Successful organizations recognize the importance of taking pulse checks of their employees, otherwise known as employee engagement and employee satisfaction surveys. From employees’ commitment levels and motivation to their sense of purpose and passion for their work, these surveys are valuable tools for assessing overall alignment between your employees and your organization and driving peak productivity among content, cohesive teams.
With employee burnout at an all-time high on the heels of the pandemic and The Great Resignation plaguing organizations big and small, listening to your employees and taking their feedback seriously has never been more critical.
While used interchangeably, the two types of employee surveys have distinct differences, and knowing which survey to use and when can make all the difference in your company’s growth and culture.
So, what is the difference, and when should one be used over the other?
Employee Satisfaction vs. Employee Engagement: Key Differences
Employee satisfaction and employee engagement, at face value, seem to go hand in hand–but one key thing sets the two surveys apart: an employee’s commitment level.
Satisfied employees are happy–but in many ways, indifferent. They enjoy their predictability and don’t typically enjoy the winds of change. An engaged employee, though, is committed–they are fulfilled by and proud of their work, often proactively pursuing ways to make things better and work smarter, not harder, improving the experience for your customers and your employees alike.
Merely satisfied employees are more resistant to change. But on the other hand, engaged employees welcome it and embrace it for the growth and innovation of the company and their development.
Typically, employee satisfaction surveys explore topics such as:
- Pay and reward structures
- How employees are managed
- Working conditions
Conversely, employee engagement surveys dig deeper into how the employee perceives the employer at emotional, behavioral, and cognitive levels. These three elements are essential for identifying the key drivers to target for the most significant change in employee engagement overall.
Whether you conduct employee satisfaction or engagement surveys, it’s important to note the difference between a satisfied employee vs. an engaged employee:
- Satisfied employees are happy to do their job and collect a paycheck–engaged employees are in it for the long haul.
- Happy employees are not always engaged, but genuinely engaged employees are almost always happy employees.
- Employee satisfaction is the “going steady” part of the relationship–but employee engagement says, “I do.”
Long story short? Satisfied employees will only take your organization so far. Engaged employees, however, are dedicated to driving long-term success for your organization. But measuring both within your organization is instrumental and driving satisfactory engagement largely falls on the employer–not the employee.
How do you do that? Shared commitment. Show your employee you’re as committed to them as you hope they are to you. It starts with soliciting their feedback but materializes when the employer takes their feedback seriously and makes the necessary changes.
Do’s and Don’ts For Employee Engagement
Employee engagement should be top of mind for any employer seeking to grow and cultivate positive company culture. Here are a few tips on measuring employee engagement and taking action that keeps top talent and boosts business growth.
- Do: Start with satisfaction surveys–then move to use engagement surveys. Satisfaction surveys help measure the employee’s overall enjoyment of their work. If you don’t want engagement scores to be a bust, starting with a well-thought-out employee satisfaction survey is beneficial. In other words, you have to crawl before you walk. Asking open ended questions like, “How would you rate your relationship with your manager?” or, “How comfortable do you feel collaborating with other team members?” is a great place to start when feeling an employee out on their satisfaction level. The bottom line: You won’t have an engaged employee without first having a satisfied employee.
- Don’t: Fail to adapt to remote or hybrid teams. The post-pandemic workforce has thrown us all for a loop and what used to be “normal” is about as obsolete as fax machines. Employees have reevaluated what’s important to them and will not settle for less–and that includes flexible schedules conducive to their (new) work-life balance. While a few employers like Tesla have demanded a return to the office, most employers have pivoted to offering hybrid schedules. Good on them, considering in one survey, a third of employees would quit their jobs if they were not provided the opportunity to work remotely. With childcare costs up a staggering 41% since the pandemic, every employer would be wise to find the “sweet spot” by individualizing your approach to your employees’ needs while still meeting business goals.
- Do: Take action based on the findings. It is mission-critical to make thoughtful, calculated decisions based on survey findings. Employees genuinely appreciate it when their employer cares about their well-being and solicits their feedback. But one of the biggest mistakes companies make is not implementing the necessary changes based on employees’ feedback. Not “walking the walk” can result in employees’ no longer participating in future surveys, or worse, cause an otherwise loyal, top-performing employee to become disgruntled and look for work elsewhere where their valuable feedback doesn’t fall on deaf ears.
- Don’t: Only give your employees a voice once a year when a survey rolls around. Innovation and growth flourish in environments where employees feel empowered to share new ideas. Only eliciting feedback during employee engagement survey season is counterproductive to gauging and improving employee engagement. Work with your leaders to foster a culture of openness and accountability among your teams—and see what a difference it makes in your overall engagement.
Keep Top Talent Happy and Engaged
Improving employee engagement has been shown to play a pivotal role in driving business metrics, including productivity, employee turnover, and increasing sales. By implementing confidential, user-friendly surveys that ask the right questions, you give your employees a voice and encourage accountability and innovation, generate actionable benchmarks for continuous improvement, connect teams to their work, and offer employees a renewed purpose within the organization.
Are you ready to take your employee engagement and business results to the next level? Contact Inspiring HR to learn more about our highly experienced team of small business HR consultants can help you.
At Inspiring HR, we uncomplicate HR and empower small businesses. Ready to learn more about how we can help you? Call us at 804-715-1920 or drop us a line here to schedule a consultation.
