Online Program

Creating a longitudinal panel of new businesses using multiple modes
*Dave DesRoches, Mathematica Policy Research, Inc.  
Ae Sengmavong, Mathematica Policy Research 


Keywords: business surveys, multi-mode data collection

Mathematica has conducted the Kauffman Firm Survey (KFS) for the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation since 2005. The baseline survey recruited a panel of U.S. businesses which were founded in the same calendar year (2004) using a multi-mode web/CATI design, and the panel has been contacted annually for follow-up data collection since 2006. The main goal of the KFS is to investigate how new businesses are structured and funded in their early years, and to measure the changes in business financing and productivity over this period. This paper will explore the experiences of recruiting and maintaining a panel of businesses through a multi-mode survey program, and will focus on: 1. Differences in key estimates based on mode choice, and 2. The effects of increasing web survey data collection on the level of effort needed to complete the annual follow-up surveys.