Reference Number: 24/0257                                                                        
               
                   A study on the usefulness of business plans
                   INFORMATION SHEET FOR PARTICIPANTS

Thank you for expressing an interest in this project. Please read the information provided carefully. This will enable you to decide whether or not you wish to participate in this survey. Our thanks to all those who decide to participate in the study and also to those who have chosen not to take part but have given consideration to our request.

Aim of the study
  • Gain an understanding of the purpose and reasons for writing and using business plans by some small businesses in New Zealand, and
  • Understand the reasons and impact of not writing and using business plans by some small businesses in New Zealand
This study is being undertaken as part of Anupam Shailaj's course requirement for a Doctor of Business Administration.

Possible benefits of this study
The findings of this study are likely to provide financial institutions, such as banks or financiers that support small businesses, with a better understanding of how small businesses use business plans in practice. Such institutions could then rationalise the information they seek from small businesses before granting them loans, subsidies, etc.

The findings of this research can be made available to you on request once the study is complete and the university requirements are fulfilled.

Participants
We invite the following groups to participate in this online survey:
  • Small business owners, managers, and/or those who have written and/or implemented a business plan.
  • Small business owners and managers who have started a business without a business plan.

What do you have to do?
After carefully reading the information provided, if you decide to participate in the study, you will be asked to complete an online questionnaire.
The questionnaire consists of demographic and multiple-choice questions. It will only take 5-7 minutes to complete it. All the questions in this survey are optional, i.e., you can choose not to answer any of them. You can also decide not to participate in this survey without any disadvantage to yourself.
You are unlikely to face any risk or discomfort in answering this survey.

What information will be collected, and how will it be used
We are collecting the following information through our questionnaire:
If you wrote a business plan
  • Purpose of the business plan
  • Were the objectives set out in the business plan achieved
If you did not write a business plan
  • Reason/s for not writing one
  • Any impact of the lack of a business plan (that you are aware of) on your business
 
At the end of the survey, there is a request for an interview. If you agree to the interview, we will ask for your name and contact details.
 
Information collected from this survey will be collated and summarised in a report, which is part of the thesis on business plans written by Anupam Shailaj for his Doctor of Business Administration degree.


How will the information collected from you, and how long will it be stored for?
Information collected from this survey will be recorded on Qualtrics (a survey platform), stored on password-protected devices and deleted after five years. Any personal information gathered from the survey will be destroyed upon completion of this research. However, the findings from this survey (in the form of a thesis) may be published and will be available in the University of Otago Library (Dunedin, New Zealand) for a more extended, probably indefinite period. The researcher and his supervisor (names and contacts given below) are the only ones who can access the information collected from this survey.

Anonymity
None of the questions in this survey asks for any personal information. If provided, it will be kept strictly confidential and anonymised in the report, i.e., no information in the report will lead to the identification of you or your firm without your consent.

Please contact the researcher or their supervisor if you have any questions about this study and survey.

Researcher: Anupam Shailaj
Email: anupam.shailaj@postgrad.otago.ac.nz
Phone: 022-3917196
Supervisor: Dr. Masoud Karami 
Email: m.karami@otago.ac.nz
Phone: 03-4798159

This study has been approved by the University of Otago Human Ethics Committee. If you have any concerns about the ethical conduct of the research, you may contact the Committee through the Human Ethics Committee Administrator (ph +643 479 8256 or email gary.witte@otago.ac.nz). Any issues you raise will be treated in confidence and investigated, and you will be informed of the outcome.