If a building’s broken window is not repaired promptly it doesn’t take long for many of the building’s other windows to be broken. Problems that are fixed when they are small will stop them from developing into larger problems.
When considering the level of employee satisfaction the same is true. Dissatisfaction can spread rapidly throughout an organization and before you know it you can have morale problems that can be hard to resolve.
To ensure that your employees are satisfied you need to appreciate any day to day problems that they may have and deal with them quickly. Keeping the initiative is vital and it is nearly always better to give a little and often.
This turns out be just a vicious circle. Fixing the problem when it’s small is also when it’s easiest and when it’s cheapest. And taking the initiative without being prompted puts the manager in a position of strength, which also suits the employees. Employees look for strong, confident management and having a proactive approach and taking time to understand the employees’ issues will gain the respect of the workforce.
Compare that with those managers who are out of touch. If they are late in addressing problems they are always on the defensive, having to concede to demands they run the risk of losing credibility which in turn can lead to having to agree to less reasonable demands. It is not big and it is not clever.
How then can an organization monitor the morale of the employees without a big budget and an abundance of spare time?
Deploying online employee surveys would appear to tick all the right boxes. They’re quick, easy to use, and a low cost solution. Instead of weeks and months surveys can now be designed and published in hours and minutes, by harnessing the power of the internet invitations can be sent out instantly and free of charge using email, links on websites and postings on social networks; the results are collated in real-time and can be automatically displayed as charts.
A corporate internet is the ideal delivery platform.
By linking through to an online survey website a company can regularly conduct surveys so they become part and parcel of the daily operations.
With an online survey’s ability to produce results in real-time the mood of the employees can rapidly be gauged and concerns highlighted both on a collective and individual level.
Companies can use survey results to expose problem areas and then use follow-up surveys to target exposed concerns. With good information managers are able to identify specific problems and prepare a considered response.
By conducting regular surveys a company is able to address small problems before they grow into much bigger problems that are then more difficult to address.
And don’t forget that the majority of employees appreciate being consulted so asking their opinion is not a sign of weakness but an indicator of good decision making.
It’s unusual to find, but there it is – sometimes management problems can be solved with something that is quick, easy and won’t break the bank.