Every October, SEC Newgate undertakes a global research report to understand what public expectations of business are. This year, the findings show a stark reality for UK companies and shine a light on what individuals want from the businesses they work for and interact with.

• The UK public demands greater positive impact from companies, but perceives they are underperforming on responsible business metrics (performance gap of 32% for large companies);

• UK investors have an even higher expectation of large companies conducting themselves responsibly than the British public (investors: 81% vs non-investors: 72%);

• Younger generations express a greater desire to see and hear about companies standing up as an active corporate citizen, with Gen Z having the highest expectation of companies to speak out (net importance of 66% to speak out on environmental issues, and 57% on political issues).

While being commercially successful is still important, 57% of the UK public expects companies of all sizes to play a more active role in society, and the judgement for what makes a good business is no longer just based on delivering profit. Indeed, 75% say it’s important that large companies conduct business responsibly.

Our survey found that only 42% of the UK public believe that companies of any size behave responsibly, with a significant performance gap between importance vs performance.

Small to medium sized businesses are closer to delivering on public perceptions (13% performance gap) vs large businesses (32%). Three quarters (75%) say that change starts from the top and that it is important to have leaders who are focused on conducting business responsibly.

In taking this all into consideration, we believe that there are six behaviours that can shape the best outcomes for senior internal comms professionals:

1. Companies are expected to focus on more than profit – they need to play an active role in society – what is the role your organisation can take on?
   

2. Conducting business in a responsible way is now an expectation – do you expect to feel benefit from this?
   

3. Strong expectations on business leaders to pave the way – what do you need to do differently and how can you counsel fellow leaders?
   

4. People want clearer communication on what companies are doing to improve performance – are your messages cutting through, have you measured?
   

5. A fine balance to be achieved on when and how companies should speak publicly on issues that are not related to the business – do you feel confident where that balance is?
   

6. Younger generations expect businesses to take a stance on environmental and political issues – they are the future leaders, can you harness them?

Interestingly, 70% of the UK public want to hear about how companies are improving responsible business performance. Younger generations express a greater desire to see and hear about companies standing up as an active corporate citizen, with Gen Z having the highest expectation of companies to speak out (net importance of 66% to speak out on environmental issues, and 57% on political issues). This is compared to Baby Boomers (52% on environmental, 30% on political positions) and Gen X (45% environmental, 31% political), suggesting that the “silent generation” is over.

Leaders have to both meet the expectations of employees in terms of behaving as a responsible business and, in addition, show that they seek to have impact beyond the core purpose of the organisation. These are challenging times for communicators as they seek to navigate the shifting sands of consumer preference.