MightyRecruiterMeaningful Employee Satisfaction Survey: The Basics
If The Office, 9 to 5, Office Space and dozens of other workplace comedies are any indication, most people aren’t a big fan of their places of work, at least not all the time. Sure, most real life companies aren’t as zany and ridiculous as these fictional ones, but without an employee satisfaction survey, there’s no way of telling whether your employees think of you as a ïHorrible Bossï or whether they love the company and are with you for the long haul. While you definitely don’t want to find out in a survey that your employees are plotting an elaborate embezzlement scheme, you might be surprised at the thoughts and opinions that you uncover with a meaningful employee satisfaction survey. For the most effective questions and the best tactics for getting employees to participate, read the following tips.
Ask the Right Questions
Two of the most basic survey questions you should ask regard employee feelings about their job and their boss, according to Bob Herbold in his book What’s Holding You Back 10 Bold Steps that Define Gutsy Leaders. In regards to employee positions, Herbold recommends asking questions that reveal whether an employee understands and enjoys their duties, feels empowered to do their job and feels adequately appreciated when they perform well. Additionally, you should get a sense of how happy your employees are and how long they expect to be with the company. Regarding bosses, Herbold says questions should focus on employee confidence in their leader, as well as their perception of their boss’ ability to set goals for them and provide feedback when possible. In addition to these questions, Herbold suggests several other areas and questions that your meaningful employee satisfaction survey should gather information on:
-Employee Development
It is important to know whether employees feel like they are growing or stagnating and how much the employee feels that the company is supportive of their goals and encourages growth.
-Relationships Among Co-Workers
If there is a problem with how team members communicate and interact, you should know this. Ask survey questions that aim to find these answers.
-Compensation
You may assume that you are paying employees a fair wage, but have you ever asked if they feel like their compensation matches their skills and abilities Survey questions can give you the real story.
-Wellbeing of the Company and Ability of Leaders
Your employees, at least not all of them, are not there to warm a seat and pick up a paycheck. Many of them have thoughts on the direction of your company and the competence of your leaders. Your employee survey answers might even contribute to the longevity of the company.
Be sure to use these ideas in your meaningful employee satisfaction survey.
Have a Little Fun
It might sound a little silly, but don’t be afraid to throw a few off-the-wall questions into your employee survey. Things like ïWhat’s your manager’s spirit animalï or ïIf the company were a TV theme song, what would it beï can surprise you with how much truth they can bring out. Humor is a great way to put people at ease, and the answers to these funny questions can contain a nugget of honesty. Additionally, sharing the results to these questions can be a way to get employees excited about taking your meaningful employee satisfaction survey.
Implement the Survey Correctly
Using a 5-option scale with choices ranging from ïStrongly Disagreeï to ïStrongly Agreeï is an effective way of engaging employee opinions, according to Herbold. For the most effective survey possible, Herbold also writes that you should designate one main person to be in charge of the project. Additionally, the questions should be carefully worded to make them clear and eliminate any possible ambiguity or misinterpretation. Once you have a set wording that works, try not to make too many changes to it. That way you can more easily see real changes from one year to the next.
Do Something With the Results
One of the worst things a company can do is solicit employee feedback then do absolutely nothing with it, or worse, ignore it and just do what the CEO wants to do. Acting on the comments, criticisms and suggestions that come out of an employee survey is absolutely mandatory if you want your employees to feel engaged and to continue participating in surveys.
Hopefully you now feel ready to create a meaningful employee satisfaction survey, complete with questions that get to the truth and an implementation survey that results in 100% employee participation. For more unique, actionable advice about ways to improve your business and make the most of your employees, browse Mighty Recruiter for tons of great information.