Want a happy workforce? Try surveys

By Apeksha Kaushik, TimesJobs.com


Motivational speaker Norman Drummond once said, "Over 70 per cent of people leave their jobs because of the way they are led". Leadership is a combination of many things. It's not only the way you manage employees but how you engage them, communicate with them and value their opinion.

Using internal surveys

Employee surveys, also known as opinion, behaviourial, attitude or satisfaction surveys, are one of the ways to encourage employee-employer communication. They are a great way to catch the pulse of the organisation. Many companies are increasing the frequency of surveys rather than sticking to the traditional once-a-year engagement surveys.

These surveys helps one check the satisfaction levels of employees related to their roles and responsibilities, the work environment, policies, codes of conduct, operations and processes, benefits, training needs and experiences with the management.



Deepika Pillai, human resource director, Xavient India, says: "Opinion polls, questionnaires and surveys help in seeking feedback and identifying issues before they start impacting employee morale. The data derived through such means helps employers in taking decisions based on data rather than subjective feedback from smaller groups."

Putting results to practice

However, the strength of employee surveys lie in the way results are assessed, used and put to practice in the real work world.

"Internal employee surveys, polls and studies - all these practices are only beneficial if inputs are considered and employees see a visible change in the organisation based on the feedback shared through surveys," Pillai said.

Results should be used to bring constructive, visible and timely changes in the organisation.

"Measuring employee satisfaction levels with regular polls and surveys help employers spot potential issues early. The feedback helps employers to uncover and address concerns proactively, improve satisfaction and productivity and retain employees you would hate to lose," added Pillai.