Format Research studies the social, economic and political scenarios in Italy and Europe, providing companies, trade associations, and the Public Administration with a data and information platform to help them understand the changes and the evolution of phenomena.
Ad hoc studies, multiclient surveys, and confidential newsletters of an economic or political nature make up our service offer, which provides information, knowledge and knowhow that are always updated together with a very high level of customization.
CONJUNCTURAL OBSERVATORY ON BUSINESSES BY FORMAT RESEARCH (OCF).
The Conjunctural Observatory is a multiclient survey carried out by Format Research on a quarterly basis by means of interviews: four surveys per year since 2008. It studies the performance of Italian companies (from one employee upwards) with reference to a series of key indicators: confidence, economic performance of companies, employment, financial needs, credit demand and supply. The research is carried out on a short-term (last quarter on the previous quarter) and forecasting level (following quarter). All data have been analysed and presented in time series since 2008.
The survey is based on a statistically representative sample of the universe of Italian businesses (2,500 businesses surveyed per quarter) with cuts on the sectors of economic activity: industry, commerce, services, and vertical analyses: tourism businesses, craft businesses, etc.
Customisations. Format Research offers the possibility to all interested parties to carry out an identical survey, but on a local or territorial scale (e.g. in a province or in a single region, or a sector of activity), to compare the “national” and “local” data, bearing only the cost of the customisation and receiving the results of the national survey free of charge.
POLITICAL AND SOCIAL RESEARCH.
Opinion polls and ad hoc research on statistically representative samples of citizens, entrepreneurs and consumers, with the aim of analysing their opinions, their behaviours, their expectations towards politics, their attitude towards social, political, and economic facts, and their voting intentions.
At times close to administrative, political and European electoral consultations, Format Research carries out a weekly monitoring (one survey per week) on request to observe the citizens’ voting intentions. The monitoring of voting intentions by Format Research is a tool available to the political marketing of candidates and political formations to guide and supervise communication on social media and traditional media, understand any issues, facts and levers that can move or at least change the orientations and preferences of the electoral body.
SPECIFIC OBSERVATORIES AND METHODOLOGIES USED
DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION METHODOLOGY.
Digital Transformation Methodology is a research product created by Format Research to assist and allow companies and freelancers to innovate their service model digitally, thus adapting to the new requirements of the markets and the expectations of their customers.
SCENARIO OUTLOOK.
Companies, banks, insurance companies, trade associations need to make personalized and confidential newsletters available to their collaborators, their selected customers, their stakeholders . Format Research is able to respond to this need with its ” Scenario Outlook” product, a newsletter that can be customized based on the client’s needs, on social, political, economic and technological issues and topics. The newsletter can have a daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly frequency. Should it be required, Format Research can take care of distributing the newsletter to the target of interest.
FORMAT RESEARCH E-COMMERCE OBSERVATORY.
The Format Research E-Commerce Observatory is a multiclient study that has been carried out annually since 2014. The report is released in April.
The survey is based on a desk research that describes the evolution of e-commerce in Italy and worldwide over time. The analysis is structured so as to offer companies that need to be regularly updated on the progress of the phenomenon, insights relating to the main trends that affect consumption and markets, such as, for example, the population’s access to the Internet, the replacement rate of traditional retail businesses with electronic commerce, the impact of electronic commerce on the economy and demand behaviours (e.g. the new role of logistics, transport and delivery services ), the evolution of electronic payment services, etc.
The study can be customized to meet the specific requirements of the subscribers. The results of the customizations remain the property of those who commissioned them and are not disclosed to third parties.
OBSERVERS AND STUDIES ON ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES.
Format Research is a Research Institute specializing in business-to-business and business surveys.
It continuously studies the evolution of the fabric and structure of Italian companies, providing customers with a rich wealth of information on companies, businesses and professionals in our country. It carries out research studies and analyses that can be customized ad hoc to meet the clients’ specific requirements.
STRUCTURE AND DEMOGRAPHY OF ITALIAN COMPANIES.
Description and analysis in time series of the fabric of Italian companies (and local units), segmented according to parameters such as the sector of economic activity, going all the way down to the last Ateco Code when required, based on the size of the companies (by class of employees and/or by turnover), by legal form, by year of establishment of the company, etc. Study of the demography of companies: newly established companies, discontinued companies, balance between newly established and discontinued companies. All studies are widely segmented based on the structural characteristics of the economic and scalable actors at a territorial level (municipality, province, region, ad hoc determined territories such as groups of municipalities straddling multiple provinces or regions for example). All studies can be customized to meet the Clients specific requirements.
JOBS MARKET.
Format Research detects and analyses the trend of employment with reference to the following aspects: increase/decrease of the number of employees at companies in a given period, forecast of the increase/decrease of the number of employees at companies in a given period (e.g. next quarter ), contractual institutions used by companies to frame workers, aspects concerning the training needs and requirements of businesses and workers. Studies can be carried out ad hoc, or included in the large observatories on companies that are carried out on a quarterly, half-yearly or annual basis by Format Research.
YOUNG BUSINESSES.
Format carries out field surveys on samples of “young” companies, i.e. companies that whose staff is exclusively made of young people between 18 and 35 years of age (they must not have reached the age of 36), or ore than 2/3 of young people included between 18 and 29 years of age (The majority is given by the ownership of the share capital of the company owned by each shareholder). Studies can be carried out ad hoc, or included in the large observatories on companies that are carried out on a quarterly, half-yearly or annual basis by Format Research.
START-UP COMPANIES.
Format carries out field surveys on samples of start-up companies, i.e. companies with a majority of shares or stock representing the share capital and voting rights in the ordinary Shareholders’ Meeting held by natural persons. Such companies must have been established and active for no more than 48 months (four years), with headquarters in Italy, with an annual production value of no more than 5 million euros in the third year of activity, which do not distribute, and have not distributed any profits and which have not been established by a merger, corporate demerger or following the sale of a company or business unit. Studies can be carried out ad hoc, or included in the large observatories on companies that are carried out on a quarterly, half-yearly or annual basis by Format Research.
FEMALE COMPANIES.
Format carries out field surveys on samples of “female” companies, that is cooperatives and partnerships made of no less than 60 per cent of women, joint-stock companies with no less than two thirds of their participation shares owned by women and whose administrative bodies include at least two thirds of women, as well as individual businesses managed by women, which operate in the sectors of industry, crafts, agriculture, commerce, tourism and services. Studies can be carried out ad hoc, or included in the large observatories on companies that are carried out on a quarterly, half-yearly or annual basis by Format Research..
EXCELLENT COMPANIES.
“Excellent” companies are those that have seen their ratios progressively improve over the years, particularly in terms of turnover and number of employees. Format Research studies panel of companies over the years, verifying year by year the evolution of companies in terms of growth: “microenterprises” that manage to scale positions and become “small businesses”, the “small businesses” that become “medium” and so on. Results are analysed according to the sectors of economic activity of the companies and their territorial location, examining the reasons that have had the greatest impact on the growth of the economic operators: the policies adopted, the capacity for innovation, the facilitations from which they may have benefited , etc.
SURVEYS BY SUPPLY CHAIN AND BY PRODUCTION DISTRICTS.
Format Research studies the fabric of businesses by drawing real “maps” of local economies: production chains for example, when they are based on networks of relationships at the top of which a medium or large company organizes the sub-supply companies through a contract, maybe acting as their guarantor for them for the credit they need from the banking system, or even of the industrial districts, analysing their evolutions and ability to produce wealth for the territories in which they operate, and any critical aspects.
