Looking for reasons why you need to send pulse surveys? What are the benefits of employee pulse surveys?
Don’t we all have that one friend we secretly envy because he works for an excellent company?
Especially since most of us mere mortals dread going to work every morning?
Fortunately, more managers realize that they want their offices to be places that make people smile and do a great job.
No wonder, considering the overwhelming evidence that successful companies are often the ones that people love working for.
All those places that make you want to smile and do a great job? You bet they have a common trait.
They check. That’s right, and the companies regularly evaluate how their employees feel about them and ensure that they are doing it right.
Employee response is actually out of your hands!
Creating a great work culture isn’t the product of a single decision.
Often, it assumes a personality over time and many factors, big and small, go into its making. Sorry, but your gut feeling alone is not enough anymore.
Planning unwelcome surprises is a wrong move. Assuming that your team will love your favorite picnic spot is an even worse decision.
Don’t fancy that you know how your employees feel about something because they may have a different idea than yours.
When you don’t consider your employees’ preferences, however well intended, your plans are sure to backfire.
If disgruntled employees are not your ideal work culture, make it a point to listen to your team.
Give them platforms to state their opinions, expectations, and suggestions fearlessly.
An employee pulse survey comes into the picture when you need that platform for more assurance.
Identify what your employees think of the company, and check regularly.
Employee productivity, loyalty, performance, and goodwill are more closely linked to the work culture than you think. So a lot is at stake!
In today’s fast-paced world, companies must understand what their employees need to be successful.
Apart from understanding employees’ basic requirements, organizations should collect feedback on everything from how they should communicate with each other and the overall work environment.
To get this feedback, many organizations turn to surveys, specifically employee pulse surveys.
Every day, companies are using pulse surveys to understand their employees better.
What Are Employee Pulse Surveys?
Employee pulse surveys allow organizations to collect feedback from their workforce and identify areas that need improvement.
They show you valuable insights like what employees think about your company culture, employee engagement, company values, communication process, leadership style and more so you can take action to improve.
What should employee pulse surveys include?
Employee pulse surveys should be conducted regularly and cover a wide range of topics that people want feedback on.
Topics might include company culture, recognition programs, leadership team, and styles or communication methods within the organization. The more detailed you get with your questions, the better insights you’ll be able to gather.
Here are seven reasons why no company can afford to overlook conducting employee pulse surveys regularly:
1. Higher the Employee Engagement, Better the Productivity through Employee Pulse Surveys
Last year, they gave out chocolate ice cream at our office on Chocolate Ice Cream Day.
I remember the surprise mail, asking everyone to gather at the back garden to celebrate and grinning like it’s Christmas.
Sure, it was just ice cream, but it kept me smiling the whole day. Thoughtful gestures like these work in your favor.
And while we are at it, did you know that companies with engaged employees outperform those without it by more than 200%? Engaging employees is important. And to ensure employee engagement, you need an employee pulse survey in place.
It’s way more than making your employees smile. It also has a way of making your balance sheets smile!
2. Employee Pulse Surveys Proves that You Care About the Employees’ Opinion
It seems very obvious, but an employee pulse survey has a way of reminding everyone that they own a voice and that the company is listening.
Do you know what made me happier than chocolate ice cream?
When it appeared that they care if I enjoyed it.
I remember how my friends joked that we should celebrate Pizza day as well. I suspect they voiced it because, the next Pizza day, we were all given a lip-smacking slice.
And it is not all about food. It’s about knowing that your opinions and feedback are valued.
Reassure your employees that you appreciate their perspectives.
Building such a culture drives their loyalty to the company and leads to higher levels of productivity.
The organization’s overall health is to gain because everyone falls under the radar, and it is in their best interest to deliver optimum results. Being appreciated is a great motivator indeed.
3. Pulse Surveys Promotes a Culture of Continuous Improvement
It’s all well and good, but the downside is that only 46% of organizations measure employee feedback at least once a year.
Worse, 16% of organizations with 100+ employees never do such a thing!!
If there is one thing worse than not doing an employee survey, it is doing it and forgetting about it.
Pulse surveys are a relief because they are short and to the point, regular, and offers real-time insights.
Being under constant evaluation and advancement brings about a culture where quality becomes a habit.
A pulse surveys can be of great help in making the most out of your engagement surveys.
There are quite a few online employee pulse surveys tools like SurveySparrow that lets you automate the surveys to be sent at regular intervals.
This way, you can save precious hours each month.
Now, do not consider the employee pulse survey as an annual wish-wash.
Never survey for the sake of doing it and make your team feel foolish about it by dragging the analysis forever and not even taking action. Such policies end up doing more harm than good.
4. Spots the Red Flags and Lets You Take Remedial Action in Time
Great surveys see all, hear all, and expose all!
Too many toxic symptoms threaten to destroy your work culture. And if you look for them, you will find what they are.
An employee pulse survey is a savior when spotting the red flags in time and taking remedial action immediately.
From workplace bullying, unethical behaviors, unhealthy competition, infectious discontent, dispirited employees and high burnout levels, anything that could turn lethal for your work culture shows itself in the pulse surveys.
Questions like ‘If you were to quit your job tomorrow, what would be your reason?’ will indicate the factors that you need to watch out for.
The real-time nature of pulse surveys is beneficial in identifying the weeds and removing them in time. Take charge before things spiral out of your control.
5. Nothing Can Help Employee Retention More
What do you think is the primary reason why people leave their jobs?
Money? Nope. Work pressure? No. Personal reasons? Not this time.
Its when they feel unvalued that they seek other options.
Reports suggest that majority of employees who quit their jobs, a staggering 76% of them, cite a lack of appreciation as their reason for their leaving.
When you think it through, even reasons such as low salary, overwork, issues with the boss and most other often-cited reasons stem from a general feeling of being under-appreciated.
And where should you check for signs of disenchantment?
That’s right, the survey insights!
Routine questions like ‘Do you see yourself working here one year from now?’ works like a charm to predict your retention rates.
Further, these questions make the employees ponder if they are valued resources and urge them to deliver great work to facilitate such a scenario.
6. Encourages Open Communication and Overall Goodwill
Who would, in their right mind, wish to work at a place where they are ignored? No one!
Posing frequent questions and asking for feedback often triggers people to think about those aspects even when they don’t have a survey to fill in.
Pulse surveys are a great way to motivate employees to share suggestions and make recommendations for improvements.
In a way, they become a habit. Repetitive questions, in the long run, is proven to foster positive habits.
Actively measuring employee morale is, in effect, a great way to boost it.
If the survey question ‘Do you help a new joiner feel welcome to the team?’ prompts one to reach out and be more helpful the next time an employee joins the team, that is a delightful betterment indeed!
7. Employee Pulse Survey is an Investments; Pays off the Time and Effort
Pulse surveys require consistent time and effort. But the results are worth what goes into it.
Reports suggest that an alarming rate of 87% of employees worldwide are not engaged.
And most of the companies experiencing this aren’t even aware that they have a problem.
The chances of their peers, with a highly engaged workforce, outperforming them is vast.
Employee Pulse Survey is the way to go forward.
By offering a quick snapshot of the workforce, highlighting what works in favor of the company and what wouldn’t, and ensuring that their people are happy, the surveys offer priceless insight to any company.
And that is why overlooking pulse surveys is the dumbest move you can make, as far as work culture is concerned.
Are employee pulse surveys part of your business plan? Then, check out our employee survey templates, right away.
