1	Listening to the Voice of Your Employees Using Surveys 4/13/06 Presentation to Jacksonville SHRM Chapter by Mike & Linda Plummer Plummer & Associates, www.PlummerHR.com mplummer@comcast.net, 904-223-5505
2	“Voices” of an Enterprise
3	Key Uses of Employee Surveys Employee opinion surveys Event feedback, i.e., new hire, 6 months on the job, exit Evaluate program impacts Input for decisions or meetings Support organization change efforts
4	Top 3 Reasons for Employee Surveys Gives employees a chance to offer input on workplace issues. Enables management to get the “pulse” of the organization. Identifies barriers to high-level performance.
5	Two Types of Employee Surveys Quick, issue focused survey Comprehensive employee survey
6	Quick, Focused Survey Brief (10 to 20 items) In response to a specific need or issue Capture slices of organization life Like a snapshot
7	Comprehensive Employee Survey Typically 60 to 100 items Categories include senior mgmt, supervision, job satisfaction, etc. Diagnosis of organization “health” Like a group photo
8	Typical Sr. Mgmt Questions about Employee Surveys Do we really need it? Is this the right time? How much does it cost ? $$ Survey questions? How will confidentiality be ensured? Feedback and action planning process? What is my role?
9	Employee Survey Process
10	Typical Employee Survey Timeline Planning & Design 1 to 3 wks Collection period 1 to 3 wks Analysis & reports 1 to 2 wks Subtotal 3 to 8 wks ___________________________ Interpretation & Action Planning - 1 to 3 month process - Should start soon after survey final report
11	Focus Groups Climate info/hot issues Helps develop survey questions Report is useful to organization Cross sections of 8 to 10 mgmt and non-mgmt employees best Often predicts survey results
12	Focus Groups Strengths Deep in context Explore unexpected paths Participant interaction Build support for survey process Issues Planning & facilitation critical Who to invite? Time to prepare report Expensive, but less than individual interviews
13	Typical Employee Survey Categories
14	Five Most Asked Survey Questions Considering everything, I am satisfied working for this organization at the present time. I receive the training I need to do my job. Employees are encouraged to offer their opinions and ideas. I am clear about what I need to do and how my job will be evaluated. I have the resources I need to do my job.
15	Five Most Favorable Survey Questions The people I work with cooperate to get the job done. (79% Favorable). My manager is accessible. (77%) I am committed to seeing this organization succeed. (76%) I am positive we can face the business challenges of the future. (75%) My manager backs me when necessary. (72%)
16	Five Least Favorable Survey Questions This organization pays well compared to other organizations. (34% favorable) Information in this organization is communicated well. (40%) I feel secure about my continued employment at this organization. (41%) I am satisfied with the benefits package this organization offers. (42%) Management is supportive of its employees. (45%)
17	Survey Question Do’s Let situation guide question selection Keep vocabulary simple, familiar One concept per question Positive wording usually best Short sentences, active voice Spelling impeccably correct 5-point scale usually best (i.e., very dissatisfied to very satisfied) Put overall satisfaction question near front Place demographics at end of survey
18	Avoid Leading Questions Ineffective wording A good team player is committed to producing quality work. Better wording 1. People here are committed to producing quality work. 2. People here are good team players.
19	Use Active Voice Ineffective wording The people in this department are adequately informed by management’s communications efforts. Better Management’s communications are effective.
20	Positive Wording Usually Best Ineffective wording Training was inadequate to perform my job. Better I received adequate training to perform my job.
21	Interval Scale Anchors Concern: Extremely concerned – No concern at all Importance: Extremely important – Not important at all Frequency: Always – Never Satisfaction: Extremely Satisfied – Extremely Dissatisfied Strength of Strongly Agree – Strongly Disagree Agreement:
22	Question Rule of Thumb Test If employee answers to the question are unfavorable, will you be Willing and Able to use their responses to do something? If the answer is no, consider dropping the question.
23	Survey Administration Most influential person introduces survey Publicize through company newsletters, intranet sites, etc. Attractive, easy-to-complete survey that focuses on current, relevant issues Try various follow-up methods – emails, response barometers, incentives, competition between depts, etc.
24	Benchmarking Data Trade data on specific items with other companies Search articles/books/company websites Consultant’s results from other clients Survey giants such as the Mayflower Group and Gallup (big $$$’s, though)
25	Job Satisfaction Benchmark (% Favorable = Top 2 of 5 ratings) 1998 Gallup poll – 72% 2004 Connolly Survey Norm – 64% 2006 JAX SHRM Issues Survey – 58%
26	Job Satisfaction Ratings All things considered, how satisfied are you with your job? Research indicates that this one overall question is as valid as asking 10 questions about aspects of the job and summing the results to get an overall rating. However, asking multiple questions helps explain the overall rating. Ex: some sub questions can be low even with a high overall rating.
27	Favorable Rating Rule of Thumb (top 2 ratings on 5 point scale) Moderate Strength indication Favorable ratings in 67% to 80% range Real strength indication Favorable ratings over 80%
28	Unfavorable Rating Rule of Thumb (bottom 2 ratings on 5 point scale) Area for immediate attention Unfavorable ratings over 35% Area for improvement Unfavorable ratings in 25% to 34% range
29	Neutral Ratings (Neutral = middle rating on 5-point scale) View neutral ratings as an opportunity to move opinions to favorable neutral easier to move than unfavorable Greater than 33% neutral ratings may indicate that this item is not important Year-over-year shifts in neutral ratings can indicate trends
30	Analysis Approaches Simple count/% chart useful starting point Look at overall ratings, then “dig” into data and comments looking for support & patterns Run cross tabulations to look for relationships Look for significant differences by demographics Theme comment questions Special analysis on areas of key interest
31	Impact of Survey Action Planning on Employee Satisfaction (% favorable)
32	Action Planning Tips Report package that “tells a story” about the organization An action planning process: - initiated by senior management - focuses on 3 to 5 critical issues/opportunities - involves as many employees as practical Communicate improvement steps taken
33	Sample Agenda for Action Planning Meetings Review the survey results briefly Ask the group to select 2 or 3 most important results Brainstorm for ideas on possible actions to improve these areas Develop initial action plans Document results from meeting
34	Quick, Issue Focused Surveys Communications Benefits Diversity Quality New employee feedback Gather advance input for a meeting Advance survey for SHRM for this meeting Especially useful for team building
35	State-of-the Survey Software Survey Solutions by Perseus – strong question type capabilities, ease of use ($2500) SNAP by Mercator – strong analysis/presentation capabilities, steep learning curve ($2000) Evaluating higher-end programs: Capabilities, learning curve, how often used User expertise Capability to migrate to an enterprise-wide platform Cost vs. hiring survey consultant
36	“Free” Web Survey Applications Perseus Express (Perseus.com) Express used for the advance survey for the 4/13/06 SHRM meeting. An excellent tool for conducting short surveys. Surveymonkey.com provides links to 34 survey software vendors, many of which have free (but limited) versions.
37	Trends with Surveys Specialized survey applications Survey input from PDAs and cell phones More sophisticated content analysis tools Cost effective interactive polling for meetings Integration of survey software into intranets and enterprise-wide feedback systems
38	Enterprise Feedback Management (EFM) Systems Will dramatically improve organizations’ capabilities to gather and use feedback from customers, employees, vendors, etc. Perseus is the current market leader in EFM Their website (Perseus.com) has lots of info on EFM, including a recent Gartner report. Their free, web-based Survey Solutions Express provides a useful tool for small surveys and provides insight on EFM.
39	Mike’s Top 3 Survey References Employee Surveys, Connolly, 2^nd edition, 2006 ($20) Customer Surveying, Van Bennekom, 2002 ($28) Getting Action from Organization Surveys, Kraut, 2006 ($60) Note: All three books are available on Amazon.
40	Mini Action Planning Session using SHRM Special Issues Survey Results Workforce Readiness Organization Issues Mentoring, High Potentials, & Succession Planning SHRM Meeting Logistics and Feedback