The Gallup Organization, one of the world's largest management consulting firms with more than 3,000 employees in 25 countries, helps organizations leverage their employee and customer assets by analyzing and understanding human attitudes and behavior. Since 1935, it has conducted the Gallup Poll, which has become one of the world's leading sources of public opinion.
Provide clients with secure, Web-based access to interactive data, as an alternative to electronic or paper reports.
With SPSS Consulting, Gallup developed an online solution that allows clients to easily access both data and analytical applications over the Web using only a browser.
With over 60 years of collected data and more rolling in, Gallup wants to be able to distribute information to clients as effectively as possible. This had been done through paper reports and, in recent years, electronically supplemented with the Gallup Data Explorer (GDE) — a custom interface developed with SPSS consultants. The GDE, through software installed on client computers, is designed to give non-statisticians intuitive access to the tables, charts and applications they require in order to make informed business decisions.
Gallup wanted to take this a step further, eliminating the need for any software installation and providing access to both data and analytical applications through a simple Web browser. Essentially, it needed to give clients a spot on the Web where they could easily access data and run their own analyses to create custom tables and charts.
"The Web is no longer just for technical answers or software updates," says Eldin Ehrlich, consulting manager of IT projects at Gallup. "Today, customers expect companies to provide Web-based solutions that accommodate a variety of needs, including access to detailed research intelligence and the ability to further explore that information on their own. And, of course, it must all be custom made."
Our customers no longer need to create a complex sequence of instructions to get the answers they need--we put that all within a single mouse click.
Again working with SPSS consultants, Gallup developed an online solution in which clients could access customized data and deploy analytical applications over the Web. First, a team of analysts works closely with each client to determine their unique analysis and reporting needs, then a Web site is set up to present data and analyses in a user-friendly format that drives their unique business needs. The client can then access the information and applications through their browser, with no need to load additional software on their own machines. The interface is set up to be completely intuitive, so that a user need only click on an icon to run a specified analysis, giving them instant tables, graphs, frequency counts or whatever analytic is programmed.
"Our clients no longer need to create a complex sequence of instructions to get the answers they need—we put that all within a single mouse click," explains Ehrlich. "We've provided shortcuts through all the procedural steps a traditional user would encounter. All they have to do is select the data set, select the analysis, away they go."
Different "levels" of access can also be granted. For example, more sophisticated users can be set up with permissions create their own procedures, which can be published on the Web site for later use. Users can also publish other documents of virtually any format, including any new findings or reports they want to share with other members of their analytical team.
Many of Gallup's clients are based worldwide but have users with very specific, regional information needs. For example, a company may have one researcher in Asia who needs to analyze customer satisfaction data on Asian customers, and another researcher in England who is looking for a completely different set of answers about European customers.
Now each researcher can simply go to the dedicated Web site, click on an icon specific to their region and get the information and analyses they need. All the data is in one place, but it is presented in a manageable format. "The technology gives us the ability to provide a common analytical tool that also allows a great deal of individual customization to meet specific research needs around the globe," says Ehrlich.
Companies typically track a number of factors, on a weekly or monthly basis, that influence the decisions they make about products and services. Gallup's Web-based solution gives clients access to this data, and its analysis, more quickly than has ever been possible — allowing more timely response to customer needs. As soon as the tracking information is available, Gallup updates the client database with the new data and makes it available immediately online.
In cases where client's prefer that Gallup do further analysis, it can do so and push results to the clients in minimal time. "Clients often have an idea in their head, but don't have the time to create the analysis themselves," explains Ehrlich, "Now they can call a Gallup analyst who can deliver a solution that meets their needs right away. We can turnaround these requests very quickly, so data is almost immediately available and the client can use it to make decisions that will keep them ahead of the curve."
Worldwide Offices | Communications | Site Map | Contact Us | Terms and Conditions | Privacy Policy
© 2010 SPSS Inc., an IBM Company All rights reserved.
SPSS Inc., an IBM Company Headquarters, 233 S. Wacker Drive, 11th floor
