Analyzing Salary Surveys

Planning a Custom Survey

When planning for a survey you will need to determine:

1. The purpose of the survey
2. The jobs and job descriptions to be included
3. The markets or geographic area to be surveyed
4. The organizations to be invited to participate
5. The information to be obtained
6. What data submission documents to create
7. The survey methodology and whether it should include discussing potential conformance with Safe Harbor guidelines
8. Who will actually conduct the survey and prepare the survey results
9. The date of the survey, survey data, and the targeted completion date

Conducting the Custom Survey and Results

Conducting the custom survey

To conduct a custom survey, the key steps will include:

1. Collecting information
2. Ensuring job comparability

Preparing the results

When preparing the results, the key steps will include:

1. Tabulating the data
2. Analyzing the results
3. Presenting results in report form

Purpose of the Custom Survey

Determine the purpose of the custom survey to decide:

• what jobs, markets and organizations to include
• what information to obtain
• the amount of detail needed
• the time limits of the survey

Obviously, if information is needed on only one or two jobs or an overtime policy, a less elaborate survey is required than if a snapshot of an area or industry market is sought.