The number of respondents is crucial to the success of a employee survey. This is because a low response rate ensures that the data is not a good reflection of the real thing. As a result, without enough participants, the outcomes will be taken less seriously. When few employees respond, it means that the added value of the survey is greatly reduced. These tips will therefore help you increase your response rate for the next survey.
Definition response rate
The response rate is the number of unique completed questionnaires divided by the number of people invited (respondents). Usually, this number is expressed as a percentage. For example: If 600 employees are invited and 550 actually complete the questionnaire, the response rate is 91.6%.
1. Ensuring anonymity
For both a higher response rate and valuable input, anonymity for employees is important. When the anonymity of a questionnaire is guaranteed, employees will be candid in their answers. For answering questions about managers and cooperation with other employees, perception of anonymity is particularly important. Especially when trust is already an issue within the organisation, there will be more need to confirm employees' anonymity.
2. Clear objective
In any communication, explain the purpose of the questionnaire. Tell what the benefits for the organisation are and what the employee gains from it. This will create support and employees will also encourage others to fill in the questionnaire.
3. Follow-up steps
Show what the next steps are after data collection. Make it clear when the results will be shared with employees. Tell what the follow-up steps are after the data is collected. What will be done to translate the results into improvements? When this is transparent, employees gain insight into the entire process. This leads to greater support and, as a result, a higher response rate.
4. Management support
Involving executives in inviting employees can boost the response rate. When the survey is supported from the top it shows that they are involved in the survey. It can therefore be smart to have the responsible manager or board member sign the invitation. It is even better to send the survey entirely from the board.
5. Compact questionnaire
Longer questionnaires have a lower response rate. It is important to estimate in advance how long it will take to complete the questionnaire. This allows employees to know how much time they should set aside for the survey. As a rule, it is better to finish earlier than to take longer than expected. If the questionnaire is relatively long then it is good to allow employees to complete it in parts. This limits the impact on workload.
6. Timing and deadlines
Make sure that you think carefully about when to launch the questionnaire and that the deadline is achievable for employees. After all, it can be frustrating when the workload is high and then employees are expected to complete the questionnaire within a few days.
7. Meeting commitments
For follow-up research in particular, adherence to planning is essential. When communicating to staff, let them know what has been promised and make it clear what the results will be. Should certain deadlines ultimately not be feasible, communicate this in good time.
What is a good response rate?
This depends on the type of survey but usually a response rate above 70% is good. If you achieve a rate below 60% then it is smart to go through the suggestions above.
Also make sure you have the right engineering behind the survey. When it is easy to fill in the questionnaire, employees can complete it faster.
The above points are the important ones to achieve a higher response rate. Employee survey is, however, highly dependent on the context in which it is applied. Therefore, it is important to think carefully beforehand which points might be crucial for your organisation. Just remember that there are always areas for improvement as every research has its limitations.
