Difference between revisions of "Field Management"

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Field management is the process of planning, monitoring and overseeing  [[Primary Data Collection  | primary data collection]] activities. Correct and careful management of fieldwork activities and field staff is essential to completing data collection on time, on budget, without missing observations, and at high quality. Without direct (and usually intensive) supervision of these critical aspects, unknown errors can enter the dataset. If these errors are made systematically by the data collection team, they can induce biases of unknown size and direction into the estimates of program effects for even the best-executed interventions.


== Read First ==
== Read First ==
Careful management of field staff, contractors, and survey firms is essential to completing data collection on time, on budget, without missing observations, and at high quality. Without direct (and usually intensive) oversight of this critical process, unknown errors can enter the dataset. If these errors are made systematically by the data collection team, they can induce biases of unknown size and direction into the estimates of program effects for even the best-executed intervention.
* Field management is a key piece of any evaluation; it ensures timely, consistent and accurate data collection.
* Insufficient supervision of field management aspects can result into systematic errors in the dataset and biased estimators.




== Aspects of Field Management ==
Field management activities can be divided into three broad areas:
* Fieldwork organization - Planning all details of fieldwork, defining how the survey will be implemented, and piloting questionnaires and field protocols.
* Field staff management - Selection, training and supervision of field staff, including enumerators, contractors and [[Survey Firm  | survey firms]].
* Data Quality Assurance - Designing protocols and quality control methods to monitor ongoing data collection and ensure data consistency and quality.
== Guidelines ==
== Guidelines ==
Essential steps for good field management include:  
The following steps are essential to ensure good field management:  
* Developing clear, detailed [[Survey Protocols]]
* Developing clear, detailed [[Survey Protocols]]
* Conducting a comprehensive [[Survey Pilot]]
* Selecting field staff and [[Enumerator Training | training enumerators]]
* Creating a [[Data Quality Assurance Plan]]
* Creating a [[Data Quality Assurance Plan]]
* Conducting [[Back Checks]]
* Conducting [[Back Checks]]
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== Additional Resources ==
== Additional Resources ==
* [[Enumerator Training]]
*DIME's [http://web.worldbank.org/archive/website01542/WEB/IMAGES/SURVEY.PDF Planning for, Preparing & Monitoring Household Surveys]
* [[Preparing for Data Collection]]
* [[Preparing for Data Collection]]
* [[Preparing for the survey checklist]]
* [[Preparing for the survey checklist]]
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* [[Piloting Survey Protocols]]
* [[Piloting Survey Protocols]]
* [[Structuring a Survey Pilot]]
* [[Structuring a Survey Pilot]]
* [[Survey Audit]]
* [[Survey Budget]]
* [[Survey Budget]]
* [[Survey Firm]]
* [[Survey Firm Procurement]]
* [[Survey Firm Procurement]]
* [[Survey Firm TOR]]
* [[Survey Firm TOR]]
* [[Survey Pilot]]
* [[Survey Pilot Participants]]
* [[Survey Pilot Participants]]
* [[Survey Protocols]]
* [[Survey Protocols]]

Revision as of 09:57, 11 February 2020

Field management is the process of planning, monitoring and overseeing primary data collection activities. Correct and careful management of fieldwork activities and field staff is essential to completing data collection on time, on budget, without missing observations, and at high quality. Without direct (and usually intensive) supervision of these critical aspects, unknown errors can enter the dataset. If these errors are made systematically by the data collection team, they can induce biases of unknown size and direction into the estimates of program effects for even the best-executed interventions.

Read First

  • Field management is a key piece of any evaluation; it ensures timely, consistent and accurate data collection.
  • Insufficient supervision of field management aspects can result into systematic errors in the dataset and biased estimators.


Aspects of Field Management

Field management activities can be divided into three broad areas:

  • Fieldwork organization - Planning all details of fieldwork, defining how the survey will be implemented, and piloting questionnaires and field protocols.
  • Field staff management - Selection, training and supervision of field staff, including enumerators, contractors and survey firms.
  • Data Quality Assurance - Designing protocols and quality control methods to monitor ongoing data collection and ensure data consistency and quality.

Guidelines

The following steps are essential to ensure good field management:

Additional Resources