What is a Work Environment Survey?
A work environment survey is a form that aims to collect employee and employer feedback on their immediate work environments. This survey covers working conditions, culture, and leadership.
Why Ask for Employee Feedback on Work Environment?
Collecting feedback on anything is an essential part of learning what to improve and manage. This is especially true and important for any workplace and working environment.
In any workplace, a work environment survey can help identify points for improvement and opportunities for growth. Some work environment factors a work environment feedback survey considers are:
- Their office environment’s spacing, appearance, equipment, and the like
- The people around them or their colleagues and if they get along with them
- Their leaders and if they agree with their leadership
- The company policies in place and their implementation
- Their benefits and satisfaction with their jobs
- The safety of their workplace
- Their fieldwork location’s environment, if applicable
- The overall culture of the workplace
By knowing what a company’s people think about their working conditions and environment, company leaders can thus adjust accordingly to ensure their employees are well-satisfied and compensated. In the long run, this can lead to a safer, more productive workplace with high-performing staff that does their best in everything they do.
A work environment survey can also help companies attract the right talents. If an applicant knows they will thrive in a certain work environment, they are more likely to apply to it and strive to be accepted. Similarly, a company that listens to their employees’ feedback on the work environment is more likely to have a low attrition rate, improved employee retention, and a high number of employees that are satisfied with their work and employer.
What Questions Should I Ask in a Work Environment Survey?
While each industry and company have its own set of questions and cultures to analyze, a work environment survey has the same goal regardless.
A work environment survey questions can be along the lines of the following:
- Management commitment – if managers and other leaders are committed to their roles and responsibilities
- Consultation practices – if consultations and conversations, both internal and external, are coordinated, follow protocols, and promote safety first
- Safety procedures – if both managers and employees prioritize safety in everything they do by knowing how to identify risks, mitigate them, and address them
- Training – if staff are trained correctly to do their work—from onboarding to day-to-day tasks and other emergency procedures
- Reporting protocols – if safety risks are identified and reported immediately and managed in an orderly manner
- Worker compensation and benefits – if all employees, regardless of ranking, are compensated fairly and have benefits that they look forward to
FAQs about Work Environment Surveys
The work environment can be evaluated by employers or managers by interviewing their staff, or by conducting employee surveys and providing questionnaires. Surveys can be completed face-to-face or via an online survey, and are best done with a digital tool to ensure no paper forms are lost
An employee survey is more focused on asking questions about the employee’s experience in their work and their overall work experience. While similar to a work environment survey, an employee survey also asks about engagement with one’s work, morale at work, and their achievements.
Employee satisfaction can be identified and measured through:
- Interviews
- Satisfaction survey
- Open forums
- Low attrition rates
- Increased productivity among employees
