Addressing the market research skills gap

This Viewpoint focuses on the debate in market research around the gap between academia and practitioners.

Addressing the market research skills gap

Daniel Nunan

Henley Business School, University of Reading

The nature of the gap between academia and practitioners is one that has been visited regularly in this journal (see, for example, Schulz 2005; Piercy 2006; Keegan 2007; McDonald 2008). While cathartic, this debate is unlikely to be fully resolved due to the differing philosophies, motivations and incentives of academic and practitioner research. This debate is also focused on research output, a factor that misses the key role that universities play in the provision of market research skills. My argument is that it is this gap...

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