• Employee feedback surveys are one of the most beneficial ways to obtain feedback.
• Surveys should be anonymous, ask pertinent questions, and yield results.

To identify the state of employee relations, it may be a good idea to conduct a survey or institute some other means of obtaining feedback. Ideally, employees will share any concerns they have as they arise. However, some employees may not voice their concerns (or ideas for improving an already good situation) unless they are asked. When requesting employee feedback, make sure the company can follow through appropriately to address it.

A survey should obtain information for developing an action plan, not just serve as an outlet for frustrations. Acknowledging a problem is fine, but if the company might not be able to fix a problem, don’t create the expectation that it can. Be honest about this, because employees might get even more frustrated if their concerns are collected and then, seemingly, ignored.

Some methods of asking for feedback provide more valuable results than others. Three tips to keep in mind when seeking feedback are:

• Allow for anonymity.
  • Employees may be more open and honest if they feel they will not receive retaliation for providing feedback. Don’t ask identifying questions, such as hire date.
• Ask questions that matter to the employee.
  • These could be open ended questions that require written responses, such as, “What challenges are you facing?”
  • These could be specific, multiple choice questions that capture more quantitative data, such as “What activities would you like to see more of from managers?” followed by a list of choices.
  • Employers shouldn’t ask leading questions that will result only in what they want to hear. Nothing ever improves without identifying some issues.
• Follow through.
  • If employees have made requests or voiced concerns, follow up. Don’t wait weeks or months. If employers can’t come up with a valuable response in a timely manner, they should inform employees that they’re working on it and provide a potential date for their response.
  • Without follow-through, employees will feel their input has fallen into a black hole, destined to be forgotten. Chances are slim that these employees will respond to a future feedback request.

Employees have perspectives that their employer may not have ever considered. If employers don’t ask them for their input, they will never benefit from the myriad of perspectives that are often ripe with innovative ideas.