1.5 - About University

4.10S URVEYING E MPLOYEES: LEADINGTHE S URVEY P ROCESSInspired by Joe Folkman, John Jones, William Bearley, and Leland Verheyen.Employee surveys provide an important way of gathering information, particularly in largeorganizations. This tool looks at managing the overall survey process, from planning andinvolving stakeholders, to responding to and acting on survey results. It is important to distinguishbetween formal academic survey standards (with, for example, control groups and elegantstatistical analysis) and an employee survey process in which the emphasis is on change,results, and with much more focus on what happens after the survey results are tabulated.Plan the survey process.❑❑❑❑❑Start by defining a clear vision of what you’re trying to do. Have a clear and primary purpose for surveying theemployees (e.g., to discover and delineate a critical issue, or to set the stage for a specific change). Secondarypurposes might include providing feedback to managers, assessing progress or trends, or better understandingemployees. [☛ 2.3 Directional Statements]Discuss how data will be collected, who will see it, and how results will be fed back; how management anticipatesresponding to results; and who will make those decisions.Plan to maximize participation, response rates, and follow-ups (news bulletins, inclusion in meetings). Responserates can vary from 25% to 90%, depending on such factors as organizational climate, survey length, importance ofissues, confidentiality assurances, and fear of reprisals.Since there is no ideal time to conduct the survey (e.g., people too busy, units are short-staffed, too many otherchanges), seek a workable time rather than an ideal time.Consider surveying all employees versus simply sampling. While appropriate for statistical purposes, sampling isusually not appropriate for purposes of acceptance, commitment, and buy-in to change.Involve survey stakeholders early and often.❑❑❑❑❑Building commitment to survey projects is never completed until the expected changes are “the way we do thingsaround here.” Be prepared to constantly reposition and resell the survey idea at all levels and all stages.Know that people expect change, so set realistic expectations about what might happen as a result of the survey(something specific between “All issues will be resolved” and “Nothing ever happens as a result of these surveys”).[☛ 5.1 Change Equation]Think of yourself as working with survey participants, not survey subjects (of doing something with and for them,not to them). With management, use we from the beginning if you want our results at the end. Often, the surveytask force owns the survey design, then wonders why management doesn’t own the data and results, much less theemployees’ owning them.Involve as many potential survey contributors as possible in planning the survey process. Although people are rarelyenthusiastic about the idea of a survey, at least initially, don’t simply assume that they will be negative. [☛ 4.4Employee Involvement]Ask potential survey contributors, up front, for their help in making something meaningful happen.SECTION 4 TOOLS FOR DESIGNING PRODUCTIVE PROCESSES AND ORGANIZATIONS 135