Investigate the source of each account
Conflicting employee accounts need investigation before either praise or criticism becomes the basis of brand strategy. In one company's employee interviews, many described the business as trusted and dependable. Almost a third described it as arrogant, expensive, lacking in innovation and slow to deliver compared with competitors. The employees expressing negative views also said customers were looking elsewhere.
Nearly all the employees telling the negative story had previously worked for the company's nearest competitor. Follow-up interviews established that the perception had been cultivated as competitive propaganda. Identifying the origin of the negative account helped guide the strategy towards employee engagement.
Ask employees how they came to hold a view, rather than simply recording whether their opinion is positive or negative. Leave room for an unexpected explanation: pausing and allowing an interviewee to fill the silence can reveal a story that prepared questions miss. Let the employee's account guide further questions before deciding what the brand needs to address.