trust and purpose italy

E V I D E N C E - B A S E D C O M M U N I C AT I O N S

Trust and Purpose

21 June 2011


Methodology• PSB completed 3,161

online interviews among the general population in the following countries from 5 May to 16 May, 2011. Data has been weighted to age and gender demographics for each country.*

• In Italy, PSB completed 333 interviews.

Overall Sub Audiences Number of Interviews

Margin of Error

Europe

UK, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Sweden, Norway, Netherlands, Switzerland, Belgium, Estonia*, Denmark, Portugal*, Greece

3,161 +/- 1.74

Italy

Overall 333 +/- 5.37

Male 175 +/- 7.41

Female 158 +/- 7.8

Under 35 179 +/- 7.45

35 and over 154 +/- 7.9

*Estonia and Portugal is not weighted due to low base size; not all questions are asked in Portugal

2


Where is the trust?

• While trust in business is not high, it is higher than among media, central government and religious

leaders; central government is the least trusted of all

• Trust in business varies enormously and depends on a combination of factors:

1. Provenance: people trust local companies the most, national a little less and international least of

all. Europeans favour doing businesses with companies from America, Japan and Australia over

BRICs

2. Core values: honesty and trustworthiness, good value and treatment of employees remain more

important reputation builders than community and environmental credentials

3. Sector: industries that have experienced recent crises (finance and energy), perhaps unsurprisingly,

are less trusted that computer and food and beverage companies

• In general, Europeans are cynical about the motivations of businesses and CEOs believing them to be more

motivated by personal gain and profits than a desire to help society

3


Where is the trust?

• People prefer to seek out information about companies when they want it – through Google searches or

traditional media – rather than receive incoming updates through Facebook or Twitter. Many feel

companies only communicate to sell them things.

• The priorities of consumers and employees have more in common than might be expected: although

employees do prioritise paying employees a fair wage over quality products and services

4


TOP OF MIND IN 2011

5


Protests in 2011

6


The economic crisis needs no translation

In the last two years, has there been a single event which has caused you to lose trust in companies? (Open-end response)

7


Bonuses, the crisis and golden parachutes have undercut trust in CEOs

In the last two years, has there been an single event which has caused you to lose trust in CEOs? (Open-end response)

8


Large corporations are seen to be motivated by money, profit and greed

When you think of large corporations, what is the first word that comes to mind? (Open-end response)

9


TRUST IN COMPANIES AND ORGANISATIONS

10


Provenance is a key factor in trust in business

International organizations

Front line staff

Local companies &

businesses

EuropeanParliament

National companies &

businesses

Foreign-owned

companies

International companies &

businesses

European Commission

Nationally-owned

companiesCorporate

CEOs

My local

governmentCentral

government

-11

1

21

-32

-9

-36

-28-33

-12

-48

-33

-51

0

-7-10

-16 -16-19 -19 -21

-24

-44 -44

-52

European Average Italy

• In Italy, while trust in local companies and business is high, trust in national and nationally-owned companies is much lower than the average for Europe.

Compared to two years ago, are you more or less trusting of..? (Ranked by Italy, Showing Net Trust [(Much more + Somewhat more trusting) – (Somewhat less + Much less trusting)] )

11


Italy European Average

Among Italy

Male Female Under 35 Over 35

International organizations (e.g. United Nations) 0 -11 -4 3 -5 1

Front line staff -7 1 0 -14 -5 -7

Local companies and businesses -10 21 -6 -13 11 -16

European Parliament -16 -32 -19 -12 -3 -20

National companies and businesses -16 -9 1 -34 -12 -19

International companies and businesses -19 -28 3 -39 -11 -21

Foreign-owned companies -19 -36 -7 -31 -1 -25

European Commission -21 -33 -17 -27 -1 -29

Nationally-owned companies -24 -12 -4 -45 -5 -32

My local government -44 -33 -39 -49 -27 -49

Corporate CEOs -44 -48 -31 -55 -28 -49

Central government -52 -51 -43 -59 -38 -56

Compared to two years ago, are you more or less trusting of..? (Ranked by Italy, Showing Net Trust [(Much more + Somewhat more trusting) – (Somewhat less + Much less trusting)] )

Overall, trust is very low towards CEOs and government

12


• However, in Italy, trust of foreign companies is far higher than in the rest of Europe.

Trust is strongest on the home front

Which of the following is closer to your opinion?

European Average

Italy

3447

6653

I would be less likely to trust companies that are foreign-owned

I would be more likely to trust companies that are foreign-owned

European Average

Italy

5539

26

34

1927 I am trusting of

foreign-owned companies

The origin of the company does not matter to me; I trust them all equally

I am trusting of nationally owned companies

European Average

Italy

5949

29 42

12 9I am less likely to trust com-panies that are from Europe

The origin of a company does not matter to me; I trust them all equally

I am more likely to trust companies that are from Europe

13


The US, Japan, and Australia are the most trusted countries

21 (21)

23 (14)

24 (12)

24 (18)

29 (14)

65 (56)

65 (55)

69 (48)

32 (26)

32 (29)

27 (22)

18 (20)

27 (24)

25 (28)

20 (22)

19 (25)

46 (54)

46 (56)

49 (64)

58 (61)

44 (61)

11 (16)

15 (24)

11 (27)

Trusted Unsure Not trusted

• Italy ranks the US as the most trustworthy country• Trust for the BRIC countries is very low, though South Korea is lowest

Thinking about foreign-owned companies, how much do you trust companies from each of the following countries? (Showing among Italy, European average shown in parenthesis)

14


And the US, Japan and Australia have the most trustworthy foreign-owned companies

37%(31%)

28%(31%)

18%(24%)

4%(6%)

2%(3%)

4%(2%)6%(2%)

1% (1%)

United StatesJapanAustraliaChinaSouth KoreaBrazilIndiaRussia

• In Italy, China, South Korea, Brazil, India and Russia fall well behind in trust

Thinking about foreign-owned companies, which country do you think has companies which are the most trustworthy? (Showing Italy, European average in parenthesis)

15


14 18 12 189 12 10 8 7 8 7 4 7 7 8 11

5562

5960

5565

52 6349 52 48 54

3147 39

42

69

8071

78

64

77

6271

56 6055 58

38

5447

53

Many industrial groups are more trusted than traditional thought leaders• In Italy, as with the rest of Europe, trust is highest for online services and computer & hardware

manufacturers. Unsurprisingly, trust in religious leaders is higher in Italy than the rest of Europe.

For each of the following, please indicate how trustworthy you consider each group or industry to be...? (Showing Very/Somewhat Trustworthy on a four-point scale, ranked by Italy combined score)

16

6 6 4 6 4 5 6 8 3 4 3 5 2 4

3544

20

36 34 36 38 3025 23 21 18

11 9

4150

24

4238 41 44

38

28 27 24 23

13 13

Very trustworthySomewhat trustworthy

Online ServicesComputer

Hardware & Software

Supermarkets Food Beverage Manufacturers Automotive Social Media NGOs

Energy Providers Religious Leaders Media Entertainment & television Financial Services Government Politicians

Eur. AvgItaly


Being honest & trustworthy and having products & services that are good value is most important

Honest &

trustworthy

Products & services are good value

Useful products &

services

High quality products &

services

Socially responsible

High standards in products &

services

Environmentally conscious

Treats employees fairly

Cares about the comm

unity

Innovative

Hires &

promotes m

inorities & w

omen

Strong corporate purpose

Ethical executive leadership

Inexpensive products & services

Good grow

th in revenues & profits

History of charitable contributions

40 39

18

28

1823

19

28

11 95

1013

16

5 3

4137

25 24 2421

17 1713 13 12 11 10 8

3 2


• In Italy, having useful products & services is more important than in the rest of Europe.• Treating employees fairly is less of a concern in Italy, compared to the rest of Europe.

Thinking about what is important to you about companies, which of the following would you say important when considering which companies to purchase products or services from? (Respondents allowed to pick up to three, ranked by Italy)

17



Among ItalyMale Female Under 35 Over 35

Honest & trustworthy 41 40 38 43 39 41

Products & services are good value 37 39 41 34 37 37

Useful products & services 25 18 26 24 18 27

High quality products & services 24 28 25 24 21 25

Socially responsible 24 18 18 29 19 25

High standards in products & services 21 23 28 15 18 22

Treats employees fairly 17 28 19 14 15 17

Environmentally conscious 17 19 15 19 23 15

Innovative 13 9 13 12 18 11

Cares about the community 13 11 12 13 9 14

Hires & promotes minorities & women 12 5 10 14 8 14

Strong corporate purpose 11 10 13 9 10 11

Ethical executive leadership 10 13 8 13 11 10

Inexpensive products & services 8 16 9 6 11 7

Good growth in revenues & profits 3 5 3 3 6 2

History of charitable contributions 2 3 4 1 4 2Thinking about what is important to you about companies, which of the following would you say important when considering which companies to purchase products or services from? (Respondents allowed to pick up to three, ranked by Italy)

18

Being honest & trustworthy and having useful products & services are important in Italy


CEOS

19


Personal profit

Personal recognition

Profits for the company

Having a strong cor-porate pur-

pose beyond profit making

A desire to help society through giv-ing back via corporate social re-

sponsibility programs

and philan-thropy

A desire to help society through de-livering qual-ity products or services at

a fair price

A desire to help society through de-livering qual-ity products or services

48

14

21

72 3 3

45

19 17

85 4 2


CEOs are seen to be motivated by personal profit and are seen as less trustworthy than employees

38%(24%

)

52%(60%

)

10%(16%)

More Trustworthy

Less Trustworthy

Don't know

• In Italy, there is a slightly stronger perception that CEOs are motivated by personal recognition.

What do you think most top executives are motivated by? (Ranked by Italy)Do you think the average CEO is more or less trustworthy than the average employee? (Showing Italy, European average in parenthesis)

20


EMPLOYEE AND CONSUMER VIEWPOINT

21


Delivering safe, reliable products and

services

Paying em-ployees a fair

wage

Being more open about their mis-

takes

Treating its employees well (e.g. providing them with

benefits like a pension

shares, etc.)

Investing in our country

Offering good, imme-

diate cus-tomer service

Investing in their staff

Delivering great value

products and services

Doing more to help their customers

Publishing in-formation

about their safety and

testing prac-tices and re-

sults

7265

5362

48

6254 55 52

39

57

72

50

68

4449

65

4942

36

6763 61 60

55 55 54 52

39 39

50

6054

58 57

41

60

4637 39

Consumer EmployeeConsumer Employee

Eur. Avg. Italy

Thinking as a consumer, how important are each of the following actions that companies could take to help increase your trust in them? / Thinking as an employee of a company, how important are each of the following in helping companies to increase your trust in them? (Showing ‘Very important’ on a four-point scale, Showing top ten ranked by Italy Consumer)

The desires of consumers and employees are not as disparate as might be expected• In Italy, being open about their mistakes and investing in the country is more important than elsewhere in

Europe• Treating employees well is less of a concern in Italy compared to the rest of Europe

22


The desires of consumers and employees are not as disparate as might be expected

Audience



Delivering safe, reliable products and services

Consumer 67 72 71 64 53 72

Employee 50 57 52 49 37 55

Paying employees a fair wageConsumer 63 65 60 65 45 69

Employee 60 72 57 64 52 63

Being more open about their mistakes

Consumer 61 53 57 65 50 64

Employee 54 50 47 61 45 57

Treating its employees well (e.g. providing them with benefits like a pension shares, etc.)

Consumer 60 62 55 65 47 65

Employee 58 68 52 64 50 61

Investing in our countryConsumer 55 48 53 57 43 60

Employee 57 44 55 60 38 64Thinking as a consumer, how important are each of the following actions that companies could take to help increase your trust in them? / Thinking as an employee of a company, how important are each of the following in helping companies to increase your trust in them? (Showing ‘Very important’ on a four-point scale) (Showing top ten ranked by Italy Consumer)

23


The desires of consumers and employees are not as disparate as might be expected

24

Audience



Offering good, immediate customer service

Consumer 55 62 56 53 45 58

Employee 41 49 41 41 31 44

Investing in their staffConsumer 54 54 57 50 39 59

Employee 60 65 57 62 52 63

Delivering great value products and services

Consumer 52 55 54 50 39 56

Employee 46 49 51 42 35 50

Doing more to help their customers

Consumer 39 52 41 36 39 38

Employee 37 42 31 42 35 38

Publishing information about their safety and testing practices and results

Consumer 39 39 36 42 34 41

Employee 39 36 39 38 33 41Thinking as a consumer, how important are each of the following actions that companies could take to help increase your trust in them? / Thinking as an employee of a company, how important are each of the following in helping companies to increase your trust in them? (Showing ‘Very important’ on a four-point scale) (Showing top ten ranked by Italy Consumer)


Perceptions of ‘Corporate Purpose’ differ between Italy and the rest of Europe

A company's guiding prin-ciples for making decisions

beyond profit making

Making money and driving profits

Balancing making money with acting responsibly

Producing goods and services for their cus-

tomers

The organisation's approach to doing business

1822

31

1711

26 25 24

17

8


• In Italy, ‘Corporate Purpose’ is most closely associated with making decisions beyond profit making while in Europe it is seen as balancing making money with acting responsibly

Which of the following do you think most closely defines ‘Corporate Purpose’? (Ranked by Italy)

25


Responsibility and fairness are important• A strong corporate purpose is important, more so in Italy than the rest of Europe• Consumers say they would rather pay more for products and services that are produced responsibly and

fairly

Which of the following is closer to your view?

European Average

Italy

6877

3223

A company's corporate purpose is not important to me

A company that has a strong corporate purpose is important to me

European Average

Italy

79 84

21 16

I would rather pay less for products and services and not know about how they are delivered and produced

I would rather pay more for products and services that are delivered and produced responsibly and fairly

26


While a company’s highest priority should be its consumers, many feel profit comes first• The majority feel customers and employees should come first, but that corporations are more focused on

their shareholders

European Average

Italy

16 17

84 83

A company's highest priority should be adhering to thinking about their customers and employees and making sure they conduct their business in an ethical and responsible way

A company's highest priority should making a profit for their shareholders and in-vestors and driving the coun-try's economy

European Average

Italy

27 23

73 77

Corporations are generally focused on providing value to shareholders. Customers are important, but compan-ies put profits first

Corporations are generally focused on providing value to consumers.Profits are important, but companies put their customers first


27


European Average

Italy

39 37

61 63

Generally, corpora-tions and their spokespeople are dishonest, and most communications from companies are lies

Generally, corpora-tions and their spokespeople are honest, and most communications from companies are the truth

European Average

Italy

5649

4451

I'm generally re-laxed about the data that compan-ies store on me and my family, as they typically only use it for market-ing and customer feedback

I'm generally sus-picious about the data that compan-ies store on me and my family, as I think it can often be used in a way that infringes on my privacy

European Average

Italy

72 77

28 23

Companies are more trustworthy today than when I was a kid

Companies were more trustworthy when I was a kid

Overall, companies are seen as dishonest• Many feel that companies were more trustworthy when they were a kid. In Italy, there is less suspicion about

the storage of personal information compared to the rest of Europe• Around two-thirds feel that corporations and their spokespersons are dishonest


28


INFORMATION

29


Online searches are the most common source of information about companies, but traditional media remains important

From search engines (e.g. G

oogle)From

newspapers/journals

From investigative television journalism

Television news

Directly from the com

pany's website

From third-party review

s/rating websites

From third-party w

atchdog websites

From the radio

From friends, relatives, or colleagues

Facebook

From online blogs

MySpace

From the com

pany's staff/employees

Twitt

er

22

16

8

1311

64 4 5

3 20

2 1

26

1210 10

7 7 7 6 53 3 2 1 0


• Search engines are the most common source of information on companies, but traditional sources such as newspapers, journals and television remain important

Where do you tend to find out information about different companies? (Respondents allowed to select one, ranked by Italy)

30


External watchdog sources are most trusted in Italy

Investigati

ve television journalism

Third-party watchdog w

ebsites

Friends, relatives, or colleagues

Radio

Search engines (e.g. Google)

Company's w

ebsites

From the com

pany's staff/em

ployees

New

spapers/journals

Third-party reviews/rati

ng websites

Television news

Facebook

MySpace

Online blogs

Twitt

er

23

14

26

1216 15

22

15 15 15

64

74

25

2016 16 15 14 14 14 13

11 107 7 7


• Investigative television journalism and third-party watchdog websites are the most trusted sources in Italy• Word of mouth is a significantly less trusted channel in Italy compared to the rest of Europe

How trusting would you be if a company was to use the following channels to engage with you? (Showing % ‘Very trusting’ on four-point scale of ‘Very trusting’ to ‘Not at all trusting’, ranked by Italy)

31


And being informed is important…• The majority of respondents feel they receive the right amount of information

European Average

Italy

31 30

69 70

I think I hear the right amount of information on companies and organ-izations

I feel overwhelmed by the amount of informa-tion I receive from com-panies and organizations

European Average

Italy

28 21

72 79

I like to be constantly up to date with the news

I feel overwhelmed by 24 hour news


32


4127 26 26

13 7 11 10 8 9 17 11

4149

42 48

44 58 46 53

3140

3736

8276

6874

5765

5763

3949

5447

AppliesApplies somewhat

But feel that companies only contact people to sell them something…

Thinking about how companies communicate with you. How much would you say the following applies? (Showing ‘Applies a lot / Applies somewhat’ on a four-point scale, ranked by Italy combined score)

33

They only get in touch to try and

sell me their products and services

They bombardme with marketing and literature that's

not relevant

They send personalized

letters or emails

They send me information that tells me about their values and identity as well as

their products

They keep intouch with me in a

personal way

I hear too much from the CEO and

not enough from the staff on the front-line

Eur. AvgItaly


23 22 21 2215 12 7 13

59 6459 63

49 56

30

38

8286

8085

6468

37

51

FavSomewhat favourable

Consumers want to hear about a company’s values from the front-line teams• Over four-fifths of respondents were favourable to hearing about companies’ values and identities and they

were most favourable to hearing about it from the front-line staff

Thinking about the future, how favourable would you be to the following ways in which companies could communicate with you?(Showing ‘Very favourable / Somewhat favourable’ on a four-point scale ranked by Italy combined score)

34

Eur. AvgItaly

Hearing about the companies' values and identity

Hearing from the teams on the front-line not the board

More personalized letters and emails

Hearing from the board on Twitter or through blogs


THANK YOU!

35

trust and purpose italy

Business

trust of foreign companies

net trust

local companies

feel companies

trusted countries italy

rest of europe

trustworthy country

following countries