Companies continue to invest substantially in employee surveys.  This gives critical insight into employee opinions and levels of engagement.  

But too many companies are failing to utilise this data to make real business improvements.  More focus is needed on implementing the right action planning approach.  Often action planning is only considered by survey owners once the results are in.  This is too late.  The right approach for action plans should be agreed before a survey is launched.  Also think upfront about how survey data will be used.

Effective action planning will make or break the effectiveness of an employee survey.  If extensive data is captured but not acted on, it is simply wasted investment.  Employee survey results should both inform business strategy and be used to measure success against this. 

Here are some top tips when planning your next employee survey:

Understand your data – Ensure you have a clear understanding of the whole picture of your data, including strengths and opportunities, internal / external comparisons and context.

Discuss the data with your employees – Communication between line managers and employees is essential.

Prioritise which themes / questions to action –Determine the most appropriate actions for the corporate as well as local level

Dig deeper into themes / questions – This allows line managers to get closer to their team.   Use brainstorm sessions to develop actions to maintain transparency and increase employee buy-in.

Formulate SMART actions based on data and team feedback – Managers should work with their teams to develop specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound actions. 

Nominate champions for each action to enable follow-through – Create developmental objectives for individuals.  Use brainstorms at team meetings to involve employees in creation of action plans.

Regularly update team on progress with actions – Communication is essential to show that feedback is being acted on. 

‘You said, we did’ communications to join up the dots between the survey and internal initiatives.

To find out more, check out our paper on How to maximise survey success through action planning.