Transcript P.9

Identifying Factoryless Goods
Producers (FGPs) – Efforts to Date
(2016 Update)
John Murphy
Methodology Director for Classification, U.S. Census Bureau
Chair Economic Classification Policy Committee (ECPC)
Any views expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of the U.S. Census Bureau.
1
Paper Last Year
• Discussed various efforts from 2002
through 2012
• Addressed testing with enterprises
and establishments
• No clear way to identify FGPs
2
Additional Research
• Cognitive testing of 2016 COS
inquiries (two rounds n=21, n=16
covering enterprises)
• Scoping interviews (n=12, n=9
covering both establishments and
enterprises)
• Targeted both potential FGPs and
potential MSPs
3
Concepts tested
• New language tested for key concepts
– No clear understanding or common
interpretation of control the production or
control the sale
– No clear understanding of contract
manufacturing terminology
• More likely to say job orders or purchase
orders
– Product was respondent dependent
4
Concepts (continued)
• Concept of entrepreneurial risk not
understood
– Associated with business start up or new
ventures
• Responsibility for unsold goods
• Responsibility for defective products
• Legal liability
5
Concepts (continued)
• Intellectual property
– Referred to legal department!
– Did not always think in terms of design,
blueprints, specifications
6
Neither Enterprise nor
Establishment Concept?
• Organization of multi-establishment
enterprises often focus on product
lines or markets
– E.g., home products vs. industrial
products
– E.g., North American Division vs.
European Division
• Appears to be a more enterprise
centric inquiry
7
Needs Going Forward
• Identify language that will convey the
concept more clearly (if possible)
• Identify appropriate contacts within
companies (if possible)
• Identify company, enterprise, or indirect
methods of describing the size and
impact of outsourcing transformation if
direct measures are not feasible
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