MRS launches Campaign for Better Data to evolve standards and future-proof research sector
01 May 2025

MRS has today launched the Campaign for Better Data, providing guidance and training to help the sector strengthen and evolve the quality of the evidence it produces and reinforce public trust in research.

With the government setting out to establish the country as a world leader in AI, there is a significant opportunity for the £9 billion UK research sector to boost its efficiency and focus efforts where human insight can generate most value.

However, misinformation poses a growing risk which AI has the potential to exacerbate. Against this backdrop, MRS is providing new resources to help those in research to create even better data. It is calling on the research sector to continue to be vigilant and hone its skills to further fortify data accuracy and quality, ensuring the research sector is future-proofed.

The MRS campaign brings together the biggest research agencies in the UK as founding members of a collaborative group to shine a spotlight on and improve data quality through the sharing of experience and best practice.

Kelly Beaver MBE, Chief Executive of Ipsos in the UK & Ireland, said: “The issue of client and participant trust is central to the future of our industry and continuing to deliver data of the highest quality is of paramount importance.

"Demonstrating how to responsibly harness the game-changing potential of AI, particularly as we further embrace synthetic data is key, understanding that without quality real-world data there can be no quality synthetic data.”

Caroline Frankum, chair, Kantar’s Profiles division, commented: “As a sector we’re responsible for ensuring we truly reflect the ever-changing world we serve to meaningfully inform decision-making.

"This means trained professionals coming together to proactively combat increasingly sophisticated survey fraud, give increasingly time-poor panellists an engaging experience, and ensuring our data quality standards are fit for purpose in an era of AI and LLMs. This is why we have been working with MRS for some time on this campaign and believe its launch today couldn’t be timelier!”

MRS launches the campaign with fresh guidance on using AI, synthetic data and related technologies. This advice covers the breadth of AI in the research sector – from ethics and legislation to usage opportunities.

MRS is also providing new training courses to help researchers build the professional skills needed to ensure data is accurate, transparent and can stand up to scrutiny.

These include:

• Advanced Artificial Intelligence (AI) Strategies for Market Research: APIs, Python, and Bespoke Solutions
• Generative AI in Market Research
• Mastering Data Quality in Online Research

Click here to see all the guidance, training and resources relating to the campaign.

The Campaign launches ahead of MRS’ Data Driven Insights Conference, which will be held on 3 July. The event will cover how to blend human intelligence, AI capabilities and data integration to give organisations the confidence to make informed decisions.

This builds on the Global Data Quality Initiative launched last year by MRS, in collaboration with wider insights organisations globally, to build confidence in the data the sector collects and delivers, through clear data quality guidance and standards that enhance the value of research.

Jane Frost, CEO of MRS, commented: “Research has a unique role to play in today’s ‘post-truth’ society, and strengthening people’s trust in the data we produce is more important than ever. Achieving this will require investment in time, people and systems across the sector.

“We’ve been working behind the scenes with our Company Partners to develop the resources and guidance to help researchers build the skills needed to maintain rigorous data quality, and navigate and cut through the impacts of misinformation. After all, data is only as powerful as the people working with it.

“With the Campaign for Better Data, we are making sure the research sector is armed with the resources to meet the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century and remain the driving force behind impactful decision-making.”

Click here to see all the guidance, training and resources relating to the campaign.