We define employee engagement as the connection that our employees feel to Cisco’s vision, strategies, and business execution, together with their commitment to helping us realize our objectives over time. We have found that employee engagement is closely related to productivity and job satisfaction. Research shows that employees who confirm that they are closely linked with a company are 20 percent more productive and 87 percent less likely to leave their positions.

An important part of Cisco employee engagement is the Cisco Code of Business Conduct, a resource that employees can rely on for guidance as they strive to act with integrity in the workplace. The code promotes:

• Honest and ethical conduct, including the ethical handling of actual or apparent conflicts of interest between personal and professional relationships
• Full, fair, accurate, timely, and understandable disclosure in reports and documents that we file with, or submit to government agencies and in other public communications
• Protection of confidential and proprietary information about Cisco, our employees, contractors, customers, partners, and vendors
• Compliance with applicable governmental directives, laws, rules, and regulations
• Prompt internal reporting of any violations of the code

Every employee is accountable for adherence to the Cisco Code of Business Conduct, and we ask each of our employees to acknowledge their commitment to these shared values every year.

 

Taking the Pulse of the Workforce

The Cisco Pulse Survey is a confidential, online employee survey that helps us measure key elements of employee satisfaction and engagement so we can target areas for improvement in our work environment. In the past, the survey was conducted quarterly and involved randomly sampled employees. Starting with FY08, the Pulse Survey will be conducted annually and encompass our entire workforce.

The Pulse Survey is a census survey, designed to solicit feedback from employees in each Cisco organization, function, or business unit. There are currently 54 core questions in 10 categories:

• Cisco as a Place to Work: General satisfaction/loyalty/engagement perceptions
• Manager: Areas specific to direct manager intervention
• Career Development: How employees perceive career opportunities and advancement at Cisco
• Results and Recognition: Links between employee effort and recognition
• Teamwork and Cooperation: What employees think about collaboration in the workplace
• Understanding the Business: Employees’ understanding of and belief in Cisco’s strategic direction and their role in Cisco’s success
• Empowerment: How employees regard their autonomy and authority
• Honesty and Ethics: Trust in leadership and ethical practices
• Job Satisfaction: Employees’ feelings about their work
• Workgroup: How employees perceive the teams and groups in which they work

Overall participation and results have improved since the first Cisco Pulse Survey was conducted in 2006. This year, 73 percent of employees responded to the survey, compared to 69 percent in 2006. Cisco was rated as a great place to work by 87 percent of respondents, up from 85 percent in 2006. The Understanding the Business category received a particularly positive response, with 85 percent of the employees indicating they have a good grasp of our business, up from 82 percent in 2006.

The Cisco Pulse Survey will continue to evolve as we find new and better ways to engage with our employees. Specifically, we see room for improvement in the Career Development and the Results and Recognition areas.

 

Input from Focus Groups

In addition to the Pulse Survey, we use focus groups consisting of several employees interacting together and with the survey taker to help improve employee satisfaction and respond to their needs. Focus groups in FY08 looked at employee engagement issues, flexible work practices, and employee health and family support. The new Cisco LifeConnections Center, scheduled to open in late 2008, is an integrated childcare, fitness, and employee health center that came about as the direct result of input generated in focus groups.  

 

A Wiki for Sparking Innovation

The Idea Zone, or I-Zone, is a wiki sponsored by the Cisco Emerging Technologies Group that gives all employees the opportunity to submit new product ideas or build on their colleagues’ ideas. Employees have submitted more than 500 ideas through this interactive online forum, including input that led to the Cisco TelePresence collaboration solution, one of our most innovative and successful emerging technologies. Over 20,000 unique users have visited the site to date, and there have been more than 1900 edits or comments to the 500 different categories.

All ideas generated by I-Zone go through an innovation framework and filter function.  Some ideas are given to the Action Learning Forum, a talent development program aimed at incubating business models to support new product opportunities. The best ideas may result in the formation of a new business unit, presenting a leadership opportunity for select Action Learning Forum participants. 

 

Wider Recognition for Achievers

The Employee Recognition Initiative singles out exceptional employees who deserve kudos for their achievements from colleagues and peer organizations outside the company. Cisco managers can submit nominations for awards given by groups outside the company, such as Black Engineer of the Year, Asian Engineer of the Year, Women of Color Research Sciences and Technology Awards, Chinese Institute of Engineers/USA, and the YWCA Tribute to Women and Industry Program.

 

Direct Access to Cisco Executives

Birthday Chats, a long-standing Cisco tradition, offers Cisco Chairman and CEO John Chambers an occasion for celebrating a personal day with employees while giving them a venue for asking questions and sharing information. The Birthday Chats, held every other month, provide an open forum where employees can voice concerns and get straight answers about a variety of topics. Employees in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Richardson, Texas, can participate remotely by streaming video, and other remotely located employees can attend using Cisco TV. A video of the session, organized by the questions asked, is made available to all employees following the event.

Chambers also records his “On My Mind” and “On Your Mind” video blogs every other month, where he talks about our business and answers questions. Several other leaders at Cisco use videos, blogs, and discussion forums to communicate on topics that are important to them, their teams, or our customers. All Cisco employees are encouraged to join in these discussions.

For example, Cisco CFO Frank Calderoni issued a challenge to employees at a company meeting in March 2008, encouraging them to find ways to manage Cisco spending in areas such as travel, training, outside services, office supplies, and equipment purchases. The goal: save the company $1000 per employee. As a follow up, Calderoni wrote a blog on the Cisco Finance website that was also posted to the employee intranet homepage. With over 40 responses in the first three hours, the CFO’s $1K Challenge blog has garnered more than 250 responses as of June 2008.