Don't you just hate it when your place of work has become the target of political protests? Not that we here at Political Calculations have much trouble in that regard, at least not since the incident involving the chicken cannon, but really, what can you do when you still have to show up every day and do what you have to do?

The truth is that dealing with protesters can be very problematic for companies whose business operations might be considered controversial - or it can be a real opportunity to build goodwill in the community by carefully listening to the real concerns of protestors. Here's a slightly modified version of how a company might seek to turn lemons into lemonade by reaching out to those passionate enough to organize a protest outside its offices....

Standard form #27B/j

Please take a few minutes to fill out this questionaire. All answers will be kept confidental and are used only for research purposes.

1. How did you hear about us?

2. Did you enjoy your overall experience?

   Yes No

   If not, why not?

3. Is this your first protest with this office?

   Yes No

4. On a scale of 1 to 5, please rate the following aspects of our service (select one for each):

   Service Aspect	1	2	3	4	5
   Representative access
   Employee politeness
   Toilet availability
   Snacks
   Parking

5. Would you come back and protest again?

   Yes No

6. How can we make future protests more fulfilling for you?

Thank you for your time. Your answers will help (this office) become more responsive to protester needs as part of our service goals.

If you think that's bad, just consider the forms the protest leaders must have to fill out as part of the annual performance review process for the individual protestors they lead!

- posted by Ironman at 5:46 AM | Permalink | |