We’re all vulnerable to the stress and strain of everyday life, balancing work and personal lives while also coping with the impact of a global pandemic and lockdowns that restrict our usual freedoms. At times, this can manifest itself in feelings of disengagement which effects both our wellbeing and sometimes, our work performance.
Anecdotally you’re likely experiencing ebbs and flows in the performance of your team based on both internal and external factors but as the adage goes “if you can’t measure it, you can’t improve it”. And that’s where both deep dive and pulse research can deliver powerful analytics to better understand employee engagement and action plan to strengthen your culture.
Organisations that focus on engagement as a priority tend to perform better. There are numerous examples of successful companies that support this theory – they understand the importance of developing productive working relationships and creating a working environment where people can reach their potential.
Conventional methods of measuring employee engagement focus on annual reviews however rising in popularity are the introduction of pulse surveys – short and regular surveys that continuously gather employees’ views on topics. The theory being we live in a changing world and face new challenges continuously so our approach to engagement needs some new thinking and actions.
Why do pulse surveys work?
1. Frequency encourages action
Not everyone gets excited about completing surveys, but the benefit of pulse surveys is that they are short and quick to complete which makes them less onerous that conventional annual engagement surveys. Their frequency means that you are obtaining a flow of workplace feedback that can be acted on.
2. People feel valued
The benefit of gathering feedback is that you are actively aiming to make change and improvements. Making these continuous mini actions demonstrates to your team that they are valued and that the organisation genuinely cares. This has a positive impact on advocacy, commitment and enthusiasm which are the pillars of employee engagement.
3. They provide honest feedback
Pulse surveys shouldn’t replace other forms of “always-on” feedback methods like regular check-ins or one-to-one meetings with your team. But sometimes it can be challenging for people to provide honest feedback in conversation, particularly if the person they are interacting with is part of a problem. It’s a given that you’ll receive more open and honest responses from a survey.
4. They are hyper-focussed
Pulse surveys are typically less than five questions and often only contain one question. It means you can be highly responsive to whatever is happening in the workplace and obtain real-time feedback. For example, your team may have completed training and you send out a pulse survey to gauge the value of the session or perhaps you’ve launched a new technology and want immediate feedback on the change.
If you are truly open to understanding what’s going on with your team and you are in a position to act positively on that feedback, then pulse surveys might be a useful addition to your suite of engagement tools.
Need help?
If you are looking for advice and support to identify, develop and implement strategies to establish and build a positive internal company culture, then get in touch with us today. We’d love to chat.
The Decipher Team
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