Resources
Boards need to understand their organisation's key drivers of profitability
JUNE 2009
This is the fourth in a series of boardroom perspectives based on the views of 625 directors who sit on 79 different Australian and New Zealand boards. It deals with boardroom perspectives on whether boards are making measurable impacts on long term performance by making significant contributions to their organisation’s direction, strategy and planning.
Little has been known about what happens behind the boardroom door in relation to setting the organisation’s direction. This research report now shows that most boards are getting the long term direction pretty much right, but some boards need to do better with their consideration, understanding and sign-off of their organisation's strategic plans.
Read this study (543 KB, PDF) »
Engagement can be earned based on workforce demographics
MAY 2009
In times of economic doom and gloom, employee engagement can drop off because employees lose confidence and become fearful about the organisation’s future. If there have been staff redundancies within an organisation or targets aren’t being met, there can be a downward spiral effect on employee productivity which can further eat into organisation performance. However, when employees are emotionally and psychologically engaged with an organisation, it will perform more effectively. This has a flow on effect as employees become even more engaged.
Find out how different groups of employees become emotionally engaged according to career stage, gender and tenure.
Read this study (435 KB, PDF) »
Boards need to improve the performance culture of their organisations
MAY 2009
This is the third in a series of boardroom perspectives based on the views of 625 directors who sit on 79 different Australian and New Zealand boards. It deals with boardroom perspectives on the performance management systems and culture of their organisations.
The Global Financial Crisis provides organisations with a good opportunity to recalibrate their thinking around what is important in terms of performance management systems and culture.
Boards must provide leadership and direction in relation to these very important issues and firm oversight of setting review processes.
Read this study (238 KB, PDF) »
CEO performance and remuneration: A boardroom perspective
An Insync Surveys study in conjunction with Board Benchmarking
APRIL 2009
This is the second in a series of boardroom perspectives based on the views of 625 directors who sit on 79 different Australian and New Zealand boards. It deals with boardroom perspectives on CEO performance and CEO and senior management remuneration.
Remuneration and in particular the bonus packages of CEOs and senior management have been in the spotlight across the globe in recent times. It will probably take some time before the community, shareholders, boards and management get on the same page in terms of what constitutes an appropriate remuneration package. The Global Financial Crisis provides organisations with a good opportunity to recalibrate their thinking. Boards must provide leadership and direction in relation to this very important issue.
Read this study (292 KB, PDF) »
Library sets new benchmark highs
MAY 2009
Department of Human Services' Library and Information Service (LIS) focuses on providing access to information via its employees' desktops. There's one library location in Melbourne with seven staff but they provide an information service to the entire organisation of 13,000 employees, spread across regional and metropolitan Victoria. This means they must provide an online service.
LIS wanted to know what users thought about their service so they could make informed decisions to improve delivery and access. The survey results showed a good alignment to client expectations, with no critical areas for concern.
Ms Staggs, Manager of the LIS, said: "The whole experience was good. We thought we were doing okay, but this survey showed us how well we were performing in the context of other libraries. It validated our performance".
Read this case study (80 KB, PDF) »
Aligning staff in tough times is essential for Australian air Express
Uncertain economic times
In a rapidly evolving and competitive market such as freight and logistics, an equally rapid capacity for response is mandatory, especially when that market is facing uncertain economic times. AaE’s general manager, human resources Dominic Andreacchio says his business has already noticed the impact of the changed economic conditions on AaE’s operations, and suspects that the business has not felt the worst of it yet.
Surveying staff to get buy-in and raise the bar
Three years ago AaE partnered with Insync Surveys, and since then the survey process has become a key element in ensuring that staff are aligned with the business' directions and goals, which is essential in tough times.
“We have made a quantum leap from being the rough-and-ready transport operation that we were when we first started to being a more sophisticated logistics solutions company that puts the customer first,” says Dominic.
“I had used other organisational surveys before but they were fairly general, rather than linking back to the employees’ alignment to organisational strategy and their performance against that strategy,” Dominic says.
Read this case study (197 KB, PDF) »
Risk management in the boardroom
An Insync Surveys study in conjunction with
Board Benchmarking
DECEMBER 2008
Introduction
Views of 625 directors who sit on 79 different Australian and New Zealand boards are shared in this comprehensive study about risk management in their own organisations.
The spotlight is likely to shine more brightly on risk management as economic times become more difficult and volatile. With a tightening economic climate, governments, shareholders, directors and management should expect a significant increase in scrutiny over the next few years. Oversight and review of the risk management practices and culture, in all types of organisations, are paramount. Boards must provide appropriate leadership and direction in relation to these important issues.
Read the study (306 KB, PDF) »
Key findings
This study has revealed that:
- most directors (83%) believe they set the right “tone at the top” for their organisations but there are large gaps in perceptions of the “right tone” between directors under 45 years (with just 66% agreeing) and over 64 years (with an overwhelming 90% agreeing) (page 7)
- some boards and management need to do more to get on the same page in relation to their organisation’s risk appetite, with only 49% of directors overall saying their board and management have an agreed view on the organisation’s risk appetite for each significant risk (page 8)
- some boards can do more to ensure their organisations have appropriate risk management systems, including an appropriate risk culture, internal controls and compliance procedures; with over half of the 625 directors in the research sample either disagreeing or not sure that their organisation has an effective enterprise risk management system (page 9 to 12)
- directors under 45 years of age are considerably more critical of their organisations than directors over 64, with a difference in perception of up to 35%, in terms of internal control systems and compliance procedures (page 11 and 12)
Read the study (328 KB, PDF) »
The Insync Surveys Alignment Update
November 2008 A series of five reports which will confirm or debunk common perceptions held by CEOs and HR leaders. The reports look at: leadership; engagement and retention; corporate social responsibility and risk management; reward and recognition; and market responsiveness.
Over 14,000 survey responses gathered from our Organisation Alignment Survey were used. The Organisation Alignment Survey measures the connection of an organisation’s vision and strategy with the actions, attitudes and outcomes of its employees. A range of organisations are represented, including not-for-profit organisations and those from the public and private sectors.
Key findings:
- Managers lose credibility with their staff over time
- Employees between 25 and 45 years of age are frustrated as they don’t believe their skills and talents are utilised to their full potential
- Only a little more than half of all employees believe their organisation is giving back to the community
- Employees are disappointed by the lack of opportunities for high performing employees to progress in their organisation, with over 60% of respondents unsure or disagreeing that their organisation is committed to promoting the right people
- Smaller organisations are more committed to retaining customers than their larger counterparts; 79% of employees from organisations with 20-49 staff believe their employer is committed to achieving long term customer loyalty
Read the full report (393 KB, PDF) »
Alternatively, download the individual reports by clicking on the links below.
- Leadership
- Engagement and retention
- Corporate social responsibility and risk management
- Reward and recognition
- Market responsiveness
- employees are likely to stay longer with an organisation that demonstrates a commitment to the environment
- employees are an important way of winning new customers
- increased awareness of environmental issues means corporate social responsibility and environmental responsibility remain strong factors in an organisation’s value proposition to employees
- reveal gaps in customer satisfaction and employee satisfaction to highlight areas of improvement for growth and profit
- measure the alignment of employee behaviours with customer needs
- help organisations understand how their initiatives can increase both employee and customer satisfaction
How green are we anyway?
29 August 2008 How green is your organisation? You might not have asked this question before, but to understand the impact of employees’ perceptions of your organisation’s environmental responsibility, maybe you should.
Insync Surveys asked this question of over 14,000 survey respondents.
One of the discoveries is that age has the biggest impact on employees’ expectations of their employer’s environmental performance. 25-34 year olds hold organisations to a higher standard than younger and older employees.
Level of education was also researched. Insync Surveys found that people in jobs requiring a university degree are more critical than others in their assessment of their employer’s environmental performance.
What your people think of your environmental performance is important for a number of reasons:
Read the study (511 KB, PDF) »
Foster’s Group uses Insync Surveys’ Exit Survey to develop and retain its employees
August 2008 Foster’s Group, a premium global beverage company, employs over 6000 people globally and their products are sold in more than 155 countries. The Foster's Group HR team continues uses the Insync Surveys Exit Survey to develop and retain employees. As a result, the HR team is in tune with the reasons their employees leave. This has allowed them to focus on the key areas of talent management, workforce engagement and career development.
Read this case study (140 KB, PDF) »
The Insync Surveys Retention Review
24 September 2007 Our research shows that nearly 90% of employee turnover is avoidable with differentiated strategies for demographic groups.
Insync Surveys has released The Insync Surveys Retention Review, a report into why different groups of employees leave organisations in the current Australian market.
James Garriock, Insync Surveys’ Chief Operating Officer, said: “Our research shows that eighty-nine per cent of staff turnover is within the employer’s control but not with a one size fits all approach.”
The study reviewed benchmarkable exit survey data from 1,181 employees over the last year from 12 Australian-based organisations of 150 to 5,000 employees. Read this research paper (852 KB, PDF) »
Presentations
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Emotional Intelligence:
21 March 2007 Enriching your workplace through positive relationships. By Dr Erika Szerda
View this presentation (1mb) »
White papers and case studies
Please note that all white papers are in PDF format. You may need the Adobe Acrobat Reader to view them.
Meshing customer and employee research for improved organisational performance
1 February 2008 This white paper explores the benefit to organisations of integrating employee and customer research.
This approach can:
To measure success of improvement initiatives, information on the Net Promoter Score (NPS*) is shared as a simple metric that organisations can use to understand if employees and customers are promoting or damaging your company’s reputation through word of mouth. This is worth knowing because NPS has been correlated with future business growth. Net Promoter Scores are also discussed in terms of goal setting so all employees are striving towards success and focused on boosting customer loyalty.
* Net Promoter is a registered trademark of Satmetrix Systems, inc., Bain & Company and Fred Reichheld
Read this white paper (290 KB, PDF) »
First Samuel keeps a professional edge with an Insync Surveys Client Satisfaction Survey
December 2007 First Samuel, a boutique investment house, uses the Insync Surveys Customer Satisfaction Survey annually to constantly and objectively learn how they’re performing and how they can improve.
Anthony Starkins, Founder and Director of First Samuel, says: “They (Insync Surveys) work hard to deliver insights which make a difference to my clients, and to my business.” Read this case study (147 KB, PDF) »
Ambit Recruitment uses Insync Surveys’ Organisation Alignment Survey to unify and empower employees
About Ambit Recruitment
4 September 2007 The year 2002 was huge for Ambit Recruitment. It acquired five recruitment businesses and began to experience enormous growth. It’s no surprise that it was named a BRW Fast 100 company in 2005 and is today one of Australia’s most successful privately owned recruitment firms. Read this case study (299 KB, PDF) »Conducting Employee Surveys in China
11 May 2007 With the growth of the Chinese economy and endeavours by global organisations to build businesses in China, discovering “what Chinese employees think” has received increased attention. Read this white paper (266 KB, PDF) »
ELTHAM College of Education uses our Education Insync staff survey for educational transformation
20 April 2007 Dr David Warner, the ELTHAM’s CEO/Principal and author of the book Schooling for the Knowledge Era, selected Insync Surveys’ Education Insync to define its schools issues and give direction in terms of strategy and tactics. Read this case study (397 KB, PDF) »
ALSTOM Power Service benchmarks performance to boost customer satisfaction
February 2007 ALSTOM Power Service is the largest after-market service provider to the power industry in Australia and New Zealand. It has approximately 500 full time employees but this can increase to over 1000 people during a major power outage.
Peter Bounsall, ALSTOM Power Service’s Executive General Manager Business Systems and Processes, says: “As part of achieving our loyalty goals, we set out to measure customer satisfaction so we could develop a path forward to improve our client service delivery capabilities.” Read this case study »
Is Net Promoter1 a replacement for an Employee Opinion Survey?
February 2007 Is the Net Promoter Score1 an effective replacement for an organisation-wide Employee Opinion Survey? In short: No
1. Net Promoter is a registered trademark of Satmetrix Systems, Inc., Bain & Company and Fred Reichheld Read this white paper »
Cardinal Health breaks through with an Insync Surveys Customer Satisfaction Survey
February 2007 As part of a push to build cross functional relationships and improve processes, Managing Director Ronda Jacobs established 10 breakthrough teams.
Lisa Holland, a Senior Planner at Cardinal Health, was selected for the customer service breakthrough team, along with representatives from the laboratory, sales and marketing, customer service and production. Read this case study »
Cytyc strengthens its edge with Insync Surveys’ Pulse Customer Satisfaction Survey
November 2006 Cytyc offers the most widely used technology for cervical cancer screening today and it saw huge value in getting closer to customers with a professional survey despite a stronghold in a niche market.
“To gather meaningful customer feedback, the time came to get our survey process professionally managed,” says Paul Smolders, Cytyc’s Service and Quality Manager. Read this case study »
Capture the hearts and minds of your employees: The business case behind employee entry and exit surveys
November 2006 Keeping talented employees is a critical success factor given the current skills shortage. Employers need to devise new approaches to retain younger staff as baby boomers retire. The new generation of workers have high expectations in an employment market that lets them be choosy. It’s also important to look at ways of keeping older staff, as the pool of younger resources will not be big enough. Read this white paper »
Organisation Alignment: Repositioning to Achieve Performance Outcomes
October 2006 The concept of “alignment” relates to the process of continuous repositioning. Put simply, this involves regularly improving what an organisation does to make sure everything is linked to a common direction… Read this white paper »