Integrated Approach toward\
Data Dissemination and Customer Communication

at the

U.S. Census Bureau

A Case for Action

U.S. Census Bureau

May 23, 2004

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The U.S. Census Bureau Mission

"The Census Bureau serves as the **leading source of quality data**
about the nation\'s people and economy. We honor privacy, protect
confidentiality, share our expertise globally, and conduct our work
openly. We are guided on this mission by our strong and capable
workforce, our readiness to innovate, and our abiding commitment to our
customers."

**Table of Contents**

**1.0 Executive Summary [4](#executive-summary)**

2.0 Current Approach to Data Dissemination: History and Advantages 6

2.1 Origins of Current Approach 6

2.2 Positive Outcomes of Current Approach 6

3.0 Changes in Current Environment [8](#changes-in-current-environment)

3.1 Internal Pressures to Consolidate
[8](#internal-pressures-to-consolidate)

3.2 Potential Census Bureau Service Improvement Areas
[9](#potential-census-bureau-service-improvement-areas)

3.3 External Pressures to Provide Better Service
[10](#external-pressures-to-provide-better-service)

3.4 Current Response to Public Demand
[11](#current-response-to-public-demand)

3.5 Urgency of the Need to Change [12](#urgency-of-the-need-to-change)

4.0 Key Initiatives for an Integrated Approach to Data\
Dissemination
[14](#key-initiatives-for-an-integrated-approach-to-data-dissemination)

4.1 Analyze the Customer [14](#analyze-the-customer)

4.2 Evaluate Technology and Current Best Practices
[15](#evaluate-technology-and-current-best-practices)

4.3 Develop Policies and Standards [16](#develop-policies-and-standards)

4.4 Implement Facilities and Infrastructure
[16](#implement-facilities-and-infrastructure)

4.5 Identify and Implement Measurements of Success
[17](#identify-and-implement-measurements-of-success)

5.0 SUMMARY [18](#summary)

APPENDIX A. Bibliography A-1

APPENDIX B. Current Census Bureau Points of Contact B-1

APPENDIX C. Sample Uses of Census Data C-1

# 1.0 Executive Summary

The U.S. Census Bureau serves a vital role in the U.S. economy, American
society, and its government at all levels. The data collected and
supplied guides decision-making in local planning of schools, roads, and
other facilities; in the distribution of federal entitlement funds; in
retail site planning; in attracting new businesses to local communities;
in disaster planning; in demographic research; in choosing a
neighborhood to live. The many consumers of Census Bureau data range
from members of Congress to the media, individuals, researchers,
businesses, and public planners and policy-makers. However, the range
and depth of the value of Census Bureau data to the economy and public
policy is not widely understood nor fully utilized. Congressional
offices and other trusted gatekeepers such as advocacy groups and the
media cannot easily find and use relevant data directly from the Census
Bureau, thus dampening their ability to serve as "validators" of the
Census Bureau benefit. In addition, while the Internet has
"democratized" data access for the public, many inexperienced users of
Census Bureau data have difficulty finding and using what they need.
Better information architectures, less Census Bureau jargon, and other
human factors improvements are needed to expand the audience who could
be actively advocating the importance of the Census Bureau mission and
programs.

Two primary and related factors lay beneath the difficulties in
accessing and utilizing Census Bureau web-based information. First,
product design and dissemination at the Census Bureau are done from a
program/survey perspective rather than a data user perspective. The
individual offices within the Census Bureau take great care in producing
and disseminating the data products and survey results for which they
are responsible. To take Census Bureau data products to the next level
of public value will require a coordinated and consistent
enterprise-level policy and focus around the needs of data users. These
needs will have to be central to designing the next generation of data
products that will make it easy to compare data across different surveys
and to draw valid conclusions about demographic and economic trends.
These kind of insightful comparisons are not possible with the existing
program/survey perspective.

Similarly, each of the many Census Bureau Web sites generally
disseminates data only for a single program. To get their desired data,
users must understand both the Census Bureau's organization as well as
its specialized language in order to locate and interpret the
information they need. The Census Bureau has closely analyzed the public
as survey respondent, recognizing the importance to response rates of
keeping the data both confidential and non-political, and demonstrating
significant improvement each decade in the differential undercount of
targeted minority populations. However, the same level of scrutiny has
not been applied to the public's needs as consumers of Census data. A
methodical, comprehensive approach to gathering and understanding the
needs of Census Bureau data users and of understanding their
capabilities is needed to do so. Without such a coordinated effort
communication overlaps and gaps will most likely increase, with some
groups being contacted by several Census Bureau divisions and some being
overlooked entirely.

As a result, users seeking Census Bureau information for professional or
personal use currently perform their own integration after gathering
pieces data via the various Census Bureau Internet sites and other
customer communication and outreach channels such as call centers and
product sales venues. For their searches to be most effective, the users
need specific knowledge of the Census Bureau's internal organization and
its respective surveys and products. Even then, when users successfully
identify services and data of potential use, they are given only
moderate levels of guidance from the Census Bureau to help them
understand, evaluate, and compare the myriad of survey results the data
represents.

As public expectations for user-centric data dissemination increase, a
consistent enterprise approach to data dissemination and customer
communication is needed to maintain the Census Bureau's reputation for
relevant high-quality data and its ability to obtain funds for important
new programs. Although improved quality and better customer service in
data dissemination may not directly result in higher response rates,
dissemination is and will continue to be as important a part of the
Census Bureau's mission and reputation as its excellence in data
gathering and statistical analysis methodologies. Likewise, a better
informed public and a more satisfied set of data users could indirectly
affect higher response rates with certain surveys. In keeping with the
realized benefits and the increased emphasis on improving government
service to the public, better understanding customer needs and an
enterprise approach to data dissemination are critical to accomplishing
the evolving scope of the Census Bureau mission.

To address this problem from a user standpoint, the Census Bureau should
pursue a market research approach to data dissemination, analyzing user
needs and applying this knowledge to customer service and data
dissemination program planning. User information requirements can be
gathered and analyzed through such methods as analysis of user traffic
on existing Census Web sites, user surveys and feedback, interviews,
advisory committee discussions, and focus groups. The range of users and
their requirements can then be categorized and prioritized, with data
dissemination services planned to meet each user segment's needs, using
where applicable, best practices from the public and the private sector
and the international community.

The potential role of technology in data dissemination should be
thoroughly analyzed as well. Distributed databases, increased use of
metadata, web services, and online facilitation of data distribution
should be included in the evaluation. Regardless of the optimal back-end
and middleware environment, a single Web site, built from a solid
understanding of Census Bureau data users and organized to serve these
user segments, could increase customer satisfaction and help the Census
Bureau remain agile and responsive with future data products. Previous
analysis in this area indicates that the development of an integrated
corporate data warehouse as a storehouse of Census data intended to
support customer needs and feed this new Web site would be a critical
success factor and therefore a top priority in an integrated
dissemination effort. Additionally, the user segments created for this
single Web site could be used to target strategic public communications
and be reflected in all of the Census Bureau's communication and
outreach channels, from its Web site to its call centers.

The challenges for the implementation of an integrated, Census
Bureau-wide approach to data dissemination and customer service will not
be insignificant. Meeting these challenges will entail a strategic,
coordinated effort to create new policy, work together across
organizational boundaries, introduce new technology, and implement
creative new ways of doing business. Nonetheless, these challenges must
be addressed in order to meet the government and the public's increasing
demands for better access to Census data, and for the Census Bureau to
fully achieve its mission.

# 2.0 Current Approach to Data Dissemination: History and Advantages

## 2.1 Origins of Current Approach 

Over the years, the Census Bureau has developed a nuanced organizational
understanding of how to target various populations of the general public
for survey participation. However, it has not yet consistently applied
the same level of strategic corporate attention to the public's needs in
their roles as Census Bureau customers. Each program within the Census
Bureau works hard to understand customer requirements, but generally is
limited by the context of its own program.

The Census Bureau has historically encouraged each of its programs to
operate more or less independently of the others. The source of this
autonomy is the Census Bureau's historical and primary focus on ensuring
the accuracy of collected data and protecting confidentiality, rather
than focusing on optimizing Congressional and other stakeholder data
use. Staffed primarily by highly educated and experienced statisticians,
the Census Bureau has long fostered a climate of collegial, academic
research rather than customer-driven products and services. Each program
is staffed by experts within their own field, who are respected for
their knowledge and domain expertise and considered sovereign within
their own sphere of influence. When the Census Bureau has worked
together across programs, it has traditionally done so via coordinating
committees rather than organizationally or hierarchically under
executive leadership. The cultural result is a set of established
programs within the Census Bureau which are individually effective, but
whose singularity of mission focus must be addressed for the level of
integration needed to overcome the increasingly complex challenges of an
integrated approach toward data dissemination.

## 2.2 Positive Outcomes of Current Approach 

The decentralized Census Bureau culture has led to many positive
results, both technical and programmatic. Each office has been able to
make decisions and implement programs more quickly and easily, without
the need to consider wider implications outside its own programs.
Technical advances have also come from this research-driven culture. The
Census Bureau's need for rapid data processing of high volumes of data
led to the development of the punch card by Herman Hollerith in 1890,
and more recently to the invention of the FOSDIC image reader in the
1960's. Perhaps most importantly, the Census Bureau's dedication to
accuracy and survey excellence above all else has largely insulated it
from charges of political influence. During its 100-year history as a
separate government organization, it has managed to develop and maintain
an untarnished reputation as a provider of accurate, unbiased
information about the people and economy of the U.S. The Census Bureau's
reputation for collecting, processing, analyzing, and disseminating data
in a non-partisan, non-political manner is recognized as key to its
success in maintaining its credibility and in obtaining responses from
the public for its censuses and surveys.

The individual Web sites and data dissemination programs produced by the
various program offices are also worthy of positive note. Although no
one office has been given the authority or responsibility to manage the
customer communication and outreach and the data dissemination programs
across the Census Bureau, each individual program has done its best to
satisfy users of its data, despite limited budgets. Several programs
have created very thorough data dissemination services and Web sites
with excellent features and a loyal user base, including the Decennial
and Economic Directorates, the American Community Survey (ACS) program,
and others. Other programs, most notably QuickFacts and FERRETT, have
consolidated data from multiple sources, and provide important services
to segments of the user population. The Census 2000 and 1990 gateways
also helped consolidate some of the many sources of information into a
single user portal. Working within their limitations of scope and
funding, these programs have generally been highly successful at meeting
their individual missions.

# 3.0 Changes in Current Environment

Despite its benefits, the Census Bureau's decentralized approach hinders
its ability to react to growing pressures, both external and internal.
The post-9/11 world has meant less certainty in public funding for
non-security related programs. The Census Bureau is also faced with the
need for greater accountability to the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) and Congress for its programs, and a push to consolidate and make
its internal programs efficient. At the same time, as technology
advances and the public becomes more accustomed to direct, immediate
access to the information and services it seeks, the demands on the
Census Bureau and other organizations to provide faster,
customer-oriented public service have become greater.

## 3.1 Internal Pressures to Consolidate

The primary internal pressures on the Census Bureau come from two areas:

\(1\) Intense competition for funding;

\(2\) OMB and the Commerce Department requirements to increase
efficiencies and consolidate similar programs within and across
agencies.

Financially, the Census Bureau is under increasing pressure from the
Department of Commerce, OMB and Congress to contain its overall costs,
especially for the decennial Census. The plan to replace the "long form"
in 2010 with a fully-implemented American Community Survey (ACS)
program, the planned improvements in the Master Address
File/Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing
(MAF/TIGER) system before the 2010 census, and the re-engineered 2010
census are part of the Census Bureau's response to reducing or at least
containing decennial costs.

OMB is also driving government agencies to provide more
"citizen-centric" services. While maintaining the high level of survey
accuracy and privacy, the Census Bureau will face continuing pressure to
place survey and census results in the hands of the people who paid for
them: the taxpayers. OMB's primary tools have been its E-Government
initiatives, the President's Management Agenda (PMA), and the OMB
Exhibit 300 form required for major programs. In July 2003, OMB told
Congress that it is progressing with plans to revamp federal technology
systems along six general "lines of business," one of which clearly
targets the Census Bureau: "data and statistics."[^1] This overhaul is
designed to eliminate isolated systems performing similar functions in
the same agency or across agency lines. Congress itself is also
supporting the call for greater efficiencies. For example, the House
Subcommittee on Technology, Information Policy, Intergovernmental
Relations, and the Census (TIPRC), a subcommittee of the Committee on
Government Reform, is providing Congressional oversight on 2010 census
planning, including implementation of the ACS program and the 2002
Economic Census. This subcommittee has taken as its mandate "to improve
communication, coordination, and efficiency within the Federal
government, to monitor the implementation of E-Government initiatives,
and to provide oversight on the consolidation of redundant and
duplicative activities to achieve greater efficiency, productivity, and
customer-oriented access to public information."[^2] The U.S. government
is not alone in this goal. A 2002 Accenture survey of 23 developed
nations found that "national governments are articulating key priorities
for cross-agency E-Government rather than leaving individual agencies to
determine their own online presence." [^3]

## 3.2 Potential Census Bureau Service Improvement Areas

With pressure from OMB and Congress to consolidate programs and to
justify new ones through the increasingly stringent Exhibit 300 program
and its E-Government initiatives, the Census Bureau will be facing
closer scrutiny with each budget cycle. The Census Bureau will need to
consider the consolidation of many programs across many Census Bureau
organizations, especially those related to data dissemination and
customer service. Areas where improvement can occur include the
following:

-   **Data Tabulation and Data Review**. Currently, each major program
    invests separate resources in programs for data tabulation and
    review. The Economic Directorate has consolidated its surveys and
    censuses under a single tabulation and review system, but ACS,
    Decennial, and other programs all approach this function
    individually.

-   **Call Centers/Customer Support Contacts**. At latest count, there
    were more than thirty different Census Bureau customer support phone
    numbers (excluding the 12 additional field ISP office numbers) and
    another comparable set of e-mail contacts. (See Appendix B.)

-   **Bureau Sales**. The Census Bureau sells data products through
    several distinct organizations, including the Marketing Services
    Office (MSO), the Population Division (POP), Housing and Household
    Economic Statistics (HHES), Foreign Trade Division (FTD),
    Construction Statistics Division (CSD), and Geography (GEO).

-   **Physical Media (CD-ROMs/DVDs/Diskettes).** While the
    Administrative and Customer Services Division (ACSD) is the largest
    developer of CD-ROMs and DVD products, several programs in the
    Census Bureau produce separate physical media, with most using
    different file formats.

-   **World Wide Web**. There are some 20 different data dissemination
    Web sites within the Census Bureau, from American FactFinder to
    FERRETT to separate sites for Population, HHES, ACS, Governments,
    Economic, Demographic Surveys Division (DSD), Current Population
    Survey (CPS) and others. Only a few sites focus on the broader needs
    of certain user groups such as Congress and the media; these sites
    try to integrate Census Bureau data from multiple sources. Most of
    the rest, with the exception of QuickFacts and American FactFinder,
    focus exclusively on disseminating their own survey data, without
    reference to other surveys or programs with potentially related
    data. They have their own staff who perform this work. Even
    collection and analysis of Web traffic is handled separately on
    different parts of the site with Census.Gov, American FactFinder and
    ACS using different COTS products.

There are significant opportunities for improvement in these data
dissemination systems and methodologies. Because of traditional
budgeting approaches toward data dissemination, it is difficult to
precisely quantify its historical costs, but previous estimates have
shown that at least ten percent of the Census Bureau's staff is involved
in data dissemination, not including staff and costs associated with
product design, tabulation, and data review. Additionally, the Census
Bureau traditionally has expended significant effort and resources in
customizing data products and other outputs for specialized Census
Bureau needs rather than leveraging industry best practices. Extensive
justification of printed and online report formats, online mapping
capabilities, and specialized rounding, variance and median algorithms,
have all been justified by pointing to special Census Bureau
requirements. Although each of these decisions have made sense on an
individual basis, the decentralized investment approach they represent
is not consistent with the enterprise-level approach needed for the
Census Bureau to optimize its resources and its ability to effectively
leverage commercially-available methodologies, products, and best
practices.

## 3.3 External Pressures to Provide Better Service

In addition to internal government pressures, public expectation for
government electronic services is also a key driver in changing the
Census Bureau's customer service landscape. This increased expectation
is driven primarily by the breathtaking technological changes of the
last 30 years, and most especially by the introduction and rapid growth
of the Internet in the last ten years. The Pew studies on the Internet
and American Life found that about two-thirds of all Americans expect to
find key information online, and a growing number of Americans look to
the Internet first when they are seeking information.[^4] The 2001
National Technology Readiness Survey (NTRS), which was co-sponsored by
the Center for e-Service at the Robert H. Smith School of Business at
the University of Maryland and Rockbridge Associates, Inc., found that
55 percent of adult Internet users visited or used a government Web site
in the previous 12 months. This was a higher percentage of users in 2001
than had conducted bank transactions online (20 percent), paid a credit
card bill online (15 percent) or traded stocks online (10 percent).[^5]
The U.S. is not even showing the highest levels of government services
usage worldwide, however, lagging behind many Scandinavian countries and
Canada.[^6] In Accenture's 2002 survey of available government
e-services, Canada retained the number one position for the second year,
with Singapore close behind and the United States in third place.
According to Accenture, Canada\'s rank can be attributed to its
ambitious five-year goal to become the world\'s most citizen-connected
government by 2004 with plans to provide Canadians with private and
secure electronic access to all federal programs and services at the
time and place of their choosing.[^7]

At the Census Bureau, the trend is the same. The volume of data
requested for the 2000 Census is already significantly greater than for
1990 data. While the range of users still encompasses everyone from the
individual with personal interest to the Congressional office needing
information to assist in writing legislation, the proportion of users
without significant Census background or professional knowledge is
increasing from year to year. Other recent user statistics include:

-   One in three callers to the Census Bureau main information number
    (301-763-INFO) reported that they were first time callers (July
    2003).

-   One in four respondents to the annual Web site survey identified
    him/herself as a first time visitor to [www.census.gov.]{.underline}
    (December 2002).

-   One in five respondents visited the site for personal reasons, not
    connected to a work or school assignment (December 2002).

Public expectation continues to rise as public and private organizations
provide services which are increasingly oriented to user needs and take
advantage of new technologies for data dissemination beyond predefined
tabulations. The U.S. Department of Agriculture was already touting in
1999 its "easy-to-use and high performance Data Warehouse... with a
single, integrated database which contains data from over 80 different
surveys and the 1997 Census of Agriculture."[^8] National Statistical
Offices have implemented online databases for accessing socio-economic
statistics including Statistics Netherlands with StatLine, Statistics
Canada with CANSIM and Statistics Denmark with STATBANK. The pressure on
the Census Bureau -- along with all government organizations -- to
demonstrate similar capabilities will continue to mount in the coming
years.

## 3.4 Current Response to Public Demand

As a first step in meeting public demand, the primary means of data
publication and dissemination at the Census Bureau has now become the
Internet instead of paper and electronic physical media. However, to
fully respond to the continually moving target of customer needs and
expectations, the Census Bureau must strategically approach data
dissemination at the enterprise level. Currently, the various Census
Bureau data dissemination sites are designed and maintained separately
across the Census Bureau. According to a 2000 study, 18 different data
access tools were available on the Census Bureau Web site, with varying
functionality, redundancy, support, and adherence to standards. The
number of sites has increased since then.

In addition, these Web sites are built around Census-specific terms, as
well as references to insider concepts like SF1 and PL. They are
organized within the overall Census.gov Web site primarily according to
the Census Bureau's internal organization instead of according to user
segments and needs. Symptomatically, the user population is given little
guidance as to when and whether data from different surveys and sites
may be fairly compared. New visitors with no *a priori* knowledge of the
Census Bureau's inner workings or the wealth of data contained across
the overall Census.gov Web site are among the most disappointed. Even
users who are familiar with the site and its hidden treasures feel there
is need to improve ease of use, navigation, and the site's overall
professionalism.[^9] Additional user requests center around easy access
to basic population counts, community-oriented demographic summaries,
rankings, trends over time for small geographies, and other common user
needs.

Some years ago, the Census Bureau Web sites regularly received external
recognition and awards.[^10] However, the only Census Bureau related
sites which have received national awards recently have been American
FactFinder and FedStat.gov, notable in that they both provide data from
multiple surveys at a single site.[^11]

A few specialized areas within the overall site, such as the
Congressional Web site, the tribal governments Web site, and the site
for the news media, are targeted to the needs of important specific user
groups. In addition, one of the most popular Census Bureau sites,
QuickFacts, integrates data from multiple sources, and does so in a way
that provides value without requiring users to be familiar with Census
terminology and data set source information. These sites do a good job
of providing basic information from multiple sources to their audiences
without much need for insider knowledge of the Census Bureau. Even these
sites, however, could be improved by an integrated data tool that would
allow users to obtain and compare results across the many Census Bureau
surveys and data products.

The Census Bureau is a storehouse for valuable current and historical
information that is of potential use to a wide audience. (See Appendix
C) In this time of budget constraints, the Census Bureau is especially
in need of more external advocates who can articulate the value of its
services. Focusing on customer needs and facilitating access to the
information they need is a significant step towards creating such
advocates. Several public and private industry organizations have found
that public perception of their overall professionalism and capabilities
increased with greater focus on customer service. These include not only
for-profit organizations such as Dell, Cisco, and IBM, but also
organizations in the public sector such as the U.S. Mint, the state
governments of Arizona, Michigan, and New York, and the government of
New York City.

## 3.5 Urgency of the Need to Change

The Census Bureau's ability to effectively respond to and proactively
prepare for the increased data dissemination needs of its users is core
to its continuing success.

Recent changes at the IRS present a comparable example with regards to
government institutions changing to meet customer needs. Senate hearings
on alleged lack of taxpayer focus and program inefficiencies led to a
Congress-ordered overhaul of the agency. A recent article in *The
Washington Post* quoted a retiring IRS executive as saying, "The fact of
the matter is, our organizational structure and approach had become
outdated.\" It was unfortunate that the IRS \"waited for a cataclysmic
event to make a sea change\" in operations. He noted, \"One of the
lessons learned is, don\'t wait for a Congressional hearing on your
problems. The indicators are probably there. . . . It\'s important as
bureaucrats to step back a little bit and look at your organization from
another perspective, from the view of your customers or the Congress.\"
The IRS eventually moved to an organization focused on categories or
segments of customers and away from regional and district offices.[^12]

Beyond Congress, OMB, and the taxpayers, the Census Bureau relies
significantly on reimbursable, externally funded surveys from other
organizations such as the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
Development (HUD) and the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) to maintain
minimum staffing levels in the interim between Decennial Censuses.
Despite its importance, the Census Bureau's role in these surveys is
largely unappreciated and not focused on---a gap in current customer
communications which could impact the Census Bureau's future funding and
its selection for new programs. Additionally, if the Census Bureau
continues to approach data dissemination in a decentralized manner while
the demand for data products continues to increase, the Census Bureau
will have fewer resources to dedicate to maintaining the quality of the
data collected.

Potential loss of funding, and reduced Census Bureau credibility and
reputation, are only part of the story. The most serious potential risks
may be realized by the Census Bureau's many customers, who are
increasingly reliant in this modern age on the quality and immediate
accessibility of information such as the Census Bureau provides. These
customers include city planners, the media, businesses, Congress,
administrators of entitlement programs, banks, and individuals. The
personal, governmental, and financial impact of their being without the
proper tools and information to do their jobs will be a long-term
decrease in U.S. competitiveness in the world economy.

# 4.0 Key Initiatives for an Integrated Approach to Data Dissemination

To address these challenges, the Census Bureau should take a more
strategic, enterprise-level approach to data dissemination and customer
communication.

Potential initiatives include:

1)  Develop a corporate understanding of customer characteristics and
    customer needs, and define appropriate customer segments.

2)  Evaluate technology and current best practices.

3)  Develop standards, policies, and guidance for data product
    definition, data dissemination, and customer communication.

4)  Implement the facilities and infrastructure for an integrated Census
    Bureau data dissemination and communication program.

5)  Identify and track measurements to determine success and progress.

These initiatives are shown in the figure below and described in more
detail in the sections which follow.

![](media/image2.wmf){width="5.990277777777778in"
height="1.6868055555555554in"}

Figure 1. Recommended Initiatives for Data Dissemination and Customer
Communication

## 4.1 Analyze the Customer

The current and potential customer base for Census data is extremely
broad, and can be viewed from a number of perspectives. Each program
office currently has the responsibility for understanding and meeting
their customers' needs, but is unable to guide its individual
dissemination programs from an overall strategic perspective. The Census
Bureau needs to enhance its current customer outreach mission to
incorporate a deep and broad-reaching understanding of all Census Bureau
customers and their requirements.

These customer needs are complex, and should be analyzed from a number
of perspectives such as the following:

-   *Customer Roles & Occupations*. These include other parts of the
    federal government, state and local governments, the media, academic
    researchers, businesses, schools and universities, special interest
    groups, librarians, and individuals.

-   *Purpose/Usage for data*. The enormous range of applications for
    Census Bureau data include Congressional and local redistricting,
    local transportation and facilities planning, neighborhood real
    estate evaluation (personal or professional), support for grant
    applications, school district boundaries, legislative research,
    economic analysis, market and site location.

-   *Knowledge of the Census Bureau.* This includes users' understanding
    of available products, services, and capabilities as well as the
    organization of the Bureau.

-   *User Expertise.* Users have varying familiarity with automated
    systems, use of computerized tools, and the Internet in general.

-   *Requirements* *for dissemination.* Considerations include the
    channel/media for delivery, timeliness, frequency, 508a compliance,
    accuracy and depth of the data, and ease of use.

Using a range of techniques such as surveys, user feedback, analysis of
customer logs, interviews, focus groups, stakeholder meetings, and other
approaches, the Census Bureau needs to develop as full as possible an
understanding of the characteristics of its current and potential
customers. Recognizing that these diverse users will not be satisfied
with a single, monolithic approach to data dissemination and customer
support, the Census Bureau should then group its customers by common
characteristics, and estimate the size and priority for each customer
segment. Future dissemination and customer support services should be
planned around the needs of each major segment.

## 4.2 Evaluate Technology and Current Best Practices

The Census Bureau should evaluate current best practices in customer
communication and data dissemination. Channels to be evaluated should
include the Internet, call centers, and other customer contact points
used by the Census Bureau. Lessons learned should be culled from this
study, and possible applicability for the Census Bureau should be
identified. Conclusions and principles gleaned that may be relevant
include the following:

-   Removing the user's need to understand the complexities of an
    agency's organization;

-   Allowing the user to interact using terms, language, and paradigms
    which reflect their own experience and preferences instead of the
    agency's;

-   Ensuring that compartmentalization of information and resources is
    transparent to the constituent in using the channel;

-   Creating an information architecture that enables all relevant data
    and application resources to be brought to bear on a problem or in
    response to a request effectively, efficiently, and swiftly; and

-   Understanding and enabling extended partnerships with other relevant
    providers in order to better serve the customer.

The Census Bureau should also look at the ways technology is or
potentially could be used to support customer communication and data
dissemination. Prominent areas and key trends include:

-   **Customer Experience**

    -   Constituent Relationship Management (CRM) -- Developing database
        of previous questions and support requests to improve
        consistency of information given to the public

    -   E-Learning -- Online training programs to support schools and
        other users

    -   Collaboration Tools -- Online or telephone real time discussion
        with Census Bureau staff on information needs, link to CRM

    -   Geo-centric -- map-orientated UI for seeking information

    -   Natural Language -- customer requests information using key
        phrases

-   **Information Storage, Analysis, and Retrieval**

    -   On Line Analytical Processing (OLAP) -- Allowing users to query
        database logically instead of looking up predefined tables and
        reports

    -   Federated Search -- Discovery Link, Data Joiner

    -   Data Mining -- discovery of unforeseen patterns

    -   GeoDatabases -- tighter linkage of searching and geography

    -   Privacy and Confidentiality Protection

-   **Application**

    -   WebServices -- computer-to-computer data communication and
        exchange across the Internet between computers belonging to
        different organizations such as BLS; major media organizations
        such as USA Today, The New York Times, and The Washington Post;
        State Data Centers; major academic institutions such as the
        University of Michigan or Cal/Berkeley; and commercial vendors
        of repackaged Census data.

    -   Use of Java 2 Enterprise Edition (J2EE) for component-based
        architecture and reuse

## 4.3 Develop Policies and Standards

Armed with a more overarching perspective on customer needs, the Census
Bureau should develop a set of principles, policies, and standards which
would guide Census Bureau data product definition, data dissemination
and customer communication. Examples of the scope of these policies and
standards might include:

-   Identification of appropriate external points of contact for
    different customer segments.

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   Standardization for data product dimension reporting, such as
    geography levels, age and income band reporting, etc. These would be
    designed to support comparability of data over different time
    periods and across multiple surveys, data sets, and data products,
    while still protecting the confidentiality of the data.

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   Establishment of Internet dissemination standards, including
    development of an information structure and taxonomy based on user
    understanding rather than Census Bureau organizational structure.

## 4.4 Implement Facilities and Infrastructure

Based on the research and analysis, the Census Bureau should then
implement the facilities and infrastructure to provide high-quality data
dissemination, outreach and communication for its customers. The
services that would be provided would eventually need to include at
least the following:

-   A single, integrated Internet portal that satisfies the electronic
    dissemination needs of a range of customers, with easy viewing,
    manipulation, and downloading of data;

-   Access to an integrated corporate data warehouse that includes the
    many rich data sets and data products produced by the Census Bureau,
    allowing users to combine data from multiple sources and surveys
    into a single result set while still meeting all confidentiality
    requirements;

-   Support for the wide range of interests in Census Bureau data from
    geographical (community-based to national) to topic-based (e.g.,
    poverty, business);

-   Support for multiple channels of publication/dissemination
    (Internet, CD-ROM, Paper, Call Center, automated);

-   A strategic approach for customer call center support that responds
    swiftly and appropriately to user needs;

-   Measurements of usage, user satisfaction, call rates, patterns.

## 4.5 Identify and Implement Measurements of Success

An important initiative in its own right will be the attempt to measure
the success of the customer communication and data dissemination
improvements. Recognizing that this initiative will have some
subjectivity, and that a number of other factors can affect most
measures, it will be important to measure as objectively as possible the
results of the Bureau's change in approach.

Potential measures could be based on the following:

-   Customer satisfaction surveys;

-   Public opinion polls and other surveys of key client bases
    (Congress, universities, depository libraries, state data centers,
    etc) on the overall reputation of the Census Bureau for quality,
    professionalism, and support;

-   Volume of usage of Internet and other public service;

-   Continued measures of quality in call center, Web site and other
    customer touch points (such as time from initial contact to user
    receipt of data, either in elapsed time or number of clicks or
    option selections).

# 5.0 Summary

By taking an enterprise-level approach toward data dissemination and
customer communications, the potential for improved customer
satisfaction and overall Census Bureau success are clear. An immediate
positive result would be the creation of customers at all levels as more
vocal advocates and supporters of the Census Bureau. But beyond this,
the transformational value of providing data users with the best
possible information can be partially imagined by comparing it to the
development of the Internet itself. The academics and researchers who
pioneered the World Wide Web envisioned it as a set of bulletin boards
where other academics could easily post and share information to others,
regardless of data format or location of the user. The speed and extent
to which this capability of interconnecting and tapping into virtually
endless information sources has transformed modern business and society
is staggering. The benefits of sharing and integrating data at the next
level down may be equally as revolutionary. When decision-makers and
policy-setters are able to pull together information about their
communities like never before, the quality of decisions and the improved
efficiency in the whole economy could be affected. This is the
opportunity before the Census Bureau.

**APPENDIX A. Bibliography**

**CyberAtlasInternet.Com. (**[http://cyberatlas.internet.com)]()**.** A
Web site on Internet trends and Internet statistics.

-   **Pastore, Michael**. *Citizens Taking Government Business Online*.
    January 10, 2002. More than half of American adults with online
    access visited a government Web site in the past year, according to
    the National Technology Readiness Survey, but more surprising is the
    number of people who did business with governments online.
    <http://cyberatlas.internet.com/markets/professional/article/0,1323,5971_952531,00.html>

-   **Greenspan, Robyn**. *Citizens Embracing E-Government*. April
    4, 2002. A Pew study revealed that 68 million Americans have
    accessed government Web sites in January 2002, a sharp increase from
    40 million in March 2000.
    <http://cyberatlas.internet.com/markets/professional/article/0,1323,5971_1004001,00.html>

-   **Greenspan, Robyn**. *Around the World with E-Government*. April
    24, 2002. Canada is number one, U.S. is third in providing
    E-Government services.
    <http://cyberatlas.internet.com/big_picture/geographics/article/0,,5911_1015531,00.html>

**Davis, Tom**. *House Committee on Government Reform*. Putnam, Adam.
*Subcommittee on Technology, Information Policy, Intergovernmental
Relations and the Census*. Describes subcommittee mission to improve
communication, coordination, and efficiency within the Federal
government, to monitor progress of E-Government as outlined in PMA,
implementation of enterprise architecture, the ability to share
information across agencies, and the consolidation of redundant and
duplicative activities to achieve greater efficiency, productivity, and
customer-oriented access to public information. This committee also
exercises oversight over Census 2010 planning, including ACS and
Economic Census. <http://reform.house.gov/TIPRC/AboutUs.htm>

**Goldenberg, Jacob, Roni Horowitz, Amnon Levav, and David Mazursky***.
Finding Your Innovation Sweet Spot. Harvard Business Review.* March
2003. Describes systematic inventive thinking, and how successful new
ideas are generally in one of five innovative patterns, called
"templates of innovation."

**Hart-Teeter, for the Council for Excellence in Government**. *The New
E-Government Equation: Ease, Engagement, Privacy and Protection*. April
2003. Study estimates that 68 percent of the U.S. population has
Internet access at home, school or work and seven in ten go online at
least once a day. Fifty percent of all Americans and 75 percent of
American Internet users have used a government Web site.
http://www.excelgov.org/usermedia/images/uploads/PDFs/egovpoll2003.pdf

**The Hiser Group.** *Navigating the .gov sites.* Research by a
Sydney-based interface usability consultant, The Hiser Group, has found
users of government websites had a poor understanding of the structure
of government bureaucracy, making it difficult for them to access
particular information or services.
http://www.hiser.com.au/world/news/releases/mr20030623.html

**InfoWorld. Gross, Grant**. *US Government Looks for IT Cost Savings*.
July 15, 2003. Report of Mark Forman's presentation to the House
Government Reform Committee\'s Subcommittee on Technology, Information
Policy, Intergovernmental Relations and the Census. Forman estimated
that in just six areas of government IT spending, \$3 billion could be
saved between 2004 and 2008 by taking a cross-agency IT spending
approach. Significant savings could come from the federal agencies
working together and receiving IT discounts through economies of scale
working across six lines of business, including "data and statistics."
<http://www.infoworld.com/article/03/07/15/HNgovtitcosts_1.html?hardware>

**Nealon, Jack and Mickey Yost**. *Data Warehousing at the National
Agricultural Statistics Service: Easy and Fast Data Access for
Everyone*. Presentation to the 1999 conference of the Federal Committee
on Statistical Methodology (FCSM). 1999. Three critical success factors
in developing a successful data warehouse were: (1) easy-to-understand
dimensional data warehouse design, (2) the rapid query response times
for ad-hoc queries against the data warehouse, and (3) the ease of using
the system. <http://www.fcsm.gov/99papers/nealon.html>

**Overberg, Paul**. *Census 2000 has Begun: Are You Ready*? Prepared for
the Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE) National Conference, June
4-7, 1998. Summarizes sources for Census data, and includes a glossary
of "CenSpeak" terms.

**Paris21**. *Why Statistics*?
([http://www.odysseus.it/sfabw/HomePage.html),]{.underline} 2001(?)
including chapter on "How to produce and disseminate good statistics:"
Information on data quality, dissemination and relations with
respondents, the media and the public.

**Pew Internet & American Life Project.**
([www.pewinternet.org](http://www.pewinternet.org/)) A series of reports
and surveys on the effect of the Internet on American life.

**Horrigan, John B. and Lee Rainie.** *Counting on the Internet.*
December 2002*.* Most people expect to find key information online, and
turn to the Internet first for information.
http://www.pewinternet.org/reports/toc.asp?Report=80

**Stowers, Genie. "***The State of Federal Websites: The Pursuit of
Excellence*." August 2002. The PricewaterhouseCoopers (now IBM)
Endowment for the Business of Government. Her survey \"revealed that
most agencies still offer little more than the most basic elements of
electronic government.\" The FirstGov site, plus 5 others (US PTO, HHS,
Treasury, Education and Navy) were highlighted as including many best
practices.

**Time Magazine.** "*46 Best Web Sites for Business."* November 4, 2002.
American FactFinder and Stat-USA.gov recognized under the "Tracking
Trends" category.

**United Nations Statistics Division.** *Handbook of Statistical
Organization*, 1980, Chapter IV: Relationships to Users: Dissemination
of Statistical Information.

**United Nations Statistics Division.** *Handbook of Statistical
Organization*, Third Edition, 2003, Chapter XI: Getting Information to
the Users. Need for intermediaries to seek out users, interpret data and
tailor information; importance of providing metadata and having a
dissemination policy (equal access, what information is to be made
available, pricing); forms of dissemination; cost recovery; commercial
policies; third-party disseminators; copyright; how much analysis; need
for review; statistical yearbook.

**The Washington Post**, August 1, 2003, *Federal Diary*. Brief account
of IRS executive retirement and the changes he had overseen in helping
to transform the agency to a greater customer orientation.

**APPENDIX B.** **Current Census Bureau Points of Contact**

![](media/image3.png){width="4.7243055555555555in"
height="8.297222222222222in"}

**APPENDIX C.** **Sample Uses of Census Data**

+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
| **Users**                  | **Sample Uses of Census Data**          |
+============================+=========================================+
| Federal Government         | -   Budget Planning                     |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | ```{=html}                              |
|                            | <!-- -->                                |
|                            | ```                                     |
|                            | -   Distribution of more than \$100B in |
|                            |     federal entitlement funds           |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Forecasting future transportation   |
|                            |     needs                               |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Establishing fair market rents and  |
|                            |     enforcing fair lending practices    |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Designing public safety strategies  |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Developing assistance programs for  |
|                            |     low-income families                 |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Analyzing military potential        |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Publication of economic and         |
|                            |     statistical reports about the US    |
|                            |     and its people                      |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Standard for creating public and    |
|                            |     private sector surveys              |
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
| State Governments          | -   Reapportionment of seats in the US  |
|                            |     House of Representatives            |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | ```{=html}                              |
|                            | <!-- -->                                |
|                            | ```                                     |
|                            | -   Drawing federal, state and local    |
|                            |     legislative districts               |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Budget Planning                     |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Distribution of state funding       |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Forecasting future transportation   |
|                            |     needs                               |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Developing assistance programs for  |
|                            |     low-income families                 |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Attracting new businesses to state  |
|                            |     and local areas                     |
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
| Local Governments          | -   Drawing school district boundaries  |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | ```{=html}                              |
|                            | <!-- -->                                |
|                            | ```                                     |
|                            | -   Budget Planning                     |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Forecasting future transportation   |
|                            |     needs                               |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Planning public transportation      |
|                            |     systems                             |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Planning for the location of        |
|                            |     hospitals, nursing homes, clinics   |
|                            |     and other health services           |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Planning for health and educational |
|                            |     services for people with            |
|                            |     disabilities, with limited English  |
|                            |     language proficiency                |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Forecasting future housing needs    |
|                            |     for all segments of the population  |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Designing public safety strategies  |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Urban planning                      |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Rural development                   |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Land use planning                   |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Analyzing local trends              |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Developing assistance programs for  |
|                            |     low-income families                 |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Creating maps to speed emergency    |
|                            |     services to households in need of   |
|                            |     assistance                          |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Setting community goals             |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Determining areas eligible for      |
|                            |     housing assistance and              |
|                            |     rehabilitation loans                |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Attracting new businesses to state  |
|                            |     and local areas                     |
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
| Schools & Universities     | -   Developing adult education programs |
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
| Researchers, Analysts      | -   Identifying trends in the economic  |
|                            |     well-being of country or other      |
|                            |     geography                           |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | ```{=html}                              |
|                            | <!-- -->                                |
|                            | ```                                     |
|                            | -   Estimating the number of people     |
|                            |     displaced by natural disasters      |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Assessing the potential for spread  |
|                            |     of communicable diseases            |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Understanding labor supply          |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Estimating people displaced by      |
|                            |     natural disasters                   |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Assessing the potential for spread  |
|                            |     of communicable diseases            |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Scientific research                 |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Comparing progress between          |
|                            |     different geographic areas          |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Developing "intelligent" maps for   |
|                            |     government and business             |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Medical research                    |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Historical research                 |
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
| Media                      | -   Media planning and research, backup |
|                            |     for news stories                    |
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
| Businesses                 | -   Making business decisions           |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | ```{=html}                              |
|                            | <!-- -->                                |
|                            | ```                                     |
|                            | -   Delivering goods and services to    |
|                            |     local markets                       |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Understanding consumer needs        |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Designing facilities for people     |
|                            |     w/disabilities, the elderly or      |
|                            |     children                            |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Planning for congregations          |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Product planning                    |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Locating factory sites and          |
|                            |     distribution centers                |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Investment planning and evaluation  |
|                            |     of financial risk                   |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Evidence in litigation involving    |
|                            |     land use, voting rights and equal   |
|                            |     opportunity                         |
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
| Special Interest Groups    | -   Evidence in litigation involving    |
|                            |     land use, voting rights and equal   |
|                            |     opportunity                         |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | ```{=html}                              |
|                            | <!-- -->                                |
|                            | ```                                     |
|                            | -   Setting community goals             |
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
| Individuals                | -   Setting community goals             |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   Genealogical research (after 72     |
|                            |     years)                              |
|                            |                                         |
|                            | -   School projects                     |
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+

[^1]: ^1^ See Infoworld
    (http://www.infoworld.com/article/03/07/15/HNgovtitcosts_1.html?hardware)

[^2]: See Davis (http://reform.house.gov/TIPRC/AboutUs.htm).

[^3]: See Greenspan, Robyn. Around the World with E-Government.
    http://cyberatlas.internet.com/big_picture/geographics/article/0,,5911_1015531,00.html

[^4]: See Pew Studies. Horrigan, John and Lee Rainie. Counting on the
    Internet. December 2002.
    <http://www.pewinternet.org/reports/toc.asp?Report=80>

[^5]: See Pastore, Michael. Citizens Taking Government Business Online.
    http://cyberatlas.internet.com/markets/professional/article/0,1323,5971_952531,00.html

[^6]: See Greenspan, Robyn. Citizens Embracing E-Government.
    http://cyberatlas.internet.com/markets/professional/article/0,1323,5971_1004001,00.html

[^7]: See Greenspan, Robyn. Around the World with E-Government.
    http://cyberatlas.internet.com/big_picture/geographics/article/0,,5911_1015531,00.html

[^8]: Nealon, Jack and Mickey Yost. Data Warehousing at the National
    Agricultural Statistics Service: Easy and Fast Data Access for
    Everyone. Presentation to the 1999 conference of the Federal
    Committee on Statistical Methodology (FCSM).

[^9]: Hermiz, Keith. Segmentation of Census Web Site Customers based on
    MSO 2002 Survey Data. May 2, 2003.

[^10]: Past recognition of Census Bureau Web sites has included PC
    Magazine 100 Best Web Sites December 1998, June 97 Best of the Net
    from the Mining Company, GovExec.Com "Best Feds on the Web."

[^11]: Time Magazine. Forty-Six Best Web Sites for Business. November 4,
    2002. PC Magazine. Best Free Stuff on the Web. June 30, 2003.

[^12]: The Washington Post, August 1, 2003, Federal Diary.