Manfred Güllner is set to step away from the day‑to‑day operations of Forsa, the market‑and‑opinion‑research institute he founded in 1984. “The main reason for my exit is that I cannot suppress biology” he told the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung”. “Like an old car, parts rust even though the engine still runs”.
Quitting will not come easy for him; it feels fitting that a former North Rhine‑Westphalia state‑parliament president once remarked: “Güllner has turned his hobby into a profession”.
Still, he will continue to receive Forsa’s daily data each evening to monitor shifts in political sentiment. “That way I can continue to advise Forsa’s management on political and electoral research and keep my newsletter running. If the media ask me for information, I’ll gladly be a spokesperson-provided I have solid data to back what I say” he explained.
Güllner voiced deep concern and distress at what he sees as the careless and irresponsible use of survey data by many media outlets and politicians today. He warned that the industry is increasingly populated by “black sheep” who generate unreliable data that rarely correspond to reality through opaque means.
When asked whether market research-the “cash cow” of demography-will eventually become obsolete as tech giants like Amazon, Google, and Meta amass vast knowledge of people’s habits, Güllner noted that some had long dreamed of such a future. “However, without a framework to interpret these vast amounts of data, they are simply useless” he said. “There is no substitute for asking people why they hold the views and make the choices they do. The results of such primary surveys must then be placed in context with other available data”.