Hearing the voice of the employee is critical to employee retention and engagement. In positive work cultures, employees regularly share their thoughts, ideas, and insights through various forums. An employee engagement survey is one of these forums and it can be very effective if done well.
About Employee Engagement Surveys
An employee engagement survey is a tool used by organizations to measure the level of engagement and satisfaction among their employees. These surveys typically consist of a series of questions designed to gather employee perceptions on various aspects of the work environment and company culture. Survey results can provide valuable insights to determine strategies and initiatives to foster a more engaged and productive workforce.
How do I know if a survey is appropriate?
You must have Senior Leadership buy-in to listen to the feedback and consider changes accordingly. If you don’t have this, your survey will not be successful and will do more damage to your culture than good.
What NOT to do as it relates to employee surveys
Don't lack clear objectives and communication about the purpose of the survey.
Don't make it too long – this can lead to survey fatigue or lower response rates.
Don’t use questions that are unclear or suggest a desired response.
Don't do it internally as this often results in a lack of trust in the anonymity of responses and can lead to a lack of responses and inaccurate/biased results.
Don’t do surveys during busy or stressful periods.
Don't survey too often. I recommend a full survey annually or even every two years.
Don't fail to follow up by analyzing the data improperly, not sharing results, and not developing and implementing an action plan.
What TO do
Clearly communicate the purpose of the survey and how the results will be compiled and shared.
Customize clear questions to meet the needs of your organization using 5th-grade language.
Use a third party to conduct the survey. Employees will be more likely to share feedback and trust that their responses are confidential.
Encourage participation because a good response rate will ensure better data, but don't require it.
Follow up by:
Sharing a summary of the survey results with employees.
Outlining the steps the organization will take in response to the feedback.
Promoting improvements that you make as a result of the survey.
Doing pulse surveys (shorter follow-up surveys) periodically or gathering additional employee input through other forums to track progress on specific issues identified in the main survey.
Would you like to consider doing a survey but aren't sure how to get started? Consider our Culture Catalyst solution. It offers more than just a survey and is more reasonably priced and value-added than going with a big-box survey provider.
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