New books this month focus on areas such as research methods, social media, marketing and innovation.The titles listed below are only a small section of the new additions. If you wish to borrow any of the books listed or find out what other fascinating titles are available, please get in touch!

Doing qualitative research: a practical handbook / David Silverman

Location: 001.891 SIL

In the fourth edition of his best-selling textbook, David Silverman provides a step-by-step guide to planning and conducting qualitative research. Using real examples from real postgraduate students, the book makes it easy to link theory to methods and shows how to move from understanding the principles of qualitative research to doing it yourself. The new edition has been fully updated and now includes:

  • a brand new chapter on formulating a research question appropriate for qualitative research
  • an expanded discussion of the role of theory in research
  • further coverage of focus groups and analysing internet data
  • a new section on the common pitfalls encountered in qualitative research

InterViews: Learning the craft of qualitative research interviewing / Steinar Kvale and Svend Brinkmann

Location: 001.891 KVA

The thoroughly revised Second Edition retains its original seven-stage structure, continuing to focus on the practical, epistemological, and ethical issues involved with interviewing. Authors Steinar Kvale and Svend Brinkmann also include coverage of newer developments in qualitative interviewing, discussion of interviewing as a craft, and a new chapter on linguistic modes of interview analysis. Practical and conceptual assignments, as well as new “tool boxes,” provide students with the means to dig deeper into the material presented and achieve a more meaningful level of understanding.

  • Includes new developments in qualitative interviewing: New materials cover narrative, discursive, and conversational analyses.
  • Presents interviewing as a social practice: Knowledge produced by interviewing is discussed as linguistic, conversational, narrative, relational, situated, and pragmatic.
  • Addresses a variety of interviews forms: In addition to harmonious, empathetic interviews, the authors also cover confrontational interviews.

Case study research: design and methods / Robert K. Yin

Location: 001.87 YIN

Providing a complete portal to the world of case study research, the Fifth Edition of Robert K. Yin's bestselling text offers comprehensive coverage of the design and use of the case study method as a valid research tool. The book offers a clear definition of the case study method as well as discussion of design and analysis techniques.

The Fifth Edition has been updated with nine new case studies, three new appendices, seven tutorials presented at the end of relevant chapters, increased coverage of values and ethics, expanded discussion on logic models, a brief glossary, and completely updated citations. This book includes exemplary case studies drawn from a wide variety of academic fields.

Delivering effective social customer service: how to redefine the way you manage customer experience and your corporate reputation / Martin Hill-Wilson and Carolyn Blunt

Location: 658.818 BLU

Delivering Effective Social Customer Service’ is a complete reference for achieving excellence in this new discipline. It caters to both novice and expert. It is perfect source material for service leaders and digital marketers to read together. Every CXO will recognise in the book a blueprint from which to build their next generation organisation.

Even ambitious team leaders should snag a copy for instant subject matter expertise kudos! The centre of the book offers an in depth self-assessment of the competencies that matter. The book is jammed full of strategic insight, action lists, best practice tips and interviews. All the resources anyone needs to build a solid strategy and roadmap.

The new relationship marketing: how to build a large, loyal, profitable network using the social web / Guy Kawasaki and Mari Smith

Location: 658.818 SMI

A top social media guru shares the secrets to expanding your business through relationships People have always done business with people they know, like, and trust. That′s the essence of "relationship marketing." Today, the popularity of online social networking has caused a paradigm shift in relationship marketing. This book helps businesspeople and marketers master this crucial new skill set.

Social marketing expert Mari Smith outlines a step–by–step plan for building a sizable, loyal network comprised of quality relationships that garner leads, publicity, sales, and more. If you′re a businessman or businesswoman feeling the pressure to shift your approach to using social media marketing, to better understand the new soft skills required for success on the social web, and to improve your own leadership and relationship skills through emotional and social intelligence, this book is for you.

Brick by brick: how LEGO rewrote the rules of innovation and conquered the global toy industry / David Robertson and Bill Breen

Location: 82.94

LEGO is one of the world's best-loved and most familiar brands, adored by generations of children. What is less well known, though, is how close this iconic company came to total collapse in 2003. Brick by Brick is the compelling story of a Danish family-owned company that enjoyed decades of success before its inability to keep in step with a rapidly changing market brought it crashing to earth. It's also the story of an extraordinary recovery. As disaster stared them in the face, the management of LEGO embarked on an audacious and innovative plan to turn their fortunes around, and then painstakingly implemented it.

Today, the company is riding high once again, and enjoying results that are the envy of their competitors. Granted unprecedented access to every part of the LEGO Group, David Robertson not only charts each twist in the company's story but explains precisely what went wrong and how it was fixed. His clear-sighted analysis will prove invaluable to all those who want to understand how companies can not only ride the storm of change, but benefit from it.