I have spent a good part of my stint at the library investigating the 2011 M&A activity for the organizations in my research study. What has been surprising and challenging is the dearth of easily accessible information. Or perhaps it is more accurate to say that I was surprised with the lack of consistency with where this data is housed. I definitely felt like a detective as I pursued clues and encountered numerous dead ends! The good news is that between several sources -including on-line news articles, press releases, and financial statements- I was able to obtain most of the data. I have sent a note to a researcher who compiles credit union system data to see if she can assist with what is outstanding.
I also began reading my SPSS for Dummies book again today. I am looking forward to importing a sub-set of my data next week and conducting some analysis. I am not at work next week, so will devote the full week to research. I hope to be able to complete a large amount of data analysis and also write up the findings as I go. Even if this means I need to tweak the paper later, I need to ramp up my writing. If I am really productive I will take next weekend as a mini-vacation. We shall see.
I am departing now to do some groceries. I have a friend coming over for dinner and am planning to make a vegetarian feast. I pulled some new Indian recipes last night, so I am looking forward to it!