Let’s face it. Employee survey projects are a lot like diet programs. The problem is not with the design or even with the intentions. The problem is with the follow-up. Things start off great but then life/business gets in the way. But they don’t have to fail.

When most HR managers start thinking about conducting an employee survey, their thoughts tend to jump to questionnaire selection or construction. Then they start brainstorming how data collection should happen. Whoa! It’s great that HR managers want to be action oriented and get things done, but they need to make sure that they are getting the information that they really need. They should begin with the most basic question of all – Why survey? What data do I need? How am I going to use it? Sounds simple, right? So many tend to focus on the tool and not on the goal.

Now some might get scared by the idea of building a model of organizational effectiveness. Sounds like something from one their college classes that they hated. They know that the model ought to include things like leadership, communications, team work, engagement, etc., etc. But which comes first? What causes what? This is where the model comes in.

The good news is that Workplace Stars has already done the hard part for you. Workplace Stars has built the Workplace Excellence Model of organizational effectiveness and even has a 60 item questionnaire measuring each aspect of the model – the Workplace Excellence Audit.

 
The Workplace Excellence Model
The model focuses on three key dimensions – Stewardship, Engagement/Passion, and Service.



Stewardship – Listen to Your Marketplace
Doing the right things to protect the long term viability, financial health and well-being of your organization and your people.

Engagement/Passion – Listen to Your People
The internal climate necessary to encourage deep personal connection and ignite the effort required to continuously renew one’s professional skills and capabilities. Where everyone at your organization strives for excellence in everything they do, beyond just doing a job.

Service – Listen to Your Customers
An authentic commitment cascading down from senior management to the frontline for being in service to each other and customers.



This model is fairly simple and yet quite comprehensive – it looks at macro (organizational) issues as well as micro (group and individual) issues and puts the pieces together like a finished puzzle.

The key is that this model is not just a string of categories; it is a cause-and-effect look at organizational issues and behaviors. It shows that action plans must start with the very values that guide the organization and must have an impact on the critical outcomes that determine the success or failure of the organization. The model will be your Guiding Star to organizational success.

For more information, please see http://www.workplacestars.com/segherssurveyconsulting.com