How to Read an Employee Survey

An employee survey provides valuable insight into your organization's culture. But how do you actually interpret the results, and what should you do with them?

The Response Scale: What Do the Numbers Mean?

Most surveys use a scale from 1-5:

• 1 (Strongly Disagree): Critical level. Requires immediate action.
• 2 (Somewhat Disagree): Challenging. This area needs attention.
• 3 (Neutral): Satisfactory, but room for improvement.
• 4 (Somewhat Agree): Good. This is a strength to build upon.
• 5 (Strongly Agree): Excellent. Maintain this strength.

The Seven Culture Levels

The average score indicates which culture level the organization operates at:

Level 1-2 (Score 1.0-2.2): Pathological/Reactive culture. Information is hidden, blame is assigned to others, and crises are only dealt with when they occur. "Who can we blame?"

Level 3-4 (Score 2.3-3.5): Compliance/Calculative culture. Rules are followed, but without engagement. Good systems exist, but the focus is on measurement rather than meaning. "We have procedures for this."

Level 5-6 (Score 3.6-4.7): Proactive/Generative culture. Problems are prevented, learning is shared, and continuous improvement is built-in. "How can we get better?"

Level 7 (Score 4.8-5.0): World-class. Transformative culture that sets the standard for the industry. "We're redefining the industry."

Who Is Responsible?

Questions can be categorized by responsibility:

• Company (B): Structures, systems, and leadership. Low scores require organizational measures.
• Employee (A): Personal actions and attitudes. Low scores may indicate a need for coaching.
• Shared (D): Requires dialogue between employee and management to find solutions together.

Prioritize Based on Insight

Once you have the results, prioritize as follows:

1. Identify critical areas – scores below 2.0 require immediate action
2. Find strengths – scores above 4.0 are something to build on
3. Look for patterns – are there specific teams or themes that stand out?
4. Connect to responsibility – who can influence the improvement?

From Insight to Action

The most important rule: Don't try to fix everything at once. Choose 2-3 focus areas, create concrete action plans, and follow up with new measurements quarterly.

Target: Increase culture score by 0.3 points per quarter. Over 18-24 months, this can lift the organization from level 2-3 to level 5-6.