The Complete Guide to Employee Recognition Surveys: 30 Questions You Need

Recognized Employees = Productive Employees.

According to a SHRM survey over 91% of HR professionals believe that recognition and rewards make employees more likely to stay.

According to a survey conducted by Achievers, 83% of HR leaders said that recognition programs had a positive impact on employee engagement.

How many of you have felt the “high” after getting a “Job well done”. That's the essence of employee recognition – feeling valued for your hard work. Employee recognition is one of the most underrated ways to get the best out of your team! If practiced well, it directly impacts employee engagement at a workplace.

It is a powerful way to make your team happier and work better. When you show appreciation to your employees, they feel more involved and valued. However, gauging the effectiveness of recognition initiatives can be a challenging task. This is where employee recognition surveys step in as invaluable tools. These surveys act as guides and provide inputs to figure whats working well and what's not.

This blog will take you through the significance of such surveys, why they matter and how they help create better workplaces.

What is an employee recognition survey?

Do you feel like you're putting in all the hard work but not getting the due you deserve? That's where employee recognition survey questions come in - they help companies understand if their people are feeling valued and appreciated for their hustle.

These surveys are all about getting to know how employees feel about the organization's recognition game. Like, do your employees get hyped when their wins are celebrated? Or do they feel like they’re getting the cold shoulder despite bringing that fire to your job?

Employee recognition survey questions, thus, are a set of questions that organizations use to gather feedback from their employees about how well they feel recognized and appreciated for their contributions and hard work. These surveys aim to understand employees' perspectives and help in understanding employee engagement levels.

Employee recognition surveys are closely linked to employee engagement , satisfaction, and retention. When employees feel valued and appreciated for their contributions, they are more likely to be engaged in their work, resulting in higher levels of job satisfaction and commitment to the organization. Additionally, recognition plays a crucial role in fostering a positive work culture and enhancing employee morale, which, in turn, can contribute to higher retention rates as employees are more likely to remain with an organization where they feel valued and respected.

Why are employee recognition surveys important?

Conducting employee recognition surveys is crucial for several reasons:

Boosting Morale and Engagement: Recognition plays a significant role in boosting morale and employee engagement. When employees know their efforts are appreciated, it lifts their spirits and makes them feel more connected to the team.

Retention and Loyalty: Recognizing employees helps them feel valued, which makes them more likely to stick around for the long haul. That means less turnover and more stability for the company.

Enhancing Productivity: Happy employees are productive employees! When people feel appreciated, they tend to work harder and get more done.

Improving Organization Culture: Recognition fosters a positive environment where people support each other and work well together. That means better teamwork and stronger relationships among colleagues.

Identifying Areas for Improvement: By understanding how employees view recognition, we can figure out what's working well and what could be better. That way, we can make sure our recognition efforts really hit the mark.

How to make an employee recognition survey?

Lets discuss some steps to design the survey.

Define Purpose: Clarify why you're conducting the survey – to gauge employee feelings on recognition, pinpoint effective strategies, or uncover areas needing improvement.

Choose Format: Decide whether the survey will be anonymous and select question types (multiple-choice, rating scales, etc.).

Key Metrics: Focus on aspects like recognition frequency, preferred types, and overall satisfaction.

Craft Questions: Create clear, unbiased questions and mix closed-ended (yes/no, rating scales) with open-ended ones for deeper insights.

Structure: Organize questions logically and personalize with skip logic.

Test: Pilot the survey with a small group for feedback on clarity and relevance.

Implement: Select a platform, communicate the survey's purpose, and set a deadline for completion.

Analyze: Aggregate and analyze responses for trends and areas needing improvement.

Take Action: Share findings, develop an action plan, and communicate changes based on feedback.

Follow-Up: Monitor changes and consider regular follow-up surveys to track progress, using survey tools to streamline the process and gather ongoing feedback.

Let's consider some extra points to keep in mind:

Consider using survey software to ease administration and analysis.

By incorporating the use of survey tools, you can efficiently create, distribute, and analyze the employee recognition survey, facilitating data-driven decision-making and continuous improvement in recognition efforts. Culture Monkey,Vantage Pulse, Survey Sparrow and Workday Peakon are some of the top-rated survey tools you can opt for.

Regularly conduct surveys to track progress and assess changes in employee perceptions.

Think about how often you want to check in with the team – maybe it's every few months, twice a year, or once annually. Regular check-ins help us stay in tune with what's working and what could use some tweaking.

Recommended Read: Top Employee Survey Tools of 2024

Questions to Include in Your Employee Recognition Survey

Recognition Frequency and Impact:

1. Do you feel recognized often enough for your contributions?
2. How does recognition influence your motivation and job satisfaction?
3. How frequently do you receive recognition for your contributions at work?
4. Are you satisfied and happy with the amount of recognition you receive?
5. On a scale of 1 to 5, how valued do you feel by your team/department/organization?
6. How effectively do you think our organization currently recognizes and rewards employees?
7. When was the last time you received recognition in the workplace?
8. Was there a time when you expected to receive recognition for your work by the organization but didn't?

Types of Recognition:

1. What forms of recognition do you find most meaningful (e.g., verbal praise, monetary rewards, public acknowledgment)?
2. Are there other types of recognition you'd like to see?
3. Which type of recognition do you value the most?
4. Which achievements or behaviors don't receive enough recognition at work?
5. How would you rate the quality of the incentives, benefits, or rewards you receive?
6. Which setting do you prefer to receive recognition?

• One on One
• Team
• Department
• Company-wide

7. How comfortable are you with public recognition?

• Love it
• Like it
• From time to time
• Not at all

Equity and Fairness:

1. Do you believe recognition is distributed fairly within your team/department?

2. Do you have any suggestions to improve fairness in recognition practices?

3. Do you believe that you receive enough recognition for your achievements and hard work?

4. Do you have suggestions for milestones, achievements, or special occasions that we should recognize more than we are now?

5. Do you enjoy having opportunities to give recognition to your colleagues and peers?

6. Is the current recognition system or culture fair and just?

7. Are there any incentives or benefits the company can or should offer to make working here more valuable?

Managerial Role:

1. Does your manager provide timely and specific recognition?

2. Do you feel that you are authentically and effectively acknowledged for your achievements by your direct manager?

3. How effectively does your direct manager recognize and appreciate your contributions?

4. On a scale of 1to 5, how supported do you feel by your manager in your professional development and growth?

5. Does your manager regularly provide constructive feedback and recognition for your achievements?

6. How well does your manager understand your individual strengths and contributions to the team?

Company-Wide Recognition Programs

1. Are you aware of any company-wide recognition programs?
2. If yes, do you feel they effectively acknowledge employee achievements?
3. Do you feel our employee recognition reward program is directly connected to accomplishments and employee performance?
4. How transparent are the criteria and processes for receiving recognition through the company-wide program(s)?
5. Do you believe that the company-wide recognition program(s) are fair and unbiased?
6. What suggestions do you have for improving the company-wide recognition program(s)?
7. Do you feel our employee recognition reward program is directly connected to accomplishments and employee performance?
8. Has the recognition you’ve received (and witnessed) since working here felt connected to the company values?

Analyzing Your Survey Results and using them to enhance recognition

Quantitative Analysis

Quantitative analysis plays a crucial role in understanding recognition survey results . It allows organizations to make decisions based on the data received . Here's how quantitative analysis can be applied to analyze recognition survey results:

Measuring satisfaction levels through scales and ratings

• See how happy employees are by using scales and ratings. Use Likert scales to gauge employee satisfaction with various recognition program aspects, such as fairness, effectiveness, and alignment with company values.

• Employ the Net Promoter Score (NPS) to measure employee loyalty and engagement by asking their likelihood of recommending the company's recognition program.

• Identifying trends in employee responses across departments or demographics

• Compare survey results across different departments or business units to pinpoint areas where recognition practices or perceptions vary.

• Analyze responses based on factors like age, gender, tenure, or job level to understand if certain groups experience or perceive the recognition program differently.

• Look for common patterns in responses across different groups to see what's going well and what needs improvement.

Qualitative Analysis

• Analyzing open-ended feedback for deeper insights

• Dig into written feedback to get a better understanding of what employees really think and feel. Carefully review the responses to open-ended survey questions, where employees can provide detailed feedback, suggestions, or comments in their own words.

• Look for common sentiments, pain points, or areas of satisfaction expressed by employees regarding the recognition program. Can you sense the underlying emotions and motivations driving these sentiments?

• Pay attention to specific examples, stories, or anecdotes shared by employees, as these can provide valuable context and richness to the data. Do these personal accounts resonate with you?

• Look for repeated themes and suggestions in the feedback to get ideas for how to improve recognition and address concerns

Identifying common themes and specific suggestions

Use coding techniques to categorize and group similar responses or feedback into common themes or topics. But are you truly capturing the essence of each theme?

Identify recurring themes or patterns that emerge across multiple employee responses, such as concerns about recognition criteria, timeliness of recognition, or perceived fairness. Are these themes consistent with your organization's values and goals?

Note specific suggestions or ideas proposed by employees for improving the recognition program, such as introducing new recognition categories, streamlining processes, or enhancing communication. Are these suggestions practical and aligned with your organization's resources and priorities?

Using survey results

Tailored Strategies: Designing recognition approaches tailored to individual employee preferences to ensure they feel valued and appreciated.

Addressing Equity Concerns: Implementing measures to distribute recognition fairly across all employees, regardless of their role or background.

Managerial Training: Providing managers with guidance and resources to effectively recognize and appreciate their team members' contributions.

Transparent Communication: Openly sharing survey findings and outlining concrete steps being taken to address identified issues, fostering trust and collaboration within the organization.

In summary, using survey results to improve recognition is crucial. So many organisations have introduced their recognition policies basis survey analysis leading to a happier work place.

Analyzing data helps customize strategies, ensure fair recognition, and train managers effectively. With the use Employee Survey Platforms one can make life easier and showcase how transparent communication of survey findings fosters trust and collaboration. By acting on these insights, organizations can boost morale and performance.For Instance Vantage Pulse, a leading employee survey platform uses a dashboard that shows engagement score, user participation, eNPS scores and identifies top and bottom scorers, along with segment-wise analysis. It's designed to give a quick and clear overview of survey results.

Conclusion

Thus, employee recognition surveys are essential for building a workplace where people feel appreciated and engaged. These surveys give employees a chance to share their thoughts and feelings directly, helping leaders understand what matters most to their team. Simply put, these surveys are a key part of creating a workplace where everyone feels valued and excited to come to work.

Supriya Gupta is a new mother and communications pro at Vantage Circle. She is passionate about sports, news, climate change, and the power of storytelling. For any related queries, contact editor@vantagecircle.com