Employee satisfaction. It’s on them to be satisfied, so let them create it.
We often hear from our clients: “no matter what I try, the staff is never happy”.
We tell them to not be so conventional. Let your employees tell you what they need and let them do it on their own. The leaders’ job to be supportive during this process.
We, as leaders, always feel like we must provide the answers and make all the fixes. This is our first mistake. Who says the leader knows more than anyone else?
How to Bridge the Satisfaction Gap
Unless the team is really evolved, staff will not give you face to face and honest feedback about their work experience.
Do you think that your team isn’t giving you honest feedback?
Yes? Well, here’s how to change this.
First, compile a survey. As part of the services to our clients, we provide a confidential third-party survey through
Survey Monkey. By having a confidential way to submit feedback, staff is much more apt share their true thoughts without fear of retaliation. Include questions in the survey that will accurately reflect how they feel and will allow an action plan to be made based off the results that will make a difference.
Once the survey is made, select a committee of a few employees that represent various areas of the business. Then, elect someone from the leadership team to join them as the leader to help ensure that the actions taken by the committee are realistic and achievable. After the results from the survey have been collected and analyzed, have the committee and leader create a simple action plan to address the feedback and make changes to increase satisfaction. This action plan will be known to the company as the “Satisfaction Plan”.
Communicate the Satisfaction Plan to the company. Let the rest of the employees know that that plan was created by their peers and based off the survey’s feedback. This will help the staff know what the plan is for and how it will benefit them.
On a regular basis, the satisfaction plan should be reviewed and communicated to the company. This plan has a lifespan of one year, and just before the end of the year, the committee will create an end-of-the-year summary that reviews all the improvements made considering the feedback given. After this is done, another survey will be created and sent out, causing this process to start over.
This process allows for confidential feedback and engagement from employees. This is critical as only honest feedback from them will truly drive job satisfaction. With the increase of communication going on, you will implement a culture of engagement where employees can work together to increase their own satisfaction and moral. The leadership team is then no longer looked upon as the “messiah” and expected to fix every issue that arises.
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