Manager Tools – "How To Action Engagement Survey Results - Chapter 3 - The Questions – Part 6"

Release Date: October 2, 2023
Hosts: Mark Horstman & Mike Auzenne

Episode Overview

In this episode, Mark and Mike tackle the sixth set of critical engagement survey questions—focusing on those related to employees’ experiences with their work: expectations, accomplishment, progress, productivity, tools, and involvement. The hosts break down each question, explaining what it really measures, how managers should address their teams’ responses, and practical steps managers can take to improve scores and actual engagement. The tone is direct, practical, and sometimes playful, with a signature focus on actionable management behaviors rather than abstract theory.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Clarity of Expectations

• Question: "I know what is expected of me."
• Insight: High performers usually score well because they understand expectations; lower performers often do not.
• Manager’s Role: Managers are ultimately responsible for making expectations clear, serving as the company’s voice to the employee.
• Action: Keep it simple; ask, "What can we or I do to help you understand what is expected of you?" (Mark, 02:30).
• Notable Quote:
  • “We're the company's designated voice to the employee. This is what role power ... really means.” – Mark Horstman (02:00)
• Caution: Negative-only feedback destroys clarity and motivation.
  • "If you are capricious in your feedback, even if the goals are clear, you will get low scores here ... just telling people where they're wrong starts to feel like punishment." – Mark (02:50)

2. Sense of Accomplishment

• Question: "I get a sense of accomplishment from my work."
• Insight: Work must be structured and measured for employees to feel accomplishment.
• Action: Reframe measurement not as discipline, but as a route to accomplishment. Ask, "How can we help you get more of a sense of accomplishment from what you do?" (Mark, 05:00)
• On Compensation: Pay matters but isn’t linked directly to this feeling—don’t confuse the two.
  • "Pay tends to be a hygiene factor. Accomplishment is not." – Mark (05:18)
• Further Suggestion: Get feedback from internal/external customers to help team understand impact.

3. Knowing Progress Toward Goals

• Question: "I know clearly whether I am making progress toward my goals."
• Insight: Communication and visibility of progress most often come from managers.
• Action: Use public, visual reporting systems; enlist team members to plan and report progress visibly.
• Quote:
  • “Reporting on work status is inherently part of the work in companies with more than one employee … it's part of the tax we pay for the benefit of the massive multiplication of human productivity.” – Mark (07:00)
• Tip: Ignore cynics; manage for top performers, not just to appease the lowest denominator.

4. Work Processes and Productivity

• Question: "The work processes we have in place allow me to be as productive as possible."
• Insight: Most managers underestimate their power to improve processes.
• Action: Managers can—and should—inspect, challenge, and improve existing processes; “kill stuff that’s inefficient.”
• Story:
  • Mike eliminated the creation of unread green bar reports, freeing up staff and improving value (11:45–12:24).
    • "That's your job as a manager, to kill stuff that's inefficient." – Mark (11:45)
• Challenge: Staff may hesitate to identify waste without trust; building trust is key.
• Practices: Start small, be ready to revert if a change doesn’t deliver, and collaborate with your team.

5. Tools and Technology

• Question: "Our tools and technology allow me to do my job well."
• Insight: Access to tools often involves politics and budget, but managers can empower team members to learn the procurement process.
• Action:
  • Ask, "What tools or tech do you need to help you get your work done?"
  • Teach the process of requesting new resources, don’t just take on the admin burden alone (15:18).
• Quote:
  • "Make sure your people don't suffer that. Get your number one, your number two, or your number three ... Learn about the process." – Mark (16:40)
• Tip: If team members are responsible for the process, they learn what’s required (and sometimes realize they don't truly need the requested resource).

6. Looking Forward to Work

• Question: "I look forward to coming to work every day."
• Hosts’ Take: They joke about the superficiality of the question but acknowledge its popularity.
• Practical Response: Ask, "What would help you look forward to coming to work?" and/or "What keeps you from looking forward to coming to work?" (20:10)
• Memorable Moment:
  • Banter involving movie misreferences and playful correction adds levity (18:28–20:10).

7. Involvement in Decisions

• Question: "I feel involved in decisions that affect my work."
• Insight: Feeling involved correlates with retention and performance, but may be more a result of high performance than a cause.
• Manager Advice: Don’t over-focus on feelings; instead, over-communicate decisions and regularly solicit input, especially via staff meetings or one-on-ones.
• Quote:
  • “Employees' feelings are a dangerous ground for managers and organizations … their feelings are relevant to their boss and individual, but they're not relevant to the organization. That's not how organizations are run.” – Mark (21:10)
• Practical Tip:
  • Use weekly staff meetings and a communications plan.
  • Start one-on-ones for a true sense of team sentiment (23:53–24:06).

8. Redundant Questions on Tools and Resources

• Observation: Some survey questions overlap; still, document responses and compile needs to communicate effectively up the chain.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• Role power and managerial responsibility:
  “We’re the company’s designated voice to the employee. This is what role power ... really means.” – Mark Horstman (02:00)
• Feedback and expectation clarity:
  “If you are capricious in your feedback ... you will get low scores here.” – Mark (02:50)
• Measurement as accomplishment, not discipline:
  “If you position measurement as a way to get to a sense of accomplishment ... that can have benefits with your people.” – Mark (05:00)
• On reporting and progress:
  “You work in a company with more than one person. You have to report on your work.” – Mark (07:30)
• Managerial empowerment:
  "Those work processes that your people follow are yours to change in the vast majority of situations." – Mark (08:40)
• On building trust:
  “Building a trusting organization means somebody would come to you and say ... I really want something else to do.” – Mark (13:30)
• On involvement in decisions:
  _"Employees' feelings are a dangerous ground for managers and organizations ... that's not how organizations are run." _ – Mark (21:10)
• Engagement process and surveys:
  “…if you follow this process you will get an A. Excellent. From your boss and everybody up the chain for your response to your engagement survey.” – Mark (25:04)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Clarity of Expectations: 01:10–03:49
• Sense of Accomplishment: 03:49–06:22
• Progress Toward Goals: 06:22–08:19
• Work Processes & Productivity: 08:19–14:24
• Tools & Technology: 15:15–18:17
• Looking Forward to Work: 18:17–20:28
• Involvement in Decisions: 20:28–24:32
• Redundant Tool Questions & Wrap Up: 24:32–25:40

Overall Tone & Takeaways

The episode is practical, direct, and occasionally irreverent. Mark and Mike stress that managers must take action on engagement survey results—not by theorizing or blaming the questions, but by communicating, engaging their teams, and owning process improvements. They repeatedly encourage listeners to focus on straightforward, open questions to their teams, and to remove inefficiencies with confidence. Feelings are acknowledged but not elevated above behaviors and results.

Bottom line: Use engagement surveys as data—then act, communicate, and make sensible improvements right where you have control.