Too often, PR professionals overlook questions and issues relating to internal corporate communications. But during the International Association of Business
Communicators' (IABC) 2006 International Conference in Vancouver, the subject of internal messaging was raised with specific concerns of using communications tools and skills
for building employee engagement.
A sample survey was offered that presented questions along this train of thought: "Are you aloof on the job? Disengaged? Does it seem like you're instant messaging and
playing Solitaire way too much?"
These questions - presented in the tone of one of a goofy infomercial - were actually serious inquiries conceived by the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial
Telecommunications (SWIFT) when they began conducting a series of engagement studies in 1997 to identify what workplace elements were likely to boost productivity.
SWIFT conducted five surveys over the past eight years, seeking input from its 1,700 employees to pinpoint specific feedback on the workplace environment. In each survey, the
language used was intentionally structured to avoid misleading or vague answers while encouraging the most specific responses possible. Case in point: an agreement/disagreement
question along the lines of "Are you being treated with respect?" was altered when adding a sense of frequency: "How often are you being treated with respect?" By taking this
route, SWIFT sought the most accurate measurement possibility to weigh the state of their workplace.
"You can manipulate the questions in many different ways in order to know the answers," says Angela Sinickas, president of Sinickas Communications, who worked with SWIFT
on their surveying. "If you haven't heard enough, you have to rephrase the questions."
Survey results are, of course, rooted in the nature of the questions being posed. But these can be manipulated to the point of blatant skewering if the language is designed to
drive the outcome. According to Jill Hinson, an internal consultant at SWIFT, "You can use any question on your outcome, but be sure you consider what question or group of
questions pushes that number of engaged employees."
But recording the survey responses is not just a question of keeping a tally on who says what. In many cases, it requires a cultural understanding of how language can be used.
Since SWIFT is spread throughout the world, it had to be sensitive to its international community, says Hinson.
Contacts: Angela Sinickas, 714.277.4130; Jill Lamphier, [email protected].