When you think of your dream job, what comes to mind? Being able to work remotely anywhere in the world?
Or maybe being able to travel for your work and explore new cultures? Okay, maybe your dreams are even more simple than that.
How about being able to show up to work and clock out without expecting an urgent call during dinner time? Or, being able to get your work done without your boss constantly checking over your shoulder?
All of these factors and more make up employee satisfaction. And in all of their own ways, this type of job satisfaction makes each of them a kind of dream job.
Odds are, business leaders all have one thing in common. (Hopefully) they all want to ensure that the workers showing up day in and day out are satisfied employees.
Not just employees who show up and feel empty inside. (Yikes!)
So, how can you measure employee satisfaction? And how can you improve employee satisfaction at your place of work? Keep reading to find out.
See Related: Why Do An Employee Engagement Survey?
What is employee satisfaction?
We kind of got ahead of ourselves with those few examples in the beginning. But let’s get to the core of what employee satisfaction is.
Sure, employee satisfaction seems rather obvious, right? It’s about how satisfied employees feel with their job.
But there are a number of different factors that can affect job satisfaction. Below are some of the chief factors you’ll want to keep an eye out for:
- Company culture
- Team members and their ability to get along
- A company’s mission
- Leadership and management styles
- Work-life balance
- The employee experience
Now, most people tend to confuse employee satisfaction with employee engagement. But employee engagement is an entirely different concept.
Employee engagement is about how employees interact with their work. So, literally, how they engage with the work before them.
Typically, when employee engagement is high, so is employee satisfaction. But it’s also possible for satisfied employees to not be as engaged with their job.
So, yes, the two concepts go hand in hand. But there are subtle differences here and there.
Benefits of measuring employee satisfaction
Measuring employee satisfaction will not only get you honest feedback from your employees. But it will help to reinvigorate the work environment and make for a more engaged workforce.
Reduced employee turnover
When you measure job satisfaction, employees start to realize that you care. Maybe you’ve tried to demonstrate your care in the past but it just hasn’t landed.
And this has left you with lots of new employees as older ones take on other opportunities. So start demonstrating just how much you care about their job satisfaction by, say, bringing in a virtual emcee to host a corporate meeting for a change!
Greater productivity in the office
Yes, the correlation between employee engagement and employee satisfaction isn’t so clear cut. But when employees are satisfied, they’re more likely to get more work done.
And that just means greater productivity in the office. Not to mention enhanced employee performance across the board.
Improved brand image and company culture
The last thing you want as a company is to be known for churning out unhappy employees. Not only does this affect the overall satisfaction of your workers but it can also dim the customer experience as well.
So make sure you’ve got the happy employees you need to make business booming and keep it booming too. Besides, that’s not a bad business strategy anyway.
Regular feedback from employees
If you’re trying out a new strategy or structure, employee feedback can provide valuable insights. Every company ought to know that success is a team effort.
So, why not receive the extra help of feedback from employees who are experiencing results firsthand? Even anonymous feedback can allow employees to offer up their opinions without fear of retribution.
All the tools you need to measure employee satisfaction
If you’re looking to improve employee satisfaction, then employee satisfaction metrics are a good place to start. Such quantitative data will help you assess the current organization’s culture.
And at the same time, it will keep the momentum going as performance reviews consistently check up on how an employee feels in their role. You’ll find that something as little as gathering feedback really can make a difference in the workplace.
Bonus: Hire a Virtual Master of Ceremonies: The Secret To Making Everyone Happy At Your Next Virtual Event
#1. Conduct an employee satisfaction survey
This might be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of how to measure satisfaction. And employee surveys are indeed a great place to start!
But you may not know that there are various kinds of employee satisfaction surveys. And no, we don’t just mean the difference between paper and electronic surveys.
Or even the difference between a written survey or a performed one – by a corporate entertainer who can get all of your employees engaged! (In our not so humble opinion, this may be the best kind of survey out there, but we digress…)
We’re talking about the frequency of surveys. And whether you want to receive survey results companywide or from different focus groups.
To start, let’s look at pulse surveys. Pulse surveys occur more frequently and tend to allow for innovative ideas to collect over the course of a year.
This not only gives employees the chance to offer up feedback on a more regular basis. But it can also inspire them to accomplish their job effectively.
On the other hand, an annual survey is – you guessed it – done once a year. It might be used as a reflective tool to look back on the company culture throughout the past season.
Or, it might be geared toward specific employee focus groups to gain insights and gather feedback on how the company can move forward next season. Either way, when you conduct surveys, you already keep employees satisfied.
Because you’re showing them that you care about their employee engagement and job satisfaction. So use the survey’s open-ended questions however you feel best to get the most robust data collection you can.
#2. Employee net promoter score (eNPS)
Doing a survey is a great place to start when it comes to assessing your employees’ job satisfaction. But if you’re not looking for more concrete quantitative data, then consider trying the employee net promoter.
This metric is calculated on a single question it asks all employees. And that question is, “On a scale of zero to ten, how likely are you to recommend our company as a place to work?”
Seems like a simple question, right? But from the results, your company will evaluate employees by placing them into three different groups.
From their answers, you’ll be able to divide employee sentiment in three’s. The promoters, the passives, and the detractors.
Then, to calculate your final score, subtract the perfect of detractors from the percent of promoters. Your score will be between a -100 and 100, so obviously, a positive score will warrant that the employee experience is satisfactory at your place of work.
This kind of company survey is great for simplifying a wide net of data. And it may also give you an idea of how the customer satisfaction would be rated as well.
#3. Ask for employee feedback during one-on-one conversations
It’d be too easy to say that the employee experience is the same for everyone. So, why not conduct one-on-one meetings to really get to know your employees individually?
As far as employee satisfaction goes, this one-on-one attention is a great way to earn employees’ trust. No matter what size the company is, every employee wants to feel valued and important.
So schedule a workplace meet-up and get to know the folks that make your company go round. You may even find that it boosts your own job satisfaction as well!
#4. Employee satisfaction index (ESI)
Another great metric, the employee satisfaction index operates in a similar manner to eNPS from above. But it digs a little deeper in the questions that it asks its participants.
The three questions that employees are asked in this index are as follows:
- How satisfied are you with your workplace?
- How well does your workplace meet your expectations?
- How close is your workplace to your ideal job?
Once again, these questions are answered on a scale from 1 to 10. To calculate the ESI score, you must divide the question’s mean value by 3, subtract 1, divide it by 9, then multiply by 100.
So, a little bit more complicated math than the previous eNPS. But since it assesses the company on three different questions, that kind of score needs to go through a more rigorous mathematical process.
Your result will be a number between 1 and 100. And you’ll always be hoping for a higher score that would indicate greater employee satisfaction!
#5. Look at your employee turnover and employee retention rate
Let’s say you want to look at numbers. But you don’t want numbers from the present.
You want numbers from the past. After all, it’s important to see how your employee satisfaction has been before you can figure out how to improve it for the future.
Try taking a look at your employee turnover and retention rate. This will give you an idea of how many employees have stuck around.
And how many have gone on to greener pastures. The biggest indicator of one’s satisfaction and engagement is whether they show up to work at all.
So looking at these numbers will tell you how the company’s fared so far. Of course, different employees leave for different reasons.
But this metric will nonetheless give you a solid understanding of how you can improve your employees’ experience. So try hiring out a couple of virtual comedians just to give everyone a break if you feel like employee satisfaction is down.
It’s a place to start. And after all, that’s really what employee satisfaction is all about – continual progress, improvement, and a couple of laughs here and there.
#6. Install a suggestion box
Do you remember the suggestion box your teachers may have laid out for you in middle school? Well, there’s certainly merit to them as they can even be implemented in the office!
A suggestion box gives employees the chance to voice their concerns anonymously. And having it always present in the office reminds folks that their voices matter.
Be sure to check the suggestion box every other week or so. And try to address all concerns that come up.
Sure, even the small ones like, “Can the birthday person pick their own flavor of cake?” After all, it’s their day, right?
#7. Offer career opportunities to deserving employees
Some employees might be satisfied just doing their daily work and going home. But others might desire a little more at their place of work.
If it’s appropriate, consider offering career opportunities to those who are in need of a little more employee satisfaction. They may simply be bored after mastering their current tasks.
And taking on a few more responsibilities here and there will help to invigorate them once more. Besides, the promise of a career opportunity is enough to get anyone to dig their heels in!
The bottom line
Employee satisfaction looks different to every employee. And that’s why it can sometimes be difficult to measure.
But hopefully, these tools can help you find an appropriate measurement of your organization’s current temperament. After all, satisfied employees are the best kind to get the most out of what they put in.
Keep Reading: What Is Work Productivity?
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Adam Christing is a professional comedy magician, virtual MC, and the founder of Clean Comedians. He is a member of the world-famous Magic Castle in Hollywood and a popular corporate entertainer, magician, and virtual speaker.
