Consumer products industry is one of the fastest growing industries because it now has a global reach. There are thousands of companies in this category, with everything like shoes, apparel, home appliances, canned food, dry foods, and many more come under the spectrum of the consumer products field.

Since the industry is too huge, it is unlikely that one company will be manufacturing all the consumer durable and edible products.

However, there are companies that are big giants in manufacturing, and they have control over a large category of consumer products like electronics. For example, companies like GE offer a whole range of products which includes refrigerators, televisions, DVD players, and many of the other electronics that one might use at home. These are usually the big companies, and they all depend on a profitable market to survive.

The company would have various departments like support, manufacturing, production and supply. However, one department that is less spoken of is called the research and development department. Usually a company would hire only a few people in this department, but it is largely dependent on the data that is given by this department because all of its future plans and investments depend on the research.

Education

To be a research analyst in the consumer products industry, one has to be a graduate in any respect. They should have good computer skills and inter personal skills. Their written and spoken communication should also be good. The job is not very technology oriented, so no technical education is required. These days it has become an industry standard to employ only graduates who have finished high school and have a bachelor’s degree to start with.

Companies have found that people who are graduates are much better to wok with, and their productivity or output is of better quality than people who are not graduates. Research also shows that people who have done or finished their graduation stick to their job longer than under graduates. So it is all the more essential to have done at least graduation to stay in the job market. The research job is all about collecting data that is useful for the company, making presentations of that data and proposing ideas.

So the job can be creative for those who find it to be, and it also requires a lot of relational ability. Every person should do a computer course to get accustomed with the basics of computers like being able to use the internet, Microsoft tools like Word and Excel, as well as Power Point, Adobe, and so on. These are very important for the job.

Education Required

Bachelors Degree in Commerce, Arts or equivalent
Computer skills
Internet Knowledge

Skills

A research executive’s primary job is to conduct research for the project, and work as a part of the team. The person should have good internet knowledge and skills along with excellent written and spoken communication skills. This is a very important aspect of the job. The person working in this job should be sharp and should be able to segregate the information that is useful for the project and the company.

The researcher should also have good industry knowledge so that they can identify the right kind of information quickly. Fresh graduates can apply for this job, but they are usually trained for at least a week before they are inducted into the job. They are provided knowledge on how the industry works, and what are the products the company is dealing with.

The research team may work with any one like for example engineers, production executives or marketing executives. Anyone of these may require information, and the research executive should be able to put together that information and give it to them in the form of presentations.

Expected Salary

Beginners: $1500
Mid Level: $2500
Experts: $3500-$5000