IQCS Award Winners 2022

The IQCS Quality Awards celebrate the unsung Heroes of Quality in research operations…those individuals and member companies who go the extra mile in making quality an integral part of the entire data-collection process.

They are an opportunity for companies to showcase the excellent work that they do in delivering quality data-collection for both internal and external clients. They embody everything that is great about being a part of the IQCS and highlight the passion and pride our membership have in upholding the core values of IQCS throughout their work.

The awards were judged by current IQCS Chair, Penny Steele and former IQCS Chair, Claire Harris and the awards winners were announced at the IQCS AGM on Thursday 24^th November 2022.

The awards categories for this year are as follows:

IQCS Interviewer Excellence

This award celebrates an individual or team in data collection operations who have demonstrated that they go the extra mile in consistently delivering interviewing excellence.

What the judges were looking for:

Dedication to quality
Consistently high standard of interviewing
Robust data-collection
Going the extra mile to complete a challenging project or projects
Delivering excellence to your internal/external client

The Winner Is: Transport for Greater Manchester’s Survey Research and Analysis department

The team conducts surveys in a wide range of locations, working outdoors in the most extreme of weather conditions, achieves impressive response rates within tight timescales, and they are praised for the quality of their work.

This team of 27 interviewers is described as going the extra mile every day, and on occasion well beyond their research remit. On one occasion this resulted in two interviewers providing assistance to someone giving birth at a tram stop, and on another an interviewer saw a member of the public who appeared to be in danger and waited with them until the police arrived before resuming work.

Described as dedicated, diligent, hardworking, and never missing a beat, the TFGM interviewing team comes across as close knit, caring and professional, and a worthy winner of this award.

IQCS Data Collection Excellence – Telephone

This award celebrates the best in Face to Face or Telephone Data Collection. We are looking for a case study of a recent project which you were particularly proud of, which demonstrates how your organisation achieved fieldwork excellence in completing a particularly challenging project.

What the judges were looking for:

Robust data-collection
High quality interviewing
Going the extra mile to complete a challenging project
Delivering excellence to your internal/external client
Demonstration the importance of great quality assurance processes underpinning the data-collection process

The Winner Is: Kudos Research’s Health department

Kudos Research’s submission describes a multi-country quant and qual project comprising 300 interviews with directors and senior managers in the biotech and life sciences industry.

Having worked with their client since 2015, their experience and flexibility came to the fore when fieldwork delays had to be accommodated while still meeting a set in stone deadline, and requiring what Kudos describe as ‘almost symbiotic levels of closeness with the client’.

The findings resulted in the client taking a ‘course correction’ in the new service the research was focusing on, and Kudos has been commissioned to conduct the data collection exercise on the refined service that’s now emerged.

Their client praises their consistent, high quality service, going the extra mile, and frequently exceeding expectations

While one respondent was so impressed with the quality of their Kudos experience that their own organisation subsequently commissioned Kudos themselves, the ultimate compliment.

IQCS Data Collection Excellence – Face to Face

What the judges were looking for:

Robust data-collection
High quality interviewing
Going the extra mile to complete a challenging project
Delivering excellence to your internal/external client
Demonstration the importance of great quality assurance processes underpinning the data-collection process

The Winner Is: IPSOS UK

The winner of this year’s award for face to face data collection excellence is Ipsos for their Children of the 2020’s research programme.

Their submission describes the first wave of a new birth cohort study, with a sample of more than 8,500, and which examines how experiences and circumstances shape children’s development. This required an initial 50 minute interview with the main carer of 9 month old babies and participants to download an app to track key childhood developmental milestones. This research was all undertaken against a background of continuing concern about the safety of in-home interviewing.

An impressive 85% of interviewers were conducted face to face, 80% downloaded the app, and 89% allowed their interview data to be linked to their NHS administrative records.

Praise from a grateful and complimentary client is matched by the words of an Ipsos interviewer who says “working on Children of the 2020’s has been amazing, and I feel a real sense of having done something valuable and worthwhile“.

The quality of this project and its data collection shines through this submission, and it is a worthy winner of this award.

Best IQCS Interviewing Training and Development

The award will go to the organisation demonstrating wholehearted commitment to interviewer-centric training and development with IQCS quality standards and the MRS Code of Conduct underpinning the whole process.

What the judges were looking for:

Great feedback from Interviewer attendees on both the content and administration of the training (could be examples of post-training feedback forms).
Promotion of the core IQCS values throughout the training
Inclusion of relevant information on the MRS Code of Conduct and the GDPR
Innovation and creativity in delivering the training – could be multi-media, PowerPoint, or through inter-activity
Development of existing skills through targeted follow on training in response to monitoring feedback or the unique requirements of a specific type of work (e.g. probing skills, handling B2B Gatekeepers, qual interviewing)
Strong focus on improving interviewer competence, confidence, engagement and morale, investing in the continual improvement of skills to ensure quality and aid interviewer retention

The Winner Is: Kantar Public

Their submission describes a programme of training and personal development that spans not only core and extended research knowledge, skills and quality assurance, but also provides wellbeing knowledge and support, which includes mental health advice, guidance and referrals as well as access to wider areas including legal and financial support.

They say, “our holistic, universal and tailored programme of technical and health and wellbeing support and training means we can provide for the needs of our people, ensuring they are capable, satisfied, involved, and, most fundamentally, well’’.

In the words of one interviewer: “I have worked for many companies over the years, and I can honestly say that I have never had a company support my wellbeing like Kantar has”.

IQCS Quality Ambassador

The award is going to an individual or team who consistently champion and promote quality standards for data-collection within their organisation.

What the judges were looking for:

Details of how the particular individual or team have been pro-active quality ambassadors for their organisation
Evidence of how they promote and encourage high quality standards across their business
Details of how the overall quality of data-collection processes or deliverables has been positively affected by the efforts of the quality ambassador/s
Feedback from users of the data-collection on the positive impact the quality ambassador/s has played in ensuring quality underpins all aspects of the data-collection process

The Winner Is: Simon Brett, Quality Manager at B2B International

B2B International’s submission describes the role their Quality Manager ,Simon Brett played across the life of their projects, and all while working remotely.

Involved from the start to the end of each project, which span methodologies and languages, he ensures appropriate IQCS, MRS and data protection needs are anticipated, identified and met, he attends every briefing virtually and he monitors fieldwork quality. Not afraid to reject interviews, he then provides additional training or coaching, and further monitoring as required.

In the words a of B2B director, “Simon’s consistent dedication to fieldwork quality is of huge value to B2B International. This is not just in terms of upholding our legal, ethical and industry obligations, but also because of the value he brings to us as researchers”.

While another colleague adds “He asks thoughtful questions to strengthen the advice he is giving, and always has at heart the experience of the respondent and the outcome for our client”.

Everybody’s got a story, what’s yours?