How to Use Surveys to Grow Joy at Work

The survey lands in the employees’ email boxes, and you can almost hear the rise of groans across the office. Another survey, another extraction of brain power with too rarely something in return.   Managers often think of surveys as an easy way to get clean data, but to employees, it often feels like an extraction of their time and energy. The dynamic is understandable. The busy manager feels good about “listening to their employees,” as they have so often heard, as a key to management success. So they send the survey. They are busy. They review the results, sometimes finding nothing, sometimes finding a nugget, but either way, they move on. 

For the employee, the experience is very different. They, too, are busy. Not only does the survey come, but so do email reminders to take the survey. They get the reminder whether they have taken the survey or not. When taking the survey, they puzzle over some of the questions, trying to discern what is being asked and often finding that the question is phrased in a way that makes it difficult to answer. Or worse, it is phrased in a way that clearly expects a certain answer, often not reflective of the difficult situation with which the employee is dealing. It often does not feel like a genuine search for the truth, but rather a perfunctory exercise.

The meanest blow, however, comes afterward. Silence. Having spent the time answering the survey, the employees are rewarded with no feedback. It is as if you asked someone for their advice,  said nothing, turned around, and left. Even if your actions later clearly reveal that you have followed the advice, the person giving it will feel ignored. No wonder survey response rates can be so low.

Respect

Collecting data should not just be about tracking metrics. It is a critical opportunity to deepen relationships and build trust. Managers destroy trust and diminish the relationship by doing any of these three:

1. Lack of intent:  asking questions about things they will not be able to act upon, but ask anyway, because they think the act of asking is worthy enough. 
2. “Weaponizing” data: using the survey to impact a manager’s performance review or even just to embarrass them.
3. "Black hole" effect: collecting data and never telling the organization what you learned or what actions you are taking. 

All of these mistakes and others occur because they are blind to an important perspective: Respect.
Respect needs to apply to everyone, respect for those taking the survey to be sure, but also those giving it and those who may be impacted by it. Often surveys are done in preparation for a Change. Thinking in terms of respect in a Change context has been such an important insight from our research that we have turned the idea into one of our Core Four Philosophies.

Leading Change Intentionally is simply a gesture of respect 

The key word in this context is “intentionally.” This means considering the impact on all stakeholders from any element of the Change process, including a survey. 

Intentionally

To prevent the three trust destroyers of lack of intent, “weaponizing” the data, and the “black hole” effect, managers can start with their concerns about a Change or any situation. This is where “intentionally” will first show up. If there is no action to take as a result of receiving the survey responses, then the manager has interesting but not useful data. The measure of useful data is whether a decision would be made as a result of analyzing the data. Keeping that in mind will create a significantly better survey. To more directly improve surveys and prevent the three trust destroyers, managers can do the following.

Preventing lack of intent: A great survey question has two important characteristics. It is first a question that, if answered, will provide useful data upon which to make a decision. If it does not drive action, then the question provides merely interesting data. Second, the question should have an unambiguous response for those taking the survey. This often means asking narrow questions and identifying the 'minimum set' of data. Instead of taking a 'kitchen sink' approach, you want the smallest amount of data necessary to make an informed decision. This respects your employees' time and prevents survey fatigue. This takes some imagination and time, but it will yield a far superior survey.

Preventing “weaponizing” the data: The pit that managers can fall into is looking at a survey as the complete view of a situation. It is not. A survey takes subjective data, how a person perceives a situation, and converts it into objective data in the form of responses that can be tallied.  A Change survey that indicates people do not feel ready for the Change or an organizational climate survey that shows a lack of trust in a manager are not the full picture of the truth. They can be an important component. If used well, the survey should drive curiosity in the situation. In our courses, we advocate for a three-tiered approach to metrics:

• Self-Reported: what people say about a situation.
• Observable: what others observe about a situation.
• Existing Company Metrics: what the indicators are of success.

Preventing weaponized data requires a mindset shift from leadership. Instead of using survey results as a scorecard to embarrass underperforming managers, data must be treated as a collaborative tool. Managers should look at the results together and ask: 'What are we seeing collectively, and what are we going to do about it together?

Preventing the ‘black hole” effect: the simple answer here is to commit to telling those surveyed what you have learned and will do with the data. Even if the data analysis was inconclusive and nothing will be done, it is better to be clear than to be silent. As an example, the CEO of a large company would walk on stage once a year with a binder that had every comment printed from the company’s annual survey. He would indicate when there was something clear and what the managers would do about it. That sent a clear signal that the survey mattered and action would be taken.

In our Data-Driven Change Management course, we advocate for using a clear message after analyzing the survey data: "Thank you for participating. Here is what we learned. Based on this, we're doing these things. You'll receive a survey again later, but if you have recommendations in the meantime, please share them here." This is an unambiguous signal that the survey has value. Response rates will climb for the next survey.

Relationship

A survey is not a neutral instrument. It sends a signal to employees about what you, the manager or change leader, care about. What you ask or do not ask is a powerful message.  How you respond to those questions is similarly powerful. Research on the psychology of being asked for input helps explain why.

Self-perception of competence: One research study found that being consulted for advice makes people feel valued and competent. There is a flattery effect where people interpret being asked as a signal that they are viewed as knowledgeable.

Effect on relationships: Another research study found that people who ask for advice are perceived as more competent by the advice giver. Perhaps, counterintuitively, asking for advice makes the asker look smarter. This seems to be because they are seen as curious. 

Engagement and prosocial motivation: Being asked for advice activates a feeling of being needed. This connects to self-determination theory, specifically the need for competence and relatedness. When people feel their knowledge helps others, it generates a sense of purpose and a feeling of engagement.

The "advisor effect" in decision-making:  When people are put in the role of advisor (rather than decision-maker), they reason more clearly because of the greater psychological distance, labeled  "Solomon's Paradox." Giving advice can actually improve the advisor's own thinking.

Being intentional about how you Collect the Data, the second step of our four-step Data-Driven Change Management process, is the embodiment of another of our Core Four Philosophies.

People are not usually upset by WHAT is changing. People are upset by HOW the change is handled.

This feeds directly into the 10 Dimensions of Joy at Work. If the survey questions are clearly about improving your understanding of the situation and you send a clear signal that you will act on the feedback if you can, then Joy at Work will grow. 

The idea of being intentional with how you Collect the Data is part of the HOW. Whether intentional or not, a survey will impact the relationship between those who give it and those who take it. You may as well be intentional.