Opinium

Opinium is an MRS award winning strategic insight agency built on the belief that in a world of uncertainty and complexity, success depends on the ability to stay on the pulse of what people think, feel and do. Here we talk to, James Endersby Managing Director, about the importance of preparing for the GDPR and how Fair Data can help.

1. How do you think that the Fair Data Accreditation process helps you prepare for Summer 2018 and the GDPR?
The primary objectives of the GDPR are to give citizens control of their personal data and to simplify the regulatory environment for international business. This can only be a great thing. The research industry needs to take this seriously. I'm confident that completing the Fair Data Accreditation will stand us in good stead.

2. What advice do you have for other organisations who are thinking about becoming Fair Data Partners?
If you have a robust data policy in place already, it should be a piece of cake. If you don't, you should view the process as a solid piece of consultation that will guide you through the process of setting up the necessary procedures and policies to bring you up to speed with secure and responsible data management practices.

3. How did you find the process of becoming accredited?
The Fair Data Accreditation process was to be extremely thorough and we expected that. We had quite a few policies and processes in place already, as you might imagine, so in the end, we found the accreditation to be straightforward. It was beneficial to run through each item and review all of our procedures. It brilliant to know that we are Fair Data compliant.
It's a mark that we are now extremely proud of and it also gives our new and existing clients the comfort of knowing that their customer/client data will be handled appropriately.

4. Why do you feel it is important for Opinium Research LLP to be Fair Data accredited?
At Opinium we handle a huge amount of very sensitive data from our large consumer panel, our financial advisor community and through all of our client stakeholder studies amongst their customers and employees. This is an enormous responsibility and one that we take extremely seriously. It is therefore essential that we are certain that our internal practices and policies are up to the highest level.

Any organisation must take data security seriously! For our organisation we are must ensure that participants are going to continue to take part in our surveys, interviews and focus groups we must demonstrate that they will be treated well and their personal data is completely secure.

Our recent study across Europe and the Middle East amongst 7,000 consumers for a large tech company highlighted that sharing data with private companies left nearly three quarters (70 per cent) of consumers concerned that their data would get into the wrong hands, followed closely by their privacy being compromised (64 per cent).

If our entire MR industry clubs together and makes a solid commitment to protecting our most valuable assets, participants and client data, it will certainly help future proof us. Signing up to our industry body's Fair Data accreditation is a complete no-brainer.