Right now you have a powerful opportunity to enter into 2025 informed by your team. Employees are on the front lines, experiencing the day-to-day realities of the workplace and interacting directly with clients and processes, and leaders must not overlook the invaluable opportunity to gain insights from their employees when it comes to business planning and operational decisions.

By conducting an employee survey, leaders can tap into this wealth of knowledge, uncovering critical insights that can drive meaningful change and innovation; while ignoring employee feedback can lead to missed opportunities, unresolved challenges, and a disengaged workforce.

October and November are ideal months to conduct these surveys, allowing time to analyse results and implement changes before the busy end-of-year period. Here’s why conducting employee surveys is important, some tips on how to do it yourself, and how FCHR can support you through the process.

Why Conduct Employee Surveys Annually?

Surveys serve as a powerful tool for gathering insights directly from employees, providing leaders with the information needed to make informed decisions. Here are some compelling reasons why annual employee surveys should be a cornerstone of your organisational strategy:

• Improve Employee Engagement and Retention: Annual surveys help identify how engaged employees are, allowing businesses to address concerns and boost retention.
• Identify Workplace Trends and Challenges: Regular surveys track changes in employee sentiment, revealing trends and potential issues like dissatisfaction or burnout.
• Strengthen Communication and Trust: Surveys offer a platform for employees to share their thoughts, building trust and fostering open communication.
• Meet Legislative Obligations: Surveys can help identify WHS risks, supporting businesses in fulfilling their safety obligations and addressing concerns.
• Enhance Decision-Making: Employee feedback provides fresh perspectives, aiding managers in making decisions that align with team needs.

Key Areas to Review in Your Survey

When designing your employee survey, it’s crucial to focus on specific key areas that can provide meaningful insights. Here are some essential areas to consider in your survey:

Employee Experience and Engagement

• Employee Engagement and Satisfaction: Gauge overall job satisfaction and motivation levels, identifying areas for improvement.
• Psychological Safety: Understand whether employees feel safe expressing their thoughts and concerns without fear of negative consequences.
• Work-Life Balance: Gauge how well employees feel they can manage their work responsibilities alongside personal time, particularly in hybrid and remote work environments.
• Workplace Culture: Ask about the overall atmosphere at work and whether the company’s values are upheld, helping identify cultural issues that may affect morale or retention.

Health, Safety, and Wellbeing

• Occupational Health & Safety: Assess how employees feel about the physical safety measures in place and any potential risks they encounter.
• Employee Wellbeing: Measure how supported employees feel regarding mental and physical wellbeing, including access to resources like Employee Assistance Programs (EAP) or wellness initiatives.

Management and Leadership

• Management and Administration Team: Gather feedback on the effectiveness and approachability of leadership and administrative support.
• Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI): Assess whether employees feel the workplace is inclusive, respectful, and values diversity, and inquire about experiences of bias and fairness in opportunities.

Processes and Communication

• Processes and Communication: Evaluate the efficiency of internal processes and the clarity of communication within the team.
• Innovation and Continuous Improvement: Include questions about how employees perceive their ability to innovate or suggest improvements and how their suggestions are received to foster a culture of continuous improvement and engagement.

Development and Strategic Insights

• Training and Development: Review opportunities for upskilling, access to training programs, and the perceived value of professional development offered by the organisation.
• SWOT Analysis: Include questions that help identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats within the workplace, offering a strategic view of the business.

How to Conduct a DIY Employee Survey

If you’re considering running an employee survey yourself, here are some key tips to ensure the process is smooth and effective:

• Free Tools: Tools such as Survey Monkey will allow you to utilise their platform to deliver the survey and collect response with limitations such as a maximum of 10 questions; paid versions offer the opportunity to dive deeper and access more elements.
• Define Your Purpose: Clarify your survey objectives to ensure the questions you ask gather relevant data.
• Use a Mix of Question Types: Combine multiple-choice, rating scales, and open-ended questions to gather both quantitative and qualitative insights.
• Ensure Anonymity: Use anonymous survey tools to encourage honest feedback and increase participation rates.
• Keep it Short and Focused: Aim for a survey that takes 10-15 minutes to complete to maintain employee engagement.
• Share Results and Action Plans: Communicate key findings and planned actions to show that employee feedback is valued and drives change.

How We Can Help

We appreciate that conducting employee surveys demands time, expertise, and planning – resources that many clients may find limited. Crafting a comprehensive survey, ensuring effective distribution, and analysing the results can overwhelm even the most dedicated professionals. That’s where FCHR can provide you with relief, streamlining the entire process from design to delivery with review and recommendations:

• Tailored Survey Design: We can create a customised survey that aligns with your specific goals and industry requirements.
• Professional Management: Our service covers survey creation, distribution, and analysis, ensuring confidentiality and actionable insights.
• Expert Support: With our HR and OHS expertise, we help businesses take meaningful action based on survey results, fostering a positive workplace culture.

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Your Next Step

Reflect on the year that has been, and ask yourself if you really know the answers to these questions?

1. What feedback have we received, and how effectively have we acted on it?
2. What arising challenges do our employees face, and how can we address them?
3. How engaged and satisfied are our employees with their roles?
4. Are we providing adequate professional development opportunities?
5. How well do our policies align with employee needs and company values?
6. What strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats do our team see in our business?

If you don’t know the answers, now is the time to ask. Gathering feedback now allows for informed decisions that benefit both employees and the organisation. Whether you run a DIY survey or engage our services, the key is to act on the insights you gather—starting the new year on the right foot.

If you’d like to discuss developing and delivering an employee survey, reach out to our team. Let’s begin 2025 armed with the right information to inform your decision-making!