New study finds majority of employees within corporate America believe companies need to play more active role in addressing important societal issues

ST. LOUIS, May 23, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- A new survey released today, Corporate America's POV, from opinion research and issues management consultancy Povaddo reveals that more than half (57 percent) of those working in America's largest companies feel that their employers should play a more active role in addressing important societal issues. And there is even greater support when looking at specific issues like equal opportunity in the workplace, healthcare reform, and renewable energy. Other key findings from this nationwide survey include:

• 50 percent of workers feel their company and/or CEO is facing growing internal and/or external pressure to be more vocal on important societal issues.
• 45 percent say corporate America's role in addressing issues is more important than it was a year ago compared to just 11 percent who say less important.
• 44 percent foresee corporate America's role in addressing societal issues increasing over the next year; only 18 percent see it decreasing.

"These findings quantify several timely and important questions about how the role of companies is evolving in a world that's constantly becoming more complex," said William Stewart, president and founder of Povaddo.

Despite these figures, only 35 percent of respondents feel assured that their CEO has a finger on the pulse of employee attitudes towards today's major societal issues. This is significant because roughly half of those surveyed (45 percent) indicate that the actions a company takes to help influence important societal issues impact their decision to maintain or pursue employment with a company. More specifically, 38 percent say they would be less likely to continue working for the company long-term if their company and/or CEO made zero effort to make a difference on an important societal issue.

"C-suites need to communicate to employees that they're aware of the important issues facing society; that these topics are on the company's radar," said Stewart. "Whether a CEO is perceived to have his or her finger on the pulse of employee attitudes towards important societal issues has a significant impact on how employees view their company and their overall connectedness to it."

Using a series of segmentation questions, Povaddo estimates that 15 percent of the workforce in corporate America can be categorized as "employee activists." The survey finds that Millennials are three times more likely than Boomers to fall into this category (26 percent versus nine percent, respectively); there is also a significant gap between those who are in management positions (20 percent) and those who are not (eight percent).

Povaddo defines employee activists as those who meet the following criteria:

• agree that it's important to work for a company that's not afraid to be vocal on important societal issues;
• would like to see their company and/or CEO be more vocal on important societal issues;
• strongly agree that it is important to work for a company that shares their values; and
• are very interested in news, politics, and current events.

Povaddo created this survey to benchmark employee attitudes regarding corporate social activism. The firm plans to conduct this survey annually in order to understand the degree to which corporate social activism is increasing or decreasing over time.

Tony Calandro, a senior vice president with Povaddo who specializes in social impact, is discussing this study as part of a panel presentation at the Sustainable Brands 2017 conference in Detroit later today.  Povaddo will also be presenting the survey findings in New York City on June 29th at the 2017 Summit on Employee Engagement in Corporate Citizenship.

The full survey and additional insights can be obtained by contacting Povaddo at [email protected]. 

About the study
Povaddo conducted an online survey of n=1,236 individuals throughout the United States who work for companies with annual revenues of at least $1 billion. The sample was drawn from Research Now's panel of over 11 million deeply-profiled individuals. The margin of error associated with a sample of this type is ± 2.8 percent. The survey was fielded April 3-10, 2017. The survey was funded by Povaddo and it was not conducted on behalf of any outside organization. 

About Research Now
Research Now Group, Inc., is the global leader in digital research data for better insights and business decisions. Founded in 1999, the company was a pioneer in originating online data sampling and created the first B2B panel. The company provides world-class research data solutions that enable better decisions and better results for its 3,000 market research, consulting, media, and corporate clients through access to over 11 million deeply-profiled business professionals and consumers in more than 40 countries. Research Now operates globally with locations in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, and is recognized as the quality, scale, and customer satisfaction leader in the market research industry. For more information, please go to www.researchnow.com.

About Povaddo
Povaddo is an opinion research and issues management consultancy comprised of experts in the fields of corporate and public affairs, business transformation, and social impact. At Povaddo, we help our clients understand complex business and societal issues through opinion research and data-driven insights. We use our insights as the foundation upon which we develop, design and measure a variety of public affairs and social impact programs that enable our clients to successfully address business-critical issues. Headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, the Povaddo team has provided strategic counsel for clients in a variety of industries and managed societal research studies in nearly 100 countries across six continents. For more information, please visit www.povaddo.com.  

SOURCE Povaddo

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