9 reasons most staff engagement surveys don’t work – and some tips to get them right!

Have you ever used a staff survey to gauge what your people feel about where they work?

Do you have low morale, or people issues which you suspect are holding back performance and ultimately, your results?

Those of you who have known me a while, and certainly for those of you who have attended my workshops on how to effectively motivate and engage your staff, you’ll know I believe there are some simple rules and simple techniques that are absolutely critical to more effectively motivating and engaging our staff.  One fundamental principle of motivation is what I call, “knowing which buttons to press”. We need to understand that what drives and motivates us isn’t what drives and motivates someone else – and then we need to  understand just what it is which is motivating someone, so we can plan how to more effectively motivate them in future.

Here’s a simple example: you were a child once, right?

Did you know “which buttons to press” to get what you wanted from Mum?

And did you know you had to press a different set of buttons to get what you wanted from Dad, or Grandma?

Of course you did!! You did it unconsciously!

Yet, as we grow up, we seem to lose that ability – or start to somehow believe that other people, including  our staff can be motivated by pressing the same buttons that motivate you!

Wrong!

It’s also a fallacy to assume that the way you see the culture of your workplace, is the way your staff see it. They usually don’t!

If you, as a manager, are ever to effectively tap into the very best performance of your staff and the whole team, you need to get to know how each individual on your team “ticks” – and what they feel about their work.

Let’s face it – if you don’t – how can you ever begin to “press the right buttons” so your staff give more of their best – willingly and with commitment?

STAFF SURVEYS CAN HELP YOU IDENTIFY STAFF MOTIVATIONS AND FEELINGS ABOUT THEIR WORK

For me, staff surveys are a great way of getting staff to open up and tell you about how they see things – about what motivates and de-motivates them – and about what they feel would make their workplace not only  a better place to be, but somewhere they genuinely want to give of their best, more of the time.

I figure that if I try to understand what their needs and feelings are, and make a genuine effort to see how, together, we can make things better for everyone on the team, my staff are more likely to feel happier and I know happier staff perform better! Seems like a win-win all round for me!

But – as with most things – there’s the good, the bad – and the downright ugly! Here are some of my key tips to getting a staff survey right, and the benefits for you if you do!

9 COMMON WAYS STAFF SURVEYS GO WRONG

1. They grow into unwieldy, time-consuming and complex “monsters” – often totally led and followed up by management, with staff feeling it’s something done to them, instead of with them. Staff own no part of the process – and even if specific issues are identified as requiring some action, they expect management to sort it -  not them!Now I may be “boss” – but I’m all for commitment to make things better on both sides! This isn’t  about my staff pointing the finger and saying to me, “What are you going to do to make things better?”This is about us sitting down and saying: “What can we do to make things better?”
2. Many staff surveys I’ve seen require a complicated setup and access process. For those of you with some experience of staff surveys, I’m sure this will resonate with you!
3. 3. Once set up, it takes ages, (and often consultancy hours for which you are paying!), to encourage all staff to take part.
   Despite your cajoling and encouragement, you’re lucky to achieve more than 60% of staff completing the survey.

4. You have to wait to get the results. This is a biggie! The number of managers I’ve spoken with who have said it has taken months to get the results back, by which time, often many of the staff who completed the surveys have moved on – either leaving the company or the team. Whilst you can still get a feel for some general issues which might be affecting performance, your ability to make any follow up something genuinely targeted and useful, and which engages staff, is almost impossible.
5. The results come back in the form of some long, rather complex report.
   More time is taken with management trying to make sense of it, and come up with an action plan. Everyone, including management, are now feeling overwhelmed with information and a sense of yet more stuff “to do ” if they want to follow it up. Often, follow up falls on the shoulders of a few souls in HR or Learning & Development who struggle to plan a useful programme of improvement.
6. Follow up is so late it becomes ineffective.
   Do I really need to say more?
7. Staff are cynical.
   They see it as another, management led initiative, which disappears into a black hole, and which doesn’t seem to change anything. I’ve heard a few staff in my time say they feel staff surveys are a waste of time, because while they are asked for their opinion, nothing changes. It’s perceived as a “tick-box” exercise.
8. They are expensive to run. You find yourself paying not only for the survey, but the “complex report” from the consultancy, and maybe even further high fees for them to help you implement the follow up.
9. Because the survey is seen as management led, staff don’t really get involved in the plans for improvement.

That doesn’t mean surveys are a bad thing!

I believe when a manager solicits feedback they send an implicit message to their staff which says – “I care what you think – I want to know”, which in turn sets an example and allows staff to feel more comfortable to solicit and receive feedback too. I genuinely believe staff surveys are a great tool, used properly.

What you want is something where all staff take part, where results come back quickly, and where you can plan a simple follow up process, with actions which everyone gets involved with to make things better.

Staff surveys – 5 tips for success

1. Find a survey which is meaningful, but quick and easy to administer – and which gives you a better chance of getting 100% response rate.
2. Don’t allow HR to take over!
   My apologies to HR – but if you really want this process to be something which makes a meaningful difference, where individual teams really engage with the process you MUST have individual managers’ buy in to driving the process.
   Whilst senior management oversee everything, (and clearly they are interested to understand if there might be common patterns or problems coming up across teams)  – it’s the team managers who really need to champion it. It’s through their example, their enthusiasm and their commitment to fostering more open relationships with their staff that I believe leads to a place where, whenever anyone is stopped at random on the corridor of their work and is asked: “What’s it like to work here?” the response is: “Great! This is a great place to work!”
3. Set deadlines to get all feedback in and to meet up for the first follow-up session.
   I know myself – running my own business – there’s nothing quite like making a public commitment to doing something, to make you really take action and get things done!

   Set a timeline (perhaps agreed with your staff? That way they’re in from the beginning!) when you want all surveys completed – and at the same time, set a date and time when you’re going to meet up to discuss the findings and talk about what you do next.  That way, you send a strong message to your staff that this is NOT a tick-box exercise – and that you ARE going to follow it up – and that you EXPECT them to get involved!

4. Set the first follow up within a month of completing the survey.
   Don’t wait – don’t drag your heels. Add it into the agenda for your next team meeting – do whatever you need to – but follow up as soon as you can so your staff know you mean business, and that you really do want to work with them to see how you can make things better!

5. Get your staff involved in the solutions
   As I said earlier – this is NOT an exercise in blame. This is NOT an exercise where your staff point the finger and expect you to do something! This is about everyone looking at what the survey tells you – and  taking responsibility for coming up with solutions about how to make things better – what your priorities are – and most importantly, who is going to do what!

Follow these 5 tips, and not only will you get your staff involved and less cynical about staff surveys, you’ll see a difference in what the whole exercise was really for in the first place – better staff motivation, engagement, commitment and performance!

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For more information to help you with the people side of management,
including how to improve employee motivation and get the best out of your team, take a look at these great resources:

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How do I give constructive feedback without de-motivating someone?

How do I give constructive feedback without de-motivating someone?

I get a number of common questions asked of me as I work with managers in all sorts of businesses, and one of the most frequent questions I get asked is: “How do I criticise someone’s performance without de-motivating them or harming the relationship I have with them?”

Whether you have been managing for 6 days, 6 months or 16 years this may still be something you shy away from, feel uncomfortable about, or hate doing. In the category of “tricky conversations” this is, undoubtedly, in the top ten!

And yet, in terms of performance management, and striving for excellence, it is probably the single most important thing you need to do. If it is so critical – it follows we need to be skilled at doing it!

There is a common saying in the world of sport which I’m sure you’ve heard: “Feedback is the breakfast of champions”.

Any sportsman or woman serious about doing well in their chosen field learns from the outset, that they need regular and open feedback if they are to improve their performance. As a result, there are three key things that occur which, I believe, set the scene for more effective performance management:

1. The individual actively solicits and expects feedback about their performance.
2. The individual takes ownership of, and responsibility for their performance and what they do to improve it.
3. 3. The culture is one which demonstrates on a daily basis the importance and value of feedback, which values and seeks talent, and which proactively supports and encourages every individual to maximise their talent.

If you’ve attended my workshops or followed my articles for any time, you’ll know how important I believe open and honest feedback is in any organisation. You will have heard me talk of the power of praise, (perhaps the best feedback ever!) and the concept of building a culture where people feel supported, encouraged, and valued.

Before I say anything more, let me say this one thing about culture, because, for me, this is absolutely vital to successful performance management:

You can learn some key skills about giving and receiving feedback, but if your culture is one built on mistrust, on discomfort about receiving feedback and on focusing more on negative, than positive feedback, you have an uphill struggle on your hands, and you will never quite reach the excellence in performance you are seeking.

A key part of a dynamic, and truly learning culture is one where people at all levels not only feel comfortable giving and receiving feedback, they actively solicit it. They are people on a mission; they want to do well, and they want to improve.

GIVING FEEDBACK IS OFTEN ASSOCIATED WITH UNCOMFORTABLE FEELINGS

The problem is, in many organisations today, often the only time we give feedback is when something is not going well.

We cannot therefore, blame our people for coming to associate feedback with uncomfortable feelings. As the manager, or individual who is giving the feedback, you too will associate feedback more with a negative experience than a positive one. So there you have it – two people, coming to a situation neither of them likes; both of them feel uncomfortable about and probably wanting it over as quickly as possible!

Hardly helpful!

HOW GOOD ARE WE AT GIVING POSITIVE FEEDBACK?

We’re sometimes not very good at giving positive feedback either. A “well-done,”  or “good work”, might seem to be praise to you, but giving feedback of any sort requires some thought, some clarity, and, most of all, some sincerity and desire to genuinely support another individual to improve their performance.

OUTSTANDING MANAGERS BUILD “FEEDBACK CULTURES”

Outstanding managers build cultures where their people relish and actively seek feedback, and where feedback is used to strengthen relationships and develop excellent performance. In next month’s article I’ll give you some tips on how you can start to build such a culture, but for now, let’s concentrate on how to give feedback  in the most effective, and motivating  way – whether it’s positive or negative.

5 STEPS TO GIVING EFFECTIVE FEEDBACK

Positive feedback

Negative feedback

Give the context – be specific about what you’re going to talk about. Explain specifically what went well. Try to raise one or two very specific things which made this so good. Explain the impact it had This is a critical part of the process. You are making it clear what the benefits are to you, the team, the wider organisation. Focus on their identity and skills You are building a sense of self-esteem and self-confidence here by linking what they are doing with their sense of who they are. Congratulate, reinforce – allow room for a response And a simple, but genuine “thank you” can leave someone feeling like the cat who got the cream!

Give the context – what are you going to talk about? Explain specifically and objectively what went wrong . Stick to the facts. Avoid emotional language. Explain the impact it had Often, a key learning can be through a greater understanding of how our actions might be negatively affecting others. This is a crucial step. Reinforce their identity and skills Whilst this specific issue is about underperformance, remind them of the things you do value and which are great. Seek solutions. Avoid telling someone what you think they should do next. Instead discuss possible actions for future improvements and encourage them to suggest an action plan.

What you may well notice in this model is how similar the framework is, whether you’re giving positive or negative feedback.

Leave out any one of those steps, and you risk reducing the effectiveness and the power of your communication.

If you need to give feedback with one of your staff  in the next few days, plan your approach and what you want to say around those 5 steps; give some thought to how they might be feeling,  how they might react and consider when and how you approach them for best impact. At first, you’ll need to practise; you might want to make some notes and consider the language you use – but I promise you, the more you do this, the easier it gets!

And if you get into the habit of using the model for praise on a regular basis, you and your staff might even start to feel a little more comfortable about the whole  issue of feedback! We’ll discuss how you can build a great feedback culture next month.

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For more information to help you with the people side of management,
including how to improve employee motivation and get the best out of your team, take a look at these great resources:

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Becoming a Confident Manager: 5 tips to help you become more confident in any situation

How confident are you as a manager?

What situations make you feel a little unsure, uncomfortable or less confident about how to handle?

For the new manager, being thrust into suddenly having responsibility for achieving through others can feel daunting, intimidating or overwhelming.   (Particularly when some of those “others” may be people you used to work alongside).

Even for the manager who has been managing for years, with the ever-changing market place, new technologies and a more diverse range of ages and cultures in your workplace, there are likely to be many situations which leave you feeling a little nervous or unsure.

Way back in my career as a teacher, I remember standing nervously in front of 30  expectant, intelligent, articulate individuals, all waiting to see how well I would perform, how successfully I could engage them, and how  much of a “pushover” I was going to be!

Did it make my knees knock a little? You bet!

Later, as I took my first tentative steps towards mentoring, coaching and managing others in industry, I would feel those same feelings: nervousness; worried about my ability to manage what could be some quite tricky situations; concern about how others might perceive me and just a little vulnerable – did I know enough to do this job well?

Where do managers feel a lack of confidence?

There are three key areas which many managers report are the most tricky for them. What are they?

1. Managing others who have higher qualifications than you or who are qualified in a different discipline.
2. Influencing peers or external stakeholders where you have no direct authority, but good working relationships with these people are fundamental to good performance.
3. Managing upwards. Whew is this a biggie! In many of the workshops I run, when I ask people to think of who they most want to be more effective at managing, a staggering proportion of those attending include their immediate line manager or higher  in their top 3.

Each of these situations requires both consummate communication skills and a high degree of self-confidence.

So, what does a manager need to do to increase their confidence in these, or any other, “tricky” situations ?

5 keys to building your self confidence as a manager:

1. Do what you believe to be right – even if others mock or criticise you for it.
   From the moment you take on any management role, others are looking at you to see what kind of a manager you are going to be. Just as those children were “sussing me out” in the classroom all those years ago, your staff are doing the same with you. How you behave sets the scene for everything else.

   This is about two things really:
   a) Getting absolutely clear about what’s really important to you, in terms of what needs to be accomplished, and what attitudes and behaviours you expect. Think of it as creating your own vision of “how we do things around here”.
   b) When it comes to core values about how people work together you never compromise. In all else, you are open to suggestion and influence. In recent studies, outstanding managers, with the highest performing, most committed teams, all had crystal clear ideas about the kind of culture they wanted to create, and what was important to them – and they communicated this to everyone they worked with and  gained “buy in” from all key stakeholders.

   When you feel clear and comfortable about what’s really important to you, and everything you do demonstrates this, even if others don’t always agree with you, they will respect your integrity, trust you, and know where they stand. Chances are  you’ll have fewer tricky situations in future too!

2. 2. Realise you don’t have to know it all.
   There’s a very interesting video on “You-Tube” which really demonstrates the almost frightening pace of change which affects business today. Check out Karl Fisch’s “Shift Happens” when you have a moment.

   For now, it’s useful to see your role, not as being an “expert” at a particular subject, but rather an “expert” at helping to facilitate the expertise of others!

   Instead of being intimidated by someone who seems more qualified than you, ask yourself: “How can I utilise this expertise for the benefit of the individual, the team, and the organisation?”
   When you focus on what you can do to help others help you achieve the overall goals, not only do you get better results, you develop an awesome reputation as a highly skilled leader.

   Every really successful CEO I’ve ever come across sees others’ expertise and ambition as an opportunity – not a threat! The best managers just need to know how to engage smart people to get the job done.

3. 3. Be willing to take risks, and go the extra mile to achieve things
   Building your own sense of personal power and influence comes from being willing to take risks yourself; from facing your fears, and dealing with what you know needs to be done.

   At a personal level, if you don’t face the underperforming member of staff, for example, because you don’t feel confident to deal with it, you become trapped and nothing will be resolved until something forces the situation. Your confidence is likely to decrease even more as time goes on. Meanwhile, don’t kid yourself others aren’t noticing. They are. And this will further dent your confidence.

4. 4. Admit your mistakes – and learn from them
   This really follows on from tip number 3.

   If you’re going to be willing to take risks – you won’t always get it right! However, as long as you learn from that mistake, you will be ready to try something different, and each time you do, you’ll increase your confidence. And if you create a culture where others see it’s OK to make mistakes, you’ll build the confidence of your staff too!

5. Give credit to others
   We all know people who are expert at extolling their own virtues! Individuals who have a high level of self-esteem and confidence don’t need to shout about their accomplishments.

   Don’t feel the need to shout about what you’ve done, or what you know. Instead, give others the limelight at every opportunity. Whether you’re managing up, down or across, think of how you can help others to excel, and you are more likely to be rewarded with excellence.

   And when you achieve excellent results, allow yourself a pat on the back, accept any compliments about how well you managed those diverse individuals gracefully, and get excited about the next challenges!

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For more information to help you with the people side of management,
including how to improve employee motivation and get the best out of your team, take a look at these great resources:

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Five Key Mistakes Which Can Kill Motivation, Morale And Engagement

What is morale like in your organisation?

What is morale like in your team?

And if an organisation is facing a lot of tough challenges, restructuring, or jobs are under pressure, is it possible to maintain strong morale despite the situation?

Whilst the tone for the type of place you work in has to be set at the very top, it’s the job of the managers to implement day in, day out. They’re the “front line”; their behaviours and expectations will set the standards for how people feel and respond to all sorts of situations.

Can a manager improve morale regardless of circumstances?

Yes. I believe they can.

Being a manager is always a challenge. Managing the people bit is always tricky, but maintaining morale, engagement and motivation is a critical part of any manager’s role.

Even in good times a manager needs to maintain engagement and minimise complacency. When business is slow, or there’s lots of internal change and pressure, a manager needs to know how to respond and work with their team in such a way as to keep people on board.

Whatever the strategy for the team or organisation ....

A manager has to win hearts and minds if he or she wants to see their team perform at their best.

But building such high performing teams doesn’t happen accidentally.

It is the result of behaviours, values and beliefs which underpin the way people work together. Sometimes these values or beliefs are unspoken, sometimes they operate at an almost sub-conscious level: but they are still affecting the attitudes, behaviours and performance of every single individual within the team and wider organisation.

It’s up to the manager to communicate “How we do things around here”.

Sometimes, however, despite the best of intentions, despite setting and clearly communicating the expectations and vision for how people work together, some things sabotage the results.  Take a look at the following and see if any of these apply to you or your organisation.

FIVE COMMON “KILLERS” OF MORALE

1. INCONGRUENT ACTIONS
   When the boss does or says one thing – then turns around and does or reinforces the opposite, employees are quick to see the inconsistencies. The more your staff see this happen, the more they lose respect for and trust in the individual manager or the  wider organisation.
   High trust environments are built on consistent and congruent actions.
   Erosion of trust dampens morale and creates negative emotions inconsistent with high productivity.

2. NO ACTION
   Another common failing is leaders who “talk a good talk” – that is they state grand visions, plaster values and belief statements everywhere – but then take little or no action to ensure these grand statements are actually followed through.
   It is hard to expect your staff to take vision statements seriously when staff see that nothing actually happens. They can be forgiven for thinking “we’ve heard this all before”, or “here goes yet another meaningless initiative.”
   Managers must act on their vision – and they must act in a reasonable time frame.

3. OVER-COMPLICATING THE VISION
   Sometimes leaders state visions so complicated people can barely read them – let alone remember them.
   If people can’t remember the vision, chances are it isn’t simple enough.

4. LOST IN DETAIL
   Some managers are so detail oriented that they simply find it hard to understand the idea of vision. They are consumed by detail, and give little attention to thinking about tomorrow and the “big picture” in a creative way.
   It’s not that details aren’t important, but they should not be the sole focus.

5. SABOTAGING THE VISION
   Sometimes, some people within the organisation try to sabotage the vision. They understand it, but try to work in the opposite direction. Other people know they are doing this; and they expect the leadership does too. If nothing is done to stop these efforts then those who are genuinely trying to adhere to the vision end up thinking, “What’s the use?”
   Managers must act swiftly when they see this happening.  And it begins, not with a reprimand, but with a  question – to understand why people are behaving in this way.

Do any of these exist in your team or your organisation?

By taking time to uncover some of these “morale killers”, and taking steps to change things, a manager can improve morale – at least within his or her own team, and sometimes, even despite morale issues in the wider organisation.

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For more information to help you with the people side of management,
including how to improve employee motivation and get the best out of your team, take a look at these great resources:

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