yellow window - management consultants

free information

Yellow Window is a management consultancy firm specialised in international business development. Based in Antwerp (Belgium), it offers in addition to consultancy, also market research and partner search services.

published reports:

Promoting multilingualism is central to the European Union’s language policy. Therefore, DG Education and Culture asked Yellow Window to identify best practices of language-learning promotion initiatives across the EU as well as in Norway, Liechtenstein, Turkey and Iceland. The final report “Promotion of Multilingualism in the 31 countries of the life-long learning programme” (March 2008) can be found on DG EAC’s website: http://ec.europa.eu/education/languages/pdf/doc1631_en.pdf

Yellow Window completed (July 2006) the ‘Mid-term evaluation of the ARGO Programme’ of the European Commission’s Directorate-General Justice, Freedom and Security. ARGO is an action Programme for administrative cooperation in the fields of external borders, visas, asylum and immigration.
The final report can be found on the Commission’s ARGO website, by clicking on the ‘evaluation’ section :
http://ec.europa.eu/justice_home/funding/argo/funding_argo_en.htm

Linguistic diversity and language learning are strategic issues for the enlarged European Union. Following a request by the European Parliament, the European Commission’s Directorate General for Education and Culture decided to launch in 2004 a ‘feasibility study concerning the setting-up of a European Agency for Linguistic diversity and Language Learning’.
This study has been carried out by Yellow Window and the final report has been published by the European Commission on the Europa-website: http://ec.europa.eu/education/policies/lang/key/studies_en.html

"Study on the role of a future European Gender Institute" - purpose of the study was to explore what should be the role and structure of such institute and what should be the roadmap to its creation. The study also included an analysis of alternative options to an autonomous Agency.
The reports are available for download:

download the English version
download the French version

“Community Trade Mark Survey 2002” - purpose of the survey was to explore the positioning of the CTM and of the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (OHIM), the expectations of the clients of OHIM in terms of service aspects, and the future prospects for the CTM.
The report is available on the OHIM website.

Evaluation of the organisation and operation of the Europe-wide awareness-raising campaign : 'European Week 2000', for the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (OSHA). The assignment also contained the identification of a 'good practice approach' for the organisation of future European Weeks.
http://osha.europa.eu/publications/evaluation_reports/EW_2000_evaluation_-_Final_report.pdf

‘External evaluation of the Arion action’, for the European Commission’s DG Education and Culture. The action consists of study visits for education specialists. The evaluation comprised interviews with all National Agencies, with participants in and organisers of study visits, as well as with policy makers in the area of education. Geographic scope of the study : 30 countries.
Exec. Summary of the final report (2002) :
http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/education_culture/evalreports/education/2002/arion/arionsum_en.pdf

“Gender mainstreaming in employment policies” - pan-European study for the European Commission DG Employment and Social Affairs with the aim to analyse the situation as regards the integration of gender mainstreaming in policies and policy making. Yellow Window was in charge of Belgian part of research taking place in various countries.
The report in French and the English translation of the summary are available on the Commission website.

top of page

QUALITATIVE STUDIES

Below are the reports of the studies performed for the European Commission, where Yellow Window has been in charge of the Belgian part.

2007: “Safer Internet for Children – qualitative study in 29 countries” – the aim was to improve the knowledge about the Internet and mobile phone usage by children, their on-line behaviour and their perceptions of risk and safety related questions.
This report is available on the Commission website.

2007: “Information on Europe on Television” – Qualitative study about citizens’ television viewing habits, attitudes, opinions and expectations, in order to provide comprehensive insight into the issue of adding ‘European content’ to television programmes.
This report is available on the Commission website.

2006: “The European Citizens and the Future of Europe – qualitative study among citizens in the 25 Member States” – the objectives were to assess the existing perceptions or and attitudes towards the European Union, to explore perceptions of EU achievements and failures, to analyse citizens’ expectations of the Union and their attitudes regarding the functioning of the Union and its institutions, and finally to evaluate more widely information needs and expectations regarding citizen’s involvement.
This report is available on the Commission website.

2004: “Attitudes and expectations of viewers in terms of television programmes with a European Content - qualitative study among citizens in the 25 Member States” - Study about citizens’ television viewing habits, attitudes, opinions and expectations, in order to provide comprehensive insight into the issue of adding ‘European content’ to television programmes. Technique used : three focus groups.
This report is available on the Commission website.

2003: “European consumers and services of general interest – qualitative study amongst EU Member States and 10 applicant countries” - Qualitative study to investigate consumers’ views, expectations, experiences, fears, satisfaction and dissatisfaction regarding services of general economic interest, following the liberalisation of these markets. The research focussed on 11 sectors including electricity, gas, water, mobile and fixed telephony services, maritime transport, air transport, urban transport, inter-city rail transport, regional transport, mail services.
This report is available on the Commission website.

2003: “Qualitative study on cross border shopping in 28 European countries” - Qualitative research among people who have acquired financial services from other EU countries than their own country of residence to explore their experiences and opinions about such transactions. The results of the survey should help the Commission defining its policy, which aims at making it easier for consumers to have access to such cross-border financial services.
This report is available on the Commission website.

2002: “Qualitative study on EU citizens and the Euro in the months following its introduction – Survey amongst the general public, the elderly and people in an insecure socio-economic situation in the twelve countries of the Euro zone” - Qualitative survey among different categories of European citizens to explore their attitudes with regard to the introduction of the Euro.
http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/quali/ql_euro0502_en.pdf

“Perceptions of the European Union - a qualitative study of the public’s attitudes to and expectations of the EU in the 15 Member States and the 9 Candidate Countries” – the objective of this study was to evaluate the attitudes, appreciations, motivations, expectations, fears, resistances, etc. of the European citizens with regard to the different policies and actions undertaken in the context of the European construction (institutional aspects of the Union, policies and actions undertaken, more general attitudes towards Europe and the European construction, etc.).
This report is available on the Commission website.

“European citizens and freedom, security and justice – a qualitative survey of citizens of the 15 Member States and the 13 Candidate Countries” - the study explored ways how to optimise decision-making on institutional level; and also the citizens’ perceptions and attitudes regarding security, justice and related policies, and the principle of common EU action in these domains. This report is available on the Commission website.

useful links

EU sources

Legislative information:
· EUR-LEX
· Latest adopted legislation [‘latest deliveries’]
· Latest legislative proposals [‘latest deliveries’]
· Preparatory acts

Monitoring the progress of legislative proposals and other initiatives:
· OEIL (Legislative Observatory)
· PreLex

News sources:
· EU News
· EUROPA: What’s new
· EU Institutions and Agencies: What’s new
· European Commission: What’s new by subject

What is going to happen?
· Agenda of the EU Institutions

Contact names and addresses:
· IDEA

Other sources for recent information:
· General Report on the Activities of the European Union
· Bulletin of the European Union
· EU Presidency websites

EU Agencies:
· European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training
· European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions
· European Environment Agency
· European Training Foundation
· European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction
· European Agency for the Evaluation of Medicinal Products
· Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market
· European Agency for Safety and Health at Work
· Community Plant Variety Office
· Translation Center
· European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights
· European Agency for Reconstruction
· European Food Safety Authority
· European Maritime Safety Agency
· European Aviation Safety Agency