When CEOs were asked about “the biggest challenge they faced throughout 2023”, for the second year in a row they overwhelmingly referenced one thing—talent. Employee engagement surveys are a cornerstone of understanding your workforce, but crafting the right questions makes all the difference. That’s because the quality of your questions directly impacts the quality of the data you gather. Vague or leading questions yield skewed results, hindering your ability to make informed decisions. However, if designed correctly, your survey questions can reveal your workforce’s motivation, areas for improvement, and opportunities to unlock their full potential – and yours.
Best Practices for Employee Engagement Surveys
There are multiple levels of employee engagement and while generic questions might provide a surface-level understanding of your workforce, they won’t equip you with the actionable insights needed to make meaningful changes. Let’s explore how four simple best practices can elevate your survey and empower you to gather data that drives positive action.
- Focus on Actionable Insights. Avoid generic questions that yield fluffy responses. Instead, tailor questions to uncover actionable data. For instance, instead of “Are you happy with your work?,” ask “What aspect of your role could be improved to enhance your satisfaction?”
- Strike a Balance. Maintain equilibrium between open-ended and closed-ended questions. Open-ended questions like “What would make you feel more engaged?” provide rich qualitative data, while closed-ended questions with multiple-choice options allow for easy quantification.
- Clarity is Key. Use clear, concise language that your entire workforce can understand. Avoid jargon or overly complex sentence structures. Offer your survey in multiple languages and via mobile platforms to increase accessibility.
Variety is the Spice of Life. Incorporate a mix of question types to keep the survey engaging. Utilize rating scales, multiple-choice options, and open-ended questions to capture diverse perspectives.
Sample Employee Engagement Survey Questions
For a well rounded engagement survey, you will want to ask a variety of questions that hit on different categories within the employee experience. Below are sample questions that could be used:
Culture:
- Employees are treated fairly (regardless of their race, gender, age, sexual orientation, etc.)
- My ideas and suggestions are given consideration
Job Satisfaction:
- I have enough freedom in making decisions to do my job effectively
- I have the resources and equipment I need to be successful at my job
Communication
- The company’s communication tools are useful (i.e. newsletters, bulletin boards, emails, company website)
- Communication between departments is effective
Growth & Development
- I am provided with opportunities to grow professionally
- Procedures for considering employees for job openings are fair
Compensation
- I am paid fairly compared to others at the organization doing similar work with similar experience
- My compensation is competitive with similar organizations in the area
Increasing Employee Engagement Survey Participation
Simple math tells us that low participation rates can radically skew your data. Therefore, engaging as many employees as possible must be a priority. To get more people on board with participating, start by clearly and transparently communicating both the purpose of the survey and how the collected data will be used. Emphasize that all responses are anonymous to encourage honest feedback. Finally, keep it short and sweet. No one enjoys a lengthy survey and the longer it goes on, the easier it is to lose your audience — and the most valuable data. Use your digital tool to create a concise final product that can be completed in 10-15 minutes.
Templated Options Optimize Efficiency
Don’t reinvent the wheel! Employee engagement survey providers offer a curated library of templated employee engagement surveys, covering various key aspects of workplace culture. From core areas like work-life balance and career development to more specific topics like recognition programs and communication effectiveness, each template serves as a springboard, providing a well-structured framework of questions that have been vetted for effectiveness.
The key advantage lies in their adaptability which offers the freedom to add, remove, or edit questions to directly address your specific priorities and areas of focus. A templated approach not only saves valuable time and resources allowing you to launch your survey efficiently, but it also ensures you start with a solid foundation of well-tested questions, maximizing the quality and actionable nature of your data.
Identify your Best Employee Engagement Survey Questions
People Element offers a comprehensive employee survey platform with a full library of templated surveys and proven questions that make it easy to get started. More importantly, our client service team works hard to ensure clients can effectively and efficiently leverage our resources to craft powerful employee engagement surveys that yield actionable data. Let us show you how. Take the first step today!
