Over 80% of new businesses fail within the first 2 years and of those that survive, another 50% will not survive for another three years. In defiance of these odds, Data Analysis Australia is celebrating its 15th birthday.

Founded in September 1988 as a consultancy to provide statistical and mathematical services on a commercial basis, it initially consisted of the founder, Dr John Henstridge, working as a one-man operation. The vision was to develop a company that would provide good quality statistical work in a commercially viable consultancy, with the depth and size to provide a comprehensive service to a wide range of clients.

The vision remains the same and, in particular, the last five years has seen the company move into a new phase in its growth. We now number ten consulting statisticians and three additional consultants working in the areas of Business Analysis and Information Technology. We also have a significant number of support staff with one consulting assistant, two administration staff and a number of casual staff employed to assist with large-scale survey work. We moved to our current premises in 1999 to accommodate the increases in staffing levels.

What have been some of our major accomplishments over the last 15 years?

• Using statistics to measure the real effectiveness of advertising campaigns and to measure the impact that random breath testing has on the rates of crime and accidents.
• Modelling the components of water usage in preparation for the introduction of water restrictions.
• Our growth has enabled us to conduct large-scale projects such as the $1.4million Perth and Regions Travel Survey for the Department for Planning and Infrastructure.
• For the past 10 years we have been conducting the National Indigenous Preschool Census for the Commonwealth Department of Education Science and Training.
• We are repeatedly called upon to provide advice when organizations are making decisions of high monetary and strategic value.

And, as our team of consultants grows, so does the variety of work we can do.

Data Analysis Australia is recognized in the statistical community as being a commercial success story. We have succeeded in bringing statistics out from the under the umbrella of academia and have been instrumental in the growth of statistics as a business tool. At Data Analysis Australia we firmly believe that statistics is a tool that can be applied in many ways in many different areas and we are constantly striving to expand our areas of expertise.

What do the next 15 years hold for us? We will continue to grow, taking on larger and more challenging projects as our depth of talent increases. We also hope to expand to include offices on the east coast of Australia. Our long-term goal is to be the premier Statistical and Mathematical Consulting firm in Australia and we are well on out way to achieving that goal.

September 2003