"Muslim Wealth Project"

Overview

History of Muslim entrepreneurs goes back to mid 600 when Muslims established their first free market in Medina. Medieval economists and thinkers such as Al Ghazali, Ibn Khaldun, Al Dimashqi, and Tusi wrote extensively about types of trade, merchants, crafts, free market, partnership and ethics. With the emergence of Western advancements in industrial technology and trade, Muslims started migrating to the West for better professional and business opportunities. A series of studies will focus on Muslim professionals, entrepreneurs, their wealth, industries they are in, market trends that affect them, and impact of social and institutional networking on their professional and business life

Methodology

The research is to be conducted using up-to-date numerical data, qualitative data collection through interviews, phone and on-line surveys, and through focus groups in major cities

Need Assessment

Muslim Americans are highly educated, have generated extraordinary wealth through their professions and business ventures in the free markets of the West. We know little about their professional back ground and entrepreneurial success. The study has following goals:

·         Offer insight into Muslim professionals, entrepreneurs and their fiscal strength

·         Identify ways for the professionals to create new market capital

·         Analyze profitable and socially responsible ethical financial and business models

·         Study of emerging industrial and market trends

·         Identify investment, saving practices and trends in Muslim community

·         Identify contribution in social, philanthropic and political arenas  

·         Comparison of data across cultural, generational and regional divides

·         Educating policymakers, academia, Muslim community and society at large

Areas of Study (Questionnaire)

Financial

·         Household Income

·         Homeownership

·         Investment in stocks and private ventures and Islamic financing

·         Savings: Retirement, education, health, other

Professional

Professional background

Professional choice (major) of youths

Business

Self employed or partnership

Partnership experiences

Traditional and institutional networking

Investment: Angel or VC

Muslim business owners, executive’s information (Data available)

Company Name, Address, City State ZIP Code (Metro Area), Executive Name, Gender

Title, Phone Number, Home Business, Year Established, Fortune 1000 Ranking, Employee Size

Sales Volume, Type of Business

Social | Education | Political

·         Country of birth

·         Philanthropic contributions

·         Lifestyle

·         Retirement life or plans

·         Educational background

·         Political affiliation and participation

Methodology

·         Use of effective and proven research tools

·         Observing consent and privacy policies in interviews and data-mining

·         Managing logistical aspects of the study

·         Signing up and training volunteers, interns, and office staff

·         Compiling and analyzing relevant data

·         Generating sets of reports to present results

·         Distribution of finding to media, academia, policy makers, and community at large

Survey to compile demographic information about professionals and entrepreneurs through random sampling using:

·         Phone interviews 

·         On-line surveys

·         In-person focus studies

Data Collection

·         Use of commercially available databases of the subjects

·         Randomly selecting participants from a large database

·         Recruiting and setting phone appointments with the participants

·         Providing participant access to the online surveys and consent 

·         Conducting one-on-one and group interviews with selected participants

Data Analysis

Data will be evaluated using descriptive statistics for mean and standard deviation; will include cross-cultural, generational and geographic differences

In-person interviews to focus on areas such as networking practices, professional and entrepreneurial trends among Muslims 

Timeline | Project duration: 18 months

Month 1-3: Research tools; online questionnaire forms, scripts for interns and volunteers  

Month 4-6: Random recruitment of subjects, collection of information and data

Month 7-12: Focus study groups and in-person interviews

Month 13-18:  Final report; presentation and publication of the study

Budget

$50K per (major) metropolitan area

Research Team

Research Director: Coordinates and manages all aspects of the research

Research Assistant: Recruitment, survey collection, data entry, progress reports

Recruiter: Survey participant management, interview appointments

Interviewer: Interviews subjects, manages interview notes and reports with Research Assistant

About SRC

Founded in Silicon Valley, California in 2006, SRC is a non-profit (501C3), non-partisan, research organization conducting study in significant private and public issues. Our work is communicated through seminars, policy programs, conferences, articles, interviews, newsletters and open debates. Funding for SRC is provided by the foundations, memberships, and individuals. Our target audiences are policymakers, politicians, scholars, journalists, government, international institutions, businesses and the civil society

SRC is governed by a board, consisting of business people, educators, and philanthropists. Our areas of studies include society, economy, governance, foreign policy, trade and competitiveness