More than three-quarters (80%) of respondents are prepared to speak about the positive aspects of their work on social media, according to research by communications organisation Portland.
Its Creating employee advocates: the role of internal communications report, which surveyed 2,000 UK and US employees, also found that less than one third (30%) of respondents can recall when they were last inspired to speak positively about their organisation.
The research also found:
- 88% of respondents are proud of the work their organisation does.
- 5% of respondents share news about their employer on social media.
- 77% of respondents under the age of 34 use social media at work at least once a day.
- Half (50%) of respondents are connected to fellow employees on Facebook and messaging service WhatsApp.
Siobhan Newmarch (pictured), director at Portland, said: “We know from our research that the majority of employees are willing to share positive aspects of their work, but very few do. Employees are connected to social networks larger and deeper than the organisations they work for. Social media means these networks can be activated and amplified very quickly.
“As levels of public trust for corporations, politicians and the media continues to erode, this makes employees more important than ever before in shaping [an] organisation’s positive reputation. Employers need to think about what is preventing their employees from being ambassadors; and how to empower them to become advocates.”