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Official statistics and enterprises

INSEE and ministerial statistical offices are partners in the "Official statistics and enterprises" approach.

Their five commitments cover all stages of the relationship with enterprises, from the questioning process to the dissemination of statistical information: economy, reciprocity, proximity, reliability, confidentiality.

Economy

Commitment

"The official statistical system shall work to minimize the number and volume of questionnaires submitted to enterprises, by optimizing samples and achieving better coordination between offices in charge of surveys. It also pledges to make questionnaires more reader-friendly, both in wording and layout."

Actions taken

1- to avoid double questioning:

  • increased statistical use - while respecting their confidentiality - of administrative data collected by other government entities, in consultation with CNIS

2- to verify the relevance of statistical surveys:

  • critical, in-depth review by CNIS of new and redesigned surveys
  • five-year review of periodic surveys

3- to alleviate the response burden for small enterprises:

  • less frequent questioning of small enterprises, particularly for annual enterprise surveys
  • raising of completeness thresholds for surveys

4- to simplify survey response:

  • more reader-friendly survey documents
  • enterprises to be allowed online response in specified statistical operations: surveys of individual industries (on SESSI site), business surveys, and INSEE survey on "Observation of industrial and business-service prices"

Actions planned

  • whenever possible, using information already gathered by other government bodies
  • making ever greater use of new technologies for survey collection
  • adapting questions to enterprises' information systems

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Reciprocity

Commitment

"The official statistical system shall expand information feedback to enterprises: feedback of individualized information, communicated as quickly as possible to survey participants; offering of products and services specially designed for enterprises."

Actions taken

to inform enterprises of the use of data gathered:

  • survey results sent to responding enterprises
  • Web portal for enterprises

to promote the use of business statistics, free online access to statistical results:

  • INSEE portal ;
  • Alisse website for dissemination of structural business statistics ;
  • dissemination sites of ministerial statistical offices

to facilitate access by enterprises to services:

  • expansion of individualized SIRENE online services such as directory of enterprise formality centers, issuance of status certificates for SIRENE business register

Actions planned

  • developing statistical products adapted to enterprises' needs
  • making ever better use of new technologies to disseminate survey results

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Proximity

Commitment

"The official statistical system shall facilitate paperwork for enterprises by expanding its information services and local services. Its specialized survey-takers can assist them in filling out questionnaires."

Actions taken

to facilitate questionnaire completion:

  • network of specialized survey-takers to help enterprises
  • online help for completion of the most technical questionnaires for enterprises surveyed by Transportation Ministry's Office of Economics, Statistics, and Forward-Planning (Service Économie, Statistiques et Prospective: SESP)
  • special training for survey clerks to provide prompt, relevant answers to questions from enterprises

to offer enterprises better guidance on available information:

  • participation by statistical offices services in national and local business shows
  • opening of statistical information websites:
    • Alisse: business data
    • indices for businesses ("Indices Pro")
    • indices and statistical series
    • site for business creators

Actions planned

  • make more statistical products available online

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Reliability

Commitment

"The official statistical system shall work continuously to improve the reliability of disseminated results. This reliability is obtained by applying a rigorous methodology to each stage of a survey: sampling, data collection, processing, validation, analysis and interpretation of results."

Actions taken

1- to adapt to the business world

  • adjusting statistical concepts to new corporate structures, the French chart of accounts, and European Union directives on company law

2- to improve the quality of statistical products

  • ever stricter control of statistical applications of data

3- to offer comparable data within EU

  • preparation of many surveys in EU setting
  • EU statistics available online on Eurostat website

Actions planned

  • to be ever more demanding in regard to the quality of statistical products
  • to ensure harmonization of French statistics with EU standards

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Confidentiality

Commitment

"The official statistical system reasserts its commitment to statistical secrecy and confidentiality of data collected from enterprises. These data shall not be disseminated in any manner potentially harmful to the enterprises concerned. The official statistical system shall continuously adapt its means of protection to developments in information and communication technologies."

Actions taken

This commitment is enshrined in Act no. 51-711 of June 7, 1951 (amended) on legal obligation, coordination, and confidentiality in the field of statistics. The statistical offices shall ensure their strict compliance with statistical confidentiality. This is a specific form of professional secrecy, whose violation is severely punished by the penal code.

Actions planned

  • harmonize European Union practices in the field of statistical confidentiality
  • support the use of new communication technologies with appropriate measures to ensure confidentiality of enterprise responses

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Close-up of the section

INSEE and ministerial statistical offices are aware of the workload entailed in responding to their questionnaires, and are therefore coordinating their activities to ease the response burden for enterprises.

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