Partner Activation Guide • Internal Use — Association Staff Only

How to Champion the Study

Everything your team needs to promote TalentMap’s State of Employee Listening in Canadian Municipalities – 2026 to your member municipalities — in 15 minutes or less.

Prepared For	[Association Name]	Study Close Date	May 15, 2026
Research Partner	TalentMap	Questions	sfitzpatrick@talentmap.com

1 How to Promote This Study in 15 Minutes

Step 1 — Review the campaign kit (2 min)

Scan the provided folder. Assets include HTML emails, newsletter snippets, a social media kit, and a one-page participant overview. You won’t need all of them — pick what fits your channel mix.

☐ Done

Step 2 — Send the Initial Announcement email (3 min)

Upload the short or long HTML file to your email platform. Replace [Association Name] with your organization’s name. Choose a subject line from the options at the top of the file. Send or schedule to your member contact list.

File: 01_Initial_Announcement_Short.html / 02_Initial_Announcement_Long.html

☐ Done

Step 3 — Insert the newsletter snippet into your next member newsletter (2 min)

Open the short or long newsletter HTML file. Copy everything between the START COPY and END COPY comments and paste it into your newsletter builder’s HTML block. Update the section label placeholder to match your newsletter’s structure (Member Update / Research Spotlight / Partner News).

File: Newsletter_Short.html / Newsletter_Long.html

☐ Done

Step 4 — Attach or link the one-page overview (2 min)

Open OnePageOverview.html in Chrome or Safari. Print to PDF (File → Print → Save as PDF, margins: None, background graphics: on). Attach to your announcement email or upload it to your website resource library.

File: OnePageOverview.html

☐ Done

Step 5 — Post the LinkedIn Awareness caption (2 min)

Open the social kit text file. Copy Post 1 (Awareness) and publish from your organization’s LinkedIn page. Add your province’s member city tags from the regional cluster suggestions in the kit.

File: Social_Media_Kit.txt — Post 1

☐ Done

Step 6 — Set two calendar reminders (1 min)

Reminder email: Schedule for around April 24, 2026 (3 weeks before close)
Last Call email: Schedule for May 8–9, 2026 (week of the deadline)

☐ Done

Step 7 — Send the Reminder email (2 min)

Same upload process as the initial email. The reminder copy emphasizes momentum and the approaching deadline.

File: 03_Reminder_Short.html / 04_Reminder_Long.html

☐ Done

Step 8 — Send the Last Call email (1 min)

Deploy the week of May 8. This is your final push — the copy is direct and urgency-focused.

File: 05_Last_Call_Short.html / 06_Last_Call_Long.html

☐ Done

2 Suggested Promotional Cadence

Timing	Action	Asset File(s)	Channel
Now — ASAP	Send Initial Announcement email to member list	01_Initial_Announcement_Short.html 02_Initial_Announcement_Long.html	Email
Next newsletter cycle	Insert newsletter snippet into member bulletin	Newsletter_Short.html Newsletter_Long.html	Newsletter
Same week as email	Post LinkedIn Awareness caption; link overview PDF from website	Social_Media_Kit.txt — Post 1 OnePageOverview.html	LinkedIn / Web
~April 24, 2026	Send Reminder email; share LinkedIn Value caption	03_Reminder_Short.html Social_Media_Kit.txt — Post 2	Email / LinkedIn
~April 24, 2026 ⚠	Send Last Call email; post LinkedIn Urgency caption	05_Last_Call_Short.html Social_Media_Kit.txt — Post 3	Email / LinkedIn
May 15, 2026	Study closes — no further action required	—	—

3 Key Messages & Talking Points

Use these in forwarded emails, member calls, conference conversations, or when a colleague asks “what’s this study about?”

First of its kind. This is the first national benchmark specifically measuring how Canadian municipalities listen to employees — there is no comparable dataset.
Completely free. There is no cost to participate, no subscription, and no sales pitch attached.
Each participant gets a custom benchmarking report. Every participating municipality receives a detailed report comparing their organization directly to the national average — data that would cost thousands to commission independently.
Fully anonymous. Individual responses are never shared. Only aggregated national data is published. No municipality is identified without consent.
Quick. The survey takes approximately 10–15 minutes for the person completing it on behalf of the municipality.
Real return. In addition to the custom benchmarking report, participants receive early access to the 2026 Strategic Report and an invitation to a national findings session.
Momentum. 30+ municipalities are already contributing — including Halifax Regional Municipality, City of Kitchener, Region of Waterloo, Regional Municipality of York, Resort Municipality of Whistler, and more.
Hard deadline. The study closes May 15, 2026 with no extensions.

“Employee listening done right sparks a ripple effect: engaged teams, stronger leadership, and better outcomes for the residents you serve.”
— TalentMap | Use freely in forwarded emails or member conversations

4 Quick-Reference FAQ

Anticipated questions from member municipalities. Use these responses as-is or adapt for your voice.

Q: Is this free?

Yes, completely. There is no cost to participate and no sales follow-up of any kind. TalentMap’s goal is to build a national public sector dataset, not a sales pipeline.

Q: What do we get in return?

Each participating municipality receives a custom benchmarking report comparing their organization directly to the national average — plus early access to the full 2026 Strategic Report and an invitation to a national findings session. This data would cost thousands to commission independently.

Q: Who sees our data?

Individual municipal responses are kept fully confidential. Only aggregated national benchmarking data is published. No municipality is identified in the report without explicit consent.

Q: Is our data secure?

Yes. TalentMap uses a secure, purpose-built research platform for data collection. All responses are transmitted and stored securely, are never sold or shared with third parties, and are used exclusively for this research study. Individual responses are aggregated before any reporting — no single organization’s answers are identifiable in published findings. For platform-specific security details, direct inquiries to Sean Fitzpatrick.

Q: How long does it take?

Approximately 10–15 minutes for the person completing the survey on behalf of the municipality.

Q: Who should complete the survey?

Ideally an HR or People & Culture leader, CAO, or the person most directly responsible for employee listening and engagement programs at the municipal level.

Q: Will TalentMap contact us after the study?

Participants receive the custom benchmarking report and an invitation to the findings session. There is no unsolicited sales contact — this is a firm commitment.

Q: When do we get the results?

The 2026 State of Employee Listening Strategic Report will be released in Summer 2026. Participants get early access before the public release.

Q: What if we’re unsure who should complete it?

Direct them to Sean Fitzpatrick at TalentMap — sfitzpatrick@talentmap.com. He can help identify the right contact and answer any questions before they register.

Q: Can we miss the May 15, 2026 deadline?

The study closes May 15, 2026 with no extensions. Municipalities that miss the deadline will not be included in the national benchmarking dataset or the 2026 report.

Q: Is TalentMap credible?

TalentMap has 20 years of employee listening expertise in the Canadian public sector and has worked with municipalities, provinces, and federal agencies across Canada.

Research Lead & Point of Contact

Sean Fitzpatrick

CEO & Research Practice Lead, TalentMap

sfitzpatrick@talentmap.com

Study Registration & Information

talentmap.com/employee-listening-in-canadian-municipalities-2026/