CAHRS Partners: Submit Questions Now for Spring 2012 Topical Research Executive Summaries.
CAHRS is now accepting research questions for the award-winning ILR course “HR Online Research and Reporting Methods for Executive Decision Making.” This course allows CAHRS partners to receive targeted, well-researched, and timely answers to topical workplace questions—at no additional cost. Partners whose questions are selected receive a two-page executive summary of the findings and list of key sources, prepared using online and library resources under the guidance of Stuart Basefsky, the ILR School's Catherwood Library Senior Reference Librarian, Christian J. Miller, Reference, Instruction, and Outreach Coordinator, along with CAHRS faculty.
Reports are prepared by student teams as class assignments, in which they act as consultants to research questions posed by HR executives from CAHRS partners. Assignments provide valuable work experience, while exposing students to different companies, their cultures, and executives. Before embarking on their research, students conduct brief interviews with executives who submit questions to clarify the company’s needs.
Examples of research questions and their executive summaries from Fall 2010 (PDF):
- What are methods to ensure a company's core values and practices are maintained when employing off-shore resources?
- What are the best strategies / Processes for onboarding new hires in small teams in different cultures?
- How would an organization—specifically a manufacturing facility—evaluate alternate scheduling options to cover a 24-hour/7-day operation? What are the most important factors to consider and what are the current industry standards?
Question Submission & Deadlines
CAHRS partners can submit questions electronically to Donna Stone at dms44@cornell.edu. The deadline for submission is February 15, 2012 for the initial round of questions. Executives’ questions should also include preferred contact methods and general availability for interviews.
Companies are encouraged to submit questions during the semester for the second and third round of projects, and those who submit questions will be notified on a rolling basis as they are chosen by student teams. Executives receive completed reports roughly four weeks after their questions are selected.
About the Course
The “HR Online Research Methods” (ILRHR 6640) course is designed to help graduate students build key HR competencies for researching and presenting information necessary for executive decision-making. The curriculum includes an overview of online resources available to HR executives, and emphasizes hands-on training in the best techniques for locating conceptual frameworks, checklists, best practices, competitive intelligence, legal information, statistical data, and academic research on topics of current interest to industry. Students also learn interviewing, report writing and presentation skills.
This course is co-taught by Stuart Basefsky, the ILR School's Catherwood Library, Senior Reference Librarian, Director of the Institute for Workplace Studies (WIS) News Bureau, and ILR lecturer and Christian J. Miller, Reference, Instruction, and Outreach Coordinator.
For more information about the course and appropriate questions, CAHRS partners can email Donna Stone, or call 607-255-2790.