Are Surveys Necessary

[FVoehl@aol.com]

In a message dated 7/2/99 9:28:56 PM, rderoeck@alphaind.com writes:

<< Is conducting an organizational survey an indication that management 
doesn't know (or care) what's going on  within their own company? If managers 
spent more of their time on the production floors, learning/understanding the 
processes and problems, talking and listening to the operators, asking the 
right questions (based on the right analysis) and providing leadership, would 
organizational
surveys even be necessary? >>

This is a interesting and familiar question by Rich.  How do I know?  Because 
it is a replica of the one I asked Dr. Deming back in 1992.  To which he 
answered:  *Absolutely* and referred me to one of his masterworks--Sample 
Design in Business Research.  This work opens with the following preface by 
Dr. Deming:  *This book is a textbook written from the point of view of the 
theoretical statistician in industry, which includes surveys of consumers, 
surveys  in psychological problems, surveys of attitudes and opinions, 
surveys of business establishments.*  Dr. Deming writes about the value of 
surveys, surveys, surveys.  

Why? Because, he said, a theoretical statistician (1) guides his practice 
with theory (2) is a practical man (3) he has the better guide for practice 
than the errors of his forefathers (which he borrowed from Huxley).  So 
surveys, when done properly, help us to avoid the errors of those who have 
gone before us, among other things.  

One other thing he stressed about surveys:  If you use them, be ready to 
listen to them and the comments and perceptions that they can bring.  There 
is nothing worse than management doing a survey and then doing nothing with 
the results.  Morale usually worsens appreciably afterward.  And one other 
thing about surveys:  be sure that they are designed by a pro, someone who 
know how to construct an objective instrument.  We have all seen examples of 
surveys that *lead the witness* so to speak.  For a survey to be useful, it 
must be objective.  For those who are interested, my friend Lou Schultz of 
PMI has written a useful guide to survey development.  He can be contacted at 
800-553-0313 or e-mail him at lschultz@nhbpr.com

Frank Voehl (FVoehl@aol.com)  
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