Bonum Certa Men Certa

The EPO's Incredulous Survey: Management's Voice, Management's Future -- EPO Staff 'Engagement' Spin (Denial of Issues)

Pure spin and distortion by Willis Towers Watson (that's their job), such as the 'outline' below. It merely insults the intelligence of staff while calling it "your voice".

Willis Towers Watson spin



Summary: The EPO lies to its staff and will soon lie to the public, too; In this Battistelli-styled stunt it's constructing an alternate reality while trying to pass it off as 'scientific' (like oil companies funding 'research' to refute climate science)

YESTERDAY morning we wrote about the new survey, which was managed by European Patent Office's (EPO) management. It was overseen by the deniers looking to cover up their misdeeds and incompetence. Willis Towers Watson offers spin as a 'service' (or 'product'), so why not 'pull a Battistelli' (PwC) and waste some more EPO budget on PR disguised as 'survey' or 'study'? Why not spin mismanagement and misconduct as success and promise? It's all about controlling the narrative while making it seem like a reflection of reality (based on, e.g., the number of people surveyed).

We asked/called for insiders to 'leak' it to us, so some quickly did. The EPO should be accountable to the public, not to itself. We need this in the public domain in order for the public to be able to assess the EPO's "sound bites" and see if they match what the contracted firm has found (which may not be accurate either because of the EPO's money tainting objectivity). We also need to know what questions were asked, i.e. the methods. We doubt the EPO wishes to disclose all these 'gory' details. Unlike SUEPO-funded surveys, this one was conducted with the purpose of making António Campinos look good -- a fact one must bear in mind. At the bottom we include the three PDF documents associated with the "sound bites", which the EPO will soon use for propaganda purposes (it already does so internally). Here, below, is the enclosing message.




The Office-wide results are out!


Have a look at the
  • infographic which provides an executive summary or
  • browse through the presentation deck that WTW presented
  • further details in the annex to the presentation.
The President shared his view on the results in his communiqué here.

Following the Office-wide results release, the DGs will hold workshops for their management teams, delving further into these results. After these presentation workshops, all team managers will receive their unit results and organise workshops with their teams.

Final DG participation rates

Complete Invitees Return Rate
DG0 93 113 82%
DG1 4434 5204 85%
DG4 752 847 89%
DG5 217 253 86%
BoA 179 228 79%
Total 5675 6645 85%

About sustainable staff engagement

engaged

Engaged + Enabled + Energised = Happier colleagues, users and customers.
Sustainable Staff Engagement Engaged Enabled Energised
What it means To believe in where we're going and be proud to work at the EPO To have the tools and opportunities to do good work To have a workplace that supports healthy and inspirational ways of working
What it measures /analyses Rational, emotional and behavioural attachment to the company In how far does the local work environment support productivity and performance Individual physical, interpersonal and emotional well-being at work


About Willis Towers Watson

Willis Towers Watson, an international expert survey provider, will help the Office set up a scientific way to measure the dimensions Engagement, Enablement and Energisation. In an open tender process, WTW put forward a solid proposal that convinced the award committee composed of management and staff representatives. Moreover, WTW will assist in ensuring the survey results will lead to actions. The company will administer the survey to guarantee full confidentiality of data.

About the survey

The survey is quick, easy and open to all EPO employees, who have been at the Office for more than 4 months. Anyone having started at the Office after 1 October 2018 (cut-off date) is still in the process of getting to know their new work place and will hence receive no invitation.

On 31 January 2019, you received an e-mail from our external survey provider Willis Towers Watson to participate in the survey. The survey has 55 questions and is as such shorter than previous surveys, to provide actionable and strategic insights. Key areas identified can be followed up in topic-specific Pulse surveys.

The survey is divided into three sections:
  1. About you section: 3 questions on demographics (This information will be used to construct meaningful analysis only; please rest assured that information will not be used to identify respondents cf confidentiality information)
  2. General opinion sections: 55+ multiple choice questions
  3. Open comments sections: 2+ open ended questions that will ask you to share your suggestions and opinions for the Office's future. - Please note, comments will be reported as written. Please do not insert information like your name etc if you wish to remain anonymous.
High-level topics in the survey include: Sustainable Engagement, Communication, Management, Line Management, Service Focus, Working Effectiveness & Quality, Empowerment, Training & Talent Development, Remuneration, Diversity & Inclusion, External Reputation and Well-Being.

It was possible to complete the survey on your computer, mobile phone or tablet, at work or at home and in any of the three Office-languages.

Any management team with 8 or more responses will receive a unit specific report of the findings, which can help the manager identify strengths and areas for positive action.

Reporting examples

How are the 8 responses / 20 comments cut-off rules applied?

org
  • In this example scenario the following reports would be generated:
  • Team manager A will receive an unit report if 8 or more people in his team fill in the survey
  • Team manager B could receive an unit report if all of his staff fill in the survey, if only 7 or fewer people submit their results, all results from Team B would be rolled up to the next level (i.e. the All Directorate Employees report)
  • Team manager C will not receive a specific unit report, as the number of team responses is under the confidentiality protection cut-off of 8 people. Their results will be rolled up to the next level and will feature in the All Directorate Employees report.
  • The Director will receive a report of his management team (Direct Reports), which includes the responses from Team Managers A-C and his Assistants / Advisors, if all 8 fill in the survey. If fewer submit their responses, their results will be rolled up to the Directorate's all employees report.
  • The Director will receive a report for all members of his directorate; this includes his management teams, advisors, assistants and all team members of A,B,C. This report is furthermore available to the Principal Director.
  • Open comments: The cut-off rule for open comments is 20 to protect respondent's confidentiality. In this example, the Director may receive an open comments report, if more than 20 of the people in his directorate have filled in the survey. If fewer people provide comments, say 14 people, comments from the entire directorate will be rolled up to the Principal Director and feature in their report of comments of all Directorates in his line.
  • All responses will furthermore feature in the All PD employees report, in the All COO employees report and the All DG employees report and the All EPO employees report.

Survey timeline

Milestones Date
Willis Towers Watson to analyse survey results March
Office-wide results presentation by Willis Towers Watson
  • To MAC
03 April
  • To all managers (SIM)
Morning of 04 April
  • To CSC
Morning of 04 April
  • To staff (cross-site VICO)
Afternoon of 04 April
Video guide "Working with your results" available to managers As of 04 April
DG-specific results presentations by WTW 10-15 April
  • DG0
11 April
  • DG1
12 April
  • DG4
10 April
  • DG5
15 April
  • BoA
12 April
Unit reports available to managers 10-15 April
Start of unit results discussions

Your manager should reach out to you about these soon
Starting from 10 April

Contact

For questions, you can visit our FAQ section (blue box linked above), or reach out to the project team on staffsurvey@epo.org or your DG representative!






 

PDF files:
  1. EPO-Survey Results Infographics_nometadata
  2. EPO Office-wide results presentation 4 April_nometadata
  3. EPO overall results presentation_Annex_nometadata

Recent Techrights' Posts

SLAPP Censorship - Part 120 Out of 200: Garrett Undermines His Own Application Because His Friend Graveley Failed to Accomplish What They Had Both Aimed For
Hold off the "popcorn"
Don't Settle for Slop
Slop is a bit of a symptom of where society is told to go
Summer Plans in Tux Machines
July is nearly upon us
Saying "No" is Not a Bad Thing
Society benefits from people who say "No!" even when it seems impolite (and possibly inconvenient) to say so
Next Week's "Bloodbath" at Microsoft Includes "Silent Layoffs" (Which Microsoft Won't Count)
The notion of "silent layoffs" is fast becoming the "new normal"
 
Microsoft Layoffs So Big They Cannot Even Wait for 'D-Day' (July 1)
"Layoffs at Xbox Appear to Have Already Begun, with Multiple Compulsion Games Employees Announcing Their Departures"
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, June 27, 2026
IRC logs for Saturday, June 27, 2026
Links 28/06/2026: Heatwave in Europe and Media Failing to Actually Criticise Power
Links for the day
Gemini Links 28/06/2026: Poems, Photographs, and Neoliberalism as Religion
Links for the day
Gemini Links 27/06/2026: Photography From Interlaken to Shynige Platte, Slop 'Code', and Distro Hopping
Links for the day
TIGER COMPUTING LTD Sent Us Threats Half a Decade Ago (Because of Criticism of Their In-House Debian Developer), Now the Company's Debt is Deepening
So what is they're connected to the military?
GNU/Linux in Mexico Near All-Time High
With all the tourists packing the place (or hotels) we can imagine big changes to be seen next month (many portable devices)
Gopher (Protocol) Turns 35, Gemini is 28 Years Younger
Bad technology comes and goes very fast
Be Like Stallman and Assange, Not Like MElon or Bill Epsteingate
these people treat women like worse than dirt
Exposure Leads to More Whistleblowing
In areas like IBM or European patent affairs we've always earned a lot of trust
European Patent Office (EPO) Series Will Run Well Into July
We still have a very significant chunk of EPO "trench" stories
Links 27/06/2026: Journalists Kicked Out of China, Torture in Iran and Turkey
Links for the day
How Microsoft is Preventing or Slowing Down Adoption of GNU/Linux (Fake 'GNU' Controlled by GitHub in Windows, WSL, Sabotage at Boot Level, Not Limited to Dual-Booting)
Microsoft is still at it
Rising Computer Prices Good News for GNU/Linux and Free Software
This can greatly assist the adoption of BSDs and GNU/Linux
Links 27/06/2026: More Restrictions on Social Control Media and Russia is Leveraging Cellebrite/Back Doors
Links for the day
Akira Urushibata on the Likely False (Unverifiable) Claims Anthropic Makes About Defects for Marketing/Hype
Some pro-LLM person has managed to derail the discussion on this topic
European Patent Office (EPO) Series: "Team Campinos" in Split
The EPO team was of course headed by Campinos himself who delivered a "forward-looking" keynote speech to the assembled audience consisting mainly of Administrative Council delegates from the national IP offices
Supporting Women in the Free Software Community
The common theme here is abuse of women
Left IBM After Many Years, Came to Microsoft/XBox, Now Silent Layoffs at XBox
many inside XBox will have their last day next week
Gemini Links 27/06/2026: Homeworlds and Tarot Cards
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, June 26, 2026
IRC logs for Friday, June 26, 2026
Links 26/06/2026: SoftBank Forbids Mentioning That Slop is a Scam, "'We Need Courageous People' to Combat Greed and Corruption"
Links for the day
Gemini Links 26/06/2026: "Negativity of Reddit" and "Moving Blog to Gemini"
Links for the day
Same MIT Site That Fabricated the Fake News for IBM is Still Being Paid to Produce Fake "Reports" That Prop Up a Ponzi Scheme
If this is the media we deserve as a society and believe keeps us informed, then we are all doomed
'Social' Slop: The Social Control Media and Slop Crises Are Converging
Social Control Media and slop may have a shared fate. People will shun them both.
XBox Being Discontinued, Some Models of XBox Canceled, Not on Sale Anymore
First some of the largest retailers quit stocking/selling XBox, now a 2TB model is axed
Union Syndicale Fédérale (USF) Speaks Out Against Campinos and Informs the Chairman of the EPO Administrative Council
Does Mr. Kratochvíl pay any attention at all?
'António the Pretender' Campinos is Digging His Own Grave With Grotesque Lobbying Intended to Undermine Democracy in Europe's Second-Largest Institution
One way or another, the EPO will never be the same again
The Principle of "Do No Harm"
"Do No Harm" is a common saying
After Years of Bluewashing People Who Are Still Labelled "Red Hat" Suddenly 'Leave' (Might be PIPs), IBM in "Forever Layoffs" Loop
Remember that Red Hat had mass layoffs this year
Microsoft Staff Bracing for Impact Ahead of "Layoffs Lottery"
some people start to assess who will get culled next
Donald Trump and IBM's CEO: Twins Separated at Birth, Saturating the Media With False Reports About Things That Don't Exist
Every "journalist" that went ahead with this fake news should be sacked on the spot for a rejection of fact-checking
The Register MS Will Become Indistinguishable From Spamfarms at This Current Pace
Follow the money...
Microsoft Layoffs Have Already Begun in Its PR Department
It is called Waggener Edstrom
Techrights Community as Litigants in Person (LIPs)
Unwittingly and due to circumstances we're had to step in to protect women abused by monstrous men who lack empathy
European Patent Office (EPO) Series: Rest and Recuperation on the Adriatic Coast
The EPO President's connections with the Croatian SIPO date back to his days as head of the EU trademark agency EUIPO
Firehose of Spam (Fake News) From The Register MS Today
This is how awful the state of news sites really is
Slopfarms Becoming Scarce and Few (or Inactive)
we'll try to refrain from even giving the remaining slopfarms any visibility
The Register MS Promotes Things That Do Not Exist... for Money
How much more ZTE spam will come out before 5PM?
Links 26/06/2026: RIP, Om Malik, 1966-2026
Links for the day
Memory Leaks Suck
Slop ('vibe') coding means lots of bad programs
Natural Disasters and Personal Disasters
Thank you, Om Malik, for the positive memories
Gemini Links 25/06/2026: Life Philosophy and Misery
Links for the day
GAFAM Became a Mainstream Term, and Why Words Matter
Conveying problems in useful terms [...] Impairing propaganda attempts (e.g. calling parrots "intelligence", back doors "confidential", and outsourcing "cloud") should be the first step
European Patent Office (EPO) on Strike Today, Next Week Another Historic Week
If you live in Europe, contact your delegates today
FSF FreeJS Project (Part of the GNU Project's Goals) Advanced Further in 2026
They're moving to reduce dependence on anything to do with Microsoft
SLAPP Censorship - Part 119 Out of 200: Our Suggestions to Our Politicians and Heads of State
coverage about SLAPPs and related matters
Microsoft Already Closing Down Studios, According to Some Publishers
It is being compared to what happened in Intel
IBM PIP Stories Told in Public, Fake IBM News (Fabricated Claims) Drown Media Sites
IBM is seeding fake news to help justify the bailout
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, June 25, 2026
IRC logs for Thursday, June 25, 2026