Would it be a bad idea to set up a statistical consultancy? Services will include research and data analysis, design & analysis of experiments for individuals, government and private companies; assist university/polytechnic research students with their research work and analysis; teaching and training on statistical methods, quantitative analysis, statistical computing and use of statistical packages for data anlysis.

Do you think this will be a good biz to do in nigeria considering the state of the nigerian economy? How can one go about setting up and making contacts to get clients?

we all need it. The economy is in shamble and this is because we have stopped making researches in our various fields. But on how to go about it, it is not going to be a day job. All hands must be on deck.

i salute your courage man. We need a person like you, who would take the bull by the horn to kick-start this great idea.

Nice one. Keep it up.
I am ADESANYA SAMSON, a 400 level student of ECONOMICS.

sammiedgre:

we all need it. The economy is in shamble and this is because we have stopped making researches in our various fields. But on how to go about it, it is not going to be a day job. All hands must be on deck.

i salute your courage man. We need a person like you, who would take the bull by the horn to kick-start this great idea.

Nice one. Keep it up.
I am ADESANYA SAMSON, a 400 level student of ECONOMICS.

Adesanya, thanx 4 your sweet response. Infact i really appreciate your support for stats and research consultancy.

Secondly I feel 3 professionals can make this biz work well. A Statistician, an Economist and a Computer Scientist can make it work well; how do you see it?

If you have any idea of how to get started and who and who to be the target clients pls let me know.

pls i need opinions from Economists and Statisticians on how to go about this. If u are a Statistician or an Economist pls we need ur advice.

zebra:

Would it be a bad idea to set up a statistical consultancy? Services will include research and data analysis, design & analysis of experiments for individuals, government and private companies; assist university/polytechnic research students with their research work and analysis; teaching and training on statistical methods, quantitative analysis, statistical computing and use of statistical packages for data anlysis.

Do you think this will be a good biz to do in nigeria considering the state of the nigerian economy? How can one go about setting up and making contacts to get clients?

Why not frame the question like the: Would it be a good idea to set up a statistical consultancy?

While it is nothing new in Nigeria, I think it is a good idea. There is a multitude of companies focused on statistical research in Nigeria. From one man businesses armed with SPSS and questionnaires to multinationals like Research International (http://www.research-int.com). The fact that there are companies already into this does not mean the market is Saturated. In fact the converse is the truth.

You sounded like you have idea about the industry. Basic due diligence requires that you know the following:

1. The current players (what do they do, who are their clients, what kind of jobs do those clients commission). I’m afraid you won’t find loads of that information on the internet as far as Nigeria is concerned. I’m afraid I can’t help you there.
2. Market needs/trends (I can state that the trend in Nigeria is market research (the largest market) and health informatics based (commissioned by NGOs).
3. Market size (I don’t know but I think it is huge).

To leave the theories alone,

Check out some competition (might actually be partners depending on your business model) here:

http://www.euromonitor.com/Nigeria (mostly done by small Nigeria based researchers)
http://www.mmonitornigeria.com/index.html
/www.companiesandmarkets.com

And to some extent the brand consulting firms.

What have I tried to achieve here?
I have tried to point you in the right direction. Hope it helps.

@Avenir

Thanx a lot. your contribution will really help. But i discovered that those firms are market research firms and not Statistical consultancy firms.

zebra hi,

I saw this comment of yours just recently and i feel the importance of such a concept at this time. Anyway, I work with a group that has started something on what you thought. To be precise, exactly your thought.

Though still a young group of professionals of different disciplines ranging from Computer Science, Statistics, Economics among others; called "3Is".

You could contact us to know more;

Sejoro : 08076036869

Funmi : 08090970849.

With kind regards.

foli:

zebra hi,

I saw this comment of yours just recently and i feel the importance of such a concept at this time. Anyway, I work with a group that has started something on what you thought. To be precise, exactly your thought.

Though still a young group of professionals of different disciplines ranging from Computer Science, Statistics, Economics among others; called "3Is".

You could contact us to know more;

Sejoro : 08076036869

Funmi : 08090970849.

With kind regards.

Hey, good to know that i have people i share the same thoughts with. I'm a Statistician with good computing skills. Where are you guys based? I will need your contribution.
Thanx.

Nice idea,unfortunately it is not something you just jumped
into without being adequately informed.

i will advised you consult a career/business coach.

Good luck,
you may visit;http://statisticstools-eclatcareer..com

@OP,

Not a bad idea. Although, you should be aware that statistical analysis is a part of research. So RI and the other chaps do crunch numbers.
Part of the problem with market research in Nigeria is that they are generically-skilled, and their techniques are not finetuned for different sectors. That is why, when most MNCs in Nigeria need to carry out consumer research, they come with a global firm that will prescribe the methodology, and use local firms to gather the data. In the real world, there are specialist firms that do industry-specific analysis. In telecoms, we have the likes of Oliver Wiemann, Delta Partners, IDC, and a few others who do consumer research in Africa. There's also a new firm in Lagos, Africa Analysis, that does operator-specific strategy work.

You should get some industry experience working in market research, either in an agency or within an MNC. Then you can evaluate the opportunities on your own, and decide if that is what you want to do. For me, the opportunities are still limited, so there's a window to develop local talent in that area. But you should learn the ropes first. Don't be like other Nigerians, who become experts by surfing the web.

@AjanleKoko
Thanx for your contribution; thats great.