Needs Analysis: the Most Important Step of Survey Research

"Without a goal to work toward, we will not get there."

The above quote by Natasha Josefowitz Ph.D. underscores the importance of conducting a complete and thorough needs analysis prior to embarking upon any survey research project. The needs analysis serves to define structure and develop the goals for the entire project.

Define Goals and Objectives

The initial step of the need analysis is to start at the end. This may sound somewhat counterintuitive, but would one dress in jeans if you plan to attend a black-tie event? The obvious answer is "No". The destination must first be defined before the appropriate planning and preparation can be put into place to effectively and efficiently get there. This step is known as defining the goals and objectives.

When it comes to survey research, this issue is typically addressed with the question, "What do you want to learn?" This question is known as the "research question" and the answer to this question may take on one of many forms, including:

• Are my employees happy?
• Who is purchasing my products?
• Are my customers happy?
• Who are my competitors and how do I rate among them?
• What is the perception of my brand's identity?
• Are there any markets I should be actively pursuing?

Once the general objective of the project is completely understood, the next step is to define the specific objectives. The questions necessary to accomplish this phase include:

• Who do we ask?
• How do we reach them?
• How do we ask?
• What do we already think we know?
• What do we need to ask?
• In what form do we want our data?
• How will we leverage the findings?
• Should we conduct follow-up research?

The specific objectives include the hypotheses, determining and operationalizing the variables involved in the investigation, identifying the audience, specifying the types of data to be collected, determining the approach for the data analysis and defining the reporting requirements. These well-defined objectives will shape and drive the development of each step of the research project.

Survey Method

The survey method chosen will rely upon the specified audience along with the type of data desired. For example, if an employee satisfaction survey was to be conducted at a law firm, the method of choice would be a web-based survey since it is most likely that each employee would have a company email address and readily have Internet access.

Survey Questionnaire

Once the method is chosen, the next step is to develop the survey questionnaire. The survey would need to include questions specific to the objective variables chosen. If employee satisfaction was the general objective then the specific variable objectives must be directly related. Some variable examples would include compensation, communication, efficacy, recognition, competency, opportunity, support and engagement. A number of questions would be developed within each of these variable groups and, cumulatively, would produce the survey.

The methodology, type of data desired and reporting requirements will determine the form in which the questions are asked. Since the chosen methodology for this example is a web-based solution, which is primarily quantitative, the form of the questions would be closed-ended. If the desired data form was determined to be ratings, then the response sets would need to be in a Likert scale format. Furthermore, if the reporting required comparisons at different employee levels and within different departments, this information would also need to be included in the survey. Every question that makes it to the final draft of the survey MUST be linked to the general objective.

Focus on Answering the Initial Research Question

Following the administration of the survey and collection of the data, the report of the findings must be created. It is imperative that the report focus on answering the initial research question. And, if each step during the development of the research project was structured based upon the objectives, this will easily be achieved.

So, before you end up in the center of a black-tie event dressed in jeans, or worse yet, end up collecting a bunch of useless data, be certain to put the up-front time and effort into conducting a comprehensive needs analysis. It will lead to optimal and actionable research findings and help you to forego any possible embarrassment.

By: Margaret Henry, Ph.D.
Senior Research Analyst
Pearson Assessments
January 4, 2007

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