How do you empower a demoralized public authority? You give it an enemy to fight.

Public confidence in the Swedish Social Insurance Agency had dropped to a critical level compared with other Swedish authorities at the beginning of 2012. This was a serious situation for the agency responsible for providing social welfare in Sweden. The Government issued a firm directive to rectify the situation, posing a major challenge for the country’s second largest authority and its 13,000-strong workforce that was disillusioned following previous restructuring initiatives. How could the agency transform public opinion and give its employees the confidence to make a change?

The answer was not in brand-books and colorful intranet texts, but in the hearts and souls of the employees. So we engaged them in crowd sourcing a vision, which centered on a safe society. And then framed their work by launching the internal platform: The Enemies of Despair.

Several months of themed discussions and communications in previously unused channels showed 13,000 employees the true value of their role in society. They were no longer servants. They were fighters.

By the end of 2012, 96% of employees were aware of the new vision, and a clear majority perceived it to be important, engaging and much-needed. Public trust had also risen by 7%, and a brand new proactive media strategy introduced. Moreover, the agency was named one of the best prospective employers in Sweden. A renewed workforce and a revitalized Social Insurance Agency had finally started to emerge.

The campaign launched in March 2012 with an invitation for all employees to participate in manager-employee workshops to “crowdsource” a vision/mission for the agency. Managers were provided with support material, and reported local findings afterwards.

A campaign film was produced (this was the first time film had been used in the agency’s internal communications) and a devoted intranet hub was set up to document the journey. Film reportage from workshops/activities meant that employees throughout the whole country were seen, heard and acknowledged.

In May 2012, based on 2000 pages of workshop feedback, the agency’s vision & mission “The enemies of despair” were launched via a personal pre-recorded phone call to all 13,000 employees from the Director General.

Follow up activities:

• Continued monthly workshops and internal podcasts to discuss new ways of working

• An internal storytelling site to share employee ideas

In February 2013, a completely new proactive media strategy was introduced, with the first major PR activity achieving a total reach of approximately 9 million.

Two separate employee surveys carried out following the launch of the Agency’s vision revealed the following:

• 96% of employees are aware of the new vision

• 82% of employees think the agency’s vision is crucial

• 51% of employees think the agency is an attractive employer (2011, 39%)

Improved service was reported externally:

• Swedish Quality Index, a national organization that analyzes customer perceptions noted a clear improvement in staff engagement and a quantified increase in customer satisfaction.

The Agency was awarded by Dagens Industri, Sweden’s leading business daily, as one of the best prospective employers in Sweden. In addition previously unseen levels of positive media impact were noted, with a reach of 9 million for the agency’s first activity from the new proactive PR strategy.

Public confidence rose by 7%, and an external survey revealed 77% of public respondents think the agency’s vision is much needed.