Standardisation in the European Statistical System Barteld Braaksma, Cecilia Colasanti, Piero Demetrio Falorsi, Wim Kloek, Miguel Angel Martínez Vidal, Jean-Marc Museux and Katalin Szép MSIS Meeting, April 2013

2 Contents  Standards: definition and inventory  Process of standardisation and its governance  Framework: why, what, how  Business case for standardisation: SWOT tool  The way forward: next steps and further work Many thanks to other contributors (especially on the inventory) 2

3 ISO definition of a standard and ESS interpretation Document Means any medium with information recorded on or in it established by consensus approved by a recognised body that provide rules, guidelines or characteristics for common and repeated use for activities or their results aimed at the achievement of the optimum degree of order in a given context Consensus among ESS members According to the formal procedure of standardisation, not necessarily implemented by legal act Sentences take the form of statement, instruction, recommendation or requirement For common and repeated use by several actors in the ESS For the production of EU statistics Aimed at the achievement of the optimum degree of order in the context of the implementation of the mission of ESS 3

4 4 Inventory of ESS normative documents (broader than standards alone) Purpose  Common “rich” list of international statistical normative documents and standards in the ESS  Base for further analysis of normative documents (quality, consistency, coverage)  Gap analysis (what we have vs. what we need) Work still in progress (Sponsorship, ESSnet) Note: existing inventories differ in scope and attributes   UNECE: Common Metadata Framework   UN: Global Inventory of Statistical Standards   Eurostat: RAMON

55 Process of standardisation (proposal for life cycle management) Process of standardisation (proposal for life cycle management) Establish the need Collect initiatives Cost-benefit analysis Stakeholder analysis Detailed proposal on development, responsibilities and resources Decision on resources and approval of other parts of the proposal

66 Organisational structure for ESS standardisation (proposal) Guiding principles:  Matches procedures  Clear responsibilities  Division of labour  (Re)use existing bodies

7 Framework: ESS Enterprise architecture (proposal)  Abstract model for the organisation of our business  Helps to structure discussions on to be state  Helps to define roadmap for standards development  4 homogeneous business areas can be identified  Policy- Design - Management – Implementation  18 activities can be distinguished  Data collection, dissemination, budgeting,...  Which may allow different levels of integration 7

88 Why a framework? The ESS is  A complex system/organization  With multiple lines of business (NSIs)  Which operate in multiple geographies  Under the subsidiarity principle and  And with a coordination role for Eurostat

99 How much do we want in common for each area?  Split between individual MS and ESS common Policy DesignManageImplement MS ESS Common MS ESS Common MS ESS Common MS ESS Common

10 How far do we want to standardise each activity?  Autonomous: No standardisation  Interoperable: Parts fit together where needed  Interoperable: Parts fit together where needed (e.g. transmission standards)  Replicated: Standard parts used where appropriate  Replicated: Standard parts used where appropriate (e.g. common tools/ processes/ methods)  Shared: Everything works the same way  Shared: Everything works the same way (e.g. one single business process, information shared by all)

1111 Business case for standardisation Why standardise, and at what cost?  Efficiency gains, quality improvement  Investment and maintenance costs, loss of autonomy Quantitative assessment difficult  Not always feasible  Requires ‘guesstimates’  Subjective elements  May depend on perspective (national, domain..)

1212 Standardised SWOT tool Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats (proposal)  Fixed aspects for each SWOT category (4x6)  Relevance and effect score for each aspect  Scores should be collected from all stakeholders  Fingerprints: a graphical representation (toy example)  Starting point for further analysis  See differences at a glance; organise discussions ‘Current situation’‘Full integration’ S W O T

13 The way forward  Next steps  Forward-looking Feedback Workshop (May 2013)  Formulation of recommendations (July 2013)  ESSC decision on recommendations (September 2013)  Further work  Completion of inventory  Refinement of architectural framework  Gap analysis  Gap analysis (desired vs. actual situation)  Implementation of standards adoption process  Elaboration of SWOT tool  Discussions on adequate levels of standardisation  Identification of priorities for standards development 13