Tech Forum

We're spending a lot of time in our ward trying to recreate the information that must already be underlying the Family History Activity Report. Is there a way for anyone in the ward to get a report with the data underneath that report, e.g. which members have logged into FamilySearch, who has already submitted a name, etc.?

jstracy13 wrote:Is there a way for anyone in the ward to get a report with the data underneath that report, e.g. which members have logged into FamilySearch, who has already submitted a name, etc.?

So far, specific information has not been forthcoming, and I personally suspect that it will not be provided in the future.

It does seem that if they wanted to local leaders to have that information, it would have been provided. It's possible that there is a concern that if leaders have that information that it will lead to improper pressure on individuals and be counter-productive. ("Sister Smith, I see you haven't submitted a name this quarter, do you need help?" - think about how Sister Smith might feel about that.)

This may be one of those situations were a good program will lead to good numbers, but focusing on numbers will not make for a good program.

As with all things, information can be used for good or ill. Creating this type of report to monitor progress, though, sets the ball rolling on any pressure. When someone refers to the report and wants it to get better, what does the ward do? They track down this information one way or the other. I am personally spending a ton of time just re-creating the underlying data for this report because our stake set a goal to have every person 12 and older submit an ancestor's name for temple work this year. It just sort of eats at me that I'm spending tons of time to create a dataset that already exists; it's needlessly wasteful of time that could be better spent helping with the actual family history work.

jstracy13 wrote:I am personally spending a ton of time just re-creating the underlying data for this report because our stake set a goal to have every person 12 and older submit an ancestor's name for temple work this year.

Perhaps someone should inform the stake about the difficulty in getting that information.

If and when the data is exposed, it will be because the Priesthood Department thinks it would be a good idea for all stakes and will happen based on priorities set by the same. (The church has a very small development team. Working on this would necessitate putting something else on hold.) I've never heard of them making a change to support a stake's goal.