At AllVoices we are committed to making sure employees have a safe way to speak up about the issues that matter to them and companies have a way to track in real-time what is going on at their organization. According to Dan Spaulding, the Chief People Officer at Zillow Group, “AllVoices helps shine a light on what people are concerned about in their workplace. It enables employers to address concerns before they become issues.”

So what is the cost of not having access to real-time employee reporting and feedback and receiving that information through public channels?

Employee Litigation and Reputational Damage

“It takes many good deeds to build a reputation, and only one bad one to lose it.” Benjamin Franklin

Without a way to listen, track, and take action on employee issues, there is an increased likelihood of learning about an employee issue through costly channels such as press, Glassdoor, exit interviews or employee litigation. These external channels can cause reputational damage and significant financial loss.

What does reputational damage cost companies?

Negative press can damage more than just the company’s reputation. Customer trust, finances, and your overall value as an organization is at stake.

-On average 63% of a company’s market value is attributed to its overall reputation. 1

-76% of companies who experienced a reputation-damaging crisis said the crisis was preventable. 2

-64% of consumers stopped purchasing a brand after hearing news of that company’s poor employee treatment. 3

What does employee litigation cost companies?

While companies never expect to experience litigation with an employee, research has shown it is more common than one would think. Putting systems in place to help prepare for and proactively prevent serious issues can help save a company hundreds of thousands of dollars or more.

- According to Hiscox, 1 in 5 companies with 500 employees or less will face employment litigation.

- The average cost to defend a harassment lawsuit is $250K. 4

- The average jury award for companies found liable is 600K. 5

Investing in systems that prevent litigation and help mitigate risk in turn protects the company from immense financial loss and reputation damage.

How do companies create a culture of trust and safety and avoid unnecessary reputational damage and lawsuits?

Prevent

Take measures to prevent bad actors from engaging in illegal activity.

By providing an always anonymous reporting tool, employees feel safer knowing they can report should an issue arise and bad actors are less likely to engage in misconduct knowing it might be reported.  

Communicate

Provide pathways for employees to speak up in real-time about the issues that they are facing in a way that feels comfortable to them.

Having an internal channel for employees to report concerns anonymously or not, moves conversations that might happen externally (like on Glassdoor, in the press or through litigation), internally, giving companies a chance to address issues before it is too late.

Take Action

Show employees that your company has taken action to the best of their abilities.

“A Randstad US survey earlier this year found 30 percent of employees lack confidence in companies to respond quickly to harassment complaints and more than one-quarter would rather leave their job than report they’ve experienced harassment.” -The Business Journals

Once an issue is reported by an employee through the AllVoices tool, administrators are able to respond through the AllVoices’ two-way messaging tool even if the reporter has chosen to be anonymous. This is where administrators and reporters can provide more detail, come forward and come to a resolution.

Track

Track issues in a secure system and use data to make decisions when it comes to employee issues.

Case Manager allows administrators to input their own reports and collaborate with other administrators to resolve issues seamlessly. Reports submitted by employees and administrators can be tracked in one place and visualized holistically.

Build Trust:

Building trust is crucial to mitigating risk of employees resorting to external channels to address the issues they face at work. Showing employees you are actively preventing, communicating, taking action and tracking, develops a sense of safety in employees.

1,2: Reputation Accounts for 63 Percent of a Company's Market Value, Weber Shandwick

3: The 28 Employer Branding Statistics Your Company Must Know, CareerArc

4,5: The Financial Costs of Harassment, Ethics by Design