Nationally representative U.S. hospital data does not exist on management practices, which have been shown to be related to both clinical and financial performance using past data collected in the World Management Survey (WMS). This paper describes the U.S. Census Bureau's development of content for the Management and Organizational Practices Survey Hospitals (MOPS-HP) that is similar to data collected in the MOPS conducted for the manufacturing sector in 2010 and 2015 and the 2009 WMS. Findings from cognitive testing interviews with 18 chief nursing officers and 13 chief financial officers at 30 different hospitals across 7 states and the District of Columbia led to using industry-tested terminology, to confirming chief nursing officers as MOPS-HP respondents and their ability to provide recall data, and to eliminating questions that tested poorly. Hospital data collected in the MOPS-HP would be the first nationally representative data on management practices with queries on clinical key performance indicators, financial and hospital-wide patient care goals, addressing patient care problems, clinical team interactions and staffing, standardized clinical protocols, and incentives for medical record documentation. The MOPS-HP's purpose is not to collect COVID-19 pandemic information; however, data measuring hospital management practices prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic are a byproduct of the survey's one-year recall period (2019 and 2020).
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The Management and Organizational Practices Survey (MOPS): Cognitive Testing*
January 2016
Working Paper Number:
CES-16-53
All Census Bureau surveys must meet quality standards before they can be sent to the public for data collection. This paper outlines the pretesting process that was used to ensure that the Management and Organizational Practices Survey (MOPS) met those standards. The MOPS is the first large survey of management practices at U.S. manufacturing establishments. The first wave of the MOPS, issued for reference year 2010, was subject to internal expert review and two rounds of cognitive interviews. The results of this pretesting were used to make significant changes to the MOPS instrument and ensure that quality data was collected. The second wave of the MOPS, featuring new questions on data in decision making (DDD) and uncertainty and issued for reference year 2015, was subject to two rounds of cognitive interviews and a round of usability testing. This paper illustrates the effort undertaken by the Census Bureau to ensure that all surveys released into the field are of high quality and provides insight into how respondents interpret the MOPS questionnaire for those looking to utilize the MOPS data.
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The Management and Organizational Practices Survey (MOPS): Collection and Processing
December 2018
Working Paper Number:
CES-18-51
The U.S. Census Bureau partnered with a team of external researchers to conduct the first-ever large-scale survey of management practices in the United States, the Management and Organizational Practices Survey (MOPS), for reference year 2010. With the help of the research team, the Census Bureau expanded and improved the survey for a second wave for reference year 2015. The MOPS is a supplement to the Annual Survey of Manufacturing (ASM), and so the collection and processing strategy for the MOPS built on the methodology for the ASM, while differing on key dimensions to address the unique nature of management relative to other business data. This paper provides detail on the mail strategy pursued for the MOPS, the collection methods for paper and electronic responses, the processing and estimation procedures, and the official Census Bureau data releases. This detail is useful for all those who have interest in using the MOPS for research purposes, those wishing to understand the MOPS data more deeply, and those with an interest in survey methodology.
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Addressing Data Gaps:
Four New Lines of Inquiry in the 2017 Economic Census
September 2019
Working Paper Number:
CES-19-28
We describe four new lines of inquiry added to the 2017 Economic Census regarding (i) retail health clinics, (ii) management practices in health care services, (iii) self-service in retail and service industries, and (iv) water use in manufacturing and mining industries. These were proposed by economists from the U.S. Census Bureau's Center for Economic Studies in order to fill data gaps in current Census Bureau products concerning the U.S. economy. The new content addresses such issues as the rise in importance of health care and its complexity, the adoption of automation technologies, and the importance of measuring water, a critical input to many manufacturing and mining industries.
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Development of Survey Questions on Robotics Expenditures and Use in U.S. Manufacturing Establishments
October 2018
Working Paper Number:
CES-18-44
The U.S. Census Bureau in partnership with a team of external researchers developed a series of questions on the use of robotics in U.S. manufacturing establishments. The questions include: (1) capital expenditures for new and used industrial robotic equipment in 2018, (2) number of industrial robots in operation in 2018, and (3) number of industrial robots purchased in 2018. These questions are to be included in the 2018 Annual Survey of Manufactures. This paper documents the background and cognitive testing process used for the development of these questions.
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The Management and Organizational Practices Survey (MOPS): An Overview*
January 2016
Working Paper Number:
CES-16-28
Understanding productivity and business dynamics requires measuring production outputs and inputs. Through its surveys and use of administrative data, the Census Bureau collects information on production outputs and inputs including labor, capital, energy, and materials. With the introduction of the Management and Organizational Practices Survey (MOPS), the Census Bureau added information on another component of production: management. It has long been hypothesized that management is an important component of firm success, but until recently the study of management was confined to hypotheses, anecdotes, and case studies. Building upon the work of Bloom and Van Reenen (2007), the first-ever large scale survey of management practices in the United States, the MOPS, was conducted by the Census Bureau for 2010. A second, enhanced version of the MOPS is being conducted for 2015. The enhancement includes two new topics related to management: data and decision making (DDD) and uncertainty. As information technology has expanded plants are increasingly able to utilize data in their decision making. Structured management practices have been found to be complementary to DDD in earlier studies. Uncertainty has policy implications because uncertainty is found to be associated with reduced investment and employment. Uncertainty also plays a role in the targeting component of management.
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Measuring the Effect of COVID-19 on U.S. Small Businesses: The Small Business Pulse Survey
May 2020
Working Paper Number:
CES-20-16
In response to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the Census Bureau developed and fielded an entirely new survey intended to measure the effect on small businesses. The Small Business Pulse Survey (SBPS) will run weekly from April 26 to June 27, 2020. Results from the SBPS will be published weekly through a visualization tool with downloadable data. We describe the motivation for SBPS, summarize how the content for the survey was developed, and discuss some of the initial results from the survey. We also describe future plans for the SBPS collections and for our research using the SBPS data. Estimates from the first week of the SBPS indicate large to moderate negative effects of COVID-19 on small businesses, and yet the majority expect to return to usual level of operations within the next six months. Reflecting the Census Bureau's commitment to scientific inquiry and transparency, the micro data from the SBPS will be available to qualified researchers on approved projects in the Federal Statistical Research Data Center network.
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Methodology on Creating the U.S. Linked Retail Health Clinic (LiRHC) Database
March 2023
Working Paper Number:
CES-23-10
Retail health clinics (RHCs) are a relatively new type of health care setting and understanding the role they play as a source of ambulatory care in the United States is important. To better understand these settings, a joint project by the Census Bureau and National Center for Health Statistics used data science techniques to link together data on RHCs from Convenient Care Association, County Business Patterns Business Register, and National Plan and Provider Enumeration System to create the Linked RHC (LiRHC, pronounced 'lyric') database of locations throughout the United States during the years 2018 to 2020. The matching methodology used to perform this linkage is described, as well as the benchmarking, match statistics, and manual review and quality checks used to assess the resulting matched data. The large majority (81%) of matches received quality scores at or above 75/100, and most matches were linked in the first two (of eight) matching passes, indicating high confidence in the final linked dataset. The LiRHC database contained 2,000 RHCs and found that 97% of these clinics were in metropolitan statistical areas and 950 were in the South region of the United States. Through this collaborative effort, the Census Bureau and National Center for Health Statistics strive to understand how RHCs can potentially impact population health as well as the access and provision of health care services across the nation.
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A Guide to the MEPS-IC Government List Sample Microdata
September 2011
Working Paper Number:
CES-11-27
The Medical Expenditure Panel Survey-Insurance Component (MEPS-IC) is conducted to provide nationally representative estimates on employer sponsored health insurance. MEPSIC data are collected from private sector employers, as well as state and local governments. While similar information is gathered from these two sectors, differences in the survey process exist. The goal of this paper is to provide details on the public sector including types of state and local government employers, sample design, general information on the data collected in the MEPS-IC, and additional sources of information.
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Issues and Challenges in Measuring Environmental Expenditures by U.S. Manufacturing: The Redevelopment of the PACE Survey
July 2007
Working Paper Number:
CES-07-20
The Pollution Abatement Costs and Expenditures (PACE) survey is the most comprehensive source of information on U.S. manufacturing's capital expenditures and operating costs associated with pollution abatement. In 2003, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency began a significant initiative to redevelop the survey, guided by the advice of a multi-disciplinary workgroup consisting of economists, engineers, survey design experts, and experienced data users, in addition to incorporating feedback from key manufacturing industries. This paper describes some of these redevelopment efforts. Issues discussed include the approach to developing the new survey instrument, methods used to evaluate (and improve) its performance, innovations in sampling, and the special development and role of outside expertise. The completely redesigned PACE survey was first administered in early 2006.
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EVIDENCE OF AN 'ENERGY-MANAGEMENT GAP' IN U.S. MANUFACTURING:
SPILLOVERS FROM FIRM MANAGEMENT PRACTICES TO ENERGY EFFICIENCY
April 2013
Working Paper Number:
CES-13-25
In this paper we merge a well-cited survey of firm management practices into confidential U.S. Census microdata to examine whether generic, i.e. non-energy specific, firm management practices, 'spillover' to enhance energy efficiency in the United States. We find the relationship in U.S. plants to be more nuanced than past research on UK plants has suggested. Most management techniques have beneficial spillovers to energy efficiency, but an emphasis on generic targets, conditional on other management practices, results in spillovers that increase energy intensity. Our specification controls for industry specific effects at a detailed 6-digit NAICS level and shows that this result is stronger for firms in energy intensive industries. We interpret the empirical result that generic management practices do not necessarily spillover to improved energy performance as evidence of an 'energy management gap.'
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