|
Purpose
A survey supports a larger purpose by providing information from people. The
process ring involves 6 basic steps and the surveys impact the first 3 steps shown below.
- Create the survey
- Deploy the survey
- Analyze the results
- Assess the situation
- Execute to make changes
- Monitor the progress
The purpose is usually to take action and make decisions based on what is learned
from information provided by a survey. Planning is involved in the survey creation.
Communication is involved in the survey deployment. Assessment is involved the
analytical stages.
Plan
Think about what information you want to obtain. Qualitative and quantitative.
Facts and opinions. Spending time on planning will ensure better data from the
survey activity.
Be concise
An average survey contains only 4 - 5 questions. The respondent's interests
drops the longer it takes to fill out the survey.
Be clear
State the objective in the description area. Since the respondent is providing
opinions and thoughts, the material is subjective and must be clearly defined
for the respondent to get the results your are looking for.
Keep current
If the subject matter gets old, the quality of the response will be poor and
the data unreliable.
Define the audience
State who should be taking this survey and why. Responses are subjective and
respondents require guidance if you wish to get the proper results.
Frame of Reference
Respondents need a frame of reference relative to the survey. Do they answer
on their personal behalf, what most people think, what they hear from others,
or what a group thinks. Define from what perspective people should approach
the survey.
Do a Pilot survey
Run a pilot of the survey to a smaller controlled group of people to look for flaws and
accuracy of data. You can tune the survey based on the results of the pilot. This
approach ensures a higher success rate upon final deployment.
|
