Columinate's Elna Smit won the Best Overall Paper award at the SAMRA 2011 conference. According to Mr Neil Higgs, Elna's paper titled "Online research communities - the voice of the employee and the ear of the employer" won by an overwhelming margin. The paper focused on online communities as an employee research tool to harness bottom-up feedback through employee involvement. This is the second win for Columinate. In 2009, Henk Pretorius won both the first time speaker and Best Overall Paper award.
Engaging Employee Research
The 32nd Southern African Marketing Research (SAMRA) conference theme was Dare to Care: Put the heart in the art of research. At this event, Columinate's Elna Smit presented her paper titled "Online research communities - the voice of the employee and the ear of the employer" and walked away with the prize for Best Overall Paper.
The paper looked at Market Research Online Communities (MROCs) as an approach that allows the research itself to become a tool for employee engagement. The paper also urged a move to a model where employees set the agenda and contribute in a bottom-up manner. From a research perspective, the paper challenged traditional employee surveys and qualitative research.
Based on a case study, the paper showed how an MROC engaged employees to openly discuss work issues, while the organisation's stakeholders received regular feedback. This methodology had a significantly positive impact on the employees' experiences with the research and subsequent perceptions of the organisation. These findings suggested that all research stakeholders, including research users and suppliers, should explore innovative employee research techniques for optimum results.
For a copy of the paper or more information on online employee research, please send a mail to .
South Africa's Specialist Online Research Company
Columinate specialises in innovative online research through online panel surveys and Market Research Online Communities (MROC). We provide market research solutions that go beyond traditional routines in order to yield better, faster and more cost-effective insights. Contact Columinate , or , to request an obligation-free quotation, or a presentation or brochure with information on any of our offerings. Visit www.columinate.com for more information.
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