Development of Electronic Data Reporting (EDR) in Statistics Finland

1
Development of Electronic Data Reporting (EDR)
in Statistics Finland
2
Design goals

• Framework for similar systems
• Multi-language support
• User authentication / authorisation
• Data security (collection and production
  databases)
• Simple method for transferring data between
  collection and production databases
• Mass emailer for all kinds of collection systems

3
Three generations

• Building cost index 2001
• sub-annual survey
• built using Microsoft Windows DNA (Distributed
  iNternet Application Architecture)
• 6 EDR solutions 2002-2004
• both sub-annual and annual surveys
• VB.NET
• 4 EDR solutions 2005
• sub-annual surveys
• XCola

4
Data Provider relations and response rates
Business surveys
5
Background

• Traditionally high response rates in annual and
  sub-annual business surveys
• up to over 99
• persistent staff
• Good relations with data providers
• experienced staff
• many continuous personal contacts
• usually long-lasting relationships
• high level of trust

6
Infrastructure and atmosphere for EDR in Finland

• High level of using the Internet
• almost every enterprise has access to internet
• business surveys are typically made for the
  largest enterprises
• Positive atmosphere for using internet for
  transactions with the government
• respondents are even enthusiastic about using
  Internet
• Its fun to fill in web forms instead of paper
  ones!

7
Key issues when implementing EDR -solution

• 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
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Reducing response burden

• Using e-mail for informing the survey and sending
  the reminders
• link to the EDR -solution
• Questionnaire is always available
• Good designing of the questionnaire
• not just a copy of the paper form
• Helpful validity checks
• reduce the need of additional inquiries
• Contextual on-line help
• Option to fill in the questionnaire in separate
  sessions
• Support for several languages

9
Enabling direct individual feedback for
respondents (1)

• Motivates respondent to use EDR -solution instead
  a paper form
• For example enterprises own data compared with
  the data of its own industry
• Respondents have found feedback useful
• has even led to inquiries for more information

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Enabling direct individual feedback for
respondents (2)

• Monthly saleinquiry

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Enabling browsing of previously submitted data

• Respondent have access to all the data it has
  previously submitted
• simple short-term (sub-annual) surveys
• Pre-filling the form with data from previous
  surveys
• useful especially in annual surveys
• helps the respondent to remember how the figures
  were compiled last year

12
Assuring high level 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)

13
Decreasing non-response and speeding up the
accumulation of the data

• Response rates have remained on high level
• The average response time of monthly surveys has
  been reduced
• in the best case by 7-8 days or 30
• The number of reminders sent has decreased
  substantially
• in the best case by 50
• 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 50)

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An example Sale inquiry Change in response
media 10/2001 - 10/2004
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An example Sale inquiry

• EDR users of all respondents
• after 1. month 48
• after 2. month 59
• after 3. month 61
• after 4. month 70
• Today gt 80

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An example Sale inquiry

• Reminders sent
• before EDR 1000
• after 1. month 800
• after 2. month 700
• after 3. month 600
• since 4. month 500

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An example Sale inquiry Responses per day
10/2001 (until t45 days)
Due date (accumulation 31)
Reminders (accumulation 76)
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An example Sale inquiry Responses per day
10/2002 (until t45 days)
Due date (accumulation 49)
Reminders (accumulation 81)
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An example Sale inquiry Responses per day
10/2003 (until t45 days)
Due date (accumulation 68)
Reminders (accumulation 78)
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An example Sale inquiry Responses per day
10/2004 (until t45 days)
Due date (accumulation 76)
Reminders (accumulation 86)
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An example Sale inquiry Accumulation of data
10/2001 - 10/2004
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Costs and Benefits of EDR solutions Business
surveys
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Costs of EDR

• The costs of developing web-based applications
  and running them has dropped by 60-70 during the
  last three years
• Average investment cost per new EDR -solution
  (today)
• An outside service provider EUR 5000
• In-house solution (XCola) 150 hours of work
• Maintenance costs of EDR solution per year
  (today)
• An outside service provider EUR 1000
• In-house solution (XCola) 50 hours of work

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Development costs In-house EDR solutions

• The in-house solutions are already in the third
  generation phase
• During the first and second phases the total
  resource input was about 2.5 person years
• more or less learning by doing
• includes the development of a secure
  communication environment
• includes the implementation of 7 solutions
• XCola (third generation phase) development took
  about 1 person year
• includes the implementation of 4 solutions

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Benefits of EDR to Statistics Finland (1)

• Four second generation solutions have been in
  production for more than year
• 3300 respondents per month and 800 per quarter
• Average percentage of work saved in the data
  collection phase is over 40 (2 person years)
• The amount of ground mail has been reduced by 64
  000 or 65 (0.5 person years)
• The average response time has been reduced in the
  best case by 7-8 days or 30
• Number of reminders sent has gone down by the
  half
• Investment has paid off in about a year

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Benefits of EDR to Statistics Finland (2)

• The data received are of better quality
• both annual and sub-annual surveys
• common estimate is 25 less errors
• comprehensive study has not been made
• As manual handling diminishes, it can be replaced
  by more rewarding tasks

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Benefits of EDR to respondents

• Questionnaire is possible to be completed more
  rapidly
• Pre-filling helps respondents to remember how
  they have answered previously
• Validity checks prevent the sending of erroneous
  data
• no additional inquiries
• Same piece of information needs always to be
  entered only once
• Respondents like to use Internet
• Perceived response burden has gone down

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Effects of the EDR on data collection process
Printing the questionnaires ? Transferring data
to collection database Mailing ? E-mail informing
(mass emailer) Receiving the questionnaires
(mail, fax, e-mail) ? (Electronic data
supply) Validating and entering the data ?
On-line validations mass validation Printing
and mailing the reminders ? E-mail reminder (mass
emailer) Phone inquiry ? Phone inquiry Non-individ
ual delayed feedback ? Individual direct
feedback Limited access to previous own data ?
Previous own data available Manual exclusive
treatment ? Electronic mass treatment
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Data transfers

• Data transfers between collection and production
  databases are handled with an external
  application
• Data from collection database
• is first transferred to the temporary tables in
  the production database
• and then synchronized with the actual tables
• Solution is quite customizable
• Easy to customize for new collection systems
• Easy to add new databases

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Mass emailer

• An external application to send emails to the
  respondents
• Modular approach
• New systems can be added using textual
  configuration files
• Reply requests (list of e-mails) can be added by
  writing sql statements to the configuration files
• Supports attachments
• Replaces traditional letters

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An example Sale inquiryBackground

• Monthly inquiry using paper forms (2080
  enterprises)
• Data collection process (7-8 persons 2.0
  working years)
• Printing and mailing the questionnaires
• Receiving the questionnaires (mail, fax, e-mail)
• Validating and entering the data
• Printing and mailing the reminders
• Phone inquiry
• Quarterly non-individual feedback for respondents
• Previously submitted data preprinted to
  questionnaires for the last 2 months

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An example Sale inquiry Purpose

• To describe the economic situation in different
  industries
• Trade 30 branches
• Services 23 branches
• Construction 3 branches
• Manufacturing 15 branches
• To respond to EU-legislation
• The Regulation of the EU concerning short-term
  statistics (1165/98)

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An example Sale inquiry / Source data

• Tax Administrations register
• Value added tax -data
• Delay 2 months in turnover
• The data accumulates for 6 months
• Direct data collection (sale inquiry 2080
  companies)
• The most largest companies from each industry
• Trade 660 companies
• Services 600 companies
• Construction 200 companies
• Manufacturing 620 companies
• Business Register
• Basic information about companies branch of
  industry, location, contact information etc.

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An example Sale inquiryEnd products

• Monthly indicators (newsletters and Internet
  releases)
• Trade 30 (European sample), 45 (preliminary)
  and75 days delay
• Services 45 (European sample) and 75 days delay
• Construction 75 days delay
• Manufacturing 75 days delay
• Time series
• Starts mostly from 1995 (trade from 1985)

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Data collection process in sale inquiry before
EDRCollecting the sales data concerning March
Manual data entering


April
May
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Data collection process in sale inquiry
todayCollecting the sales data concerning March
Electronic data transfers
April

Transferring data to collection database
Due date
E-mail reminders
E-mail informing
1. phone inquiry for non-respondents on European
sample
2. phone inquiry for non-respondents on European
sample
Phone inquiry for the rest non-respondents
37
EDR solution / Sale inquiry
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Change in working hours used in data collection
and validation (hours per year)
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Hours used in development and maintenance of EDR
solution (sale inquiry)
Includes hours used in development of infrastrucre
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Experiences (1)

• Feedback from respondents has been very positive
  Response burden has redused remarkably
• Enthusiasm of persons involved in data collection
• Manual data treatment has redused (at least by
  50)
• Quality of data has improved On-line
  validations, additional information if data is
  not comparable etc.

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Experiences (2)

• Number of enquires made by respondents concerning
  EDR solution
• First two months 100 / month (mainly questions
  concerning base settings)
• Since third month 30 / month (mainly forgotten
  passwords)

42
Effects of EDR on data quality (ESS quality
dimensions)

• Accuracy
• Automatic validations
• Timeliness
• Mail ? E -mail and web
• Manual data entering ? Electronic data transfers
• Comparability