Employee engagement surveys are a yearly ritual at almost every organisation but sadly, are looked upon as just that – a mandatory corporate practice. It’s common to overlook the true potential of employee surveys in building trust and engagement among the employees.
They are the most critical assets for any organisation, and learning about their engagement levels at work can help every business scale great heights. Not just that, they are also an excellent opportunity to peep into the minds and hearts of their internal customers, i.e., their employees. This is all the more reason to conduct it like internal customer research.
All they need to do is ask the right questions at the right time.
Mastering the Art of Employee Engagement Surveys
But preparing an engagement survey isn’t always easy. The questions can seem too mundane and uninteresting, which will elicit similar answers from the employees, defeating the very purpose.
Instead, the survey should be used as a doorway into the employees’ thinking process and bring forth some crucial answers which will, in turn, truly reflect where a company stands in terms of employee outlook.
Here’s how to formulate the perfect employee engagement survey for your organisation.
Things to Consider Before Conducting a Survey
Every company differs in its corporate values, processes, and objectives. This is why simply copy-pasting sample survey templates from the internet is not a good idea.
So before getting started on the survey, here is a handy checklist of questions you need to ask yourself:
What is your goal?
Be clear about the goal of the survey.
- Is it to spot opportunities for professional growth?
- Is it to dig deep into what the employees think about the company’s culture?
- Is it to improve relationships between line managers and other subordinates by gathering data?
Keep the goal of the survey in clear view before you even move on to the next steps.
Do you have a framework in place?
How is the survey going to take place? Is it going to be an online or an offline process? Address questions like when, where, and how the survey will be performed.
What are your survey tools?
Gather survey tools that are going to aid you in conducting a thorough survey. There are various tools such as Survey Monkey, Typeform, Google Forms, etc. which can be used based on requirements to create beautiful surveys.
Besides keeping the above in mind, it is equally important to note that every question included in the survey should also follow certain guidelines. For starters, they should be specific and not ambiguous. They should be neutral and not lean favourably towards a particular outcome or answer. Most importantly, you should be ready to accept the results and work towards improving the negatives.
Questions That Should Form a Part of a Good Employee Engagement Survey
Divided into six major categories, here is a list of questions that must make it to an employee engagement survey:
Personal Growth
Efficient employees tend to give a fair amount of importance to their personal growth in a company, making it one of the top factors for them to leave when they find limited opportunities to satisfy their self-worth. Here are some questions that should be addressed about self-growth of the employees:
1. Do you find your job role exciting and challenging?
When employees feel challenged by their work, they automatically develop a positive interest in achieving the result.
2. Do you see yourself growing here?
When employees find themselves growing professionally, they will be more invested in the company’s future.
3. Have you developed any new skill here?
This will bring out the skills the employee has picked up on the job, the skills they are interested to learn and how well the company supports them in achieving this.
4. Do you feel excited about the different projects?
This helps to pinpoint the engagement level of an employee, given that employees who feel excited at their work are more engaged and vice versa.
5. Do you feel management supports or shows interest in your career goals?
When employees see top management directly involved in aiding the personal growth of each employee, there are bound to be high engagement levels.
6. Do you have the necessary tools to perform your job?
This will help figure out whether the employees feel they have the necessary tools and resources to get the job done or if they feel overworked or overwhelmed.
Fit and Belonging
Doing meaningful work brings out the best in employees, which helps in turn to deliver quality output. This is possible only if they feel like they fit in.
7. Do you feel you belong in this company?
This is a powerful question that brings to light how an employee feels about the company and whether they perceive themselves to be a good fit or not.
8. Do you feel aligned with the company’s values?
When the core beliefs of an employee align with that of the organisation, they are likely to be more positive and engaged at work.
9. Do you see yourself working here in the next two years?
This will help an organisation understand which employees feel happy at work and want to be a part of the company in the future.
10. Do you like the working style of the company?
Every employee has a style of working which may or may not align with the company’s style of working. This question brings to light which employees feel supported in the company and who don’t.
Team Culture
Employee engagement hugely depends upon the team in which the employee works and how fruitful their internal relationships. Research suggests that positive work friendships are one of the major factors which encourage employees to stay in a job.
11. Do you feel your team members support you?
When employees feel a sense of support or care pour in from their team members, they will feel more confident and are more likely to flourish.
12. Do you learn from your co-workers?
Collaborative teams are the foundation of a productive workplace. When employees feel they can learn from their co-workers, a sense of mutual respect develops and their productivity amplifies.
13. Do you and your team members work towards improving team processes?
When people within teams are committed to improving work processes, people are more aligned together as a team who wants to achieve a common goal.
14. Do you trust your co-workers?
Mutual trust is a significant factor in every workplace. Employees who feel they can trust their co-workers are likely to be more confident and fearless, which will show on their performance graph.
15. Do you want to change anything about the company culture? If yes, what?
This question brings the employee-management connection to the forefront and evaluates if they are on the same page. An open-ended question which elicits subjective responses about what every employee feels should change is a great way to get an insight into the extent of differing opinions between the employees and management.
Psychological Safety
Employees need to feel psychologically safe before anything else, in the absence of which, engagement levels can touch rock bottom. Click To TweetThis is arguably one of the most important must-haves for every organisation in 2020. Employees need to feel psychologically safe before anything else, in the absence of which, engagement levels can touch rock bottom.
Here are some questions that depict whether employees feel safe in all respects within their companies or not.
16. Do you feel okay to approach your manager regarding any issue?
Employees must feel comfortable to reach out to their superiors about any problems that they may be facing, personal or professional. It goes a long way in communicating the company culture that exists inside the organisation.
17. Do you feel comfortable voicing your opinions at the workplace?
There should always be room for freedom of speech in any organisation. This is possible only if the employees feel safe while sharing their opinions and thoughts regarding various issues and topics, without the fear of being reprimanded, belittled, or ignored.
18. Do you know whom to approach for different issues?
Employees should know which person to approach outside of their domain or their immediate team if they are facing any issues or problems. If there is any doubt in their minds, it can be concluded that the company lacks a communicative culture.
19. Do you feel your co-workers respect each other?
A nurturing atmosphere is where employees respect each other, and work and grow as a team. Asking this question will test out the working relationship on a peer-to-peer level which forms the core of any organisation.
20. Do you feel comfortable giving feedback to your supervisor?
When employee feedback is encouraged, they become more engaged with the organisation. Whatever the feedback, it needs to be welcomed without any prejudice, for the employees to feel psychologically safe in giving it.
Work-Environment
The work environment of an office is a crucial factor that motivates employees’ decisions to stay or leave. It has a significant impact on the satisfaction levels and therefore, the survey should include questions on it. Click To TweetThe work environment of an office is a crucial factor that motivates employees’ decisions to stay or leave. It has a significant impact on the satisfaction levels and therefore, the survey should include questions on it.
21. Do you feel motivated in the workplace?
The office vibe should be motivating and positive for employees to feel happy at work.
22. Do you have all the materials and tools to perform your job?
Employees should have everything at their disposal to do their jobs at the optimum level.
23. Do you feel troubled by any existing office politics?
Office politics, although undesirable, is a reality at many workplaces. It can hamper employee performance and morale. Through this question, try to figure out the extent of office politics and what the employees feel about it.
24. Do you have the basic amenities to feel relaxed at work?
Workplaces in 2020 boast of basic amenities such as clean drinking water, clean washrooms, a well-stocked pantry, spaces to unwind and relax, etc. for the employees. Workplace hygiene has evolved as a critical factor in recent times. These are important for employees to break away from the monotony of work and return to work feeling relaxed.
25. Do you feel your organisation is inclusive?
Inclusion and diversity are the cornerstones of a responsible organisation today. Offices who place importance on the same are bound to have more employees who feel the work environment is positive and likeable.
Benefits and Compensation
Hard-working employees don’t just deserve their salaries, but also other benefits and compensations. Organisations can include questions about the same in the survey to understand where they stand in the perception of their employees as far as benefits and compensations are concerned.
26. Are you satisfied with the current benefits that the company is offering?
Carefully monitor the answer to this, and try to figure out whether and why there exists a gap in employees’ expectations and the company’s offerings.
27. Do you feel your salary is justified?
Salaries need to match up to the industry standards, and of course, it depends upon the person’s calibre. Understand whether the employees feel aligned and satisfied with their current pay or not, and what should be done to enhance their satisfaction.
28. How often do you use the benefits offered by the company on your purchases?
This will help to figure out the relevance of the current benefits being offered by calculating the frequency of their usage.
A successful employee engagement survey in 2020 will touch upon aspects that are important from an employee’s point of view to determine the exact engagement levels within the organisation. The above questions are just a quick look into what can be included in a survey which can be tailored further keeping in mind the needs and requirements of different organisations.
