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Employees Rising:
Seizing the Opportunity
in Employee Activism

01
introduction
Employees Rising: Seizing the Opportunity in Employee Activism Page 2
Social activists. Environmental activists. Consumer activists. Activist shareholders.
Today, there is no shortage of activists affecting business operations in some way.
These stand-up-for-what-is-right campaigners may either be an employer’s best
advocates or its worst opponents. In either case, they are change agents.
What about employee activists? Are employee activists the next wave
that leaders need to be ready for? Who is asking this question?
Management, human resources and communications departments
of Fortune 500 companies are rightfully laser-focused on employee
satisfaction and engagement. In fact, global research conducted by
Weber Shandwick and Spencer Stuart among chief communications
officers found that employee satisfaction as a critical metric of
communications effectiveness rose dramatically during a five-year
span (from 61% in 2007 to 79% in 2012).
Weber Shandwick strongly believes that employee engagement is
central to company success and is the underlying foundation for
high-performing companies. Yet we also believe that to prepare for
the future workforce, employers will need to build upon engagement
and acknowledge and embrace employee activism. Employee activists
are different — they make their engagement visible, defend their
employers from criticism and act as active advocates, online and
off. Many employee activists already exist today. Sometimes their
activism is stimulated by the employer, but, more often than not, it
rises organically out of self-motivation and determination. Employers
can’t afford to miss the open window of opportunity to lean in and
capitalise on this movement that will only increase in the years ahead.
In Employees Rising: Seizing the Opportunity in Employee Activism,
Weber Shandwick explores the employee activist movement to help
our clients and other organisations understand what it takes to catch
the rising tide of employee activism.
“In today’s environment where there
is an alarming lack of trust in all
institutions, employees are increasingly
the key prism for brand credibility
and trust. Engaging them can provide
companies the best way to humanise
and unify their enterprise voice —
a strategic imperative in today’s
environment.”
Micho Spring
Chair, Global Corporate Practice
Weber Shandwick

02
How we did the research
Our survey included a mix of attitudinal and behavioural
questions. Employee attitudes were measured on 5-point
scales. Conclusions are based on the top scale point of “5”
to capture the highest level of intensity of feelings toward
and perceptions about employers. Activism was measured
by presenting lists of behaviours that respondents
selected, and segmentation modelling identified distinct
groups of employees based on these self-reported actions.
The specific actions and process of classifying employees
is discussed in greater detail later in this report.
Weber Shandwick, in partnership with KRC Research, conducted a global online survey of
2,300 employees. Respondents were between the ages of 18 and 65, worked 30 hours per
week or more and were employed by an organisation with over 500 employees.
United Kingdom
France
Germany
Italy
North America
United States
Canada
Latin America
Brazil
Asia Paciﬁc
Australia
China
Hong Kong
India
Indonesia
Japan
Singapore
South Korea
Europe
Survey respondents represented 15 markets.
Page 3Employees Rising: Seizing the Opportunity in Employee Activism

03
UNREST IN THE WORKFORCE
Employees are in a state of upheaval.
More than eight in 10 (84%) have experienced some kind
of employer change in the past few years — most typically a
leadership change (45%). More than four in 10 (42%) report
undergoing a major event at work, such as a mass lay-off,
merger or acquisition and/or crisis. That is a lot of flux for
the workforce to handle.
Employees are on the defence.
Employers probably don’t know it, but many employees are
out there now defending the reputations of their organisa-
tions. Nearly six in 10 (56%) respondents surveyed have
either defended their employer to family and friends or in a
more public venue — such as on a website, blog, or in a
newspaper.These “first responders” are even more prevalent
in organisations that experienced a top-tier change event
(59%), indicating that employees are rising up to support
organisations in time of need. It may also indicate that
employees are strongly identifying with their employers.
42%
TOP-TIER
CHANGE EVENT
(net)
84%
ANY
CHANGE EVENT
(net)
45%
33%
30%
27%
22%
12%
17%
18%
22%
% of employees experienced the following events at their current employers in the past few years
Before we delve into the new wave of employee activism, it is important to
understand the challenges facing employees today.
Employees of a Fortune 500 agribusiness started their own blog in reaction to criticism
about their company. They debuted the blog by saying, “If anyone should speak to [our
company’s] vision of the world, it’s those of us who come to work here every day and
collectively make this company what it is…We’re hoping this blog will offer a more personal
view of our company.”

03 Unrest in the workforce
“An engaged employee is a worker who
cares about the future and success of
his company and therefore is actively
involved in what is going on, making a
positive contribution.”
— Italian employee
Employers are not effectively communicating
to employees.
The research revealed that only four in 10 employees can
confidently describe to others what their employer does
or what its goals are (42% and 37%, respectively). Fewer
than three in 10 report that they are being communicated
with, listened to and kept in the loop. Fewer than one
in five (17%) highly rate communications from senior
management. As expected, immediate supervisors are
rated as better communicators than senior leadership but
still not as highly as might be assumed.
These weak ratings are not a byproduct of too few
communications — employees report that they receive,
on average, 4.4 different types of communications from their
employers. The general lack of effective employer-to-employee
communications is surprising considering how technology
has accelerated the proliferation of collaboration and
communications tools available to most workforces.
“Listening and responding are leadership
skills critical to driving employee engagement.
Ultimately, companies that work hard at
communicating and listening — from the
mailroom to the boardroom — are the ones
that win in the workplace and marketplace.”
Andy Polansky
CEO, Weber Shandwick
I know enough to explain to others what my employer does 42
I understand my employer’s goals 37
My manager / supervisor frequently communicates with me 29
My employer listens and responds well to customers 28
My manager / supervisor listens and responds well to me 26
My employer surveys employees every 1-2 years on how well
it communicates with employees 26
My employer does a good job of keeping me informed 25
My employer communicates frequently with employees 24
Top leader 17
Senior leadership just below top leader 17
Department head 25
Immediate manager/ supervisor 31
% employees highly rate
communications from...
Total %
(rated 5 on 5-point scale)
% employees completely
agree with the following
statements
Employers are not effectively communicating to employees

03 Unrest in the workforce
Only three in 10 employees are deeply
engaged with their employers.
How could employers reasonably expect more engagement
when the workforce is in upheaval and employees do not
feel informed or listened to? This 3-in-10 engagement
level the survey uncovered is comprised of nine factors,
the highest rated of which is “I put a great deal of effort
into my job, doing more than is required” (38%) on down
to “I feel a strong connection to my employer” (23%).
While deep engagement — on the whole — is weak,
the results show that the workforce is in fact multi-
dimensional. As will be seen later in this report, some
employee segments are highly engaged and go to great
lengths to show it. Some are engaged and need assistance
to show it. And some are highly disengaged and, sadly,
show it. That is why we believe that employers should take
these findings seriously and look more deeply into their
workforce to identify and cultivate groups of employees
that can serve as activists for their brands and reputations.
Our analysis identified approximately one in five
employees (21%) who feel strongly that they
are putting more effort than is required into
their job yet do not feel strongly that they are
being valued by their employer. This perceptual
gap between giving and receiving on the job is a
recipe for resentment that impairs engagement.
“Someone who is fully involved in and enthusiastic about their work, and will act in a way that furthers
their organisation’s interest is what engagement means to me.”
— Canadian employee
Employee engagement benchmarks (% employees rated 5 on 5-point agreement scale)
I put a great deal
of effort into my
job, doing more
than is required
I care a great
deal about my
employer’s
success
I care a great
deal about my
employer’s
reputation
I am enthusiastic
about the work
I do
I am proud to
work for my
employer
I would
recommend my
employer to others
as a place to work
I am very
satisﬁed with
my job
I feel valued
as an employee
I feel a strong
connection to my
employer
23%24%26%28%
30%33%33%35%38%
30%(average)
Overall % of
employees who
are deeply engaged

04
THE BIG BANG: SOCIAL MEDIA’S IGNITION
OF EMPLOYEE ACTIVISM
Employees are sharing socially. For many, the divide
between work and personal lives barely exists.
For employers, the opportunity and challenge is to
embrace this new reality and understand what drives
employees to be positive activists. While it is not feasible
What some employers don’t realise is how critical social
media is to employee engagement and how it fuels
employee activism. Employees have multiple social
platforms on which they can air their likes and dislikes
of their jobs, bosses and organisations. While many
employers are fearful that their employees will destroy
their reputations with one easy click of a social media
“share” button, the fact is that we now live in an always-
connected-online world that is not going to reverse course.
As business leaders know, the impact of social media on an employer’s reputation is
now an everyday reality.
use at least one social media site for personal use
post messages, pictures or videos in social media
about employer often or from time-to-time
have shared praise or positive comments online
about employer
post about their messages, pictures or videos in
social media about employer often or from time-to-
time without any encouragement from employer
have shared criticism or negative comments online
about employer
have posted something about employer in social
media that they wish they hadn’t
88%
50%
39%
33%
16%
14%
Here are some eye-opening statistics from our research about employees:
According to LinkedIn research, 61% of LinkedIn
members who follow your organisation are willing to
be your brand ambassadors and share your Employee
Value Proposition with their networks.
How leaders are using digital communications and
modelling that use internally is the next frontier for
organisational change.
for every company or every sector to embrace social media
as an employee activist enabler, all employers need to be
prepared to rally their employee activists and strive to have
their supporters outnumber their detractors.

05
“As employee activists gain numbers and strength, organisations need to be prepared to facilitate the
activism of these employees. Internal communications needs to move beyond being company news briefs and
alerts to being more content-rich. Company storytelling is not just for external media anymore, it’s a way of
ensuring that employees are informed and have something meaningful to say about their employers.”
Kate Bullinger
Co-Lead, Global Employee Engagement & Change Management
Weber Shandwick
This analysis uncovered a sizeable segment of employees
— 21%, employee activists — who are all taking positive
actions (#1-#9 above) and nearly no negative actions. For a
workforce of 5,000, this means that
approximately 1,000 employees are
enthusiastically letting others know
they stand behind their employer.
21%
THE EMPLOYEE ACTIVIST IS NOW AMONGST US
Using segmentation modelling, all respondents were sorted by their reported actions
toward their employers — both supporting and detracting actions — to develop deeper,
more descriptive and more targetable profiles of the workforce.
Employees were asked if they had ever done any of the following:
1. Worn clothing or other accessories outside of
work with employer’s name or symbol
2. Done volunteer work for a cause employer supports
3. Recommended employer to others as a place
to work
4. Encouraged others to buy company’s products
or services
5. Voted for employer in a poll or contest
6. Made positive comments about employer where
others could see or read them
7. Made positive comments about employer to
friends or family
8. Defended employer to family and friends
9. Defended employer where others could see or
read it
10. Discouraged others from considering employer
as a place to work
11. Discouraged others from buying company’s
products or services
12. Made negative comments about employer where
others could see or read them
13. Made negative comments about employer to
friends or family

06
WHAT DRIVES EMPLOYEE ACTIVISM?
Our survey also asked respondents to rate their employers on a series of nearly
30 attitudinal statements covering a wide range of organisational qualities from
leadership to internal communications to HR (Human Resources) to CSR (Corporate
Social Responsibility). Regression analysis determined how much each statement was
correlated with the propensity for engagement and activism.
Significantly, we learned that leadership is most
important for influencing employee activism, but not
to the exclusion of other organisational activities and
characteristics. What this means is that leadership plays a
critical role in driving employee support, from making the
company an employer of choice to building a reputation
of trustworthiness and demonstrating that it listens and
responds to employees.
By modelling responsiveness, leaders show employees
that they value their ideas and intangibles such as
reputation and culture. Internal communications, fair
treatment of all employees regardless of race, gender, age,
sexual orientation or cultural differences, and community
responsibility are also not to be overlooked in terms of
deepening employee activism.
In comparing employee perceptions about each of these
drivers in our survey, we find that employers severely
underperform. That means that employers have a lot of
work to do to improve perceptions if they are to develop
additional activists and fully maximise the activism of
current activists. We address these issues later in the
report as we identify triggers of employee activism based
on targeted employee activist segments.
*These are the top drivers of activism out of 29 items presented to respondents. The Activism Impact Score is the average of all the components in
a set of multiple statements about each driver. Only the components that scored above the driver’s average are listed in this table. For each driver,
there are many other components, with lower scores, that comprise the average score.
Employee Activism Driver Top Components of Activism Score*
(individual score in parentheses)
Activism
Impact Score
Leadership
• Employer values employee ideas and opinions (82)
• Leadership makes it a good place to work (80)
• Employer has a very good reputation (78)
• Leadership is trustworthy (78)
• Leadership listens and responds well to employees (76)
75
Internal
Communications
• Employer does a good job of keeping employees informed (81)
• Employer communicates frequently with employees (77)
70
HR/Employee
Development
• Employees have many opportunities to grow and learn (83)
• Employer provides training and resources needed to do the
job well (77)
70
Corporate Social
Responsibility
(CSR)
• Employees are treated fairly regardless of their differences (69)
• Employer plays an active role in the community (68)
• Employer works to protect and improve the environment (68)
67

06 WHAT DRIVES EMPLOYEE ACTIVISM
“Our research proves that leadership has a catalytic impact on employee engagement and willingness to be an
ardent employer supporter. In the absence of trust in leadership, and credible and relevant communications
from leadership, organisations run the risk of having more detractors than activists.”
Renee Austin
Co-Lead, Global Employee Engagement Change Management
Weber Shandwick
Although social media is not included in the driver analysis,
its force can’t be ignored. Our survey found that one-third
of employers — 33% — encourage their employees to
use social media to share news and information about
the organisation. This sounds risky, but this social
encouragement has an outsized impact on employer
advocacy among employees. For example, employees with
socially-encouraging employers are significantly more likely
to help boost sales than employees whose employers aren’t
socially encouraging (72% vs. 48%, respectively).
Actions employees have ever taken for current employer (% employees who have taken these actions)
Encouraged others
to buy company’s
products or services
Recommended
employer to others
as a place to work
Madepositivecomments
aboutemployerwhere
otherscouldsee
orreadthem
Defended employer
to family and friends
Done volunteer
work for a cause
employer supports
Defended employer
where others could
see or read it
Voted for employer
in a poll or contest
72%
28%
54%
52%
60%
63%
68%
55%
48%
54%
32%
44%
30%
24% 22%
Employer encourages employee use of social media to share news and information about employer* Employer DOES NOT encourage
*All actions are signiﬁcantly higher than those whose employers don’t encourage brand socialisation
“An engaged employee is an active member of
the workforce that is part of the team. Knows
the business and the values and spreads a
positive message. On the look-out for new
and innovative ways to do business.”
— Australian employee

06 WHAT DRIVES EMPLOYEE ACTIVISM
How do these employers encourage their employees to be social stewards?
At a very basic level, they provide the tools and content to enable sharing, but a wide variety of tactics
requiring modest investment are also used.
Provide readily accessible tools for employees to use in
social media (55%)
Provide messages about the employer for employees to use
in social media (50%)
Provide easy-to-understand guidelines to employees for
using social media (42%)
Ask employees to stay alert to social media postings about
the employer (39%)
Provide training for how to use social media properly (37%)
Provide access to social media at work (35%)
Provide updates about changes in social media so that employ-
ees can stay current on the latest tools and uses (35%)
Provide employees with one or more social media accounts
to use (13%)
How does your employer
encourage employees to use
social media to share news
and information about your
work or your employer?
Zappos encourages employees to include company information and opinions on their Facebook, Twitter and
personal blogs in addition to their LinkedIn profile. The company even has a Twitter aggregate of all employee
twitter feeds. This serves as an excellent word-of-mouth platform for marketing as well as recruitment.
VoiceStorm by Dynamic Signal is a social advocacy platform that gives employees access to sharable
messages and content in a convenient and brand-safe environment through a social media hub. Employees are
encouraged to engage with this platform by earning points that they can redeem for rewards and employers
are reassured that the content meets corporate compliancy guidelines.

07
the workforce activism spectrum
Our segmentation model identified six distinct segments of employees, including
the 21% segment noted earlier who we call ProActivists because of their high
engagement and activist profile.
ReActivists
Mostly take positive
actions but also have a high
propensity for detraction.
Have an average level of
engagement. Are critical
of workplace conditions.
Highly social.
HyperActives
The wildcard of employee activism.
Have the most potential to both
help and damage employer’s
reputation. Half of them have
posted something online about
their employer that they regret.
Are the most engaged next to
ProActivists. Two-thirds have a
job that entails social media so are
highly social.
ProActivists
The embodiment of employee
activism. Conduct the most
positive actions with nearly
no negative actions. Have
the highest level of employer
engagement. Highly social.
21%
26%
7%
11%
13%
22% PreActivists
All take positive
actions but not
nearly as many
positive actions as
ProActivists. Engage
in more negative actions
than ProActivists. Actions
are not as social as those of
ProActivists. Have an average
level of engagement.
Detractors
All take negative actions
against their employer.
Are the least engaged
and are the most
distrustful of leadership.
Not social so damage is
contained offline.
InActives
Report little or no employer
support or detraction behaviours.
Almost as unengaged as
Detractors. Are the least likely
to put a great deal of effort into
their jobs and few can explain to
others what their employer does.
Little motivates them to do a
good job, even pay increases.

07 the workforce activism spectrum
With the exception of Japan, each of the 15 markets in our study has each of these segments (Japan has no HyperActives
and few ProActivists). However, some segments are concentrated more heavily in certain markets.
PreActivists
HyperActives
Detractors
ProActivists
PreActivists
Detractors
ProActivists
HyperActives
ReActivists
ProActivists
HyperActives
ReActivists
InActives
ProActivists
PreActivists

08
get to know THY segments
The six employee segments show considerable variation in demographics, employer
engagement, job description, employer profile and social media confidence.
ProActivists
Highest employer engagement level
Millennial
University-educated
Executive/managerial
Use social media for work
PreActivists
Average employer engagement level
Younger Boomers
Least likely to use social media
for work
ReActivists
Average employer engagement level
Millennial
University-educated
Executive/managerial
Work the fewest hours
Use social media for work
Most likely to work for a B2C
Experienced top-tier change event
Often post online about work
Regret posting something about work
Critical of employer’s reputation,
diversity practices, training/
resources, workplace safety and code
of conduct
Lowest employer engagement level
Most likely to be female
Least likely to be Millennial
Least likely to be university-educated
Most likely to have physical/manual job
Longest tenured
Most likely to work for domestic operation
Most likely to have experienced top-tier
change event
Least likely to use social media for work
Highly distrustful of employer leadership
Detractors
The chart below points out each segment’s distinctive traits relative to the average employee in our study.
It is worth noting that no segment is “all of anything.” These traits are directional skews, not absolutes.
Low employer engagement level
Least likely to be executive/managerial
Least likely to have experienced any kind of change event
Least likely to have a personal social media account
Least likely to use social media for work
Unmotivated to perform well for work,
even by pay increases
InActives
HyperActives
High employer engagement level
Most likely to be male
Most likely to be Millennial
Most likely to be university-educated
Most likely to have an executive/
managerial or artistic/creative job
Work the most hours
Most use social media for work
Most likely to regret posting something
online about work
Work for a multinational
Most likely to work for a B2B
Care more about recognition from top
leadership than pay increases

08 GET TO KNOW THY SEGMENTS
After a major automobile manufacturer’s reputation for quality took a serious hit because of widespread
recalls, the company launched an ad campaign featuring its employees discussing how they personally
ensure every vehicle is built to the highest calibre. In describing the campaign, one executive said, “[Our
employees’] incredible passion, commitment to quality, safety for our customers is what has built our
reputation. We want to show this human face.The real, authentic [company].”
“Millennials work more closely
together, leverage right- and
left-brain skills, ask the right
questions, learn faster and
take risks previous generations
resisted. They truly want to
change the world and use
technology to do so.”
Mike Marasco
Leader of Northwestern University’s
NUvention programme, The New
York Times, November 9, 2013
A Global Fortune 500 bank
experienced reputational
damage because of a sensitive
employee lay-off in which the
CEO was criticised in the media.
Coming to the bank’s defence:
employees who wanted to know
how they could help.
CMO
Employee
What can I do to help?
ProActivists are the employees every leader or manager wants on his
or her team because their actions are entirely positive and inﬂuential.
They are an organisation’s brand and reputation champions. They
are the most highly engaged segment, with 49% reporting deep
engagement, compared to the average 30% for employees overall.
Compared to the average employee in our study, ProActivists are more likely to
be Millennials (18-36 years old) and university-educated. However, this is not
to suggest they are strictly highly educated Milliennials — 22% do not have a
university degree and 39% are GenX or older. They are the most likely of any
group to be executives or managers, but not all are (43% vs. global average of
30%). They are the most likely segment to have multiple social media accounts
for personal use and are more likely than employees overall to use social media
as part of their jobs (these are not, however, all digital or IT jobs; they may be
using social media for competitive intelligence, marketing, etc.). Nearly half
(46%) report that they often post about work or their employer on social media.
PreActivists have high potential to become ProActivists;
impeding their activism is a relatively low level of social media
usage, but they are engaged (34%) and predominately positive
action-takers ofﬂine. As the largest segment representing more
than one-quarter of employees (26%), they are worth investing
resources in.
Compared to the average employee in our study, PreActivists are slightly
more likely to be Younger Boomers (49-58 years old) and are less likely to
have a university degree. While they are just as likely to have a personal social
media account as employees overall, they are less likely to use social media
for their job, which is probably one reason their activism is kept to a close
circle of friends and family.

08 GET TO KNOW THY SEGMENTS
HyperActives are taking positive actions
but their adverse actions are likely
negating their positives. Because their
negative behaviours don’t reﬂect their
high engagement level (44%), they can
alternatively be thought of as “wildcards.”
HyperActives are the most likely of the segments to be men,
Millennials and university graduates and to have an executive/
managerial or artistic/creative job.They put in the most
hours at work of any segment.They are very social media
savvy, as 63% of them use social media as part of their jobs.
Interestingly, they are more motivated than any other segment
by top leadership recognition. Because leadership recognition
is slightly more inspiring to them than pay increases, they may
be the “ladder climbers” of the employee universe.
LinkedIn research shows that engaged “employer promoters” have 40% MORE internal company connections
than extreme detractors.
In October 2013, a woman named
Marina Shifrin posted a video of herself
on YouTube explaining why she was
quitting her job while dancing around
her Taiwanese ofﬁce during the middle
of the night. Within weeks of its release,
the video had more than 16 million
views and she appeared on major
entertainment broadcast shows.
Marina is an example of a ReActivist.
ReActivists are also behaving both positively
and negatively, but can be very critical of internal
actions by their employers and voice those
criticisms publicly. ReActivists’ engagement level
falls slightly below average (26%).
Compared to the average employee, ReActivists are more
likely to be Millennials. Of all our segments, they work
the fewest hours per week and are employed by relatively
smaller companies (between 500 and 1,000 employees).
They are more likely than average to work for an employer
that has recently endured a top-tier change event, such as
extensive lay-offs, a merger/acquisition or a crisis/disaster.
They are also more likely than average to have a job that
entails using social media, although not to the same extent
as HyperActives, and half of them often post about work or
their employer on social media.

InActives, a large segment of more than
one in five (22%) employees, exhibit
minimal positive or negative behaviours.
They are highly unengaged, with an average
engagement level of just 16%, and little
motivates them to do a good job — pay increases top
their list but that is cited by only 43% of them. We do
not recommend that employers invest in an employee
activism programme for this segment. The focus for
InActives should be on building engagement instead.
Compared to the average employee, InActives are
more likely to be over 36 years of age and are the
least likely to be executive/managerial. They are also
the least likely to report that their employer recently
experienced a change event and to be on social media.
Detractors’ engagement level seems almost
beyond repair (12%).They are not candidates
to be employee activists, so employers need
to defuse their criticism and lessen their
potential reputational harm.
Compared to the average employee, Detractors skew
female, older than 36 and not university-educated. They
are the most likely group to have a physical/manual
job, are the longest tenured and are less likely than the
average employee to work at headquarters. They are also
the most likely to work for an employer that has recently
undergone a major change event, likely contributing to an
exceptionally high lack of leadership trust. While they are
just as likely as the average employee to use social media
in their personal lives, they are less likely to have multiple
accounts or to use social media as part of their job.
“A worker who is engaged is a person who truly cares about the organisation for which he/she
works, a person who does more than ‘show up’ for work, a person who gives his/her ‘all’ on the job.”
— U.S. employee
08 get to know thy segments

Employees Rising: Seizing the Opportunity in Employee Activism
In addition to the diverse profiles just discussed, the
segments also differ in their perceptions of the activism
drivers. This requires employers to “flip different
switches” on various aspects of leadership, internal
communications, human resources and corporate social
responsibility in order to effectively drive activism or
reduce detraction. Here are four strategies for activating
employees:
1. Accelerate the activism of ProActivists. Ignite the
activism of PreActivists and HyperActives
2. Negate the negatives for ReActivists and Detractors
3. Communicate in ways that matter
4. Customise strategies and tactics for each segment
“An engaged employee is one who is very much
devoted to his work and other aspects of the
company, be it events, volunteer work or
promotion of certain sales.”
— Singapore employee
09
the playbook for activating employees

09 the playbook for activating employees
Every one of the top drivers of activism is rated highly
by ProActivists (hence, their activism!). To sustain
their ProActivist status, this segment needs continual
reinforcement of what they perceive as their employers’
best traits, leading with their employer’s reputation (48%)
and fair treatment of all employees regardless of race,
gender, age, sexual orientation or cultural differences
(48%). PreActivists need more convincing to spur their
activism but fair treatment of all employees is most
meaningful to them (43%). HyperActives also rate the top
drivers highly but they need additional reinforcement of
these perceptions so that their positive actions overcome
their negative inclinations. They rate their employers
most highly on keeping employees informed (45%),
so internal communications is a must-have for turning
their activism on.
PreActivists are less social media savvy, and therefore
presumably less social media confident, than ProActivists
and HyperActives. More than one-third of them say they
would be more inclined to use social media to share news
and information about their work or employer if they
were given easy-to-understand guidelines (34%), access
to social media at work (32%) or the right tools (31%).
Employers should take note — these provisions are
fairly basic and would help turn many PreActivists into
ProActivists.
Accelerate the activism of ProActivists. Ignite the activism of PreActivists
and HyperActives
1.
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Leadership Internal
communications
Human Resources/
Policies
Corporate social
responsibility
ProActivists HyperActivesPreActivists
Em
ployervaluesem
ployeeideasandopinions
Leadershipm
akesitagoodplacetowork
Em
ployerhasaverygoodreputation
Leadershipistrustworthy
Leadershiplistensandrespondswelltoem
ployees
Em
ployerdoesagoodjobofkeepingem
ployeesinform
ed
Em
ployercom
m
unicatesfrequentlywithem
ployees
Em
ployeeshavem
anyopportunitiestogrow
andlearn
Em
ployerprovidestrainingandresourcesneededtodojob
Em
ployeesaretreatedfairlyregardlessoftheirdifferences
Em
ployerplaysanactiveroleinthecom
m
unity
Em
ployerworkstoprotectandim
provetheenvironm
ent
ProActivists HyperActivesPreActivists
Perceptions of top drivers of activism (% employees rated 5 on 5-point agreement scale)

Negate the negatives for ReActivists and Detractors
ReActivists are more critical than the average employee
of their employers’ reputations, provision of training and
resources, and climate of diversity and inclusion. These
perceptions need to be improved to mobilise their activism
or at least take the edge off of their negativity. Although
not a driver of activism, ReActivists also rate their
employer more harshly on safe working conditions than
the average employee (27% vs. 34%). Perhaps employers
should try competing for some of the Best Places to Work
lists and improving their workplace benefits to counter
their negative workplace perceptions. With more than
one-quarter (27%) of ReActivists often posting something
negative online about their employer, their criticisms need
to be addressed.
Not surprisingly, every one of the top drivers of activism is
rated very poorly by Detractors. Their weakest perception
is trust in leadership — only 6% of them rate leadership
as trustworthy — but taken altogether, none of the drivers
are perceived positively. Employers should focus first on
leadership issues since leadership is the most important
driver of activism to begin building trust and reputation.
2.
“A professional who is dedicated, interested and
always looking to give their best for the
company is engaged with their employer.”
— Brazilian employee
Perceptions of top drivers of activism (% employees rated 5 on 5-point agreement scale)
ReActivists Detractors
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Leadership Internal
communications
Human Resources/
Policies
Corporate social
responsibility
ReActivists Detractors
Em
ployervaluesem
ployeeideasandopinions
Leadershipm
akesitagoodplacetowork
Em
ployerhasaverygoodreputation
Leadershipistrustworthy
Leadershiplistensandrespondswelltoem
ployees
Em
ployerdoesagoodjobofkeepingem
ployeesinform
ed
Em
ployercom
m
unicatesfrequentlywithem
ployees
Em
ployeeshavem
anyopportunitiestogrow
andlearn
Em
ployerprovidestrainingandresourcesneededtodojob
Em
ployeesaretreatedfairlyregardlessoftheirdifferences
Em
ployerplaysanactiveroleinthecom
m
unity
Em
ployerworkstoprotectandim
provetheenvironm
ent

Communicate in ways that matter
Employees, regardless of their segment, would like their
employers to communicate with them more frequently
through written means (73%). Work email is the driving
force behind written communications (48%). It is
surprising in this high-tech digital world that email is the
default communications method, but perhaps employees
like the control that comes with deciding when to open and
respond to email, or perhaps it is what they know best and
can’t imagine anything being easier or more efficient.
“There’s no doubt organisations have begun to realise significant value from largely external uses of social.
Yet internal applications have barely begun to tap their full potential, even though about two-thirds of social’s
estimated economic value stems from improved collaboration and communication within enterprises. Although
more than 80 per cent of executives say their companies deploy social technologies, few have figured out how
to use them in ways that could have a large-scale, replicable, and measurable impact at an enterprise level. “
“Building the Social Enterprise,” McKinsey Quarterly, November 2013
Beyond email, segments diverge on other forms of
employer communications they would like more often.
Digital/Online, driven by intranets and social media,
is in greater demand by the most social media savvy
— ProActivists, HyperActives and ReActivists. In-
person meetings are more important to ProActivists,
PreActivists and Detractors than to other segments.
Surprisingly, InActives are no less amenable to any form
of communications than other segments. This may be
a sign that there is some hope of engaging this very
passive group.
3.
0
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
ProActivists PreActivists HyperActives ReActivists Detractors InActives
Written Digital/Online Face-to-Face Telecommunications
Page 19
Communications employees would like to receive more often

Customise strategies and tactics for each segment
Given the diverse nature of the workforce segments, it is
clear that mobilising employee activists cannot be a “one-
size-fits-all” approach. Based on our survey analysis, here
are our recommendations, by segment, for an employer
considering launching an employee activist programme to
transform their organisation, accelerate change or
drive performance:
4.
“An engaged employee is one who is involved in his work, satisfied with what he is doing and
contributes positively in the organisation.”
— Indian employee
The employee activism tip sheet
Segment Strategy Tactics
Leverage and empower
their activism
• Maintain their high engagement level
• Continually reinforce their perceptions of top activism drivers
• Provide socially sharable content that showcases the drivers they rate highest
• Improve leadership drivers, especially responsiveness to employees
Ignite their activism:
Upgrade to ProActivists
• Improve leadership drivers, especially responsiveness to employees
• Provide a social activism platform: social media guidelines, training and access
Handle with care:
Upgrade to ProActivists
• Feed their need to share with positive messages and make those messages
socially sharable
• Make handy and reinforce social media guidelines
• Communicate with them frequently
• Have senior management acknowledge their contributions
Attend to internal
matters
• Improve perceptions of all top drivers
• Do a better job disseminating information about employer values and goals
• Focus internal communications messages on internal issues, such as employee training
and diversity
• Provide social media tools, guidelines, work access and sharable messages
Brace for and defuse
• Fix negative leadership trust perceptions
• Implement a change management programme even if it is after the fact
• Ensure social media guidelines are in place and well-understood. Even though this segment
is not highly social, most have a personal social media account
• Ensure online monitoring tools are in place to flag behaviour that is in violation of
organisation’s social policies
Focus on engagement,
not activism
• Implement a localised engagement programme with direct supervisors identifying InActives
and enacting an engagement plan
• Review Weber Shandwick UK’s Science of Ingagement study which provides guidance
on building engagement
ProActivists
PreActivists
HyperActives
ReActivists
Detractors
InActives
Page 22Employees Rising: Seizing the Opportunity in Employee Activism Page 22Employees Rising: Seizing the Opportunity in Employee Activism

10
IN CLOSING
Weber Shandwick’s Employees Rising: Seizing the Opportunity in Employee
Activism was designed to help organisations recognise and understand that
employee activism is a movement coming their way.
It needs to be accepted and proactively managed. Just
focusing on employee ambassadors or champions is
not enough anymore in an always-on and super-enabled
environment. Employers will increasingly need a band of
employees who can take action by spreading the right
messages for them, helping them recruit the best of the best
or defending their position when they are under scrutiny.
Organisations need to move quickly since employees
are already taking matters into their own hands and, left
unattended for too long, will define their employers’ brands
and reputations on their own. Social media enhances this risk,
but also the opportunities.
To ensure they define brand and reputation in the most
authentic light and win support during the tough times as
well as the easier ones, employers need to provide a culture
of trust that is rooted at the leadership level. Employers
need to communicate with employees in ways that are
relevant to them, with messages tailored for a variety of
worker segments.
Employees will continue to rise to new heights of influence.
This influence needs to be tapped into so that employers
can maximise the opportunity of this exciting and
transformative movement.
“Weber Shandwick’s new study demonstrates how
organisations need to think ahead as to what is
next. Our research uncovered an emerging trend of
vital importance for employers looking to mobilise
support as they exit difficult times and transform
their organisations to be successful in a fast-
approaching future.”
Leslie Gaines-Ross
Chief Reputation Strategist
Weber Shandwick

Jack Leslie
Chairman
Weber Shandwick
jleslie@webershandwick.com
Andy Polansky
CEO
Weber Shandwick
apolansky@webershandwick.com
Gail Heimann
President and Chief Strategy Officer
Weber Shandwick
gheimann@webershandwick.com
Cathy Calhoun
Chief Client Officer
Weber Shandwick
ccalhoun@webershandwick.com
Sara Gavin
President, North America
Weber Shandwick
sgavin@webershandwick.com
Micho Spring
Chair, Global Corporate Practice
Weber Shandwick
mspring@webershandwick.com
Paul Jensen
President, North American Corporate Practice
Weber Shandwick
pjensen@webershandwick.com
Leslie Gaines-Ross
Chief Reputation Strategist
Weber Shandwick
lgaines-ross@webershandwick.com
Renee Austin
Co-Lead, Global Employee
Engagement Change Management
Weber Shandwick
raustin@webershandwick.com
Kate Bullinger
Co-Lead, Global Employee
Engagement Change Management
Weber Shandwick
kbullinger@webershandwick.com
Colin Byrne
Chief Executive Officer, UK Europe
Weber Shandwick
cbyrne@webershandwick.com
Jim Donaldson
Executive Vice President, Corporate
Communications EMEA
Weber Shandwick
jdonaldson@webershandwick.com
Tim Sutton
Chairman, Asia Pacific
Weber Shandwick
tsutton@webershandwick.com
Tyler Kim
Head of Corporate Crisis,
Asia Pacific
Weber Shandwick
tyler.kim@webershandwick.com
Zé Schiavoni
CEO, S2Publicom
Weber Shandwick
ze.schiavoni@s2publicom.com.br
Bradley Honan
CEO
KRC Research
bhonan@webershandwick.com
You can also visit:
www.webershandwick.com
For more information about Employees Rising: Seizing the Opportunity in Employee Activism,
or Weber Shandwick’s Employee Engagement Change Management services, please contact:
/WeberShandwick
@WeberShandwick
/WeberShandwick
/Company/Weber-Shandwick
/WeberShandwickGlobal
+WeberShandwick
Employees Rising: Seizing the Opportunity in Employee Activism Page 24

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