European Conference on Quality in Survey Statistics

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European Conference on Quality in Survey
Statistics
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From business models to statistical fundamental
principles

• D. Defays

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Issues

• Are business models like TQM or EFQM models
  appropriate frameworks for an organisation like
  Eurostat?
• Why was the introduction of a Code of Practice
  necessary?

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Outline of the presentation

• First quality approaches in Eurostat
• New governance concerns, 2003 Eurostat crisis and
  their possible links with quality frameworks
• The ESS organisation and the 2004 EDP crisis and
  their links with quality frameworks
• From EFQM to CoP. What should come next?

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First quality approaches in Eurostat

• Features of statistics related to their quality
  (7 dimensions of quality)
• TQM and a quality manager
• Corporate plan
• Management frameworks
• Quality reports
• Staff opinion surveys
• EFQM self assessments
• New legal framework
• Quality declaration of the ESS in 2001 (22
  recommendations)

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New governance concerns

• Commission white paper on European Governance
  (2001)(openness accountability participation
  effectiveness coherence)
• Strong coupling of statistics and decision making
  (open coordination method stability and growth
  pact structural indicators )

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Eurostat 2003 crisis

• Financial management questioned
• Reorganisation leading to
• Suppression of data shops and new free
  dissemination policy
• Core business redefined (SI, PEEIs, compliance
  monitoring, more focus for co-operation
  activities)
• Internalisation of outsourced activities
• New top management
• Lack of risk analysis, political crisis based on
  old problems already identified and solved, view
  of Eurostat as an enterprise delivering
  statistical products on a market?
• From fitness to purpose to conformity to
  requirements

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Use of business models for public
administrations

• What is a business? (a directorate a
  directorate general the Commission?)
• Hybrid role of Eurostat (production of
  statistics control of the application of Union
  law)
• Democracy and efficiency (user satisfaction
  transparency accountability)

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2004 EDP notification issue

• Wrong EDP data impacting directly sensitive EMU
  decisions
• Credibility of ESS at stake (see UK public
  confidence survey)
• Definition of an European Statistics Code of
  Practice with 6 principles on the institutional
  set-up

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From EFQM to CoP

• Different scopes and objectives
• In CoP but not in EFQM
• deontological principles specific to statistics
  (impartiality objectivity, protection of
  confidentiality)
• references to regulatory frameworks, formal
  obligations, public mandate
• but introduction since 2003 of Corporate
  Social Responsibility
• In EFQM but not in CoP
• people results (staff opinion surveys)
• general concern on management/strategy

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Next steps

• Deontological principles for compliance
  monitoring (adaptation of CoP to Eurostat
  mission)
• Implementation of the CoP to enhance trust
• self assessment
• peer reviews
• improvement actions
• external monitoring and reporting

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European Conference on Quality in Survey
Statistics