Various Economic Area Pretesting Activities

Enterprise Statistics Program (NC-99001)

Cognitive Interview Protocol

Draft: December 31, 2009

General Probes:

• In your own words, what was that question asking?

• What are you thinking about?

• Can you tell me more about that?

• You answered, “…” because…?

• I want to make sure I understand, can you explain that again?

• Can you tell me how you arrived at that answer?

  • What did you include? What did you exclude?

  • What records did you use?

• Reflect back on R’s answer and ask R to correct (“I want to make sure I have it right. I think you said, “…?”)

Before the Questionnaire:

• Please tell me a little about this company.

  • What sorts of activities is it involved in?

• What is your role in this company? Have you filled out government forms in the past? Which ones?

• Generally speaking, how do government forms get completed?

Now I’m going to hand you a copy of the questionnaire. We’ll go through it page by page. Please write on it, and complete it as if we weren’t here, to the extent possible. We are only interested in certain items on the form. I will ask you some additional questions as you finish these items of interest.

Page 1:

• What is your initial impression upon seeing the form?

• What do you notice?

• What information do you need prior to beginning the survey?

Item 4 (Sales, Shipments, Receipts, Revenue For Your Company):

• What is this item asking you?

• What specific information is this question asking for?

• Do you have access to the information necessary in order to answer this question? If not, who would you need to work with in order to gather this data?

• How do you define “your company?” What did you include?

• (for franchisors) Did you include sales and fee information in your total?

• What do you understand the reporting unit to include / exclude? Were there any include or exclude statements that caused you concern? If yes, which ones? Why?

• Did you include sales information for any foreign companies, subsidiaries, affiliates, etc. in the figure you reported? If so, please elaborate on what you included? Would you be able to separate the foreign from the domestic? What would that entail?

• Does the figure you provided match your net sales and operating revenue? If not, can you explain what the difference is between this figure and net sales and operating revenue?

• Did you report a gross or net figure for sales?

• (for real estate/rental/leasing establishments) Which of the pieces of information in the last include statement did you provide in your answer? Can you paraphrase in your own words what this statement is asking you to provide? Are there any parts that you cannot provide? Which parts and why?

• Did you include unrealized gains and/or losses in your figure?

• Do you have any discontinued operations within your company? If so, did you include them in your figure for this question?

• At what level of the company is this information available? (i.e., at the company level, establishment level, other? )

Item 5 (Manufacturing Services):

• Question 1. What is this item asking you? How would you define manufacturing services?

• Question 1. What do you understand the reporting unit to include / exclude? Were there any include or exclude statements that caused you concern? If yes, which ones? Why?

• Question 2. How did/would you go about answering this question? Is this information available? What would you have to do in order to gather this?

• Question 2. How would you define “contract manufacturing services”? What does this term mean to you? Is there another term that you use?

• Question 3. How did/would you go about answering this question? In your own words, what is the difference between foreign affiliates and unaffiliated foreign firms?

• Question 4. What is this question asking you?

• Question 5. In your own words, what are unaffiliated domestic firms?

• Question 6. How did you arrive at this total? Do you have this information in your records? If not, how would you go about providing this data?

• Do you have access to the information necessary in order to answer this question? If not, who would you need to work with in order to gather this data?

• Is the title of this item appropriate for the information that is being asked?

• At what level of the company is this information available? (i.e., at the company level, establishment level, other? )

• Did you include affiliates as well as subsidiaries in your answers? Can you report for your affiliates?

• How did you calculate the “value of payments” that was asked for in each of these questions? What do you define as “value of payments”? Does this include non-cash goods/items? “in kind” transactions or barter arrangements? Cost of services purchased? Value of the contracts?

Item 6 (Intellectual Property):

• Question 1. How did you answer this question? How would you define ‘licensing of rights to use intellectual property’? What sort of items would

• Question 1. What do you understand the reporting unit to include / exclude? Were there any include or exclude statements that caused you concern? If yes, which ones? Why?

• Question 2.

  • How did you go about answering it?

  • Are these values reportable?

  • What does each line mean to you?

  • What is your definition of trade secrets? Do you collect this information in your records?

  • What is your definition of a format franchise sales and fees?

  • Would you have problems providing data for the items that are applicable to you on this question? If so, can you elaborate?

  • Do you collapse more than one intellectual property item together in your books? If so, which ones? Are you able to break these figures apart? How would you do that?

• Do you have access to the information necessary in order to answer this question? If not, who would you need to work with in order to gather this data?

• Overall for this item, how easy or difficult would it be to come up with this information?

• Is the title of this item appropriate for the information that is being asked? Can you recommend an improved title?

• At what level of the company is this information available? (i.e., at the company level, establishment level, other? )

Wrap-up

• In your opinion, who would be the best person in your company to handle this form?

• How much time would it take you to complete this report (actual time, not elapsed time)?

• Overall, how easy or difficult was it to complete this form? Which were the easiest questions to answer? Which were the hardest to answer?

Thank you.

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