EXAMPLES OF WRITING STYLE FOR

THESIS/research paper
(Update: 26 March 2006)
Note:
1. This short document provides you with examples of typical writing style in
business research. Each profession has its own language or jargon. The use of
precise terminology allows you to communicate effectively and with authority
with the reader.
2. You do not need to use long, complicated sentences to show that you are
scientist. The language of business should be concise, straight and unequivocal.
3. Refer to the thesis guide provided by your school

Legend:
{ text } : examples of alternates use of terminology or synonyms.
( text) :: example to complete the sentence; for illustration purpose only.

Title: Be as specific as possible / Use second heading if needed

1. Introduction
1.1. Research Objectives:
The purpose of this research is to {explore, examine, study, } the {title of the thesis} .
This thesis {explores, examines, studies, seeks to find out how.}
The basic message of this thesis is that the use of a sound management methodology such
as (SWOT Or TAM) help managers better {capture, understand, master, appreciate,
comprehend, recognize) the complexity of strategic analysis and formulation.
The methodology that we have briefly reviewed in this chapter can serve as a mechanism
to structure the

The objective of this research is to address the problem of {span of control between the
outsourcing company and its outsourcee}. As discussed in the recent literature [here you
should provide the most updated literature AND the key classic work in the field]
1.3. Rationale and importance of the study
[Here you need to provide a strong justification about the relevancy of your research
the importance in general; the reason why you have zoomed in a particular aspect of your
work]
1.2. Organization of the study
This thesis is organized as follows.
In the second chapter, we attempt to define the problem of (implementing e-commerce)
and seek to {formulate, identify} various problems and issues related to this problem.
Chapter (3) focuses on developing a methodology for data analysis. Particularly, we
justify why the Porter model is the most appropriate model for this study.
A short literature is provided in Chapter {3}.
We briefly report the {history, background, evolution} of the (XYZ Inc.) in the {next
chapter, Chapter3}
The next chapter presents our research design.
Concluding remarks and recommendation for future study are provided in the {last
chapter; final chapter; Chapter 7}.
In our conclusions, we suggest some possible areas for expanding this work, focusing
on
Transition:

In the following section, we briefly present (the organizational structure of ABC

Inc.). We then examine the (recent restructuration effort) from the point view of
technological adoption .

Data interpretation

Numbering: for numbers from 1 to 10, use letters, i.e., one, two, three, , ten. For
numbers higher than ten, use numbers, i.e., 11, 12, 13, etc.
While the majority of {subjects, interviewees, } said they (would welcome any salary
increase), 13% of them {did not express any clear opinion, did not see that salary was an
issue}.
Approximately, (57%) of the data suggest that
Almost, (24.6%) of the respondents {claimed that, declared, were found to be or have,
etc.} .

Conclusion and recommendations for future studies

Summary
This {study} {reviewed, sought to study, attempted, focused on, concentrated on,
examined, etc.}
The problem of (exploring new market opportunities for XYZ Inc.) was the central focus
of this research.
{In particular, Of special importance}, we {focused on} the {aspects, problems, issues,
difficulties, opportunities} related to ..
We {adopted, selected; chose} the {well-known, classic} (strategy model by Chandler) as
the methodology of our study.
We developed a (behavior model for entertainment) and were able to use statistical
{techniques, tools} to {analyze, substantiate, investigate} a critical but unknown
problem.
Contributions of study:
{Probably, Undoubtedly, Without any doubt}, the most important {finding, contribution}
of this research was that (the impacts of market regulations were (instrumental, critical,
significant, trivial, insignificant, etc} to the (future growth of XYZ Inc.).
May be the single most certain finding of our research was that .

The findings of this study confirm our intuition that, indeed, (e-commerce is a particular
challenge for the airline industry in Vietnam). However, this challenge in not {unique,
particular, singular, exceptional} to {the company studied in this research). Rather, this
seems to be a {general, common, broad, universal, inevitable} issue facing companies
operating in a {developing, underdeveloped} economy.
(The fact that absenteeism is a important signal for turnover) {constitutes, is} another
major finding of our research.
Our findings {confirm, substantiate, back up, corroborate, support, agree with} the results
reported by earlier work by (Samuelson, etc.). However, the (impacts of economic
instability) was found to be much more {significant, critical, serious, important}.
Limitations
Due to the lack of data, (sensitivity analysis) was not conducted.
derive some conclusion. The inconsistency of data prevented us to perform a detailed
analysis on the (impacts of culture on employees motivation). However, we were able to
use secondary data to
Drawing conclusions from a single {case study, experiment, survey} could raise serious
problems of validity. Nonetheless, our case suggests that .
Nonetheless, we contend that had ( managers) been aware of the lessons learned from our
study, would have avoided the serious mistakes they made.
{In spite of, Despite} the limitations of this study, we hope that our research be seen as a
first step to better understand how a (company such as XYZ) could set its (strategic plan)
in an increasingly competitive market.
Directions for future research:

Given the {important, valuable} findings of this work, it is our intent for initiate further
study.
Last but not least, the {surprising, important, critical, substantial, remarkable} results of
this research call for further study. As such, another contribution of our work is that is
opens new directions for more research {ideas, issues} in this much needed area.

Acknowledging the limitations of this research, it is our hope that the findings reported
here could be served as an useful {source of inspiration, set of findings} for future
{research, investigation}

REFERENCES
(Note: There are a few conventions used for citation. Use the one adopted by your
Maastrict/SIM. The two most important aspects to remember are completeness of the
references and the style consistency.)
1.

ACCA, 1998, Managerial Finance, BPP, Singapore.

2.

Horngren, Charles and Sundem, Gary, 1990, Financial Accounting, Prentice Hall,
New York.

3.

Levy, Haim and Sarnat, Marshall, 1985, Principles of Financial Management,

Prentice Hall, New York.

15. Vietnam Investment Review, Venture Capital is growing in the manufacturing

sector, August 15, 1998. (only if there is no printed author)
16. Ziff, W. B, The Crisis of Confidence in Advertising, Journal of Advertising
Research, Vol.32, No. 4, 1992
17. Alen Green, Capital is lacking for industry modernization, Vietnam Investment
Review, March 12, 2000.
16. http://www.cob.ohio-srare.edu, Internet Article, Date of publication or download if
any.
(Note: Last name first, First name next / references must be complete.
Some Latin words:
Citerus paribus = Everything else being equal
Ford et al. = Ford and others
A priori = before
A posteriori = after
De facto = in fact
Grosso modo = in general
Do not use: My and I and me. Use Our, We or us instead.

Use meaningful / content-driven title. An overview of the economic context of the

garment industry is better than General Introduction
Run speller any typo or grammatical error will significantly reduce your chance of
getting the work accepted. Even well-established well-known researchers need someone
to read their work.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
(Note: Acknowledgements should be as personal as it should be. Thus, you can use the
I. Do not forget anyone.)
This research was (partially) funded by a NSF (National Science Foundation) grant,
nsf1234567890X.
I am very thankful to all professors, staffs and friends at SIM HUT and Maastricht
School of Management for their help.
Lastly, I would like to express my appreciation to my family members for the
considerable sacrifices that they have made for me and for my study.
(This is OK. When you do survey, make sure you thank the interviewees as well: write
something like this:
The author would like to thank all the people who participated in this research as survey
subjects. The valuable time and insightful knowledge were critical to the outcome of this
research. Needless to emphasize, I would remain solely responsible for the content
reported in this work.)
To be continued.

Tung.bui@hawaii.edu
http://www.education.com/reference/article/Ref_What_Scientific/