1.630.363.1023
Copyright © People Business Solutions.
Call For A Quote!
What's the Difference?
Engagement. Morale. Opinion. Satisfaction. Culture: The key ingredients in Survey Soup!
We’re often asked, “What’s the difference between an engagement survey, a satisfaction survey and an organizational culture survey? Aren’t happy employees also engaged? Aren’t engaged employees an indication of a good culture?” We’re going to address the first question first, then address the other questions in subsequent posts.
Surveys are a way of life anymore, not just in employment, but in many aspects of our consumer lives. Surveys are generally online, quick, and simple often with a 5 point scale. Sometimes the surveys make you eligible for a prize or a coupon for another purchase, sometimes it is just a feedback data gathering device.
For those who’ve lived through the evolution of workplace surveys; from opinion, to morale, to satisfaction, to engagement, to culture, each type is appropriate for different issues and for different purposes.
An employee engagement survey measures the degree to which employees feel alignment with the organization emotionally. A satisfaction survey measures the degree to which an employee is happy with aspects of their employment, e.g. benefits, pay, work space, career path, etc. In simple terms, an engagement survey is a measure of the emotional attachment an individual feels to a group or company in order to create meaningful business outcomes.
A culture survey is a measure of the alignment of the overt and covert behaviors, beliefs and values of an organization evident within the actions of leaders, operating systems, policies and procedures that directly impact employees. This impact is directly related to an employee’s ability to feel engaged.
As a practical matter, if an organization has not measured its culture, start there. A culture measurement - or organizational diagnosis - is the starting point for understanding the alignment of an organization’s leadership, values, operating systems, policies and procedures within the context of the essential elements of a high-performance organization and the impact on employee engagement.
A good culture survey tool measures organizational entropy.
In short, an organizational culture survey is a measure of the organization from the top down, an engagement survey is a measure of an organization from the bottom up.
Happy employees are not always engaged employees. Engaged employees are usually happy. An aligned culture creates engaged employees who are happy.
Where to begin? Well, it's like my grand-daddy used to say, "Start with the ending, it's the best place to begin!"
https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnpetrusa