Press releases

Swiss Post employees rate fresh start positively

The results of the 2019 Swiss Post employee survey show a positive trend. Employees rated the majority of the surveyed criteria at the same level or higher than the previous year. Confidence in Swiss Post management, in particular, improved substantially. New company management, the fresh start for PostBus and the ongoing development of PostalNetwork were contributing factors. 77 percent of around 45,000 surveyed employees took part in the survey covering topics such as commitment, work situation and unit fitness.

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In summary, the results from the 2019 Swiss Post employee survey indicated high ratings and a positive overall image. There is good news in terms of the commitment of employees at Group level, which increased to 81 points thanks to higher motivation. This means Swiss Post exceeded the target value of 80 points set by the owner. This positive trend is also reflected in employee satisfaction, which rose by one point to 74. The work situation rating remained at a high level of 76 points. Unit fitness was stable overall at 72 points.

Changes are a key topic

The strategy as part of unit fitness was rated considerably better than the previous year by employees. The drivers for this positive trend were likely to have been the diverse dialogue events involving Group Executive Management as well as Executive Board members and employees. Unlike other criteria, the strategy rating, however, is at a lower level. This is why we need a common approach to current and future changes. Swiss Post’s environment is changing more and at a faster speed than ever in the digital world: markets, technologies and customers’ requirements dictate the pace of change. This is why it is important to incorporate employees in this change process. «Continual dialogue with staff remains key. We need to transparently show how the company is developing», says Head of HR Valérie Schelker.

After the turbulent times arising from the events at PostBus and reorganizations in various units, employee confidence in Swiss Post management has improved considerably. Expectations of the new Executive Management are at an equally high level. «We now need to further strengthen and consolidate this confidence», underlines Valérie Schelker.

The only rating to have declined at Group level is the perception of Swiss Post’s commitment to the environment. Employees rated our environmental commitment at two points lower than the previous year (2018: 75 points). They have even higher expectations of Swiss Post in this area.

Business units positive overall

PostMail employees are predominantly satisfied; this business unit has the highest number of staff and shows stable, slightly positive ratings. At PostalNetwork, the upward trend from last year was again confirmed. Within PostLogistics, the employees rated the strategy and confidence in unit management more critically than the previous year in a turbulent market environment. The fresh start at PostBus had a positive impact on the overall rating. The work situation at PostFinance was rated more positively than in 2018. Meanwhile, the results at Swiss Post Solutions (SPS) remained consistently high.

The results gathered from the individual units and departments are now being analysed and appropriate action is being taken where necessary.

New measurement model in 2020

An independent institute carried out the survey of around 45,000 employees in 14 countries on behalf of Swiss Post for the eleventh time in a row, using the same measurement model. Over 77 percent of the workforce answered around 60 questions in total. 2019 is the last year the annual employee survey is carried out in this form. In the coming year, the employee survey will be simpler and shorter. The measurement instrument will also be deployed in a more flexible way to take account of developments at Swiss Post. As such, future results will no longer be comparable on a 1:1 basis with the results from 2019. 

Results of the employee survey

2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013
Commitment 81 80 81 82 82 82 82
- Identification 78 78 78 81 81 81 81
- Staff turnover 78 78 78 80 80 80 80
- Motivation 87 86 86 86 86 86 86
Work situation[1] 76 76 76 76 76 75 75
Unit fitness[2] 72 72 72 73 73 72 72
Employee satisfaction 74 73 73 74 75 75 75
Customer focus[3] 76 75 75 - - - -
Response rate (in %) 77.4 76.7 79.1 79.2 78.1 78.6 77.2

 

1 Various factors are decisive for rating the work situation, including goal orientation, direct line managers, involvement and personal responsibility, work processes, work content, workload, working conditions, team interaction and employment conditions.

2 Unit fitness encompasses the factors of strategy, management, information and communication, change and innovation, cooperation and development.

3 Questions were amended; the score is no longer comparable with previous years.

Scaling explanation: results ranging from 60 to 74 points are considered a «medium positive assessment», values ranging from 75 to 84 points refer to a «high positive assessment» and values of 85 points or higher correspond to a «very high positive assessment».

 

Information:
Erich Goetschi, Swiss Post Media Relations, 058 341 37 42, presse@swisspost.ch