Awarded toJustin Kozuch
Project background
As an industry operating in an age where we’re more socially connected than ever before, we have little understanding of the actual size and scope of our own field, and the space in which we work. Despite all the tools available, our government cannot be relied upon to help us understand this information.
Through Statistics Canada, obtaining data is costly and difficult at best. In a thriving and ever-changing industry, it doesn’t help that their data collection process occurs only every five years, with the next round of surveying slated to begin in 2011. The providers of digital media services are classified in a way that isn’t indicative of the industry’s true organization, and two more years will pass before the NAICS classification is rewritten.
“We have little understanding of the actual size and scope of our own field”
To compound the issue even further, the data currently being collected reflects only the larger organizations, while ignoring the small to medium-sized businesses, who are the primary drivers of our economy.
This project will
Create a classification system for Canada’s digital media industry and shed light on the industry’s size and scope. We’ll accomplish this by utilizing a variety of methods:
- Surveying employees in the digital media industry
- Classifying and surveying companies
- Surveying and interviewing buyers of digital media services
The methods of gathering data will include surveying through web-based collection mechanisms, face-to-face interviews as well as a series of asks through social media, email marketing and the project blog. These research phases will be run concurrently, and it is quite likely that during the course of this research project, the large data sets (1, 2, and 3 identified above) will spin off into subsequently smaller data sets with the intention of revealing and cataloguing the generated insights and findings. These smaller data sets will provide us with an increasingly valuable understanding of our industry.
Want to help?
If you are interested in helping this project we are looking for:
- Web designers and developers to create collection tools
- People with expertise in classification systems
- Volunteers such as scribes, runners and wiki gardeners
- Industry partners to help research and promotion
- Meeting space for working sessions
About the winner
Justin Kozuch is the founder of Refresh Events, and works behind the scenes bringing together the most engaging and influential minds in Toronto's vibrant digital media industry. In a previous lifetime, he spent his 9-5 as an Interactive Developer at Sapient, and worked with large brands such as RIM, the Wall Street Journal and Virgin Charter.
