The typical international survey of educational achievement spans twenty-five to forty countries, and involves interviewing thousands of schoolteachers and testing hundreds of thousands of students under conditions of tight budgets, quick time lines and strict quality control. Under such conditions, one might ask what is the best set of management tools, strategies and behaviours needed to yield on-time, at-cost, quality research? While the field of sociology of organizations remains both a science and an art, in the arena of international survey research it is strong management leadership together with appropriate funding, rather than any particular form of administration, that best predicts effective research. Still, project organization is important, as the right mix of organizing framework, personal traits and resources all contribute to effective project management.In the following article, project management is defined as working with and through individuals and groups to accomplish project aims: in this case, measuring schooling outcomes. The article goes on to look at management role, experience, job characteristics and leadership style for both high-and low-level project managers (national and international) as they carry out six steps in the survey research process: planning policy and research questions; design; sampling; questionnaire and test development; data collection; and data analysis and report writing. These stages are integral parts of a whole, each one depending on the success of the other and all carried out in relative succession. Clearly, theory-policy needs determine sampling, questionnaire and test development, data collection, analysis, and finally report writing. As you read this article, imagine yourself in charge of a largescale international survey study and ask how you would manage such an enterprise.
Who are survey managers and what do they do?When international surveys are undertaken across twenty-five to forty countries to monitor and evaluate student achievement, an enormous amount of co-ordination is required to ensure the four-year study will be completed on time, within budget. Integrating policy issues with theory and methodologies must be carefully planned, and matched with appropriate sampiing and statistical programmes, data collection procedures, overall time line, budget and publishing plan before all can be set in motion. The International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (lEA) is a non-governmental organization with thirty years' experience conducting large-scale academic achievement studies worldwide. IEA, over the years, has gained much insight into what makes good research, and good management seems to be the key. While leadership is still defined by the proverbial Je ne sais quoi, project managers must nevertheless display intense leadership skills alongside a strong sense of confidence in ac-
