Don’t just listen

We have all heard that our managers have an “open door policy”. But this isn’t going to cut it when it comes to getting honest employee feedback. You have to do more than just listen to your people, you must genuinely care about the issues they’re facing or the suggestions that they give. I’m not saying to act on every request that comes through your doors. But take time to respond to employees who reach out to you. And if they have a good idea then take action and give them credit. Also remember to thank them when they utilize the open door policy and always keep their privacy in tact.

Ask when you don’t need to

Asking your employees for feedback is great. But think of this feedback as a favor. They should not feel privileged to get to speak to the “boss”. You first need to build a relationship with your employees. Something that most managers don’t take the time to do.

Hold events outside the office

Environments affect your mood, your health, and even your actions. Get your staff outside of the office in order to get to know another side of them. There are plenty of corporate outings you could do for cheap that prove to be invaluable to an organization’s success. Asking someone the same question in a church on Sunday and a bar on Friday may give you two different results… You get the point.

Make it easy

How many times have you been asked to write a review about a particular app you’ve used or game you’ve played but you end up ignoring it because they make it too complex. You may have even really enjoyed the product or service. But you have better things to do! So when it comes to getting employee feedback, make it easy for them to fill out. Maybe allow it to be filled out on their phone. Or go old school and have them fill out a form on paper. But do not have them click through a maze of questions and answers on an online form that requires a username and password. It just won’t work.

Split it up

To caveat off of number four, make this easy for your staff. Don’t ask them 20 questions all at once. They may only have the attention span to fill out 3 honest answers. After that you can bet that they’re just clicking boxes to get done with it and move on so they can go to happy hour with the rest of the office. So conduct your feedback forms over time. Make them answer 3 questions at a time. This will stop the “Christmas Tree” effect.

employee feedback | open door policy | feedback