Charima Research, together with our teams, understand with clarity, research business functions, decision-making and workflow for the research project executions and implementations in both social and market research strategies across both quantitative and qualitative approaches. This makes our quality control procedures and QC workflow to be seamless, timely and quality with high data integrity for all our clients’ projects and programs.

At Charima Research, with our team’s professionalism and expertise, we provide distinct attention to your project to deliver trustworthy, reliable, transparent, sustainable, fair and impartiality, high quality data outputs and high-level quality control assurance service.

In all our market and social research projects, it is our mandatory principle as Charima Research, to strictly carry out and implement the necessary quality control measures at all times in all our projects for the quality data outputs.
In addition, for those clients who really need independent Quality Control agency, to keep an eye in their running live projects or in their just completed projects, we as well come in to offer Quality Control services.

Quality Control (QC) Measures

Charima Research pays incredibly close attention to quality control and we perform various checks throughout data collection and during data processing and at other different levels. While the below list may not be exhaustive of the quality control measures, it serves as an illustration of the level of detail and care we take to ensure exceptional data quality outputs:

1. For quantitative interviews, we mostly collected using digital tablets (CAPI), thus removing the opportunity for PAPI that poses risk of data loss and manipulation.
2. The tablets devices are equipped with GPS tracking which ensures that enumerators are following the exact walk patterns and defined methodology;
3. Quantitative CAPI interviews are usually time stamped which is key depending with when and what time field was happening.
4. Mostly qualitative interviews (FGDs, & IDIs) are audio recorded for quality assurance, validation and transcriptions.
5. Field teams consist of a team of five or six enumerators and one supervisor, allowing for careful monitoring and quick detection of any deviation from the methodology or identification of any unforeseen issue;
6. Supervisors accompany no less than 10% of enumerator interviews to ensure the methodology is executed exactly as designed as well as be on hand to help troubleshoot any issues on the spot;
7. Supervisors and field coordinators make random spot checks throughout fielding to ensure the methodology is being executed as designed;
8. Enumerators are in constant contact with team supervisors and coordinators to raise and solve any problem and challenges that may come out. Any new information is shared across enumeration teams for consistency to help overcome similar issues;
9. 10-15% of the interviews are randomly backchecked, either telephonically or physically;
10. No more than 10% of the sample is collected by a single enumerator.
11. Throughout and after fielding, a number of quality control measures are run to remove any duplicate or erroneous entries, such as for those respondents who may have done self-filling by speeding through the survey without thinking and responding carefully, entering nonsense in open-end responses, and skipping too many questions. If a case is removed, usually is replaced by another valid respondent matching the same demographics so that the sample may not be skewed.
12. A unique ID for every enumerator is linked to every interview to monitor, for continuity and repeated error which are usually addressed immediately.
13. Once the project fully launches in field, Charima Research provides client with filed progress update either daily or after a few days, or weekly (or any other desired increment) through the client’s preferred method like email etc.

Research Ethical Principles

At Charima Research we understand how important it is to follow research ethical principles in all our social and market research projects. During teams briefing and at all times we remind our teams across board the importance of following all research principles for high quality data outputs with integrity and credibility, while at the field executing project as well in the office.

While we may not exhaust the list of research ethical principles, but below are some of the key research ethical principles that guide Charima Research and the team in all our projects while conducting interviews:

• Respect for every respondent
• Quality of the data
• Responsibility and transparency
• Risk Management
• Sustainability
• Justice, fairness and impartiality
• Professionalism and expertise

Parents/guardian’s consent

When interviewing underage respondents (i.e., below 18 years old), we follow the below research ethical guidelines:

• The permission of a parent, or guardian is obtained first.
• Sufficient information is shared with parent, or guardian before interview, to help make adequate decision.
• The parent, or guardian details are noted and is given a consent form to sign after reading.
• During children’s interviews, a responsible adult remains close.

Permission to Conduct Research

We obtain ethical research permit from relevant national research authorities or from other bodies given the mandate to review the research process in a given country of research need. A few research and project related items are presented to the authority for approval. Where the institutional review board (IRB) is mandate to review the research process and project items for issuance of the ethical research license or approvals, either our team do approval application or client does approval application themselves depending with both parties’ agreement. In all countries, our local representatives are familiar ethical research approval application process. Since we understand that research is time bound, we follow up to ensure that we are issued with the research license or approval on time to conduct the research.

Data Safety & Confidentiality Procedure

Charima Research is extremely devoted company to protecting the personal data of its respondents, clients and its employees. Therefore, safety of personal data is uppermost priority for Charima Research.

We ensure that our respondents’ details, our clients’ and our employees’ data sets are always safe and well protected. Below are some of the key data protection procedures that we follow at Charima Research:

• Personal data anonymization
• Data protection training
• Data protection lead & structural measure
• Encryption of the data
• Suppliers follow suit