How Employee Opinion Surveys Relate to Employee Engagement

My first response to how employee opinion surveys relate to employee engagement is - not well.  If you knew me a little, you might find it funny that I  should say that.  The truth is that attitude surveys and satisfaction are often negatively correlated. Why?  Because the organization is in poor heath in the first place.

This is going to date me.  I designed and delivered my first employee climate survey in the early 80's.  I was employed as an internal organizational effectiveness consultant in a multinational High Tech firm.  I like to think that we did a pretty good job of it.  Not the survey itself . . . it was pretty routine and mundane.  We considered it part of a planned intervention for organizational development. The approach we took was as a jumping off point with employee groups to work with them to identify areas that they would like to see changed or improved.  We also asked if they would like to participate in working groups to make recommendations.  It worked well enough that follow-up survey results consistently improved and I was invited to present a paper at the company HR symposium a few years later.

A good overview from Jack Welch on what needs to in place before doing an employee survey can be found at the Fist Full of Talent Blog: Employee Surveys - Good Tool or Corporate Noise? Depends on the Questions and Follow Up... 

Last month, I had the pleasure (and it was a pleasure) of working with a government division where management was (is) serious about addressing the issues raised in the climate survey that had been done throughout the government.  Using some of the same principles from my "youth" I put together a process that I hoped would address their needs and fears.  It all started with a bunch of numbers and charts that they had in front of them.  Most people feel a little intimidated with the math.  On top of it - numbers may not lie but statisticians?  That's another story.

I was once again reminded of all the challenges of attitude surveys:

• The questions and language
• The point in ti and the timing
• The economic, social, and political environment
• The purpose
• The topic
• The message in the communication strategy
• The observer’s state of being
• The analyst's own bias
• The context

Just like with any assessment, I have to constantly remind the reader that it is JUST data - and it is "meaningless" on the surface.  It is just information until context is applied.  That is why responding to surveys takes a lot of time.  Before even trying to "do something" it is necessary to determine the priority areas.  That usually means what is important to your employees - not just management.  One of the ways that this is best accomplished is by the appropriate use of Focus Groups.

Unfortunately, like my client in the government, employee surveys are connected routinely every set number of years.  Worse, the results take six months to get posted publicly for all to see. There is no strategic or generic corporate plan on how to address the results.

Marcia Xenitelis makes a great point in her blog post earlier this month "Employee engagement in tough times":

So what about employee engagement surveys? I say save your organization the tens of thousands of dollars they cost and invest your time in a well thought out change management strategy...

In her article, she goes on to outline five steps of a good change management strategy.  She starts with recommending that you begin with real business data.  She makes some other good points but they are beyond what I am writing about here.

Rigorous and transparent follow-up is the key.  This takes courage, commitment and time.  It means listening without getting defensive.  It means, as a manager, sticking your neck out and letting staff take pot shots at you - EVEN though they may want to help make things better. To be transparent means that the organization and all the members have to be vulnerable.  However, if you are willing to embark on this endevour the rewards for everyone are great.

How is my client doing?  Well more time is needed.  Each manager shared the results with their staff and outlined what the four working groups had initially laid out as a plan of action.  They asked for employees to participate on the working groups and most importantly they established specific targets to achieve and a way to measure improvement at a set date.  I am optimistic.