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Why Deploy Employee Surveys?
By Dr. Jan Stringer, Ph.D.
From postcards on the table at your favorite restaurant to
letters after a brief hospital stay tucked in with your
prescriptions, surveys represent the most effective way to
secure an honest answer to: How did we do? More recently,
these surveys have made their way into the workplace,
providing a method of gauging employee attitudes at the
office.
Spending 40 hours or more every week with the same people,
there's no question what type of outlook you want these people
to have. A positive employee with a can-do attitude takes the
prize every time, and not just because of how pleasant it
makes things in the workplace. Happy employees create a more
efficient office, primarily by sticking around.
Toby Velte, former CEO of FireSummit, Inc., knew the way to
his employees' heart, and it wasn't increased pay. He
recognized that his employees were after more than just
compensation; they wanted to be happy while they were at the
office. He obliged with supplying a game room, free soda, and
network video game sessions.
"We paid 15 percent less than other companies," said Velte.
"But … I never had one person quit." Knowing what his
employees wanted gave Velte a leg up in limiting turnover, one
of the worst sieves of company profits. With estimates of
turnover costs at 150% of the employees' yearly salary (more
for newer employees or management), it makes sense to make the
effort to find out what makes your company culture tick, and
how to open the lines of communication with employees. In the
end, it means keeping the customers happy, which starts with
employees excited to be at the office.
Clients, after all, have an uncanny ability to know the
general manner of everyone they come in contact with. Be it
the smile in the employees' voice, the relaxed way in which
the employee deals with the customer, or just a bit of a sixth
sense, that attitude flows through and affects the overall
relationship. Surveys have shown that customers who feel a
kinship with a company will remain loyal customers, and it
follows that maintaining that connection stems from creating a
positive work environment.
Surveying employees about their impressions of their employer
is the best indicator of the overall culture in a company.
This culture will permeate every aspect of the organization
affecting co-workers and clients alike. But just surveying a
company's employees isn't enough.
Velte made sure that he knew where he stood compared to his
competitors as well as what his employees expected in the
workplace. Competition is fierce in today's market, and
companies who pay attention have an edge over those working in
a void. With headhunters cold calling lists of employees in
every industry these days, knowing what's offered by the
competition can go a long way toward heading off expensive
employee turn over.
The cost of employee dissatisfaction can be remarkable, and
many companies try to prevent the loss of employees by
throwing money at them. While it may work for a little while,
the undermining factors will go unnoticed, resulting in
throwing more money at the problem. With employee surveys,
however, it can be easier to see where the money should be
going, and often companies find that their costs go down
significantly.
Employ
ee surveys are one of the necessary steps in identifying
problems and opportunities for improvement. Then, using these
survey results and a benchmarking database, a company can
determine what the trends are for their industry, and where
they stand compared to their competitors. There's a reason,
after all, that Fortune magazine publishes a "Best Companies
to Work For" edition every year, and that pay is only one
factor that they consider.
About the Author
Dr. Jan Stringer has over 20 years of experience in survey design and implementation and a doctoral degree in organizational psychology with a focus on quantitative methods. Click here to view a free Web-based Employee Attitude Survey Demo
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