Unhappy employees cost U.S. companies billions yearly. Keeping employees happy and engaged is crucial for success. But how can you measure a metric known as "employee engagement"?  

The answer lies in 2 approaches: pulse and annual surveys.

Think of your employees as the engine that drives your company forward. Just like a car engine, a healthy workforce needs regular check-ups to ensure it's running smoothly. Pulse surveys act like a quick oil change, providing a snapshot of current performance. Annual surveys, on the other hand, are like a full engine diagnostic, offering a deeper look at potential issues and long-term trends.

This blog will talk about pulse and annual surveys. It will cover their pros and cons. It will also help you decide which one is most suitable for your company. Additionally, it will explore the differences and similarities between the two types of surveys.

Pulse surveys: regular, quick checks

Pulse surveys are short, frequent surveys designed to collect real-time feedback on specific aspects of employee satisfaction and experience. Typically ranging from 3-10 questions and taking minutes to complete, they offer several advantages:

• High response rates: Employees are more likely to participate in a quick survey, leading to a more representative sample of the workforce.
• Actionable insights: Focused questions provide targeted feedback on specific initiatives, policies, or events.
• Real-time feedback: Regular pulse surveys allow for early identification and mitigation of potential issues impacting employee morale.
• Checking in regularly with employees demonstrates that you care about their well-being and value open communication in the workplace. It shows that you are interested in how they are feeling and want to support them. This can help build trust and strengthen relationships with your team members. It also creates a positive work environment where employees feel heard and valued.

However, pulse surveys also have limitations:

• Limited scope: Due to being concise, they may not capture the full range of employee concerns or provide in-depth analysis.
• Trend analysis difficulty: Frequent changes in topics can make tracking long-term trends challenging.
• Survey fatigue: Overuse of pulse surveys can lead to employee disengagement and decreased participation.

Many companies are adding shorter, more frequent "pulse surveys" to their regular surveys. This allows them to get quicker feedback they can use to make changes. However, these shorter surveys can't rely on questions that assume someone's feelings or behaviors are always the same.

For example, asking "Are you always willing to help coworkers?" might lead to people overstating how helpful they are. To improve the accuracy of these surveys, HR professionals can ask questions about a specific time period.

Instead of "Are you always ready to help?" ask "In the past month, have you regularly helped coworkers?". This makes it less likely people will give an inaccurate, overly positive answer. Other examples can be:

• Instead of asking to rate - “I find my job enjoyable and challenging”, ask “During the past two months, I found my job enjoyable and challenging”
• Or change “my job consistently makes good use of my skills and abilities”, with “Past month, I was able to utilize my skills and abilities.”

Not all survey questions need a timeframe, but it's especially important for questions about employee engagement, feelings, and behaviors. If we don't measure engagement accurately, it's difficult to create effective plans to enhance it. Using time-bound questions, especially in frequent pulse surveys, helps HR get the information they need to make strategic decisions.

Annual surveys - deep dive once a year

Annual employee engagement surveys are more comprehensive, covering a broad range of topics related to job satisfaction, company culture, and overall engagement. These annual engagement surveys often include open-ended questions, allowing for qualitative feedback alongside quantitative data. Benefits include:

• Comprehensive data: Provides a holistic view of employee sentiment across various aspects of the workplace.
• Benchmarking: Allows for comparison with industry standards to identify areas for improvement.
• Trend Analysis: Year-over-year data collection reveals progress (or regression) in employee engagement.

However, annual surveys also have drawbacks:

• Low Response Rates: Lengthy surveys can lead to survey fatigue and lower participation rates.
• Outdated Data: Annual data may not reflect current employee sentiment, especially in a fast-paced environment.
• Limited Actionability: Analyzing results may allow issues to escalate or be resolved organically.

How do I know which one my company needs?

So when to use each approach? Here's a breakdown:

• Pulse surveys: These are short, frequent surveys that provide real-time insights into specific areas of employee experience. Surveys are useful for gathering feedback on events or projects. They help monitor people's opinions on important topics such as workload and work-life balance. Surveys also allow for quick adjustments based on the feedback received.
• Annual surveys: While both surveys play a role, annual surveys provide a more comprehensive picture of employee engagement. Employee surveys help understand satisfaction, track engagement trends, and compare to industry norms to set goals.

The power of pulse surveys

Pulse vs annual surveys - the decision can be difficult. Both surveys are important, but pulse check surveys are better for measuring employee engagement in today's fast-paced work environment. Here's why:

• Regular pulse surveys offer immediate insights that can be used to quickly address problems and keep employees engaged.
• Higher Response Rates: Short, easy-to-complete surveys result in higher participation, leading to more accurate and representative data.
• Focus on specific behaviors when looking at pulse surveys. These surveys concentrate on recent actions to provide a clearer understanding of people's current level of engagement. Pulse surveys aim to capture real-time data on employee engagement. By focusing on recent behaviors, pulse surveys can offer a more accurate snapshot of engagement levels.

HR professionals can develop a strategic plan to improve employee engagement. They can achieve this by understanding the benefits and drawbacks of pulse surveys and annual surveys.

Pulse surveys provide quick and frequent feedback, while annual surveys offer a more comprehensive view. Each type of survey has its pros and cons. By understanding these factors, HR professionals can determine the best approach for measuring and enhancing employee engagement.

Regular pulse surveys gather information on recent experiences and behaviors. These surveys provide real-time insights that can enhance engagement and productivity in the workforce.

Key differences summed up:

• Pulse surveys are shorter and more frequent, while annual surveys are longer and yearly.
• Pulse surveys provide real-time feedback, whereas annual surveys offer a comprehensive view.
• Pulse surveys have 3-10 questions; annual surveys cover a broad range of topics.
• Pulse surveys achieve higher response rates due to brevity; annual surveys often have lower response rates.
• Pulse surveys offer immediate actionable insights, while annual surveys allow for benchmarking.
• Pulse surveys focus on recent experiences, and annual surveys analyze year-over-year trends.
• Pulse surveys show ongoing concern for well-being; annual surveys provide holistic workplace data.
• Pulse surveys have a limited scope; annual surveys may provide outdated data.

Easily make annual and pulse surveys with Formaloo

Creating surveys should be fun and easy, not the other way around.

You can easily create an engagement survey using Formaloo, whether it's once a year or every other quarter.

You can either create one from scratch or choose an engagement or pulse survey template from Formaloo’s template library.

For other templates useful for HR professionals, check out the HR & people template collection.