NIST, Boulder, CTL, Building 3 Workspace Survey - Answers to 4 Questions (Supporting Statement)

OMB Control #0693-0031

Expiration Date: 05/31/2018

NIST Generic Request for Customer Service Related Data Collections

Name of the collection: Building 3 CTL Workspace Survey

FOUR STANDARD SURVEY QUESTIONS

1. Explain who will be surveyed and why the group is appropriate to survey.

The Communications Technology Laboratory (CTL), of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), promotes the development and deployment of advanced communications technologies, through the conduct of leading edge Research & Development (R&D) on both the metrology and understanding of physical phenomena, materials capabilities, and complex systems relevant to advanced communications. CTL consists of seventy-seven (77) CTL staff members, which includes both federal employees and associates is the audience that NIST would like to include in the survey. These 77 staff members are moving into new cubicle workspace in a newly remodeled building. This group of respondents is appropriate since they are moving into new cubicle workspace in a newly remolded building. CTL would like to obtain responses to the collection instrument prior to making final changes to the space. (CTL of NIST will request separate permission for an information collection that will seek responses after the move into the new space(s), to understand if the new space meets their needs.

2. Explain how the survey was developed including consultation with interested parties, pre-testing, and responses to suggestions for improvement.

The survey is being used as part of a capstone project for NIST, enabling the preparation of the best workspace for employees and associates. The proposed collection instrument was reviewed and evaluated by two professors at the University of Colorado, Denver as well as by the Executive Officer of CTL, Mr. Brian Copello. The survey was found to be user-friendly and the questions appropriate for what the laboratory hopes to learn. All requests for changes to the collection instrument were made.

3. Explain how the survey will be conducted, how customers will be sampled if fewer than all customers will be surveyed, expected response rate, and actions your agency plans to take to improve the response rate.

The entire affected population will be surveyed, so no sampling procedure is necessary. The expected response rate is 60%. The agency will accept the responses that are submitted and will not contact the population to improve the response rate. However, this same population will be surveyed again in the spring to determine if the new space meets their needs.

4. Describe how the results of the survey will be analyzed and used to generalize the results to the entire customer population.

Because we are surveying the entire population that is moving to the new space, sampling does not risk the validity of the survey. However, we are limited by those staff members who are willing to respond. Most of the questions are qualitative in nature. Responses will be considered as feedback to help provide productive working conditions in the new building. Responses will be coded in an Excel spreadsheet to determine patterns in responses. By evaluating what works in existing space attempts can be made to mimic those workspaces as much as possible. By evaluating what is missing/lacking in existing workspace attempts can be made to improve the new workspaces and provide these missing amenities if possible. The quantitative data provided by the answers received will provide CTL with an idea of what the most important conditions to address might be. Responses to the answers will provide an area of focus for efforts to design the new space.

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