Employee Surveys: Topics, Examples and Best Practices

Every employer needs an accurate workforce pulse. And in today’s competitive job market, feedback matters more than ever. Employee engagement just hit an 11-year low in the U.S., with 4.8 million fewer workers engaged in their work and workplace since 2023 alone. Employees report a lack of role clarity, low levels of satisfaction with their organizations and less connection to their companies’ mission or purpose, according to research from Gallup.

Employers pay the price, with Gallup attributing $1.9 trillion in lost productivity nationally due to not engaged or actively disengaged employees — not to mention the cascading effects on retention, safety and employee well-being. The good news? Organizations can turn the tide on disengagement — they just need to understand what truly motivates or deters their people.

That’s exactly where employee surveys fit in. Let’s take a closer look at their purpose, the most common types and how you can create a survey that moves the needle on issues that matter most to your workforce.

Employee surveys — an overview

When employees are empowered to weigh in on workplace issues, they know their feedback matters. A well-designed employee survey helps an organization understand its employees’ true needs and provide direction for driving actionable change.

Key considerations when creating employee survey questionnaires

How do you pin down what employees really want? Here are five key considerations to help elicit honest and actionable feedback when creating your questionnaire.

Define goals

Before asking any questions, the goals of a survey must be clearly defined. Are you wanting to reduce turnover, increase engagement, make perk changes or boost morale? The possibilities are endless, but effective questions require a clear goal so you can collect the feedback needed to reach it.

Know your metrics

Employee surveys help identify workplace issues before they push people to leave. That’s why it’s essential to define your objectives and set clear metrics to know when you’ve reached your goal.

For example, if you’re measuring employee engagement, a key metric could be the percentage of employees who would recommend your company as a great place to work. Measuring more frequently helps employers track trends and establish benchmarks so they can spot scores that might signal a bigger problem on the horizon.

Create a framework

By clearly defining your goals and establishing key metrics, you create a framework for success. Next comes the process of deciding when and how frequently to survey your workforce. This often comes down to the size and capacity of your HR team. However, some surveys should be completed at specific times — take onboarding and exit interview surveys, for example. Either way, be respectful of your employees’ time and ensure your team has the bandwidth to both analyze and act on the results.

Make use of survey tools and software

A powerful survey tool helps you easily generate, collect and parse employee feedback. Some survey software comes with customizable templates for a more accurate pulse, allowing you to prompt employees with multiple-choice questions, yes/no answers, open-ended explanations or drop-down selections depending on the topic or objective.

Keep them anonymous

Keeping surveys anonymous empowers employees to share honest, transparent feedback that can be used for company development. You’ll likely reveal information you may not discover otherwise. Plus, employees are more inclined to participate when they know there are no repercussions.

Types of surveys for employee engagement and topics they cover

Now that we’ve covered the basics, let’s take a closer look at 11 different types of employee surveys and how your company can use them to boost engagement and improve your culture.

1. Employee engagement survey

Employee engagement surveys measure workers’ enthusiasm, motivation, dedication and sense of purpose toward their jobs and employers. Companies use them to gain insight into the employee experience and determine what could be standing in the way of greater engagement.

Some typical questions include:

• Do you have confidence in the company’s leadership?
• Do you find purpose in your work?
• Do you feel inspired by the company’s mission and vision?
• Do you feel valued at work?

2. Pulse survey

A pulse survey is designed with speed in mind. As the name alludes, pulse surveys are short questionnaires sent to get a “pulse check” on how employees feel. Employers send these on a regular basis to measure current sentiment within their workforce — not necessarily on a specific topic or issue. Pulse surveys can be a powerful tool for retention when used correctly. They show employees you care by collecting and listening to their ongoing feedback.

Pulse surveys can cover topics on:

• diversity, equity and inclusion
• well-being
• job satisfaction
• safety
• communication

3. Culture assessment survey

Culture assessment surveys help employers evaluate their employees’ behaviors, values and beliefs in line with the larger organization. They provide valuable insight into a company’s culture and help align the company’s stated vision with the lived experience of its employees. Culture assessments can be particularly helpful for HR teams, which are often tasked with finding new ways to improve employee engagement and retention.

4. Onboarding survey

In a tightening labor market, you can’t afford to lose new employees to a confusing or frustrating first day on the job. Onboarding surveys help bridge the gap between a company’s stated process and a new hire’s actual recruiting, hiring and onboarding experience.

Employers can help improve the process by asking employees:

• What is one thing we could do to improve the hiring experience?
• Do you have any concerns about your new role?
• Did you receive your company-provided equipment on Day 1?

5. Exit interview survey

Most companies conduct exit interviews when employees resign. This practice can help HR identify and address specific causes of turnover. Some typical exit interview questions might include:

• Would you recommend our company to a friend?
• What led you to look for a new role?
• Did you feel supported by your manager?
• Did your job description change after getting hired? If so, how?

6. Training needs survey

The solution to your staffing challenges may lie in your approach to employee development. In fact, 48% of workers would switch to a new job if it offered employee training opportunities, according to Gallup.

Training needs surveys are a critical tool in helping employers identify knowledge, behavior or skills gaps within their workforce and inform the types of training needed to close them.

7. 360-degree feedback survey

A 360-degree feedback survey, sometimes called a 360 survey or 360 review, collects feedback from an employee’s peers, clients, managers and reports to form a holistic understanding of their job performance. These surveys provide more balanced feedback and help drive engagement by measuring the satisfaction of a leader’s direct reports.

8. Diversity, equity and inclusion survey

Initiatives geared toward diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) have become increasingly vital to a business’s long-term success. And as the working population grows more diverse, the needs of top talent evolve. An effective DEI survey sets a precedent for a forward-thinking workplace and makes it easier to implement initiatives that enhance your employees’ experience. It’s best to include a variety of questions to get a more accurate pulse, including:

• rating-scale questions
• yes/no questions
• open-ended questions

9. Wellness and work-life balance survey

You can’t have workplace wellness without work-life balance. So what can companies do to support the holistic well-being of employees and attract top talent? Ask them! These surveys help pinpoint issues that might be standing in their way, including increased workloads, time-management issues or even bad or too much tech.

10. Employee benefits and compensation survey

In today’s competitive job market, benefits and compensation can be the difference between retention and attrition. An effective survey helps ensure employees are satisfied with yours and uncover perks that could set you apart from the competition. While it’s important to ask about your current offerings, it’s also helpful to ask how your perks and benefits stack up to employees’ previous employers.

11. Employee satisfaction survey

Are your employees happy? Employee satisfaction surveys measure an employee’s sense of contentment with their day-to-day responsibilities, work environment and working relationships. They’re designed to boost employee engagement by asking what can we do for you?

Importance of employee surveys

Here are 12 benefits that demonstrate the importance of employee surveys.

1. Employee engagement

Effective surveys help employees feel more committed and inspired. They also improve your understanding of worker opinions and morale, two crucial factors for enhancing engagement.

2. Feedback

You can’t improve your organization without feedback from the people running it. Surveys give employees a chance to be heard and help employers uncover issues they might not have otherwise.

3. Improved productivity

It’s no secret that engaged employees are more productive. And according to Gallup, companies with engaged workforces have higher earnings per share (EPS). Employee surveys help you improve productivity by providing a safe space for workers to share what’s standing in their way.

4. Identifying workplace challenges

Your managers juggle back-to-back meetings, looming deadlines and multiple employees at once, making it easy for issues to slip through the cracks. Employee surveys help identify workplace challenges by empowering employees to bring them to light.

5. Assessing job satisfaction levels

Do employees’ job satisfaction levels change over time? You won’t know until you ask. This crucial measurement helps you benchmark satisfaction levels and identify issues that could be leading to attrition.

6. Improving communication within the organization

We all know the saying “communication goes both ways,” but sometimes this concept gets overlooked in the workplace. Surveys help level the playing field by giving every employee a voice and establishing a cadence for regular communication.

7. Utilizing data for informed decision-making

Data-driven and actionable insights guide your business strategy. Shouldn’t you do the same for employees? The data you collect during surveys helps you identify issues and chart a course toward improvement.

8. Cultivating a positive organizational culture

Workers aren’t responsible for creating a positive workplace culture. But when they notice their employer taking the time and effort to solicit feedback, it gives them more incentive to. Businesses can establish a positive feedback loop for continually improving the culture by implementing employee surveys.

9. Strengthening leadership effectiveness

Are your people prepared to take on additional responsibilities? Are there programs in place to help them get there? Employee surveys shed light on leadership effectiveness and help employers fine-tune their succession plans.

10. Enhancing employee well-being

The wellness of every team member should be a priority. Empowering them with a voice is just one way to show you care. Gaining a deeper understanding of their perspectives on wellness benefits and resources and then taking action to make changes is another way you can enhance employee well-being in the workplace.

11. Fostering growth and development opportunities

To compete for top talent and retain high performers, your org needs a strategy that delivers what today’s employees want: development. Surveys help employers uncover gaps in their professional development strategy and understand what employees need to close it.

12. Evaluating innovation and creativity support

Businesses with a culture of innovation are more likely to attract talent and experience sustained success. Surveys help you evaluate the level of creativity support across your organization to see if your staff is facilitating continuous innovation.

Best practices for employee surveys

When used effectively, surveys are a productive way to understand your employees’ true needs and drive actionable change for your organization. Let’s look at the best practices for creating and deploying a survey that gets the insight you need.

Regular surveys

Your surveys should be purposeful and frequent. The Society for Human Resource Management suggests regular feedback “shows employees that [their] company actually cares about how they perceive their work environment.” However, avoid conducting surveys during peak or high-stress periods to help ensure responses are focused, sincere and thorough.

Clear communication

Asking the wrong questions can lead to skewed survey results, creating unwanted or biased changes that may fracture your workplace. When creating your survey, construct questions as objectively as possible so anyone within the company feels confident answering. Keep questions short and easy to read.

Involving employees in survey designs

Certain questions can deter participation. Build inquiries with a clear goal in mind and be prepared to pivot according to the answers you gather. You can even involve employees to help ensure it’s designed to enhance, not stagnate, the employee experience.

Analyzing results to make data-driven decisions

If your organization is not prepared to make changes based on survey results, there’s no point in creating one. After your questions are created and the survey is distributed, focus on analyzing the results and using them to make improvements in your workplace.

Employee surveys: FAQ

Are employee surveys mandatory?

No, they are not mandatory. However, a well-designed employee survey helps an organization understand its employees’ true needs and provides direction for driving actionable change.

Are employee surveys effective?

Effective surveys help employees feel more committed and inspired. They also improve your understanding of worker opinions and morale, two crucial factors for enhancing employee engagement.

What are the legal implications of employee surveys?

Keep employee surveys anonymous. Federal law prohibits employers from retaliating against employees for protected activity.

Explore Paycom Surveys to see how it helps you collect, review and measure workforce feedback.