The employment of this process assisted me in terms of time savings when writing my dissertation. During the dissertation process, I managed to create several levels of boundaries. While writing my dissertation, I changed my personal voicemail message in order to reflect my newly acquired role as a dissertation writer. I created a voice message that stated that I was away and would only return my calls the moment I completed writing my dissertation. In regard to e-mail communications, I became very selective in regards to answering of my e-mails. I had to tell all of my friends and family never to send short stories or jokes via e-mail. I reminded everyone in my personal and professional life that each and every second counts. Since I was involved with the running of a small company that I own, I only attended functions that I had vested extreme interest. If I had to attend family events such as weddings, I had to ravel in separate cars in order for me to have the opportunity of leaving at my own convenience and on my own schedule.

In regard to the organization of my dissertation, I had to store my raw and secondary data and information in a safe place. The ones I soft copy were stored in an off -- premise computers/servers while the ones in hard copy were stored in a secure fire safe. All my writings were also stored redundantly on backup disks.

The dissertation writing process to me was reminiscent of my earlier days as a school-going child. This is because I had to buy my supplies in time like a school going child would before the beginning of a school year. In my case, I had to purchase writing supplies in large quantities before I embarked on the journey of completing my dissertation. There is nothing in the dissertation writing process that is as distracting as writing out of ink at a time when the stores have already closed. The same applies to running out of paper at the wrong time of the day when at the back of your mind you were ready to write more and more. In order to avoid running out of paper, I bought boxes of computer paper in reams and then we split the cost with m colleagues. I also bought several ink cartridges. I also bought special a paper that I used in the printing of the final copy of my dissertation. The whole in the dissertation writing process, I noticed, is to be prepared.

In the process of writing my dissertation, I noticed that technology can be a great friend and helper. Technology to me is therefore a necessary evil. I effectively use technology in the organization of my word processing learning curve, formatting and editing of my documents.

At some point I my academic life, I had to learn how to use the various information technology tools such as word processing software as well as other research related computer programs. What I must point out is that technology really made my data collection, analysis as well as dissertation writing much easier.

While completing my dissertation, I learnt several ideas such as the creation of index, heading as well as table of contents.

In order to complete my dissertation I made use of several innovating technologies. As an example I employed a program called Endnote in order to create as well as reference the various bibliographic sections of my dissertation. Endnote as a program is not hard to master since it is a self-taught computer program. By using Endnote, a program which is readily available in most office supply stores, I ensured that all of my references were accounted for. The program also saved me countless hours in the process of typing as well as the formatting of my work. When completing my work, I made frequent references to the book, The Dissertation and Research Cookbook From Soup to Nuts: A Practical Guide to Help you Start and Complete Your Dissertation or Research Project by Simon & Francis (2001). This book, I must point out opened my easy to the concept of dissertation writing.

3. Personal feelings and learning from the experience

My personal feelings on the dissertation writing process are that it is a worthwhile academic journey. This is because of the different ideas that I came across while completing my dissertation. The dissertation writing process can be tedious. This however must never discourage anyone since one must dedicate time and effort for success to be realized. I however advise any student who wants to embark on a dissertation writing journey to be ready for the rough ride ahead. The...

The satisfaction that comes with accomplishment is coupled with the ability to provide gainful insights in one's area of specialization.
4. Group dynamics and learning from the experience

In regard to group dynamics as well as the learning experience that is associated with it, I realized that collaboration is a lifeline to a successful dissertation writing process. While writing my dissertation, I become a very active member of a writing group. This proved to me to be one of the most powerful techniques in the dissertation writing process. In my case, I joined a group that discussed marketing strategies of startups and mainstream organizations. The group that I joined was manageable in terms of size. We all had one thing in common: Interest in marketing strategies. My learning experience was also based on the use of online collaborative technology in which I joined marketing research and discussion groups so as to extract the general knowledge of the group of certain aspects of marketing. The group work opened my eyes to the power of collaboration. By working with other individuals, I gained the ability to listen and carefully evaluate their concerns. I therefore learnt to be a 'people person'. I learnt how to effectively communicate with other people and even collaborate with them in order to achieve a common goal.

While collaborating with the other members of my research groups, I learnt the benefits of having an e-mail partner with whom I could communicate on a daily basis. I learnt the value of commitment to certain activities such as replying to the emails of my collaborative research partners.

In order to ensure that my dissertation was written to the required standards, I frequently emailed chapters of the dissertation to some of my collaborative partners (close friends and families in the world of academia -PhDs) so that they could comment on areas that I could improve. In order to make their work easier, I included very specific guiding questions that were meant to capture the attention of the reader. Later on, I would schedule for a conference call with these academic fellows so that we would discuss my next engagements and areas of improvements. I made use of fax machines in transmitting some of my written notes in situation when the email was not available and the snail mail was a rather very slow alternative.

Other aspects of the dissertation process that made me realize the true nature and benefits of group collaboration is my journey to the various McDonald stores in order to acquire first hand information from their staff. While in this process, I had to make take the shuttle bus to various destinations since my car broke down at the moment and was just lying in the garage.

While taking part in group work elements of the dissertation, I realized that communicating with other people is never an easy task. This was especially true when communicating to individuals from different cultural backgrounds. The communication that I engaged in with different people allowed enhancing my communication skills in various ways such as in writing, numeracy, graphics, visual as well as oral means. The dissertation writing process allowed me the opportunity to improve my communication skills.

In the process of presenting my dissertation in the future, I will employ visual aids and graphics.

Which completing my dissertation, I realized that the diversity of the experience of a human being truly goes beyond my own success. People have different experiences in the course of their daily lives. The sharing of these experiences between group members as well as the final work ensured that I am successful.

5. Lessons for future projects.

The process of completing this dissertation provided me with the opportunity of leaning the true nature of academic inquiry as well as critical thinking. I realized that critical thinking is an integral element in all learners. The dissertation allowed me the opportunity of improving my critical thinking skills via observation, design as well as observation. The Integrated Marketing plan for McDonald's improved my skills in the marketing arena in many ways. I learnt how to bring different components together in order to form a strategy so solid, that a whole corporation such as McDonald's cans its future on it.

The lessons that I leant include how to…