Measuring the employee experience seems like an unsolvable mystery for even the most seasoned HR leaders in 2023. The kicker is, if you can’t effectively measure employee experience, you can’t improve it!
Research shows that employees who feel recognized by management are more likely to be engaged. Taking it a step further, employees highly value a workplace in which they feel their skills are highly utilized. So, why is it so hard to measure and improve employee satisfaction?
Today’s workers don’t just expect a fun outing once a quarter – they expect their entire employee experience to be enjoyable and rewarding. After all, full-time workers are spending 40 hours of the week with you – or teleconferencing with you from the comfort of their homes.
With $1 trillion spent on employee turnover yearly, we can all agree there’s value in understanding how to improve the employee experience for today’s employees who, let’s face it, expect more than a $10 gift card to Starbucks for being employee of the month. But how are leaders measuring their current workforce to determine their next steps? Let’s dig into our expert strategies for effectively measuring employee experience.
#1: Sending Employee Surveys
If you don’t ask, you’ll never know, right? Sending out surveys is a tried and true way to get feedback from your employees and to signal to them that you care about their opinion. It’s true that some employees may not bother to fill out your carefully crafted survey, but the ones who do are the ones you have a good chance of keeping at your company.
According to the Harvard Business Review, employees that don’t fill out a survey are 2.6 times more likely to leave in the next six months. So, even if you don’t get a 100% response rate, you’re still learning something.
Tip: A survey like Sparck’s #BeHeard survey gives your organization personalized insights into where to improve based on five key engagement drivers.
Beyond sending it, surveying your employees is a great chance to build trust with them! Show some love to parts of your company that need it or put support systems in place for employees feel undervalued and overworked. Talk to employees who are having a tough time or reward survey participation. Taking action on a survey builds trust and shows that you care.
#2: Measuring Employee KPIs and Employee Net Promoter Scores (eNPS)
Employee KPIs, or key performance indicators, will give you qualitative measurements about what’s working for your employees and what’s not. Employee surveys are a great place to strategically integrate questions about these key KPIs!
Employee Net Promoter Scores (eNPS)
This deceptively simple KPI asks your employees how likely they would be to recommend your workplace to a friend. This is a strong indicator of how they feel about working there. A survey like Sparck’s #BeHeard survey sorts employees into three categories based on if they’d refer a friend: Positive, neutral, or negative.
Pro tip: Don’t overlook your neutrals! Ask employees for their feedback on what would take their work experience from neutral to positive.
Employee Satisfaction
Employee satisfaction questions can include asking how happy they are at work, if they’re satisfied with their compensation and additional benefits, if they enjoy their work environment, and if they’re happy with the resources you’re providing. It’s never a bad idea to leave room for employee feedback about what you could do to improve.
Productivity
Productivity is another key KPI. In fact, research shows that employee productivity is directly tied to happiness at work, with happier employees getting more done than their counterparts! Take stock of productivity by setting measurable goals for your team throughout the year.
Retention, Turnover & Absenteeism
Retention and turnover are two crucial KPIs for you, someone whose goal is to spend less money on finding new employees by keeping current employees for longer periods of time.
As you know, retention is a huge indicator of overall happiness within the workplace. On the flip side, turnover measures how many people left throughout the year.
While turnover is natural for any company, high turnover may indicate that employees are dissatisfied with your company. Even this high-cost scenario is a chance to learn! Make sure to perform exit surveys with every employee to learn what you can do better with current and new employees.
Absenteeism is usually associated with a decrease in productivity and a greater burden on the employee that’s frequently absent, increasing the potential for burnout and the cost on your company.
If you’re finding it difficult to convince C-Suite executives that investing in high-quality employee engagement software is less costly than absenteeism, high turnover, and low retention, use the Sparck calculator to show them just what kind of ROI you could get.
Manager Training & EI Skills
Managers hold the most influence over their team’s engagement and they can ensure a positive employee experience – or a negative one.
- How often do your managers go to leadership trainings?
- Do they have the tools to lead their teams in a virtual world?
- Are your managers receiving the mentorship they need to grow?
- Do they possess strong soft skills such as compassion, listening, empathy and emotional intelligence?
Consider surveying the managers in your workspace about how capable they feel leading their teams, how they would rate their emotional intelligence skills, and what might make them feel more supported in their roles.
#3: Assessing Recent Quality of Work
Employees who are having a positive employee experience are more likely to produce high-quality work. You can measure recent quality of work in a few ways. Look at employee productivity, absenteeism, and well-being.
If employees aren’t meeting productivity markers, fall behind on their work, or are more absent than normal, view it as an opportunity – not a surefire sign that they’re already on their way out. This is your window to turn the situation around!
As a leader at your organization, you may not be able to retain every single employee. However, by measuring employee experience, you can improve the work-lives of the people around you and make them feel heard.
#4: Using Workplace Recognition Platforms
40% of employees say they receive recognition for their work a few times a year or less. Employee recognition shouldn’t be a one-off event - it should be a part of the fabric of everyday worklife.
A one-time show of gratitude is not enough to make employees feel valued, especially considering how important great recognition from management is to today’s workers.
Employee recognition platforms empower leaders to weave appreciation into their culture by rewarding employee achievements in public, all on one platform. They show you performance analytics for every employee, provide coaching support for employees at risk of leaving, and allow employees to communicate with and recognize one another.
Sparck’s workplace experience platform makes it easy for you to track employee recognition as a KPI, boost engagement in a personalized manner, elevate your workplace culture, and increase results.
Take Your Employee Experience to the Next Level
The modern workplace requires modern solutions for measuring employee experience. Employees want to be heard, valued for their skillset, and holistically rewarded for their efforts.
Sparck’s workplace recognition platform is known for measuring the employee experience, improving employee satisfaction, and achieving business outcomes. Learn more about how Sparck works today!
