‘EuRA  Index’ 

The “EuRA  Index” was inspired by Helmut Berg who persuaded EuRA Members in Germany to set up and funded it  to provide statistical information on the German market. It was launched in August 2008.  Following its success the project will be extend to all EuRA and ARP Members from January 2010. This will occur in stages and so the initial questionnaire will be sent to all members in Germany and the United Kingdom. France, the Benelux and the Nordic Regions will come on line in February and March. Other regions will be added over the year. In addition we intend to extend the ‘EuRA Index’ to RMCs.  At the 2009 ARP conference in Oxford the project was introduced to the UK. ARP members showed great interest in participating. The ARP research will start in March 2010.     

Purpose 

The purpose of the EuRA Index is to collate information on industry trends from those working in relocation on a monthly basis.  We want to have results by country and for all participating countries and regions.  This will not only allow us to  develop individual country statistics but also to compare  countries and regions.  In addition it will give EuRA the opportunity to  discuss why there  are differences  between countries and regions.    

Participation 

To  make this project  viable we will not only collate information from individual countries but  also differentiate between DSPs and RMCs.   Where there are countries with  larger DSP populations these will be surveyed  separately but where numbers are small  regions will be formed, one such area is  the Nordic region consisting of  Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Norway.   Other regions could encompass the  Eastern European countries and  our Worldwide Members.  The system will allow that new countries can be added at any time.  

The Questionnaire 

The core of the research  will be  three questions stemming back to Helmut Berg’s original  initiative.   The member emailed will be asked answer for their home country even if they offer services in other counties. In the event that a member has offices in another country the questionnaire will be automatically forwarded to that office so long as  it is registered with EuRA. If members wishes to include offices that are not as yet registered with EuRA them they will be asked to supply contact details including the email address of the person in the office to which the survey should be sent.  The ‘EuRA Index’ is based on 3 very simple questions: 
  1. How would you rate business in the last month?
  2. What are your expectations for the coming month?
  3. What are your expectations for your business in 6 months from now?
The answers to these questions will always be a choice of one of the following responses: 
a)   Very Poor - 1
b)   Poor - 2
c)   Below Average - 3
d)   Above Average - 4
e)   Good - 5
f)   Excellent - 6 

The numbers represent the numerical value of each response, so that we can accurately calculate the statistics. The results from these three questions are compared and analysed separately.  In addition there is the main Index that is derived from the answers to the three questions.   The first months results will enable us calculate the first figures for the 3 questions and the overall base figure for the main Index.  The main Index  is calculated by weighing the individual results from each question: 
  • Question 1 – the past will be weighed by 1 i.e. if the average numerical value is 2, the weighed value is 2
  • Question 2 -  the near future will be weighed by 1.5 i.e. if the average numerical value is 2, the weighed value is 3
  • Question 3 – the future will be weighed by 2 i.e. if the average numerical value is 2, the weighed value is 4
The results for the first month will set the benchmark for the EuRA Index against which future Indexes will be compared.   

The Results 

Each month we will circulate the statistics providing interpretation and comment where appropriate. Where results are prepared for individual countries or regions, EuRA may invite a local member to comment and provide interpretation of the results.  As the ‘EuRA Index’ develops we will be able to compare:
  • The overall ‘EuRA Index’ figure
  • The results  for each question
  • What members’ projections for the future were against the reality of the future
  • Country comparisons
  • Regional comparisons
  • Comparisons between DSPs and RMCs
This monthly survey does not  ask for number of authorisations or sales.   Participants are simply asked   to let us know, how they rate the last month and what they expect for next month and in 6 months from now.   New countries,  regions or disciplines can be added at any time  and still  compared to the initial figure at the start of the  the project.  In addition it does not matter whether or not the same person responds on each occasion.  If someone is on vacation  one month and cannot send his answers he can  either nominate a colleague or leave it until  the next month   Any fluctuation in the number of participants will  not harm to the project.  However, we  should try to ensure that there are at least  10 per country/region. 

Method of Collecting  the data 

Every  month, either on the last working day of that month or on the first working day of the following month  the questionnaire will be sent. The ‘EuRA Index’ will be distributed to members at the end on each month. It will take the form of a Survey Monkey Questionaire, so results will be anonymous. The survey will only be on line for a few days in order that we can distribute the results promptly.