Timing matters, especially when it comes to employee surveys. You need to pick the right time of day – would you want to blearily answer a load of difficult questions just after waking up? – but how often people are surveyed is equally as important.
Different frequencies go in and out of fashion. Where the one-and-done, megalithic, annual employee survey used to be standard, pulse surveys are now common. So what’s the difference, and what’s best for you?
The clue’s in the name: pulse surveys are short questionnaires that ‘take the pulse’ of an organisation’s people. Often sent weekly, they tend to include some of the same questions each time to keep track of changing responses. They’re often sent by email, text, or using an app.
Annual surveys are more traditional – they’re often long, comprehensive, and used to help organisations benchmark against themselves. They’ll be sent to the whole organisation over a set timeframe each year, and the management team will usually spend a considerable amount of time analysing the results and deciding their next steps.
Though it’s tempting to take a hard line, the answer is the obvious one – find the middle ground. Annual employee surveys have their uses, but frequent feedback matters too. Many thought leaders agree, suggesting that a mix-and-match approach is best.
Ask for feedback regularly, but meaningfully. That could mean aligning with key events, checking in once per quarter, or reacting to unexpected crisis situations.
When it comes to employee surveys, we consider ourselves experts. And it doesn’t matter whether it’s a full organisational scan, an employee engagement survey or a deep dive focused on a specific topic – it’s all about the approach to surveys themselves.
Our question sets? Proven to get high response rates, and data linked to clear outcomes. Our survey advice? Unmatched, and data-led. Our platform? Easy to use, providing you powerful insights. But don’t just take it from us, watch the demo video:
With our platform, you get actionable people insights. See how it works, and why it’s the secret to organisational success.
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