s Assessing Global Readiness Diagnostic.  Learn what attributes characterize a globally ready corporate center, and assess how your organization stacks up.  Participants get a custom analysis of their responses and suggested resources for further learning and developing an improvement strategy. 

2)      Compare your team’s current organization and processes to MREB best practices for supporting global business needs.  Learn from global leaders such as Reckitt Benckiser, Nestlé, and DuPont. 

3)      Explore and manage opportunities for offshoring market research.  While many business processes are routinely sent to staff in low-wage countries, client-side market research staff are more frequently been located in the markets where the company sells its products and services.  But offshoring can be an opportunity.  MREB members click here to use the Board’s Sourcing Decision Tool and obtain practical advice for managing an offshore team. 

4)      See whether you follow the three imperatives for successfully managing dispersed teams: engage remote staff, personalize career support, and foster knowledge sharing.  Learn from leaders such as Wells Fargo and Kellogg’s. 

Any global challenges you face not addressed here?  Please let me know.  Also, I’d be interested in your own success stories in navigating the challenges of providing market research to a global business.