Management and Expectations Survey

Aim of this survey

The Management and Expectations Survey (MES) collects information from businesses in both the services and production industries about their management practices and expectations for their business in the future.

What you need to know

To complete the survey, you will need the following information:

• the use of targets
• the use of key performance indicators (KPIs)
• employment and hiring decisions
• the approach to dealing with problems
• information on businesses’ current performance and future expectations, about turnover, investment, employment and spending on resources.

All information you provide is strictly confidential.

Why we need these data

The information will be used to further investigate how management practices and uncertainty relate to productivity, as well as gauge businesses’ expectations of Great Britain’s economic climate in the near future.

The data may be used by the government to inform policy-making on the economy and by other relevant institutions for research and decision-making.

This may also be beneficial to businesses as the published statistics can be used as a benchmark to compare their business against the same, or across different, sectors.

Survey information

Selection criteria: Businesses registered for Value Added Tax (VAT) and/or Pay As You Earn (PAYE), trading in Great Britain, with employment of 10 or more.

• Population: approximately 270,000
• Sample size: approximately 50,000
• Dispatch date: 9 November 2020
• Return-by date: 4 December 2020

Please note that the dispatch and return-by dates are a guide and might be subject to revision because of the changing circumstances.

Why you have received this survey

Your information is important to us. We survey businesses of all sizes (except those with fewer than 10 employees because of the nature of the topic) to ensure our statistics are representative of the UK economy.

How to complete this survey

You will have received a letter that explains how to complete this survey online.

Please use your unique enrolment code to report your information.

Complete this survey online

If you need help

If you are having any difficulties enrolling, please email us on surveys@ons.gov.uk or call us on 0300 1234 931; please enter the three-digit survey ID 092.

If your question is not answered on this page, you may be able to find the answer in the About ONS business surveys section.

The survey is voluntary, but your co-operation in completing the questionnaire would be appreciated. We understand this may be a challenging time and thank you for your continued support.