How Can Better Employee Surveys Boost Employee Retention?
Retaining employees is a key challenge for any organization. After all, the cost of replacing an employee is much higher than the cost of keeping them. That’s why any organization needs to have a strategy for employee retention. One such strategy is using employee surveys to understand better what employees want and need. When done correctly, employee surveys can be a powerful tool for improving employee retention. In this blog, we’ll look at creating better employee surveys that can lead to improved retention.
3 Ways to Create Better Employee Surveys
1. Have more open-ended questions
One of an organizations’ most prominent mistakes regarding employee surveys is relying too heavily on closed-ended questions. Closed-ended questions are those that offer a set of pre-determined responses, such as “yes” or “no”, “agree” or “disagree”, or a numerical rating. While these questions can provide valuable data, they don’t provide the in-depth insight that open-ended questions do. Open-ended questions allow employees to provide more detailed feedback, which can be invaluable for understanding what motivates employees and what might stand in the way of their retention.
In addition to giving employees a chance to provide detailed feedback, open-ended questions can also be used to gather information about employees’ opinions on new initiatives, products, or services. This kind of feedback can be invaluable for organizations that want to stay ahead of the curve and ensure their employees are engaged and satisfied.
2. Fix frustrations
Once you’ve gathered feedback from your employees, the next step is to act on the areas that were identified as needing improvement. This can be as simple as addressing a minor issue causing frustration or as complex as overhauling a whole department. It’s important to remember that the goal is not just to fix the problem but to show employees that their feedback is valued and that the organization is committed to improving.
For example, if employees mention that they have difficulty getting responses to their requests promptly, the organization could take steps to improve communication and response times. This could include implementing systems to ensure that requests are tracked and responded to promptly, training employees on how to communicate with each other effectively, and providing the necessary resources to ensure that requests are addressed promptly.
3. Ask personalized and specific questions
When creating an employee survey, it’s essential to remember that the survey should be tailored to the organization and its needs. Surveys should be designed to ask relevant questions to the organization and its employees. This will ensure that the feedback gathered is specific to the organization and its goals and can be used to create meaningful changes.
For example, if you want to understand how employees feel about your benefits, you should ask specific questions about the benefits package. This could include questions about the benefits offered, how employees feel about the coverage, and whether they feel the benefits are adequate for their needs. This kind of feedback can be invaluable for your organization to ensure that your employees are satisfied with their benefits and provide sufficient coverage.
Retain Your Employees with Stan McKnight Associates
If you want to know how to retain your employees, one of the best ways to start is by creating better employee surveys that give you the insights you need to make meaningful changes. To learn more about such employee retention ways, contact us today. At Stan McKnight Associates, we have almost three decades of experience dealing with employee retention issues and solving them.