36 Employee Engagement Survey Questions You Need To Ask

Employers all over the world are feeling the toll of labor shortages and economic pressure. To keep their workforces happy, satisfied, and retained, companies are going all in on the idea of employee engagement. Studies show that engaged employees are more productive, loyal, and committed to the company’s mission—and that has a direct impact on your bottom line.

But how do you measure the extent to which employees feel appreciated, satisfied, and emotionally invested in their jobs? Many companies turn to organization-wide engagement surveys.

An effective survey can be used to gain an understanding of what motivates and inspires your team members and can provide valuable insight into how to create a better workplace. Let’s take a closer look at why employee engagement surveys are so important and how to design them.

What is an Employee Engagement Survey?

An employee engagement survey is a management tool that provides a clear picture of where the company stands in terms of engaging its employees.

The survey involves a series of questions (or a single question, if you’re conducting pulse surveys) about different aspects of engagement.

It mostly includes questions about:

Leadership/management
Company culture
Job and employee satisfaction

By using the survey results, employers can uncover underlying problems, take the steps to overcome them, and ultimately, improve engagement levels.

Designing an Employee Engagement Survey

When creating your company’s engagement survey, it’s important to consider what questions will get the most valuable information about your employees’ experiences. Consider including questions about job satisfaction levels, management and leadership styles, benefits and, compensation, work-life balance, growth opportunities, and company culture.

Make sure each question is clear and concise so that employees understand exactly what they are being asked. Also, be aware of using too many open-ended questions as these can be difficult to analyze and synthesize into actionable insights.

What to Ask on Your Employee Engagement Survey

If you’re about to conduct an employee survey for the first time or would like to improve your existing survey, there are certain questions that you must include.

We’ve categorized them into questions about company culture, management, job satisfaction, remote work, DEI, safety, and mental health. You can also use these questions as a template for your own survey!

Company Culture Questions

Company culture plays a critical role in deciding the extent to which your employees are engaged.

In fact, 88% of employees believe that having a distinct workplace culture was crucial for the success of any business.

In light of that, you should most definitely include a few questions about company culture to measure how it’s doing.

Here are a few examples:

How would you describe our company culture?
Without asking anyone or referring to any collateral, what are the company’s core values?
Do you feel that you receive enough respect from your coworkers?
Do your colleagues appreciate teamwork?
Do you feel that the company itself lives up to its core values?

Management Questions

Besides culture, you need to include employee survey questions about the management/leadership.

After all, it is the supervisors, middle-managers, and C-level executives/decision-makers that play a major role in building the overall engagement in the company.

That being said, here are some relevant questions about the leadership that you should include in your employee engagement survey:

How comfortable are you in interacting with your supervisor(s)?
Is your manager transparent in providing feedback?
Does your manager provide enough creative freedom to do your job?
Do you feel appreciated for a job well done?
How satisfied are you with your supervisor?

Questions about Job Satisfaction

Ask your employees questions about their job satisfaction levels. Are you doing everything you can to improve the employee experience? Do your employees find their jobs meaningful? If given the chance, would they switch in a heartbeat?

Let’s take a look at the 5 critical engagement questions that can uncover some interesting things about the levels of engagement:

On a scale of 1-5, how satisfied are you with your job?
Do you find your work meaningful?
What would you change about your job?
Do you feel that you’re being compensated and rewarded enough?
Would you consider switching your jobs for slightly higher pay?

Remote Work Questions

The COVID pandemic changed the landscape of life, especially as it related to work. Suddenly, offices were unable to open, businesses were classified as essential and non-essential, and a legion of employees began working from home.

When the dust settled, many businesses were left facing the prospect that remote work was here to stay. Many employees didn’t want to return to work in an office, as working from home had benefits that made employees question if a return to the office was a good idea.

Some questions that HR departments may find beneficial when discussing remote work with employees include the following:

Have you worked remotely before?
What were some of the benefits and some of the challenges you faced?
Why do you feel that working remotely is beneficial for you and your team?
How will you and your team communicate?
How technically capable are you and do you feel comfortable handling IT issues remotely?
How will you stay focused on important tasks and deadlines?

Health and Safety Policy Questions

One of the most important aspects of the job with which Human Resources is tasked is the health and safety of employees. HR must ensure that the company invests and engages in a culture of proactive health and safety in order to prevent, as much as possible, injury, illness, and other issues.

With the onset of COVID throughout the world, health and safety took on a whole new look and HR departments were again given the task of leading the charge when it came to policy change. Some of the questions HR departments are now faced with asking employees as they relate to health and safety include:

What do you feel the company can do to promote health and well-being?
Do you feel our cleaning and sanitation practices that are currently in place successful in helping to manage illness and injury?
Do you feel there are ample opportunities to promote health, such as hand sanitizer and antibacterial soap?
Do you feel comfortable with the safety policies the company has in place? If not, what would you like to see added or removed?

Mental Health Policy Questions

In the midst of global unrest, pandemics, and political instability more and more people are experiencing mental health issues. HR Departments have been scrambling as they begin to try to create a policy that is nurturing and mindful of the mental health challenges many people face while honoring the needs of the company. Some of the questions HR departments are currently grappling with asking employees include the following:

Do you have an understanding of our mental health policies and benefits?
Would you feel comfortable coming to your HR department regarding mental health challenges you may be facing?
Do feel senior leadership supports mental health issues and challenges?
Does your manager prioritize mental health with your team?
Do you feel supported in handling your mental health challenges?

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Questions

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) issues are of growing concern, and HR departments are at the forefront of addressing and creating company policies. DEI topics for HR departments to ask employees include things such as the following:

Do you feel there is an unrecognized bias in our workplace?
Do you feel comfortable with the meaning of diversity, equity, and inclusion as stated in the HR handbook?
Do feel there is stereotyping present in our workplace?
Do you feel the company, especially management, is doing enough to fight prejudice in the workplace?
Does leadership at our company display cultural awareness and dedication to belonging?
Do you feel safe and comfortable in your workplace?

Final Thoughts On Engagement Surveys

Never before has the role of Human Resources been so important. HR Departments across the nation are educating employees, implementing peaceful practices, and creating a sense of well-being in the workplace that carries positively into the private lives of our nation’s citizens. An employee engagement survey is only as good as the change that it brings.

If you’re not acting on the employee feedback and taking the steps to turn things around, there’s no point in conducting surveys.

Remember – you can leverage a modern human resource tool, such as GoCo, to better manage your workforce. With GoCo’s employee survey workflows, HR managers can easily customize and trigger employee engagement questionnaires to streamline the company’s survey processes.