CASE HISTORIES: Research Survey

Prestigious Field House Fails to Deliver, Boardwalk "Rescues" Program

Disappointed with the slow pace of an outsourced research firm, a fledgling e-commerce software firm sought help from Boardwalk for a messaging study. The survey’s 50 open-ended questions proved too challenging for the other firm, which was able to deliver only five surveys in a two-month period. Among survey topics were the use of sales channels, definitions of new terms, and purchase approval processes. The survey was aimed at specific companies in several industries. Boardwalk took over the project, and delivered 55 surveys in one month, on schedule.

Boardwalk Interviews Hundreds of CFOs In Depth For "Big Five" Accountancy

A major accounting firm sought the insights of 200 CFOs among the Fortune 2000 in areas such as financial controls and the role of technology in understanding financial planning. Boardwalk’s staff, accustomed to interviewing C-level executives at length, produced 1,110 pages of raw results.

CRM Ownership Costs Gathered by Boardwalk in Europe and North America

Needing to obtain highly sensitive ownership costs (TCO) for various CRM applications in the U.S. and abroad, a well-known research firm hired Boardwalk for its multi-lingual capabilities. More importantly, Boardwalk was the only vendor whose staff was senior enough to earn the trust of individuals who possessed cost information. In six weeks, Boardwalk completed 70 of the 26-page TCO surveys on schedule.

South American Market for Help Desk Services Probed by Boardwalk

A billion-dollar consulting firm — seeking international expansion — needed to understand the drivers toward helpdesk and support services initiatives in Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, France, Italy, Spain, and Mexico. Topics addressed uses of related vendors, desirable elements of these companies, and planned roll-outs. Boardwalk’s Analysts delivered 125 surveys, complete and on time.

Boardwalk’s Findings Prominently Shown on Billion-Dollar Firm’s Web Site

A high-growth software firm, seeking to understand how a related programming language is being used, needed to determine which applications and hardware would be most suitable for users. The project required Boardwalk to speak in depth about this language, as well as identify those decision-makers who were major proponents of its use. The client deadline was tight. Boardwalk’s findings were needed for the CEO’s presentation at an imminent analyst conference. Within four weeks, Boardwalk’s analysts identified users and completed over 200 interviews.