What are Pulse Surveys, and How They Can Help Your Company?

Employee pulse surveys have become more and more popular in recent years. Companies large and small, domestic and international, and across a wide range of industries use pulse surveys to measure employee engagement and their attitudes about company culture. Putting thought into pulse survey questions can make them effective tools in helping steer your organization in the direction you want to go.

What a pulse survey is

An employee pulse survey differs from the traditional employee engagement survey in that it’s a quick survey given weekly or monthly. The purpose of a pulse survey is to gain quick insight into a company’s vital signs by gathering employee feedback.

The primary purpose of a pulse survey is to quantify employee engagement. Employee engagement is the measure of enthusiasm and connection employees have with their organization, and it’s been historically difficult to assess. Attempting to measure employee engagement can be frustrating, because the results can either be inaccurate or outdated (by the time survey responses are compiled, the data is too old to be relevant). A properly designed pulse survey is meant to address these issues.

Another purpose of a pulse survey is measuring a company’s culture. Companies gather all kinds of data on…