The%20Experiences%20of%20Web%20Based%20Data%20Collection%20from%20Enterprises%20in%20Finland

1
The Experiences of Web Based Data Collection from
Enterprises in Finland

• August 9th 2006, JSM Seattle USA

2
Introduction - Strategies And Methods

• Statistics Finlands Strategy for EDR
• To offer an electronic option in all data
  collections by 2007 (not in person statistics)
• Its the respondents choice whether to use it or
  not
• Data Collection Methods
• About 97 of data are derived from administrative
  registers
• About 3 are from direct data collection (paper
  forms, machine readable data / primary EDI, EDR,
  interviews by CATI/CAPI systems mainly Blaise)
• Business Data Collections
• About 50 surveys (excluding collections with less
  than 30 respondents)
• 45 Web (Internet form) collections in use

3
Background - Data Collection And Infrastructure

• Traditionally high response rates (in both
  annual and sub-annual business surveys)
• Up to over 99, persistent staff
• Good relations with data providers
• Experienced staff, continuous personal contacts,
  high level of trust
• High level of using the Internet
• Almost every enterprise has access to the
  internet (employees 10 ? 98, employees 100 ?
  100)
• Business surveys are directed to the largest
  enterprises
• Positive atmosphere for using internet with the
  government
• Respondents are even enthusiastic about using the
  Internet
• Its fun to fill in web forms instead of paper
  ones!

4
Background - Three Generations of In-house EDR
Solutions

• 1. Generation Building cost index 2001
• Built using Microsoft Windows DNA (Distributed
  Internet Application Architecture)
• 2. Generation 7 EDR solutions 2002-2005
• VB.NET
• 3. Generation 23 EDR solutions 2005-2006
• XCola
• 11 EDR solutions made by outside service provider
  1997-2006
• Pilot in integrated data collection (tourism
  statistics)

5
Technical information - XCola in a Nutshell

• A generic application for Web surveys
• Processes the XML questionnaires and transforms
  them into Web applications
• Supports client and server side validations
• Executed on the server side, does not require any
  installation on the respondent side
• Works on every modern browser
• Easy to implement new questionnaires in just
  hours
• Main developer Mr. Toni Räikkönen,
  toni.raikkonen_at_stat.fi

6
Benefits - Summary of Main Benefits

• Simplifying data collection process
• Reducing need for human resources
• Reducing other data collection costs
• Improving the quality of collected data
• Decreasing non-response
• Speeding up the data accumulation
• Reducing response burden
• Enabling direct individual feedback for
  respondents
• Enabling browsing of previously submitted data
• Assuring high level data security

Cost-efficiency
Accuracy
Timeliness
Data providerrelations
7
Achieved Cost-Efficiency - 2nd Generation

• Four second generation solutions have been in
  production for 3 years (3300 respondents per
  month plus 800 per quarter)
• Average per cent of work saved in the data
  collection phase is over 40 (2 person years)
• The amount of ground mail has been reduced by 65
  (0.5 person years)
• Number of reminders sent has gone down by half
• Mass e-mailer for all kinds of collections
• Investment is paid off in about a year

8
Cost-Efficiency Continues to Improve - 3rd
Generation

• Common framework (one engine) for similar systems
• ? An effective build-up
• Simple method for transferring data between
  collection and production databases
• Only one application to maintain and support
• Support and development knowledge easier to
  acquire and spread
• Reducing need for human resources
• ? As manual handling diminishes, it can be
  replaced by more rewarding tasks

9
An Example - Working Hours Used in Data
Collection and Validation in Sale Inquiry
hours
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
years
10
Accuracy and Timeliness

• The data received are of better quality 25
  less errors(both annual and sub-annual surveys)
• Response rates have remained on high level
• The average response time of monthly surveys has
  reduced
• in the best case by 8-10 days or 30
• The number of reminders sent has decreased
  substantially
• in the best case by 50 (from 1000 to 500 in just
  4 months)
• The share of the respondents using EDR -solution
  has in most cases reached high level
• sub-annual surveys gt 60 (in the best case 85)
• annual surveys 30 (in the best case 75)

11
An Example - Sale Inquiry Accumulation of Data
01/2002 - 01/2006
responses
12
Data Provider Relations

• Perceived response burden has gone down
• E-mail informs of the survey and reminds to
  answer
• Questionnaire is always available and fast to
  fill-in
• Option to fill in the questionnaire in separate
  sessions
• Good designing of the questionnaire
• Helpful validity checks - no additional inquiries
• Contextual on-line help
• Support for several languages
• Individually tailored feedback
• Access to all the previously submitted data and
  pre-filled questionnaires

13
High Level of Data Security

• Data security audit by an outside consult
• All traffic on the Internet is SSL -encrypted
• An authentication / authorisation -process is
  always needed
• New user IDs and passwords every year
• User IDs and passwords are initially sent in a
  letter
• Only one of them can be sent by email
• The other one must always be sent in a letter or
  given over by telephone
• Only a certain number of our staff have access to
  user IDs and passwords (usually two persons per
  survey)

14
An Example - Sale Inquiry Change in Response
Media 12/2001 - 12/2005
responses
15
Costs - Investment and Maintenance

• The costs have dropped by 60-70 during the last
  few years
• Average investment cost per new EDR -solution
  (today)
• An outside service provider was EUR 5000
• In-house solution (XCola) less than 150 hours of
  work
• Maintenance costs of EDR solution per year
  (today)
• An outside service provider was EUR 1000
• In-house solution (XCola) less than 50 hours of
  work
• During the first and second phases the total
  resource input was about 2,5 person years
  (learning by doing)
• Included the development of a secure
  communication environment
• Included the implementation of 7 solutions

16
An Example - Work Done in Development and
Maintenance of An EDR Solution (Sale Inquiry)
Includes hours used in development of infrastrucre
hours
2002 2003 2004 2005
17
Challenges - In-house Development and Maintenance

• The development of surveys can be very fast if
  the IT -personnel have good skills in XML and
  related techniques
• At the moment the number of very skilled survey
  developers is limited
• The whole production environment around XCola is
  not yet finished
• Somewhat dependent on certain named persons
• The statistics departments typically have a lot
  of requirements for the surveys
• Some minor development in XCola is needed all the
  time

18
Pilot - Integrated Data Collection (Tourism)

• Data are delivered directly from hotel management
  systems into our database
• No manual work needed (except to initiate the
  transfer)
• After their reception data are submitted to the
  standard validation process
• Software vendors implement a module for the
  hotels management software using Statistics
  Finlands definitions for data and service
  interface
• Implemented using typical B2B integration
  technique XML Web Services

19
Near Future - Productisation and Integration

• More integrated data collections?
• Co-operation with management system providers
• Project for productisation of XCola (since June
  2006)
• Has already been made (Xcola v. 3.1)
• Developers manual, finalised administration
  tools
• Routines for transfers between collection and
  production databases
• XCola version for outside evaluation has been
  built
• Under development
• Graphical editor for building questionnaires and
  links to metadata
• Project for co-ordination of business surveys
• In the future more co-ordinated surveys - instead
  of many independent surveys targeted towards
  businesses