I guess some of you have seen these over the years.
We get one to complete every year and last year our division scored well below the company as a whole.
The directors got hauled over the coals for the score and had meetings, asked the staff why they felt unhappy, had fact finding events, working parties that involved most of the staff, you name it, they did it.
Anyway, this year the scores were significantly better than the wider organisation and all two hundred plus were in a meeting yesterday on a video call yesterday and the MD asked what we thought had changed to warrant such an improvement in the score - so they could pass the experience on to the wider organisation.
One of my team colleagues, a brave soul, piped up and suggested we all marked the survey much more highly this year because we didn't want to go through the rigmarole of the fact-finding events, working parties etc again this year.
He's not wrong!
|
|
What's wrong with moral in your part of the business, why are people unhappy?
|
What's wrong with morals in banking? Hah!!
Unless you meant morale of course.
|
>> What's wrong with moral in your part of the business, why are people unhappy?
>>
To much work, carp IT.
But the main reason - teams that pull against each other rather than working together - it's a culture thing set up by a previous MD who thought tension improved results, so for example you have sales fighting with credit to get a deal on where they should be working together to put the best deal together that satisfies everyone and makes everyone's life easier.
|
Some tension between teams is good, it keeps everybody honest. The "all pull together" thing is a nice dream, but that's all it is, all it will ever be.
However, the conflict should be within the context of the same goal, just with different perspectives. It can obviously go to far, and it sounds like in your case it has.
But no tension, and groups with different responsibilities being comfortable with each other is typically not a good thing. It means you need much better governance and auditing for a start and will need to find some other method to keep everybody on their toes.
|
|
Sales will always see credit as the business prevention department. They would crush their targets every month if credit would stop turning down their 'deals'.
|
>>asked the staff why they felt unhappy,
Not the right question, of course. It should have been to ask why they said it, which usually brings a more revealing set of answers and tends to point towards individual management personalities rather than overall environment.
|
|
You mean why people felt they had to speak up?
|
Sort of.
Imagine I work for someone I like/respect. Would I then write in a survey that I was unhappy at work or would I speak to the manager about it directly? Or perhaps suck it up because I generally enjoy stuff and so can overlook the odd irritation.
But imagine I work for someone I dislike/disrespect. How likely am I then to write up some trivial irritation that I would ordinarily ignore because I'm unhappy with my boss?
So of course one should look at the actual complaints and ensure there is nothing fundamentally wrong. But usually the actual details of the complaints are less significant than the fact that the complaints were made.
I feel that is not much clearer. Did it make sense to you?
|
I think so yes, the motivation behind the complaints.
|
>>I think so yes, the motivation behind the complaints.
Motivation typically implies a deliberate act. That happens when the manager is *really* bad and revenge is being sought. Before that is staff who are disgruntled with their management and so feel unhappier and less tolerant which manifests itself in complaints.
So I guess "cause" rather than "motivation".
And, of course, if such a survey tells a manager anything he didn't know, then he truly is a crap manager.
Satisfaction surveys are usually HR or BoM ticking boxes. Virtue signalling, if you like. Rarely are the motivated by actual desire to improve.
|
|
I'd imagine it's difficult to word questions to get those answers, probably something you'd need to do face to face.
|
Much as employees are usually unhappy because of middle management, middle management are usually crap because of senior management.
If a company really wants to improve then a survey is really only a first step and first indication.
But most of them don't. They want to be seen to do the right thing rather than actually particularly being concerned about doing the right thing.
Which is a pity, because the benefits and improvements in performance resulting from actually doing the right thing are typically spectacular and long lasting. And usually save a great deal of money.
|
|
I remember one Employee Survey feedback session. We where in effect told, Its far worse elsewhere so STFU.
|
>> I remember one Employee Survey feedback session. We where in effect told, Its far worse
>> elsewhere so STFU.
That happens far more often than you may think (or hope). Usually it's a bit more subtle than an actual STFU, but it's there nonetheless.
|
Employee satisfaction surveys = simple behaviour manipulation.
Staff feel that no one listens to what they have to say, be it about management, business, facilities, pay etc.
Have a survey - responses demonstrates dissatisfaction rules.
Have focus groups, extra interviews, report backs etc etc
Suddenly the staff are happy - they have been listened to - even if nothing actually changes!
|
Had an update at work today about a new Investors in People assessment.
Didn't appreciate my input that I felt IIP was totally pointless and only served to justify the IIPs assessors their jobs!!
In my last employment we had a Gold award from IIP after the assessment marking was "agreed" in advance so as to generate some good PR for both organisations!
|
Philosophically it is a good idea, don't damn it because it's being implemented badly. You could help to implement it better.
I got the impression you were senior management? If so, then much depends on how you phrased your comment and in front of whom you said it, but it was probably an unwise thing to say at all.
There's better ways to change stuff than attacking people.
|
>>I got the impression you were senior management?
was, not anymore! Loving being just a number now :)
|
>> was, not anymore! Loving being just a number now :)
Oh the freedom!
But also the frustration of watching incompetents screw stuff up when you can so easily see the answer.
|
I moved from working to very stretching KPIS / targets / challenging staff to being a pleb in the Civil Service.
Chalk n cheese!
|
The toe curling incompetence of the Civil Service makes me cry.
Specialists in how to fail at a snail's pace.
|
|
...if you're not impressed with Employee Satisfaction Surveys, you ought to try 360 degree feedback... ;-)
|
>>360 degree feedback
Ah now that is rubbish in a world involving real people. It's a substitute for recruiting and growing effective management.
|
|
We were supposed to be getting the whole 360 degree reporting thing, not happened yet.
|
There are no circumstances, ever, no matter what, where I would ever publicly tell my boss what I thought about how he did his job unless I was just artificially blowing smoke.
A report is never going to know what drives his boss to take some actions, whether or not they were free choice, etc. etc. SO how is he supposed to judge him?
Stupid idea.
I've canned it every time I've come across it.
Last edited by: No FM2R on Wed 18 Nov 20 at 21:00
|
>> We were supposed to be getting the whole 360 degree reporting thing, not happened yet.
>>
...fun it is not. Though, on the couple of occasions it was inflicted I quite had fun with it (by adopting a method no-one else did).
|
Employee Satisfaction Surveys - sooty123
