The importance of employee feedback can’t be overstated when it comes to business success. A large NIH study concluded that “feedback can be more effective and less aversive than its past,” but it needs to be executed thoughtfully. Employee surveys should touch on important components of engagement like employee satisfaction, alignment, and future goals. If you’re looking for ways to get valuable employee feedback, we’ve got you covered.
Here are the top 5 ways to effectively gather employee feedback:
1. Celebrate Feedback in the Company Culture
Does your company culture genuinely celebrate feedback or is it more of a formality? If employees feel like their feedback is valued within the organization, they’re a lot more likely to divulge their honest thoughts. As a manager, you can emphasize your company’s desire for feedback in the following ways:
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Remind your team that their opinions matter to the organization.
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Use collective feedback to improve the organization.
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Practice being curious and asking questions.
If you make it clear that feedback is valued by the organization, people are a lot more likely to speak up.
2. Offer Anonymity
For many, knowing their name is tied to feedback can create hesitation to be honest out of fear of consequences for how they respond. Creating anonymous feedback options for employees allows those who may be afraid to speak up to do so. Ways to gather feedback anonymously include:
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Anonymous surveys or polls
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Suggestion boxes around the office
If you provide employees the opportunity to remain anonymous with their feedback, you may gain more valuable information for your organization.
3. Ask Better Questions
The least useful question one could ask is “do you have feedback for me?” Questions like this are vague and don’t lead to valuable employee feedback. When creating employee surveys, try asking more specific questions to get valuable feedback. Here are some examples:
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“What were some of your biggest challenges in Q1?”
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“What tips do you have for improving work conditions in the office?
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“Do any processes seem inefficient that could use some improvement?”
If you ask vague questions, you’re likely to get vague answers or no answers. Be sure to add some specificity to your employee surveys and you’ll get more valuable feedback in the end.
4. Incorporate Employee Feedback
Nobody wants to give feedback if it’s just going to fall upon deaf ears. Think about it. If your company is always asking for feedback but never shows they have made changes given that feedback, from an employee's perspective - what is the point of giving feedback? As an employer, being transparent with employees and letting them know what type of feedback was given and what changes will be prioritized to take place because of that feedback shows action. Ways to incorporate and communicate with your employees about feedback include::
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Find patterns in the feedback you receive and address items that have come up more than once or from more than one employee.
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Make announcements about the feedback received and how that feedback will be used to prioritize changes to improve the organization.
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Actually make a change.
If you truly incorporate the feedback that your employees give you, you’ll be more valued and respected as an organization. This also gives more weight to employee surveys.
5. Incentivize Feedback With Gift Cards for Employees
A great way to incentivize your employees to provide feedback is by offering gift cards for completion of surveys. The Engage2Reward™ Choice Card is a great option because it offers employees choice allowing them to redeem it for an eGift card of their choosing from over 250 brands.
Here are some of the benefits of using our Engage2Reward™ Gift Card Ordering Portal:
- Easy access to redemption portal
- Individualized messages for recipient
- Instant delivery on eGift card orders
- System integration not required
Providing gift cards for employees is one of the best ways to encourage feedback. You can even customize it by adding a personalized message and upload custom greeting cards, pictures or videos to your digital gift card orders to excite and engage your recipients.
Try the Engage2Reward™ Choice Card today.
Conclusion
Getting employee feedback can be tricky to begin with, but how you go about it can make all the difference in the type of feedback you get. By promoting a culture that celebrates feedback, providing anonymity with responses, and asking better questions, you’ll be well on your way to a more feedback-positive culture. Making it all come full circle by incorporating the feedback you receive and incentivizing employees to provide the feedback with gift cards, will continue to foster receiving vital feedback in the future.
