Why Deploy Employee Surveys?

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.