Review of GDOT's organization evaluation process by examining current employee survey and other state DOT's methods - Phase I: final report [Mar. 2014]

GEORGIA DOT RESEARCH PROJECT 13-07
FINAL REPORT
REVIEW OF GDOT'S ORGANIZATION EVALUATION PROCESS BY EXAMINING CURRENT EMPLOYEE SURVEY AND OTHER
STATE DOTs' METHODS - PHASE I
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OFFICE OF RESEARCH
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Stephan!A.!Durham,!Ph.D.,!P.E.,!Karen!DeMeester,!Ph.D.! Scott!Smith,!and!Shenell!Robinson!
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REVIEW!OF!GDOT'S!ORGANIZATION!EVALUATION! PROCESS!BY!EXAMINING!CURRENT!EMPLOYEE!SURVEY!
AND!OTHER!STATE!DOTs'!METHODS!MPHASE!I!
! March!2014! ! ! ! Sponsored!by! Georgia!Department!of!Transportation! GDOT!PROJECT!NO.!13M07!
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FINAL REPORT
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! ! ! ! ! ! ! The! contents! of! this! report! reflect! the! views! of! the! authors,! who! are! responsible! for! the! facts!and!accuracy!of!the!data!presented!herein.!!The!contents!do!not!necessarily!reflect! the! official! views! of! the! Georgia! Department! of! Transportation! or! the! Federal! Highway! Administration.!!This!report!does!not!constitute!a!standard,!specification,!or!regulation.! !

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Technical!Report!Documentation!Page!

1.!Report!No.!FHWACGAC14C13C07!! 2.!Government!Accession!No.! !
4.!Title!and!Subtitle! REVIEW!OF!GDOT'S!ORGANIZATION!EVALUATION!PROCESS!BY! EXAMINING!CURRENT!EMPLOYEE!SURVEY!AND!OTHER!STATE! DOTs'!!METHODS!!PHASE!I!
7.!Author(s)! Stephan!A.!Durham,!Ph.D.,!P.E.,!Karen!DeMeester,!Ph.D.,!Scott! Smith,!and!Shenell!Robinson! 9.!Performing!Organization!Name!and!Address! University!of!Georgia! College!of!Engineering!/!College!of!Education! Driftmier!Engineering!Center! Phone:!(706)!542C9480! Email:!sdurham@uga.edu! 12.!Sponsoring!Agency!Name!and!Address! Georgia!Department!of!Transportation! Office!of!Research! 15!Kennedy!Drive! Forest!Park,!Georgia!!30297C25599! 15.!Supplementary!Notes! !

3.!Recipient's!Catalog!No.! ! 5.!Report!Date! March!!2014! 6.!!Performing!Organization!Code! ! 8.!Performing!Organization!Report!No.! !
10.!Work!Unit!No.!(TRAIS)! ! 11.!Contract!or!Grant!No.! ! 0011717!(RP!13C07)!
13.!Type!of!Report!and!Period!Covered! Final!(March!2013!March!2014)!
14.!Sponsoring!Agency!Code! !

16.!Abstract! During!the!past!decade,!the!Georgia!Department!of!Transportation!(GDOT)!has!conducted!surveys!of!its!over!5,000! employees.!Currently,!the!survey!is!being!used!to!compare!results!yearCtoCyear!and!formulate!initiatives!and! methods!of!organizational!improvement.!!However,!because!of!a!continual!decrease!in!survey!response!rate!and!a! desire!to!reevaluate!the!purpose!for!conducting!the!survey,!GDOT!is!revamping!its!current!survey!in!an!effort!to! increase!the!number!of!respondents!and!receive!feedback!that!is!in!line!with!the!overall!objectives!of!the!survey.!! The!Study!Team!gathered!information!from!an!array!of!forums,!ranging!from!meetings!with!GDOT!to!past!surveys! used!by!other!state!DOTs.!!This!work!led!to!the!development!of!a!new!GDOT!employee!survey.!!Each!phase!of!this! study!was!used!to!identify!items!such!as:!the!purpose!and!intent!of!the!survey,!what!information!is!to!be!learned! from!the!results,!concerns!by!employees,!and!clarity!in!the!questions!and!presentation.!!The!new!employee!survey! developed!as!part!of!this!study!addressed!several!reoccurring!themes!mentioned!in!the!literature,!focus!group! meetings,!state!DOTs'!surveys!and!example!surveys.!!Specifically,!the!survey!was!restructured!in!a!way!to:!reassure! employees!that!their!responses!remained!confidential,!questions!were!structured!such!to!allow!employees!to! comment!on!their!perception!of!GDOT!practices!or!actions!of!supervisors!rather!than!specific!individuals,!to!divert! employees!to!more!global!issues!that!could!develop!into!real!action!items,!and!to!determine!employees'!awareness! of!current!GDOT!initiatives!used!to!support!the!workforce.!!!Ultimately,!the!new!survey!will!provide!the!needed! information!to!allow!GDOT!to!evaluate!organizational!performance!and!attract!and!retain!its!workforce.!

17.!Keywords! Employee!Survey,!Organizational!Evaluation,! Satisfaction!Survey!

18.!Distribution!Statement! !

19.!Security!Classif.! 20.!Security!Classif.!(of!this!page)!

(of!this!report)!

Unclassified!

Unclassified!

21.!No.!of! Pages!!183!

22.!Price!

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TABLE!OF!CONTENTS!
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LIST!OF!TABLES.........................................................................................................................vii! LIST!OF!FIGURES..........................................................................................................................vii! ! EXECUTIVE!SUMMARY...............................................................................................................viii! ACKNOWLEDGMENT..................................................................................................................xiii! INTRODUCTION..............................................................................................................................1! FINDINGS!FROM!MEETINGS!WITH!GDOT!LEADERSHIP!AND!EMPLOYEES.............................5! FINDINGS!FROM!OTHER!STATE'S!DEPARTMENTS!OF!TRANSPORTATION...........................13! BEST!PRACTICES!IN!SURVEY!DESIGN!AND!IMPLEMENTATION..............................................29! NEW!GDOT!EMPLOYEE!SURVEY................................................................................................38! ADDITIONAL!STRATEGIES!FOR!MAXIMIZING!RETURN!RATE!AND!VALIDITY!AND!
RELIABILITY!OF!NEW!SURVEY...............................................................................51! COST!ESTIMATES.........................................................................................................................54! CONCLUSIONS!AND!RECOMMENDATIONS.............................................................................58! REFERENCES.................................................................................................................................60! APPENDICES!
Appendix!A:!GDOT!Current!Employee!Survey....................................................67! Appendix!B:!Review!of!Literature........................................................................73! Appendix!C:!UGA!and!GDOT!Leadership!Team!meeting!minutes.................108! Appendix!D:!Employee!Advocacy!Team!(EAT)!Meeting!Agenda!and!FollowCup!
Survey.............................................................................................113!

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Appendix!E:!National!State!DOT!Employee!Survey!Practices!and!Example!of!

Other!State!DOTs!Employee!Survey!Instruments.....................114!

Appendix!F:!New!GDOT!Employee!Survey.......................................................159!

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LIST!OF!TABLES!
TABLE!1:!Nebraska!DOT!Employee!Training!Opportunity!Index!Results!(Past!5!Surveys)..23! TABLE!2:!Nebraska!DOT!Work!Environment!Results...............................................................27! TABLE!3:!PerCService!Cost!Estimates--Survey!Testing............................................................55! TABLE!4:!PerCService!Cost!Estimates--Survey!Administration,!Analysis,!and!Report!of!
Findings!and!Recommendations.................................................................................57! !
LIST!OF!FIGURES!
FIGURE!1:!Respondent!State!Map...........................................................................................14! FIGURE!2:!Percentage!of!Respondent!States!That!Survey!Employees!in!the!Following!
Areas......................................................................................................................17! FIGURE!3:!Percentage!of!Respondent!States!That!Share!Survey!Results!with!the!Following!
Staff.......................................................................................................................18! FIGURE!4a!:!Your!Career!at!GDOT!Section!of!the!Survey........................................................41! FIGURE!4b!:!Your!Professional!Development!Opportunities!Section!of!the!Survey............42! FIGURE!5a:!Your!Work!Unit!Environment!Section!of!the!Survey...........................................43! FIGURE!5b:!Your!Safety!at!GDOT!Section!of!the!Survey..........................................................44! FIGURE!6:!Overall!Satisfaction!AT!GDOT!Section!of!Survey....................................................45! FIGURE!7a:!Employee!Data!Section!of!the!Survey...................................................................47! FIGURE!7b:!Employee!Data!Section!of!the!Survey...................................................................48! FIGURE!7b!Cont'd:!Employee!Data!Section!of!the!Survey.......................................................49! FIGURE!7b!Cont'd:!Employee!Data!Section!of!the!Survey.......................................................50!

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EXECUTIVE!SUMMARY!
The! Georgia! Department! of! Transportation! (GDOT)! contracted! with! the! University! of! Georgia!to!assist!in!updating!and!reinvigorating!its!employee!survey.!The!purpose!of!the! project! and! the! goals! for! the! new! survey! are! to! increase! the! response! rate! and! the! usefulness!of!the!feedback!to!support!organizational!decisions!about!effective!strategies! for! increasing! its! employees'! satisfaction,! retention,! and! professional! advancement! within! GDOT.! Dr.! Stephan! Durham! from! UGA's! College! of! Engineering! brings! extensive! experience! working! with! Departments! of! Transportation! (DOTs),! and! as! the! Director! of! the!Program!Evaluation!Group!(PEG),!Dr.!Karen!DeMeester!brings!extensive!experience! in! the! design,! administration,! and! analysis! of! surveys.! Two! graduate! students! in! UGA's! Civil! Engineering! program! assisted! with! the! project.! During! the! project,! the! UGA! Study! Team!reviewed!GDOT's!current!employee!survey;!met!with!the!GDOT!Leadership!Team! and! its! Employee! Advocacy! Team! (EAT);! surveyed! other! state! DOTs! about! their! employee! surveys;! reviewed! the! literature! and! research! on! best! practices! for! survey! design,!administration,!and!analysis;!created!a!new!employee!survey;!and!prepared!cost! estimates!for!administering!and!analyzing!the!survey.!
The! primary! goal! of! this! study! was! to! reevaluate! the! purpose! and! need! of! GDOT's! employee! survey! and! to! identify! resources! and! initiatives! that! would! help! employees!become!successful!in!their!jobs.!Equally!important!is!the!degree!to!which!the! survey! results! in! relevant,! usable,! and! reliable! information.! The! survey! is! valuable! if! it! enables!leadership!to!make!better!decisions!about!strategies,!actions,!and!investments! to! improve! employee! satisfaction! and! productivity.! ! The! value! is! diminished! if! the!

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feedback!is!not!relevant!to!these!decisions!or!suggests!changes!that!an!organization!has! limited! power! to! implement.! The! survey! design! and! implementation! practices! and! strategies! described! in! this! report! were! selected! because! they! improve! both! response! rate!and!usability.!!
Attaining! and! maintaining! a! high! response! rate! for! an! employee! survey! is! a! fundamental! approach! to! ensuring! highCquality! feedback/data! and! avoiding! nonresponse! bias--when! the! people! who! do! not! respond! to! the! survey! are! different! than! those! that! do,! and! therefore! the! survey! findings! are! not! representative! of! the! diversity! of! thoughts! and! opinions! of! the! overall! population! (Dillman,! 2009).! GDOT's! overall!response!rate!is!important!but!so!are!the!response!rates!from!specific!work!units! and! job! classifications! to! ensure! decisions! are! based! on! information! representative! of! the! organization! as! a! whole.! GDOT's! response! rate! for! its! most! recent! survey,! though! lower! than! in! previous! years,! is! in! line! with! response! rates! of! other! state! DOTs! (e.g.,! approximately! 42%! (INDOT),! 60%! (CTDOT),! 69%! (FDOT),! and! 70%! (NDOR)).! Other! state! DOTs!reported!declining!employee!response!rates!that!are!similar!to!GDOT's.!
A!number!of!factors!influence!survey!response!rates--how!and!how!many!times! employees! are! contacted! to! complete! the! survey;! the! number,! clarity,! and! sequencing! of!questions;!visual!presentation,!and!overall!ease!with!which!employees!can!complete! the! survey! (Dillman,! 2009).! In! addition,! employees'! attitudes! and! beliefs! about! the! purpose! and! intent! for! the! survey,! the! potential! for! the! survey! to! result! in! positive! actions,!and!the!confidentiality!and!anonymity!of!the!survey!influence!their!decision!to! complete!the!survey!as!well!as!the!quality!of!their!responses!(Dillman,!2000).!!

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Providing! potential! respondents! token! financial! incentives! has! been! shown! to! increase!participants'!motivation!to!complete!a!survey,!and!thereby!increase!the!rate!of! response! (Dillman,! 2009).! Offering! participants! monetary! or! material! incentives! is! not! always! feasible! or! advisable,! especially! with! a! large! organization! surveying! all! its! employees.! Proponents! of! the! social! exchange! theory! of! survey! design,! however,! offer! alternative! strategies! for! motivating! participants! by! increasing! perceived! benefits,! decreasing! perceived! costs,! and! fostering! trust! that! the! rewards! associated! with! completing! the! survey! will! outweigh! the! costs.! These! strategies! include! making! the! survey!highly!relevant!to!responders;!explaining!the!purpose!of!the!survey;!emphasizing! the! value! of! the! respondents'! feedback;! showing! regard,! respect,! and! appreciation;! appealing!to!responders'!sense!of!community!as!employees!of!GDOT;!making!the!survey! easy! to! understand! and! to! complete! to! minimize! confusion! and! frustration;! providing! reminders! and! followCup! requests;! ensuring! it! takes! no! more! than! 20! minutes! to! complete!the!survey,!and!ensuring!confidentiality!and!security!of!information.!!!!! Survey! instrument.! To! optimize! response! rate! and! validity! and! reliability! of! survey! responses,!the!survey!items/questions!must!be!unambiguous!and!easily!understood!by! all!respondents.!The!survey!must!be!focused!and!as!short!as!possible;!paced!correctly!to! maintain!responders'!attention!and!focus;!and!organized!and!presented!clearly!to!avoid! overtaxing! responders! visually! and! mentally.! The! visual! presentation! must! be! clear,! varied,!and!lack!clutter.!The!survey!should!also!be!preCtested!to!discover!weaknesses!in! design,!ambiguity!in!questions,!inaccurate!time!estimate!for!completion,!and!biased!and! sensitive!questions.!

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Survey! process.! A! number! of! factors! beyond! the! survey! questions! and! instrument!

influence! response! rate! and! response! quality! and! usefulness,! including:! (a)! employees'!

positive! or! negative! experiences! with! previous! surveys,! (b)! employees'! trust! in! the!

confidentiality! and! anonymity! of! their! responses,! (c)! employees'! perception! of! the!

purpose!for!the!survey!and!how!their!responses!will!be!used,!and!(d)!employees'!belief!

that! the! organization! will! take! action! based! on! their! responses! to! the! survey! (Boyer! &!

Stron,! 2012;! Wright! &! Schwager! 2008;! Lloyd,! 2013).! A! representative! group! of! GDOT!

employees! indicated! the! failure! to! take! action! and! concerns! with! confidentiality! are!

most!detrimental!to!not!only!survey!response!rates!but!also!employee!morale.!

!Collecting! feedback! and! input! from! employees! can! actually! hurt! their!

subsequent! performance! if! no! changes! are! made! as! a! result! of! the! feedback! or! if! the!

changes! are! not! visible! and/or! employees! are! not! made! aware! of! changes! (DeNisi! &!

Kluger,! 2000).! GDOT! could! motivate! employees! to! complete! the! survey! by!

demonstrating! its! commitment! to! change! based! on! employee! input.! The! survey! is! only!

the!vehicle!for!collecting!employee!feedback,!but!it's!the!feedback!that!is!most!valuable.!

An! organization! must! demonstrate! commitment! to! take! the! survey! results! seriously,!

share! the! results,! and! take! action! based! on! the! results! to! encourage! and! motivate!

employees! to! invest! their! time! and! effort! (Haynes,! 2002;! Fisher! et.! al.,! 2008).! The! new!

GDOT! employee! survey! was! designed! to! reflect! the! best! practices! in! survey! design! but!

the! survey's! successful! implementation! depends! on! an! organizational! culture! that!

promotes!and!supports!its!value.!!!

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT!
The! University! of! Georgia! would! like! to! acknowledge! the! financial! support! provided! by! the! Georgia! Department! of! Transportation! for! this! study.! ! The! authors! would! like! to! thank! the! many! GDOT! personnel! that! assisted! with! this! study.! ! A! special! thanks! to! Ms.! Alma! Mujkanovic,! GDOT! Strategic! Planner,! Ms.! Angela! Alexander,! GDOT! Director,! and! Ms.!Supriya!Kamatkar,!Research!Engineer.!

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INTRODUCTION!
The! Georgia! Department! of! Transportation! (GDOT)! conducted! employee! satisfaction! surveys!each!year!from!2003C2007!with!additional!surveys!conducted!in!2010!and!2012.! The!current!survey!is!included!in!Appendix!A.!!Over!time,!the!survey!response!rate!has! continued! to! decline.! When! the! employee! survey! was! first! initiated! the! response! rate! was! approximately! 80%,! but! on! the! most! recent! survey,! the! return! rate! declined! to! approximately!60%.!A!number!of!factors!influence!survey!response!rates--how!and!how! many! times! employees! are! contacted! to! complete! the! survey;! the! number,! clarity,! and! sequencing! of! questions;! visual! presentation;! and! overall! ease! with! which! employees! can! complete! the! survey! (Dillman,! 2009).! In! addition,! employees'! attitudes! and! beliefs! about! the! purpose! and! intent! for! the! survey,! the! potential! for! the! survey! to! result! in! positive! actions,! and! the! confidentiality! and! anonymity! of! the! survey! influence! their! decision!to!complete!the!survey!as!well!as!the!quality!of!their!responses!(Dillman,!2000).! Baruch! and! Holtom! (2008)! examined! 490! studies! that! used! surveys! in! organizational! research! and! found! that! the! response! rate! for! individuals! was! 52.7%.! It! is! difficult! to! determine! a! reliable! average! response! rate! for! employee! surveys! specifically! because! many! of! the! averages! cited! are! included! on! survey! vendors'! websites! and! are! part! of! their!marketing!strategies.!Although!GDOT's!response!rate!is!in!line!with!those!reported! by!other!state!Departments!of!Transportation!(DOTs)!(e.g.,!approximately!42%!(INDOT),! 60%! (CTDOT),! 69%! (FDOT),! and! 70%! (NDOR)),! the! new! survey! is! designed! to! improve! response!rates.!!

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Response!rate!is!only!one!criterion!of!a!survey's!success.!Even!more!critical!is!the! degree! to! which! the! survey! results! in! relevant,! usable,! and! reliable! information.! The! survey! is! valuable! if! it! enables! leadership! to! make! better! decisions! about! strategies,! actions,! and! investments! to! improve! employee! satisfaction! and! productivity.! The! value! is!diminished!if!the!feedback!is!not!relevant!to!these!decisions!or!suggests!changes!that! an!organization!has!limited!power!to!implement.!The!GDOT!leadership!team!expressed! concern! that,! based! on! previous! survey! results,! employees'! satisfaction! is! primarily! dependent!on!wages,!health!insurance,!and!other!benefits,!which!GDOT!has!less!control! to!influence.!!Other!factors!that!influence!the!success!of!a!survey!include:!!
Employees'!positive!or!negative!experiences!with!previous!surveys! Employees'!trust!in!the!confidentiality!and!anonymity!of!their!responses! Employees'! perception! of! the! purpose! for! the! survey! and! how! their! responses!
will!be!used! Employees'!belief!that!the!organization!will!take!action!based!on!their!responses!
to!the!survey! To! increase! survey! participation,! organization! leadership! needs! to! address! employees'! beliefs! and! attitudes! and! educate! employees! on! the! purpose! of! the! survey! and!the!importance!of!their!feedback.!The!process!and!organizational!culture!related!to! the! survey! are! key! factors! for! improving! the! survey! response! rate! and! maximizing! the! benefits!of!the!organization's!investment!of!time!and!effort!in!surveying!its!employees.!! To! improve! the! response! rate! and! enhance! the! usefulness! of! the! data! obtained! from! its! employee! survey,! GDOT! engaged! faculty! from! the! University! of! Georgia's!

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College!of!Engineering!and!Program!Evaluation!Group!(PEG)!in!the!College!of!Education.! Dr.! Stephan! Durham! brings! extensive! experience! working! with! Departments! of! Transportation,! and! as! the! Director! of! the! Program! Evaluation! Group,! Dr.! Karen! DeMeester! brings! extensive! experience! in! the! design,! administration,! and! analysis! of! surveys.! The! other! members! of! the! UGA! Study! Team! are! Scott! Smith! and! Shenell! Robinson,!both!students!in!Civil!Engineering!at!UGA.!
The! UGA! Study! Team! began! the! project! by! meeting! with! GDOT's! Leadership! Team!and!its!Employee!Advocacy!Team!(EAT).!In!addition,!the!team!has!worked!closely! with! Angela! Alexander! (Organizational! Performance! Management),! Alma! Mujkanovic! (Organizational!Performance!Management),!and!Supriya!Kamatkar!(Office!of!Research).! After! the! meeting! with! the! EAT,! members! were! offered! the! opportunity! to! complete! a! followCup! survey! to! ensure! that! all! participants! had! the! opportunity! to! express! their! opinions,! especially! those! not! comfortable! expressing! their! opinions! in! the! group! meeting.! Other! state! DOTs! were! contacted! and! surveyed! to! identify! approaches! and! models! for! collecting! feedback! from! employees.! ! Eighteen! DOTs! responded! to! the! survey!(Alabama,!Connecticut,!Delaware,!Florida,!Indiana,!Kansas,!Michigan,!Minnesota,! Nebraska,! Nevada,! New! Hampshire,! North! Carolina,! Ohio,! Oklahoma,! South! Carolina,! South!Dakota,!Tennessee,!and!Wisconsin),!and!six!provided!copies!of!their!most!recent! employee! surveys! (Indiana,! Nebraska,! New! Hampshire,! North! Carolina,! South! Carolina,! and!Ohio).!!
The! Study! Team! also! conducted! research! to! identify! current! best! practices! for! increasing! survey! participation! and! improving! the! quality! and! usefulness! of! the! data!

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obtained! through! surveys.! The! results! of! this! research! are! presented! in! a! review! of!

literature! found! in! Appendix! B,! and! the! findings! most! relevant! to! the! new! GDOT!

employee! survey! are! summarized! in! the! section! Best! Practices! in! Survey! Design! and!

Implementation.!

The! outcome! of! the! study! activities! described! above! is! a! new! GDOT! Employee!

Survey! instrument.! The! survey! is! presented! in! this! report! as! well! as! a! description! and!

rationale! for! its! design.! In! addition! to! the! survey,! recommendations! for! testing! the!

survey!and!several!methods!for!improving!the!survey!process!and!organizational!culture!

related! to! the! survey! are! included.! Finally,! cost! estimates! are! presented! for! the! testing!

and!administration!(including!analysis!and!reporting)!of!the!new!survey.!!

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FINDINGS!FROM!MEETINGS!WITH!GDOT!LEADERSHIP!AND!EMPLOYEES!
GDOT%Leadership%Team% The! UGA! Study! Team! met! with! GDOT's! Leadership! Team! on! June! 16,! 2013,! to! clarify! what! information! the! leadership! needed! to! support! effective! decision! making,! what! information! they! want! to! obtain! from! the! employee! satisfaction! survey,! how! they! intend! to! use! the! information,! and! what! the! strengths! and! weaknesses! of! the! current! survey! are.! The! Leadership! Team! included! Keith! Golden! (Commissioner),! Todd! Long! (Deputy!Commissioner),!Matt!Cline!(Administration/General!Counsel),!Russell!McMurry! (Chief! Engineer),! Angela! Alexander! (Organizational! Performance! Management),! and! Angela! Whitworth! (Treasurer).! Alma! Mujkanovic! (Organizational! Performance! Management)!was!at!this!meeting!representing!the!GDOT!advisory!panel!for!this!study.! (See!Appendix!C!for!the!minutes!of!the!meeting).!
Employee!satisfaction!is!a!critical!component!of!a!healthy!organization.!In!fact,!a! 2005! Gallup! study! found! that! businesses! with! high! employee! satisfaction! also! saw! an! 86%! increase! in! customer! ratings,! 76%! more! success! in! reducing! turnover,! and! 78%! better!safety!records!(Branham,!2005).!The!Leadership!Team,!however,!questioned!the! value! of! the! current! employee! satisfaction! survey! and! its! ability! to! guide! the! team! in! allocating! resources! to! effective! strategies! for! increasing! its! employees'! satisfaction,! retention,!and!professional!advancement!within!GDOT.!Past!responses!to!the!employee! satisfaction!survey!indicated!that!employee!satisfaction!was!predominately!determined! by! their! compensation! and! benefits,! such! as! healthcare! coverage! and! premiums.! The! team! expressed! concern! that! a! survey! that! only! provided! information! about! aspects! of!

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employee!satisfaction!that!the!organization!had!little!ability!to!change!may!not!be!worth!

the!investment!of!resources.!Furthermore,!as!the!Study!Team!discovered!in!its!meeting!

with! the! EAT! that! asking! employees! to! identify! changes! needed! to! increase! their!

satisfaction! and! then! not! producing! visible! changes! undermines! employee! satisfaction!

and!willingness!to!complete!the!survey.!!

The! group! discussed! factors! other! than! compensation! and! benefits! that!

influence! employee! satisfaction--factors! GDOT! could! potentially! have! more! ability! to!

address.!The!group!concluded!that!employees!are!more!likely!to!be!happy!if!they:!

Are!satisfied!with!the!work!they!are!doing!and!feel!the!work!makes!a!difference!

or!impact.!

Enjoy!the!environment!and!people!they!work!with!on!a!daily!basis.!

Have!a!sense!of!job!security!in!their!current!positions.!

The!team!also!thought!that!employees!experience!satisfaction!when!they!feel!as!though!

they! are! applying! the! technical! skills! they! developed! in! school! or! on! the! job! over! time.!

The! team's! conclusion! aligns! with! what! a! recent! study! identified! as! the! top! five!

contributors! to! employee! satisfaction:! opportunities! to! use! skills! and! abilities,! job!

security,! compensation,! communication! between! employees! and! senior! management,!

and! employee's! relationship! with! immediate! supervisor! (Society! for! Human! Resource!

Management,!2012).!

!

The! team's! discussion! about! what! constitutes! employee! satisfaction! generated!

potential! topics! to! pursue! in! the! new! version! of! the! survey.! For! example,! the! survey!

could! ask! employees! on! a! scale! of! 1! to! 5! how! secure! they! feel! in! their! positions,! the!

!

6!

!
degree!to!which!they!believe!their!work!impacts!the!state,!or!whether!or!not!employees! in! their! unit! treat! each! other! with! respect.! It! is! typically! easier! to! develop! initiatives! to! increase! employees'! feelings! of! security,! value,! and! respect! than! it! is! to! raise! salaries! and!lower!health!insurance!premiums.!!
The!Study!Team!asked!the!group!to!discuss!the!purpose!and!intended!use!of!the! survey,! and! the! Leadership! Team! members! responded! that! they! would! like! to! obtain! feedback!from!their!!employees!on!the!following:!
GDOT!policies!and!procedures! The!types!of!training/certifications!employees!need!and!want! The!GDOT!programs!they!wish!were!available!or!brought!back!(if!discontinued)! Incentives!and!how!to!implement!them! One! Leadership! Team! member! suggested! that! the! purpose! of! the! survey! is! for! the! Leadership! Team! to! understand! GDOT's! employees! better! and! not! to! "retrieve! what! employees!know!about!their!supervisors!and!Leadership!Team."!The!other!members!of! the!team!agreed!with!this!description.!To!identify!additional!ways!the!employee!survey! could! benefit! GDOT,! the! Study! Team! asked! the! group! to! discuss! some! of! GDOT's! organizational! challenges! or! concerns! that! may! not! be! directly! related! to! employee! satisfaction! but! that! employee! feedback! could! help! management! to! understand! and! address!better.!The!Leadership!Team!would!like!answers!to!the!following!questions:!
! How!can!the!employee!work!environment!be!improved?! ! What!is!the!most!effective!means!of!communication!between!the!Leadership!
Team,!middle!management,!and!district!employees?!

!

7!

!
! What!do!employees!of!different!ages!desire!most!in!their!work!environment! and!value!most!in!their!jobs!(to!guide!recruitment!and!retention!efforts)?!
! What! do! GDOT! employees! feel! are! their! greatest! challenges! (e.g.,! do! they! feel!"locked"!into!the!same!position)?!
The!Study!Team!also!asked!how!frequently!the!current!survey!was!administered,! who!received!the!results!of!the!survey,!and!would!the!Leadership!Team!be!interested!in! developing! more! than! one! survey! to! customize! items! to! specific! job! types! and! supervisory! levels.! The! group! agreed! that! survey! results! should! be! disseminated! to! supervisors! and! managers! so! that! they! can! directly! address! and! work! to! resolve! the! concerns! and! issues! identified! by! their! employees.! In! addition,! dissemination! at! the! supervisor! and! manager! levels! establishes! some! level! of! accountability! for! improvements.!!It!was!emphasized!that!middle!management!needs!to!know!the!results! of! the! survey! because! at! that! level! initiatives! are! implemented! and! messages! from! GDOT!leadership!are!conveyed!to!employees.!
Although!the!idea!of!having!two!surveys--one!for!the!General!Office!and!one!for! the! District! employees--was! considered,! the! decision! was! to! continue! with! a! single! survey.!The!Study!Team!will!design!the!survey!to!be!appropriate!across!the!organization! and!to!ask!employees!about!areas!in!which!they!have!direct!knowledge!and!experience.! The! Leadership! Team! recommended! that! the! survey! be! administered! every! two! years.! Although!the!team!recommended!a!new!survey!be!developed,!they!would!like!the!new! survey!to!enable!comparison!of!data!from!previous!years.!
!

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GDOT%Employee%Advocacy%Team%(EAT)% The! Study! Team! asked! to! meet! with! a! group! of! employees! to! gather! information! regarding! employee! perceptions! of! the! current! employee! satisfaction! survey--its! intended!purpose,!how!the!results!are!used,!who!receives!the!results,!how!confidential! and! anonymous! the! responses! are,! its! relevance! to! their! work! environment,! the! clarity! of!questions!and!instructions!for!completing!the!survey,!and!how!labor!intensive!it!was! to!complete!the!survey.!Employees'!beliefs!and!attitudes!related!to!these!aspects!of!the! survey!influence!response!rates!and!the!authenticity!and!validity!of!responses.!
The! Leadership! Team! recommended! that! the! Study! Team! meet! with! GDOT's! Employee! Advocacy! Team! (EAT).! The! EAT! includes! representatives! from! various! functional! areas! of! GDOT,! including! representatives! from! each! division! and! district! (engineers!administrative!assistants,!planners,!maintenance!workers,!and!others!were!in! the!group).!The!Study!Team!conduced!a!focus!group!with!the!EAT!on!June!18,!2013!(See! Appendix! D! for! the! focus! group! agenda).! After! the! meeting,! the! Study! Team! administered!an!anonymous!online!survey!to!EAT!members.!During!focus!groups,!some! participants! are! less! comfortable! offering! their! opinions,! so! the! followCup! survey! enabled!each!individual!to!contribute!his!or!her!ideas!privately.!Ten!members!of!the!EAT! group! completed! the! followCup! survey.! The! survey! responses! should! be! used! with! caution,! as! the! sample! of! EAT! members! completing! those! is! not! representative! of! the! group!members!as!a!whole.!However,!similar!themes!were!present!in!the!survey!as!well! as!the!discussion.!!

!

9!

!
Respondents! to! the! followCup! survey! were! asked! how! they! are! notified! to! take! the! survey! and! when! they! typically! complete! the! survey.! The! respondents! could! be! notified! more! than! one! way.! Email! was! the! most! frequently! selected! method! (80%)! while!notification!by!supervisor!was!next!most!frequent,!and!the!GDOT!Banner!was!also! mentioned.! Eighty! percent! (80%)! of! responders! completed! the! survey! during! work! hours,! 10%! completed! the! survey! during! break,! and! the! remaining! 10%! completed! the! survey!during!lunch.!When!asked!what!would!make!them!more!willing!to!complete!the! survey,!the!following!themes!emerged:!
Employees!need!to!know!why!they!are!being!asked!to!take!the!survey!and!that!it! is!their!opportunity!to!provide!input.!Short!meetings!and/or!video!presentations! on!the!Banner!were!suggested!methods!for!communicating!this!information.!
Survey! results! and! planned! improvements! need! to! be! shared! with! employees! (e.g.,!a!letter!from!the!Commissioner!or!District!Engineer!or!a!presentation!at!the! annual!meeting).!
Action! needs! to! be! taken! as! a! result! of! the! survey.! One! person! recommended! actions! that! would! impact! him! or! her! "directly,"! such! as! flexible! schedules,! greater!discount!on!transit!passes,!and!fair!wages!for!people!doing!the!same!job! within!the!same!unit.!
The!survey!needs!to!be!shorter.! Despite! the! employees'! comments! above,! of! the! ten! respondents! to! the!
questions,! eight! (80%)! felt! that! the! information! from! the! survey! is! being! used.! Of! the! eight,! four! (50%)! believed! that! upper! management! and! districts! are! using! the!

!

10!

!
information! to! develop! strategies! and! initiatives! for! resolving! employee! problems! and! better! meeting! their! needs.! Less! positive! comments! suggested! that! management! was! not! using! the! survey! results! effectively! and! not! resolving! the! problems! revealed! in! the! survey! (i.e.,! breakdown! in! communication,! compensation! and! rising! healthcare! costs).! One! responder! thought! that! "any! negative! survey! results,! for! our! office,! result! in! negative!treatment."!!
The! final! item! on! the! survey! asked! how! the! survey! and/or! survey! process! could! be!improved.!Suggestions!for!improvement!in!the!survey!process!include!the!following:!
Have!a!"third!party!present!the!survey!since!there!appears!to!be!mistrust!among! the!employees."!
Have! supervisors! encourage! their! employees! to! take! the! survey! at! safety! or! weekly!meetings!
Have!the!survey!on!myGDOT!main!webpage! Make!the!survey!shorter!
The! majority! of! comments! included! the! suggestion! that! office! heads! and! upper! management! share! the! results! of! the! survey! with! all! employees! and! describe! the! changes! to! be! implemented.! One! responder! summarized! this! concern! well,! commenting:!
"...managers!need!to!make!a!special!effort!to!ensure!that!employees!under!their! section! had! a! chance! to! meet! with! the! manager! regarding! the! topics! that! were! covered!in!the!survey.!The!survey!results!may!be!a!small!item!to!them;!however,!

!

11!

!

they! will! get! more! support! from! their! employees! if! they! show! that! they! care!

about!the!program!and!time!that!was!taken!to!complete!the!survey.!!

It! was! also! suggested! that! upper! management! should! be! more! committed! to! following!

through! with! actions! and! changes.! Districts,! divisions,! and! offices! should! be! strongly!

encouraged!to!develop!improvement!strategies.!

As!a!result!of!these!meetings,!the!Study!Team!had!a!better!understanding!of!the!

organization's! needs! and! desires! as! well! as! the! challenges! for! implementing! a! new!

version!of!the!survey.!These!challenges!include:!

Overcoming! employees'! beliefs! that! GDOT! will! not! make! improvements! as! a!

result!of!the!survey!and!therefore!it!is!not!worth!completing!the!survey!

Designing!one!survey!relevant!to!and!appropriate!for!all!GDOT!employees!

Designing!a!survey!with!equal!validity!and!reliability!in!paper!and!online!formats!

Overcoming!employees'!(a)!concern!about!how!well!the!survey!process!protects!

their! anonymity! and! (b)! fear! of! negative! repercussion! if! their! responses! are!

discovered!

Designing! the! survey! to! help! GDOT! identify! actions! to! take! and! to! support!

increased!knowledge!and!greater!participation!in!existing!initiatives!!!!!

!

!

!

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12!

!
FINDINGS!FROM!OTHER!STATE!DEPARTMENTS!OF!TRANSPORTATION!
The! Study! Team! developed! a! questionnaire! to! investigate! whether! other! state! DOTs! survey!their!employees,!and,!if!so,!what!topics!are!included!in!those!surveys,!what!is!the! purpose!for!the!surveys,!how!are!the!surveys!administered,!and!what!actions!have!been! taken! in! response! to! survey! findings.! DOTs! were! also! asked! if! they! would! be! willing! to! provide! digital! copies! of! their! employee! surveys.! In! a! followCup! survey,! DOTs! that! responded! to! the! original! survey! were! asked! to! provide! response! rates! for! their! employee! surveys! as! well! as! some! results! from! those! surveys.! In! addition! to! response! rates,!data!provided!were!overall!employee!satisfaction!rates,!and!employees'!ratings!of! the!DOTs!professional!development!and!training!programs,!work!units,!and!safety.!The! data! are! indicators! that! GDOT! can! use! to! assess! its! survey! results! and! to! establish! benchmarks!and!performance!measures.!
The!Study!Team!examined!each!of!the!50!state's!DOT!website!for!information!on! employee! surveys! and! contact! information! for! staff! likely! to! have! information! on! how! the! DOT! collects! and! uses! employee! feedback! for! organizational! improvement.! The! Study! Team! identified! contact! information! for! DOT! staff! in! 38! of! the! states,! primarily! human!resource!representatives.!An!email!inviting!the!staff!to!complete!the!survey!was! sent!on!June!3,!2013!and!closed!on!July!11,!2013.!The!email!included!a!link!to!access!the! survey! as! well! as! an! email! address! to! send! electronic! versions! of! surveys.! A! followCup! reminder!was!sent!on!June!24,!2013.!The!survey,!contact!information!for!the!DOTs,!and! samples!of!other!state!DOTs'!employee!surveys!can!be!found!in!Appendix!E.!The!survey! was! administered! through! the! webCbased! survey! tool! SurveyMonkey!

!

13!

!

(http://www.surveymonkey.com/),! and! the! responses! were! analyzed! using! IBM! SPSS!

Statistics!(a!widely!used!statistical!analysis!program).!!!

!

Overall,! 18! of! the! 38! (47%)! DOTs! contacted! completed! the! survey:! Alabama,!

Connecticut,! Delaware,! Florida,! Indiana,! Kansas,! Michigan,! Minnesota,! Nebraska,!

Nevada,!New!Hampshire,!North!Carolina,!Ohio,!Oklahoma,!South!Carolina,!South!Dakota!

Tennessee,!and!Wisconsin.!Six!of!the!states!(Indiana,!Nebraska,!New!Hampshire,!North!

Carolina,!South!Carolina,!and!Ohio)!provided!their!most!recent!employee!surveys.!!

!

A! follow! up! email! was! sent! to! each! of! the! 18! respondents! seeking! additional!

information! regarding! their! employee! survey! participation! rates! and! other! benchmark!

data! to! serve! as! comparisons! to! assess! the! GDOT's! employee! survey.! The! state! DOTs!

that! were! willing! to! share! this! information! were! Nebraska,! Indiana,! Florida,! and!

Connecticut.!!!

Respondent states
Responded states that provided past surveys
!
FIGURE!1! Respondent!State!Map!

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!
Appendix! E! provides! the! contact! information! for! the! 38! DOTs! invited! to! complete! the! survey.!The!following!is!a!summary!(by!survey!question)!of!the!feedback!provided.!! ! Approximately%how%many%employees%does%your%DOT%have?% The! states! that! responded! to! the! survey! varied! in! size,! but! the! majority! (67%)! of! respondent! DOTs! have! less! than! 4,000! employees! in! their! workforce.! Of! the! 18! states! that! responded,! 7! (39%)! have! less! than! 3,000! employees,! 5! (28%)! have! 3,000C3,999;! 4! (22%)! have! 4,000C4,999;! and! 2! (11%)! have! 5,000! or! more.! The! states! that! reported! workforce! sizes! comparable! to! GDOT! (4,000+)! are! Alabama,! Florida,! Minnesota,! North! Carolina,!Ohio,!and!South!Carolina.!! ! Does%your%DOT%survey%its%employees?%% Overall,! 14! of! the! 18! (78%)! confirmed! that! they! regularly! use! employee! surveys.! The! other! four! states! (22%)! use! different! methods! to! collected! information! about! their! employees! and! their! work! environment.! The! other! methods! include! exit! interviews,! voluntary! exit! surveys,! and! meetings! between! management! and! employees.! One! state! surveys! employees! as! needed! and! on! individual! topics,! such! as! communication! and! customer!service.!! ! Does%your%DOT%have%more%than%one%employee%survey?%% The! majority! of! the! DOTs! (57%)! do! not! have! more! than! one! survey,! while! 6! of! the! 14! (43%)! use! more! than! one! survey.! Those! that! use! more! than! one! survey! were! asked! to!

!

15!

!
describe! each! of! the! surveys.! One! state! said! that! each! division! can! conduct! surveys! at! any! time! to! obtain! more! in! depth! information! from! staff! and/or! to! followCup! on! areas! that! their! employees! rated! low! on! the! organizationCwide! employee! satisfaction! survey.! Other! surveys! include! exit! surveys,! employee! engagement! surveys,! safety! surveys,! surveys! to! collect! employees'! ideas! on! innovations! and! improvement,! a! survey! for! specific! job! code! classifications! to! identify! training! needs,! climate! surveys! (collect! employee! perceptions! of! organization! culture! and! environment),! and! topicCspecific! surveys!(as!needed).!!
! How%often%do%you%administer%your%employee%survey(s)?%% Six! of! the! 11! (55%)! states! responding! to! this! question! indicated! that! they! survey! employees! annually,! two! (18%)! surveyed! their! employees! every! two! years,! two! (18%)! surveyed! every! 3C5! years,! and! one! (9%)! surveyed! every! six! years! or! more.! Among! the! DOTs! comparable! in! size! to! GDOT! and! that! answered! this! question,! three! (3)! conduct! the! survey! annually,! one! (1)! conducts! it! every! two! years,! and! one! (1)! conducts! it! every! six!years!or!more.! ! How%do%employees%complete%the%survey(s)%(check%all%that%apply)?%% The!majority!of!states!(64%)!use!both!online!and!hard!copy!versions!of!their!employee! surveys.!TwentyCone!percent!(21%)!use!hard!copy!only,!and!14%!used!online!only.!! ! !

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16!

!

What%type%of%information%do%you%collect%on%your%survey(s)%(check%all%that%apply)?% Respondents!were!provided!a!list!of!common!topics!for!employee!surveys!and!asked!to! indicate! all! of! the! options! that! were! included! on! their! survey(s).! Figure! 2! shows! that!! majority! (56%)! of! the! respondent! states! ask! employees! about! their! level! of! job! satisfaction!whereas!only!22%!ask!employees!for!their!opinions!regarding!incentives!to! motivate!high!performance!and!organizational!policies!and/or!procedures.! !

Percentage)of)Respondent)States)That) Survey)Employees)in)the)Following)Areas

Employee0level0of0job0satisfaction

56%

Employee0beliefs0and0concerns0about0the overall0organization

50%

Employee0opinions0of0supervisors

50%

Employee0recommendations0for improvements
Employee0opinions0about0what0challenges and0obstacles0influence0their0work
Employee0opinions0on0what0motivates0or incentivizes0high0performance
Employee0opinions0of0organizational policies0and/or0procedures

44% 39% 22% 22%
!

FIGURE!2! Percentage!of!Respondent!States!That!Survey!Employees!in!the!Following!Areas! !

Other! types! of! information! that! states! collect! through! their! employee! surveys! include!

level! of! employee! morale,! types! of! training! needed! by! licensed! employees,! and!

management! (i.e.,! Cost! Center! Managers,! District! Management! Team! and! Executive!

Management!Team).!

%

!

17!

!
Who%is%provided%results%of%the%survey(s)%findings?%% Respondents! were! asked! who! within! their! DOT! is! notified! of! the! survey! findings.! As! Figure! 3! indicates,! findings! were! shared! primarily! with! DOT! leadership! administration! and!division!leaders.!! !
Percentage)of)Respondent)States)That)Share) Survey)Results)with)the)Following)Staff

DOT6Leadership6Administrators

56%

Division6Leaders

44%

Supervisors

39%

Employees

33%

! FIGURE!3! Percentage!of!Respondent!States!That!Share!Survey!Results!with!the!Following!Staff! !
One!state!responded!that!the!results!are!shared!in!the!quarterly!newsletter,!so!anyone!

who!reads!the!newsletter!sees!the!results!and!findings.!!

!

How%are%the%findings%disseminated?%%

Respondents! were! asked! how! the! survey! findings! are! disseminated! within! their! DOT.!

The!types!of!methods!used!are!summarized!below:!

Online!and!hardcopy!reports!to!executive!and!district!leadership!

Newsletter!

!

18!

!
Posted!on!an!internal!portal! Senior!management!and!staff!meetings! Sharepoint!site!with!all!data,!analysis,!and!briefings! Presentations! Unit!meetings!with!supervisors! ! How%have%the%findings%from%your%employee%survey(s)%been%used?%% Respondents! were! asked! to! describe! ways! in! which! the! findings! from! their! employee! surveys!had!been!used!in!the!past.!The!results!of!the!surveys!were!used!to:!! Develop!executive!team,!district,!and!unit!action!plans! Focus!improvement!on!areas!identified!by!division!heads!and!district!engineers!
based!on!survey!feedback! Focus!improvement!on!communication!with!employees! Develop!supervisor!and!manager!training!programs!!
!
DOT%Employee%Survey%Follow%Up%and%Benchmark%Data%% A! followCup! survey! was! sent! to! the! DOTs! requesting! additional! information! about! response! rates! and! survey! results.! Nebraska,! Indiana,! Florida,! and! Connecticut! DOTs! shared! additional! and! more! detailed! information! about! their! survey! processes! and! results! with! the! Study! Team.! While! this! information! establishes! useful! comparisons! for! GDOT! to! assess! and! gauge! its! performance,! the! differences! in! size! and! infrastructure! between! GDOT! and! the! other! DOTs! need! to! be! considered! when! drawing! conclusions!

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19!

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from! these! comparisons.! For! example,! Connecticut! DOT's! employee! survey! is! an! exit! survey!that!only!collects!data!from!employees!leaving!the!agency.!
The! Florida! Department! of! Transportation! provided! its! 2013% Employee% Survey% Executive%Briefing%Book!developed!by!its!Performance!Management!Office.!Florida!DOT! surveys!its!entire!workforce!of!5,899!employees!annually.!According!to!the!book,!Florida! conducted!its!annual!survey!by!hardcopy!from!1999!through!2003.!!In!2004,!the!agency! developed! an! onCline! system! for! administering! the! survey.! ! From! 2004! through! 2007,! employees! without! an! agency! email! account! were! permitted! to! complete! a! hardcopy! version! of! the! survey.! ! Since! 2009,! Florida! has! allowed! employees! to! select! their! preferred! method! (hardcopy! or! online)! of! completing! the! survey.! ! In! 2013,! nearly! 10%! (9.8%)! of! their! surveys! were! completed! on! a! hardcopy! form.! ! Florida! DOT's! percent! of! employees! that! chose! to! complete! a! paper/hard! copy! of! the! survey! is! substantially! lower! than! GDOT's! estimated! 50%! of! employees! required! to! take! paper! surveys.! Florida's!low!rate!of!hard!copy!surveys!is!an!advantage!as!it!cuts!down!the!cost!of!data! entry!and!the!security!concerns!employees!may!have!about!a!paper!form!being!viewed! by! others,! especially! supervisors.! A! followCup! discussion! with! Florida! DOT! would! be! beneficial! to! learn! how! it! has! managed! to! obtain! such! a! low! rate! of! paper! survey! responses,!especially!considering!its!large!workforce.!!
In! 2013,! Florida! DOT! added! space! in! the! survey! for! employees! to! provide! comments.! As! a! result,! 31%! of! the! respondents! provided! a! total! of! 3,866! written! comments.!!Comments!ranged!from!a!single!word!to!eight!typed!pages.!!Lastly,!Florida! DOT! administers,! collects,! and! analyzes! its! employee! survey! internally.! ! Its! Office! for!

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!
Information! Systems! compiles! and! integrates! the! survey! data! and! produces! tables! and! charts!to!present!the!results.!!The!Performance!Management!Office!analyzes!the!results,! summarizes! and! analyzes! respondent! comments,! establishes! internal! benchmarks! for! each! survey! item,! examines! the! data! by! key! subgroups,! and! creates! a! report! of! the! findings.! The! report! identifies! strengths! and! improvement! opportunities! for! the! organization!as!a!whole!as!well!as!for!key!subgroups.!
Other! respondents! did! not! provide! a! formal! report! of! their! results! but! included! some! statistics! that! could! be! used! for! measurement! purposes.! ! They! provided! information! on! their! survey! response! rates! and! on! several! employee! satisfaction! benchmarking! areas,! including! employee! ratings! of:! (a)! overall! satisfaction,! (b)! professional!development!opportunities,!(c)!work!unit!environment,!and!(d)!safety.! ! Employee%Survey%Participation% The!employee!survey!participation!rates!provided!by!the!respondents!range!from!a!low! of!42%!for!Indiana!DOT!to!a!high!of!70%!for!Nebraska!DOT.!!Florida!DOT!experienced!a! 69%! response! rate! for! their! 2013! employee! survey.! ! Connecticut! DOT! indicated! a! response! rate! of! over! 60%;! however,! this! was! on! a! survey! conducted! "several! years! ago."!!The!recent!response!rate!experienced!by!GDOT!(approximately!60%)!is!similar!to! the! rates! experienced! by! other! DOTs.! ! Another! interesting! trend! found! in! the! Florida! DOT!report!is!their!response!rate!has!continually!decreased!from!84%!when!the!survey! was!first!implemented!in!1999!to!the!most!recent!survey!with!a!rate!of!69%.!This!trend! is!similar!to!that!experienced!by!GDOT!during!the!past!10!years.!

!

21!

!
Overall%Employee%Satisfaction% Two! of! the! four! respondent! DOTs! directly! ask! employees! to! rate! their! overall! satisfaction!on!their!surveys.!!Nebraska!asks!employees!to!rate!their!level!of!agreement! with! the! statement! "I! am! a! satisfied! employee! of! the! Nebraska! DOT."! ! On! its! 2011! survey,! 73%! of! the! employees! completing! the! survey! claimed! to! be! satisfied.! Florida! DOT! asks! its! employees! to! indicate! their! level! of! agreement! with! the! following! statement:!"Overall,!I!rate!Florida!DOT!as!a!good!place!to!work."!!Of!the!employees!that! responded!to!this!item!on!the!2013!survey,!86%!either!agreed!or!strongly!agreed!while! 7%!disagreed!and!3%!strongly!disagreed.!
Indiana!DOT!does!not!ask!its!employees!to!rate!their!overall!satisfaction,!but!asks! them!to!identify!five!strength!areas!and!five!challenge!areas.!Work!groups!are!assigned! to! develop! action! plans! to! address! the! challenge! areas.! Once! the! plans! are! developed,! they!are!shared!with!employees.!!Connecticut!did!not!provide!an!employee!satisfaction! rating! but! claimed! that! responses! from! their! exit! interviews! indicated! that! employees! were! overall! satisfied! with! Connecticut! DOT.! The! majority! of! the! exiting! employees! indicated!they!would!return!to!work!at!the!DOT!if!the!opportunity!presented!itself.! ! Professional%Development%Opportunities% The! DOTs! were! asked! how! their! employees! rated! the! effectiveness! of! their! career! and! professional!development!programs.!Nebraska!provided!a!very!detailed!response!to!this! question.!!Nebraska's!employees!are!asked!to!indicate!their!level!of!agreement!with!the! following!statements:!

!

22!

!

I!receive!adequate!training!to!do!my!job!effectively.!!!

I!am!provided!opportunities!to!improve!my!job!skills.!

Nebraska! DOT! instituted! new! performance! measures! as! part! of! its! Workforce!

Development! Strategic! Goal.! The! DOT's! Employee! Training! Opportunity! Index! is! a!

measure! of! the! average! of! positive! responses! (agree,! strongly! agree)! to! the! two!

statements! above.!! The! performance! measure! is! revised! after! each! survey! (every! three!

years)! based! on! the! results.! Table! 1! lists! the! Employee! Training! Opportunity! Index!

results!from!the!past!5!surveys.!!These!results!indicate!that!a!majority!of!Nebraska!DOT!

employees!believe!they!receive!adequate!training!(79%)!and!are!provided!opportunities!

to!improve!their!job!skills!(74%).!!!

!

TABLE!1!

Nebraska!DOT!Employee!Training!Opportunity!Index!Results!(Past!5!Surveys)!

! Employee(Training(Opportunity(Index

Year

I&Received& Adequate& Training&to& do&my&Job& Effectively

I&am&Provided& Opportunities& Number&of&
to&Improve& Respondents my&Job&Skills

Training& Opportunity&
Index

1999

68%

67%

1,186

68%

2002

69%

69%

1,053

69%

2005

76%

76%

1,365

76%

2008

79%

78%

1,492

79%

2011

79%

74%

1,517

77% !

!

The! Nebraska! State! Government! has! developed! an! online! system! for! employees! to!

enroll!in!training!programs.!After!each!employee!completes!a!training!program,!he/she!

is!asked!to!complete!a!satisfaction!survey,!rating!the!training's!relevance!and!benefit!to!

!

23!

!
the! employee's! work.! The! satisfaction! survey! asks! program! completers! to! rate! their! level!of!agreement!with!the!following!statements:!!
This!training!was!relevant!to!the!work!done!by!Nebraska!DOT.! The!training!I!completed!has!made!a!positive!impact!on!work!I!currently!do,!or!
will!have!a!positive!impact!on!my!future!performance.! Responses! to! these! statements! will! be! used! in! developing! a! new! Training! Program! Impact!Index!similar!to!the!Employee!Training!Opportunity!Index.!
When! an! employee! completes! a! training! program,! his/her! supervisor! is! also! asked! to! provide! information! on! how! beneficial! the! training! was! to! the! employee's! work.! The! supervisor! is! asked! to! indicate! his/her! level! of! agreement! with! the! following! statement!as!part!of!the!Training!Program!Impact!Index:!
!The!training!my!employee!completed!has!made!a!positive!impact!on!the!job.! The!Training!Program!Impact!Index!is!the!average!of!positive!responses!(strongly!agree,! agree)!for!the!three!statements!shown!above.!Since!this!is!a!new!performance!measure,! Nebraska! DOT! does! not! have! results! to! share! at! this! time.! The! 2013! results! will! be! included!in!their!Annual!Report.!!!
Nebraska! DOT's! goal! is! to! maintain! index! ratings! above! 90%! on! both! the! Employee! Training! Opportunity! Index! and! the! Training! Program! Impact! Index.! ! After! reviewing!the!performance!measures,!management!is!required!to!develop!strategies!for! improvement!for!the!performance!measures.!The!measures,!strategies,!and!examples!of! projects,! or! improvement! efforts! are! reported! in! the! Nebraska! DOT! Annual! Report! published!in!April.!!

!

24!

!
Indiana! DOT! has! initiated! several! new! training! programs! to! address! the! needs! identified! in! its! employee! engagement! survey.! It! plans! to! use! the! annual! survey! (conducted! in! July)! to! measure! engagement! of! their! employees! regarding! these! programs.! ! Connecticut! DOT! also! conducts! a! satisfaction! survey! for! its! training! programs.! Surveys! are! completed! at! the! end! of! each! training! session! to! measure! perceived!effectiveness!and!applicability!of!the!material!and!are!used!to!make!decisions! regarding! future! trainings.! FDOT! found! that! survey! results! regarding! training! and! advancement,! a! concern! statewide,! increased! to! a! score! of! 2.00! in! 2013.! ! This! was! the! first!time!the!category!had!been!rated!above!1.96!since!2009.!!Its!increase!by!0.06!from! the! previous! year's! result! was! the! largest! item! increase! among! all! survey! results.! Respondents!commented!on!increased!training!offerings!and!more!support!for!training.!!! However,!there!were!concerns!regarding!travel!for!training,!limited!"specialty"!training,! and! decreased! training! opportunities! to! renew! certifications.! ! These! were! noted! as! being!a!direct!result!of!budget!cuts.! ! Work%Unit%Environment%% Nebraska! DOT! has! a! specific! section! of! its! employee! survey! related! to! employee's! perceptions!of!their!work!environment.!!The!results!related!to!work!environment!on!its! most! recent! survey! are! presented! in! Table! 2.! The! table! also! presents! results! related! to! supervision! and! management,! communication,! employee! engagement,! and! continuous! improvement! and! overall! satisfaction.! ! In! 2011,! Nebraska! DOT's! Director! asked! each!

!

25!

!
Division!Head!and!District!Engineer!to!select!a!question!or!section!of!the!survey!and!to! target!their!efforts!on!improving!those!aspects!of!employees'!work!environment.!!
Indiana!DOT!did!not!provide!data!regarding!work!environment,!but!did!comment! that!it!only!analyzes!its!employee!survey!data!at!the!agency!level!and!not!at!the!district! or! department! levels.! Connecticut! DOT! does! not! include! work! environment! questions! on! its! general! employee! survey,! but! includes! them! in! their! exit! interviews! with! employees.!The!opinions!expressed!in!the!exit!interviews!are!summarized!and!provided! to!the!executive!team!several!times!each!year.!
Florida! DOT! asks! its! employees! to! indicate! their! level! of! agreement! with! statements!pertaining!to!the!work!environment,!such!as:!!
In!my!work!unit,!we!listen!to!our!customers.! My!supervisor!supports!teamwork.! My!supervisor!supports!training.! My!supervisor!respects!me.! My!supervisor!is!fair!in!hiring.! My!supervisor!gives!me!meaningful!assignments.! My!supervisor!clearly!explains!expectations.! ! !
! ! ! ! !

!

26!

!
TABLE!2! Nebraska!DOT!Work!Environment!Results!
!

!

!

27!

!

!

On!the!2013!survey,!81%!of!the!employees!responding!indicated!they!agreed!or!

strongly! agreed! with! all! the! statements! assessing! work! environment! except! for! one.!

SeventyCtwo! percent! (72%)! of! respondents! agreed! or! strongly! agreed! with! the!

statement!"My!supervisor!discusses!compensation!issues."!Results!for!specific!questions!

are! included! in! the! 2013% Employee% Survey% Executive% Briefing% Book! published! by! Florida!

DOT!and!submitted!with!this!report.!

!

Safety%

Florida!DOT!employees!rated!safety!high.!NinetyCthree!percent!(93%)!agreed!or!strongly!

agreed!with!the!statement!"Safety!standards!are!practiced!in!my!unit,"!and!94%!agreed!

or!strongly!agreed!with!the!statement!"I!know!the!Florida!safety!standards."!EightyCnine!

percent!(89%)!of!Nebraska!DOT!employees!agree!or!strongly!agreed!to!the!statement!"I!

feel! safe! doing! my! job."! (Central! Office! employees! had! a! 96%! agreement,! and! District!

employees! 86%.)! Connecticut! DOT! includes! a! safety! question! on! its! exit! interview,! and!

the!Director!of!Safety!reviews!the!responses!several!times!each!year.!Indiana!DOT!does!

not! include! survey! items! related! to! safety! because! its! survey! is! strictly! an! employee!

engagement!survey.!

!

!

!

28!

!
BEST!PRACTICES!IN!SURVEY!DESIGN!AND!IMPLEMENTATION!
This! section! combines! the! key! findings! from! the! literature! and! PEG's! experience! and! highlights! the! practices! most! relevant! to! the! creation! of! employee! surveys,! the! collection! and! use! of! employee! feedback,! and! best! practices! for! optimizing! surveys! to! improve!employee!engagement!and!performance.!The!complete!review!of!literature!can! be!found!in!Appendix!B.!
Organizations! need! to! understand! the! complex! factors! that! underlie! employee! satisfaction!in!order!to!determine!the!best!approaches!to!improve!not!only!satisfaction! but! also! productivity,! performance,! recruitment,! retention,! and! development! of! their! greatest! asset--their! workforce.! Feedback! from! employees! reveals! details! about! operations!at!all!levels!of!an!organization,!the!organization's!strengths!and!weaknesses,! and! the! effectiveness! of! initiatives! and! programs! it! funds! to! increase! employees'! satisfaction! and! performance.! The! quality! of! the! feedback! is! critical,! and! the! methods! (e.g.,! surveys,! interviews,! and/or! focus! groups)! and! instruments! and! processes! for! obtaining! the! feedback! often! determine! the! accuracy,! reliability,! and! usefulness! of! the! feedback!and!the!decisions!made!in!the!context!of!that!feedback.!There!are!a!number!of! strategies! for! improving! the! feedback! collected! through! surveys,! and! the! following! are! reflected!in!the!design!of!the!new!GDOT!survey!and!survey!process!recommended.!!!
The! Gallup! organization! has! over! 75! years! of! experience! using! research! and! analytics!to!help!leaders!address!their!greatest!challenges,!including!the!need!for!more! effective!feedback!processes!for!employers.!As!a!result!of!its!extensive!research,!Gallup! created! a! 12Cquestion! employee! survey! (the! Gallup! Q12)! that! measures! the! extent! of!

!

29!

!
employee! engagement! and! offers! feedback! in! areas! that! Gallup! claims! are! "actionable! at! the! supervisor! and! manager! level"! (Harter,! Schmidt,! Killham,! &! Asplund,! 2006).! Because! the! Gallup! survey! is! proprietary,! there! is! a! cost! for! administering! and! scoring! the! survey.! However,! the! Study! Team! researched! the! Q12! and! examined! its! survey! items.!The!themes!identified!as!key!to!employee!satisfaction!have!been!adapted!for!the! new!GDOT!survey.!!The!key!factors!include:!!
Knowledge!of!expectations! Access!to!needed!materials!and!equipment! Caring!people!in!the!work!environment! Opportunities!to!learn!and!advance! Ongoing!feedback!on!performance!and!progress! Recognition!for!performance! In! addition! to! relevant! content,! attaining! and! maintaining! a! high! response! rate! for! an! employee!survey!is!a!fundamental!approach!to!ensuring!highCquality!feedback/data!and! avoiding! nonresponse! bias--when! the! people! who! do! not! respond! to! the! survey! are! different!than!those!that!do,!and!therefore!the!survey!findings!are!not!representative!of! the!diversity!of!thoughts!and!opinions!of!the!overall!population!(Dillman,!2009).!GDOT's! overall!response!rate!is!important!but!so!is!the!response!rates!from!specific!work!units! and! job! classifications! to! ensure! decisions! are! based! on! information! representative! of! the!organization!as!a!whole.! ! %

!

30!

!
Strategies%for%Improving%Survey%Response%Rates% The! response! rate! for! GDOT's! employee! survey! has! declined! from! 80%! when! it! was! initiated! to! 60%! on! the! most! recent! survey.! A! number! of! factors! influence! survey! response!rates--how!and!the!method!and!number!of!times!employees!are!contacted!to! complete! the! survey;! the! number,! clarity,! and! sequencing! of! questions;! visual! presentation;!and!overall!ease!with!which!employees!can!complete!the!survey!(Dillman,! 2009).! In! addition,! employees'! attitudes! and! beliefs! about! the! purpose! and! intent! for! the! survey,! the! potential! for! the! survey! to! result! in! positive! actions,! and! the! confidentiality! and! anonymity! of! the! survey! influence! their! decision! to! complete! the! survey! as! well! as! the! quality! of! their! responses! (Dillman,! 2000).! Baruch! and! Holtom! (2008)! examined! 490! studies! that! used! surveys! in! organizational! research! and! found! that! the! response! rate! for! individuals! was! 52.7%.! It! is! difficult! to! determine! a! reliable! average! response! rate! for! employee! surveys! specifically! because! many! of! the! averages! cited! are! included! on! survey! vendors'! websites! as! part! of! their! marketing! campaigns.! Although! GDOT's! response! rate! is! in! line! with! those! reported! by! other! state! Departments! of! Transportation! (e.g.,! approximately! 42%! (INDOT),! 60%! (CTDOT),! 69%! (FDOT),!and!70%!(NDOR)),!a!larger!response!size!increases!reliability!of!the!data.!!
Providing! potential! respondents! token! financial! incentives! has! been! shown! to! increase!participants'!motivation!to!complete!a!survey,!and!thereby!increase!the!rate!of! response! (Dillman,! 2009).! Offering! participants! monetary! or! material! incentives! is! not! always! feasible! or! advisable,! especially! with! a! large! organization! surveying! all! its! employees.! Proponents! of! the! social! exchange! theory! of! survey! design,! however,! offer!

!

31!

!
alternative! strategies! for! motivating! participants! by! increasing! perceived! benefits,! decreasing! perceived! costs,! and! fostering! trust! that! the! rewards! associated! with! completing! the! survey! will! outweigh! the! costs.! The! following! is! a! list! of! strategies! that! have!been!incorporated!into!the!new!GDOT!survey!or!should!be!considered!to!improve! the! survey! process.! They! are! repeated! among! researchers! and! recognized! experts! in! survey! design! (Dillman,! 2009;! Boyer! &! Stron,! 2012;! Cook,! Heath,! &! Thompson,! 2000;! Hampton!&!Vilela,!2013;!"Strategic!Use!of!Employee!Surveys!1999;!Wright!&!Schwager,! 2008).!
! How%can%the%perceived%rewards%of%responding%be%increased?%
Before! the! survey,! provide! potential! responders! information! about! the! survey! and!how!the!survey!responses!will!be!used!to!benefit!them!and!others.!!
Emphasize! how! important! and! helpful! the! potential! responders'! opinions! and! advice!are!to!the!organization.!
Appeal! to! responders'! sense! of! community! and! shared! values! as! employees! of! the!organization.!!
Make!the!survey!highly!relevant!and!interesting!to!the!participants.!! Show!respect!and!regard!for!potential!responders!by!addressing!them!personally!
and!providing!contact!information!for!someone!who!can!answer!their!questions! and!address!any!concerns!about!the!survey.!! Demonstrate!appreciation!for!their!time!and!effort!to!complete!the!survey.!!!! !

!

32!

!
How%can%the%perceived%cost%of%responding%be%reduced?% Make!it!as!easy!and!convenient!as!possible!for!people!to!respond!to!the!survey.! Contact!intended!respondents!multiple!times,!in!multiple!ways!(e.g.,!individually! through! email,! organizational! website! or! newsletter),! and! with! varying! messages.!! Make!the!survey!short!and!easy!to!fill!out.! Minimize!requests!for!personal!or!sensitive!information.! Use!simple,!precise!language.! Choose! response! options! from! the! perspective! of! the! respondent! (e.g.,! include! all!possible!answers!and!minimize!confusion).! Use!openCended!questions!sparingly!and!strategically.! Send! emails! requesting! employees! to! complete! the! survey! at! a! time! they! are! most! likely! to! check! their! emails! and! be! free! from! other! demands! and! distractions.! (There! is! some! evidence! that! first! thing! in! the! morning! is! most! effective.)!! Provide!clear,!detailed,!and!thorough!instructions!for!accessing!the!survey.! !
How% can% trust% be% established% so% that% people% believe% the% rewards% will% outweigh% the% costs%of%responding?%
Have! an! authoritative! source! that! has! legitimate! power! to! request! and! expect! compliance!ask!people!to!complete!the!survey!(e.g.,!GDOT!executive!leadership! request!the!employees!to!complete!the!survey).!

!

33!

!
Ensure!confidentiality!and!security!of!information.! PreCtesting! the! survey! is! one! of! the! most! effective! ways! to! reduce! perceived! cost! of! completing! the! survey! because! annoying! and! confusing! errors! can! be! corrected! before! employees!receive!the!survey.!!
Other!factors!that!influence!employees'!attitudes!towards!the!survey!include:!! Employees'!positive!or!negative!experiences!with!previous!surveys.! Employees'!trust!in!the!confidentiality!and!anonymity!of!their!responses.! Employees'! perception! of! the! purpose! for! the! survey! and! how! their! responses!
will!be!used.! Employees'!belief!that!the!organization!will!take!action!based!on!their!responses!
to!the!survey.! The! following! discussion! offers! advice! about! best! practices! for! survey! design! and! implementation!and!answers!a!number!of!questions!survey!designers!often!ask.! ! How%long%should%a%survey%be?% How!long!it!takes!a!responder!to!complete!a!survey!depends!not!only!on!the!number!of! items!but!also!on!how!the!items!are!constructed,!the!complexity!of!the!content,!and!the! depth!of!thought!required!to!respond!to!items.!There!is!no!optimum!length!for!a!survey,! but! the! survey! should! be! designed! to! make! it! easy! for! responders! to! complete! by! making! items! and! response! choices! clear! and! focused,! instructions! thorough! and! precise,!and!organization!logical.!The!survey!designer!also!needs!to!consider!how!length! influences!the!quality!of!responses!and!the!amount!of!attention!and!energy!responders!

!

34!

!
apply! to! items.! Brent! (2011)! selected! a! random! sample! of! approximately! 100,000! surveys!of!1C30!questions!and!analyzed!the!median!time!respondents!took!to!complete! the! surveys.! The! study! found! that! the! more! questions! on! the! survey! the! less! time! respondents!spent!answering!each!question.!On!average!respondents!spent!just!over!a! minute! answering! the! first! question! (including! the! time! spent! reading! the! survey! introduction)!of!a!10Cquestion!survey!and!about!four!minutes!completing!the!remaining! nine!questions.!Other!research!shows!that!long!surveys!cause!fatigue!and!loss!of!focus.! In! addition,! respondents! are! more! likely! to! answer! questions! falsely! to! avoid! followCup! questions!(Hooper,!2013).!In!order!to!have!a!better!chance!at!attaining!higher!response! rates! and! better! quality! of! answers,! surveys! should! take! no! more! than! 20! minutes! to! complete!(Hooper,!2013).!PreCtesting!a!survey!is!the!best!method!for!determining!how! long! a! survey! takes! to! complete,! how! the! length! affects! the! respondent's! rate! of! completion! and! quality! of! responses,! and! how! the! survey! can! be! revised! to! either! reduce! the! number! of! items! and/or! simplify! the! survey! to! decrease! the! time! it! takes! respondents!to!answer!items!and!navigate!through!the!survey.!! ! Who%should%initiate%the%survey?% Whether!the!survey!is!webC!or!paperCbased,!it!should!begin!with!an!explanation!of!the! purpose! of! the! survey! and! how! the! results! will! be! used,! and! an! expression! of! how! important!and!valuable!the!respondents'!feedback!is!to!the!organization.!To!encourage! and!motivate!people!to!respond!to!the!survey,!the!invitation!should!come!from!or!at!a! minimum! be! signed! by! a! senior! leadership! team! member! (Dillman,! 2009;! Walonick,!

!

35!

!
2010;! Brennan,! 1992;! Strategic! Use! of! Employee! Surveys,! 1999;! Wright! &! Schwager,! 2008).!! ! Is%preLtesting%the%survey%necessary?% PreCtesting!surveys!is!the!best!method!for!identifying!ambiguous!or!confusing!questions! or!response!choices,!confusing!or!difficult!visual!presentation!of!the!survey,!improper!or! "biasing"! sequencing! or! organization! of! questions,! and! unrealistic! time! estimates! to! complete!the!survey.!The!survey!is!administered!to!a!representative!sample!of!intended! respondents,! and! those! respondents! are! asked! about! their! experiences! taking! the! survey,!their!interpretations!of!items,!their!impressions!and!feelings!as!they!completed! the! survey,! and! their! recommendations! for! improvements! (Creative! Research! Systems,! 2013).! ! Should% survey% results% be% shared% with% respondents,% including% what% future% actions% are% planned?%% DeNisi! and! Kluger! (2000)! in! an! analysis! of! 131! studies! on! feedback! effectiveness! found! that! collecting! feedback! and! input! from! employees! can! actually! hurt! their! subsequent! performance! if! no! changes! are! made! as! a! result! of! the! feedback! or! if! the! changes! are! not!visible!and/or!employees!are!not!made!aware!of!changes.!!
"...the! biggest! source! of! failure! in! the! feedback! effort! is! surely! that! employees'! volunteered! inputs! unaccountably! evaporate.! The! individual! has! his! or! her! moment!of!selfCexpression,!a!fleeting!participation!in!the!great!collective!search!

!

36!

!

for! truth,! then! silence,! nada,! frustration! as! the! status! quo! prevails.! (Thackray,!

2001)."!

This! research! finding! is! quite! significant! for! the! development! of! the! new! GDOT!

employee! survey.! The! EAT! expressed! dissatisfaction! with! GDOT's! sharing! of! survey!

results!with!employees!and!its!failure!to!take!action!and!make!improvements!to!resolve!

the! problems! employees! cited! in! the! survey.! The! lack! of! followCup! and! followCthrough!

not! only! discourages! employees! from! completing! the! survey! but! also! potentially!

diminishes!their!performance!as!it!increases!frustration!and!dissatisfaction.!!

!

These! strategies! and! methods! for! improving! survey! results! are! applied! in! the!

following! section! of! the! report! describing! the! new! survey! design! and! implementation!

process!and!the!importance!of!a!positive!and!committed!organizational!culture!around!

the!employee!survey.!!

!

!

!

!

37!

!
NEW!GDOT!EMPLOYEE!SURVEY!!
The!Study!Team!consolidated!the!findings!from!the!Leadership!Team!meeting,!Employee! Advocacy!Team!(EAT)!focus!group,!GDOT's!current!survey,!the!review!of!literature,!and! the!survey!of!other!state!DOTs!and!discussed!the!overarching!themes!the!survey!would! address.!In!addition,!the!employee!surveys!provided!by!other!states!were!evaluated!for! relevance!to!the!purpose!of!GDOT's!new!survey!and!the!clarity!and!quality!of!the!items.! The!goal!was!to!expand!the!survey!to!collect!feedback!from!employees!beyond!just!their! degree!of!satisfaction!and!to!collect!feedback!at!a!detailed!enough!level!to!facilitate!the! development! of! wellCdefined! and! targeted! action! plans.! A! new! survey! instrument! was! developed!to!address!the!purpose!and!intent!expressed!by!the!GDOT!Leadership!Team,! to! address! the! concerns! voiced! by! the! EAT,! and! to! gather! quality! data! and! information! that! GDOT! can! use! to! improve! organizational! performance! and! morale.! ! The! proposed! survey! was! submitted! to! Ms.! Alma! Mujkanovic,! GDOT! Strategic! Planner,! Ms.! Angela! Alexander,! GDOT! Director,! and! Ms.! Supriya! Kamatkar,! Research! Engineer,! and! their! revisions!were!made.!The!full!version!of!the!new!GDOT!survey!is!provided!in!Appendix!F.!!! The!following!is!a!description!of!the!rationale!behind!the!survey!design.!Each!section!of! the!survey!is!presented!and!discussed.!! % Introduction% Based! on! comments! from! the! Leadership! Team! meeting,! the! Study! development! team! chose!to!emphasize!GDOT's!commitment!to!retaining!and!developing!its!workforce!and! that!the!new!survey!is!intended!to!support!this!effort.!!

!

38!

!
During! the! focus! group! with! the! EAT,! there! was! a! discussion! regarding! employees'! perceptions! that! their! survey! responses! could! be! seen! by! supervisors! and! managers! despite! past! efforts! and! assurances! to! address! such! fears.! Although! the! survey!itself!cannot!alleviate!these!concerns,!it!is!important!to!reiterate!that!every!effort! is!being!made!to!protect!anonymity!of!employees!and!to!ensure!their!responses!remain! confidential.! By! describing! the! process! and! specifying! who! will! receive! and! secure! the! data,! we! hoped! to! improve! employees'! understanding! of! the! safeguards.! The! survey! items! asking! employees! to! identify! the! Divisions! and! Offices! for! which! they! worked! in! were! moved! to! the! end! of! the! survey! in! an! effort! to! shift! employees'! attention! away! from! confidentiality! concerns! while! they! are! responding! to! the! survey! items.! The! following! is! a! proposed! introduction! for! the! beginning! of! the! survey.! The! introduction! will!be!included!on!both!the!paper!and!online!versions!of!the!survey.!In!addition!to!this! introduction,!we!recommend!that!a!personal!message!from!the!Commissioner!or!other! appropriate! member! of! the! Leadership! Team! be! presented! before! the! introduction! (perhaps!as!a!video,!letter,!or!message!in!the!Banner)!to!welcome!employees!to!the!new! survey,! describe! its! purpose,! emphasize! the! importance! of! their! responses,! explain! changes!resulting!from!previous!surveys,!and!reassure!employees!of!the!confidentiality,! anonymity,! and! security! of! their! responses.! At! the! beginning! of! each! section! of! the! survey,! a! brief! statement! is! included! to! reemphasize! the! purpose! of! the! items! that! follow.!
!
!

!

39!

!
Georgia!Department!of!Transportation!Employee!Survey! !
GDOT's! workforce! is! its! most! valuable! asset,! and! GDOT! is! committed! to! retaining! and! providing! opportunities! for! growth! to! each! member! of!that!workforce.!The!purposes!of!this!survey!are!to!learn!how!GDOT! can! better! support! its! employees,! improve! the! work! environment,! increase! their! career! advancement! and! professional! development! opportunities,!and!make!GDOT!a!better!place!to!work.!! ! This! survey! is! confidential! and! anonymous.! To! ensure! this,! an! independent!evaluator!collects!and!analyzes!the!survey!responses!and! reports! the! results! to! GDOT.! When! you! submit! your! survey,! it! is! sent! directly!to!the!Survey!Monkey!database.!! %
Your%Career%and%Professional%Development%Opportunities%%%
The!survey!begins!with!questions!that!pertain!to!the!employee's!career!and!professional!
development! at! GDOT.! ! This! section! of! the! survey! is! intended! not! only! to! collect!
information!about!employees'!awareness!of!GDOT!initiatives!to!support!employees!but!
also! to! educate! the! employee's! about! GDOT's! efforts! at! the! same! time.! See! Figure! 4a!
and!4b.!!Each!year!this!section!could!be!updated!to!gather!employees'!feedback!on!new!
initiatives.! Feedback! on! employees'! awareness! and! interest! in! initiatives! will! help!
identify! which! initiatives! need! more! promotion! and! which! ones! may! need! to! be!
reconsidered! or! revised.! Employees! are! also! given! the! opportunity! to! suggest! training!
and!growth!opportunities!they!would!like!to!have!at!GDOT.!!
!
!

!

40!

!
! FIGURE!4a! Your!Career!Section!of!the!Survey! %

!

41!

!

%
FIGURE!4b! Your!Professional!Development!Opportunities!Section!of!Survey!

!

42!

!
Your%Work%Unit%Environment% This!section,!presented!in!Figure!5a!and!5b,!focuses!on!the!physical,!leadership,!and!coC worker!environments!of!the!employee's!work!unit.!As!in!the!first!section,!the!goal!is!to! focus! the! attention! on! practices! and! behaviors! rather! than! people.! Employees! are! not! asked!to!rate!their!supervisors!but!rather!their!supervisors'!actions.!!

!
FIGURE!5a! Your!Work!Unit!Environment!Section!of!the!Survey!

!

43!

!

Items! have! been! included! in! this! section! to! enable! GDOT! to! learn! about! the! quality! of!

leadership!in!their!units,!especially!in!the!areas!of!communication!between!supervisors!

and! employees,! problem! and! conflict! resolution,! knowledge! and! compliance! with!

policies,! opportunities! for! improved! performance,! teamwork! and! collaboration! among!

employees,!and!adequacy!of!resources!to!support!high!performance.!!

!

Safety! is! included! in! this! section! as! it! is! a! critical! aspect! of! many! GDOT!

employees'!work!every!day.!Employees!are!asked!to!rate!their!level!of!agreement!with!

statements!about!safety!in!general,!but!they!are!also!asked!to!indicate!how!safe!they,!as!

individuals,!feel!doing!their!jobs.!!

!

!
FIGURE!5b! Your!Safety!Section!of!the!Survey! %

!

44!

!

Your%Overall%Satisfaction%at%GDOT%

This!section!of!the!survey!asks!employees!to!rate!their!general!level!of!satisfaction!with!

GDOT.! This! section! of! the! survey! instrument! is! presented! in! Figure! 6.! ! The! section! asks!

them! to! comment! on! their! perceptions! of! GDOT! practices! rather! than! people! (e.g.,!

Commissioner).! They! are! also! asked! to! rate! the! degree! to! which! they! felt!

appreciated/valued,!informed,!and!included!in!GDOT!decisions.!!

!

!

! FIGURE!!6! Overall!Satisfaction!at!GDOT!Section!of!Survey! !
In!this!section!employees!are!given!the!opportunity!to!provide!their!opinions!about!their!
work! experiences! and! environments! and! to! provide! suggestions! for! improving! their!
work! experiences! within! GDOT.! The! goal! in! this! section! is! to! focus! the! employees! on!

!

45!

!

their! actual! work! and! how! their! work! environment! could! be! improved! and! to! divert!

them! away! from! more! global! issues,! such! as! compensation! and! benefits.! It! is! perhaps!

less! feasible! to! make! meaningful! changes! at! a! global! level! whereas! changes! in! specific!

work!units!could!be!feasible!and!substantially!affect!employees'!dayCtoCday!experiences.!

!

Other!states!addressed!the!issues!of!reward!and!recognition!in!their!employee!surveys!

(e.g.,! asking! employees! to! rate! how! common! recognition! activities! and! events! are! in!

their! work! units).! Based! on! previous! GDOT! survey! results,! increased! compensation!

would! seem! to! be! the! standard! response! to! how! GDOT! could! better! recognize!

employees'! performance.! The! goal! of! the! item! regarding! recognition! is! to! identify!

alternative,! more! doable! strategies! for! acknowledging! and! rewarding! employees'! hard!

work.! The! EAT! focus! group! revealed! that! some! employees! did! not! know! about! actions!

that!GDOT!took!as!a!result!of!the!survey.!This!item!is!intended!to!identify!actions!GDOT!

can!actually!implement.!

!

The!development!team!acknowledged!GDOT's!interest!in!exploring!what!attracts!

and! motivates! young! members! of! the! workforce.! The! easiest! way! to! identify! trends! by!

age!would!be!to!have!employees!select!their!age!range!on!the!survey!and!include!age!as!

a!variable!in!the!multivariate!analysis.!However,!asking!employees!to!identify!their!ages!

on! the! survey! could! be! misconstrued! as! an! attempt! to! identify! potentially! negative!

trends! among! older! or! younger! employees.! Consequently,! the! agency! could!

inadvertently! open! itself! up! to! questions! regarding! ageCrelated! biases.! We! did! not!

!

46!

!
include! age! on! this! draft! version! of! the! survey,! but! recommend! GDOT! revisit! the! issue! and!assess!the!degree!of!risk!against!the!value!of!the!information.! % Employee%Data% The!final!section!of!the!survey,!shown!in!Figure!7a!and!7b,!asks!employees!to!indicate! how!long!they!have!worked!at!GDOT,!whether!they!supervise!staff!or!not,!and!in!which! division!or!job!category!they!work.!The!divisions!or!job!categories!will!need!to!be! identified!by!GDOT!in!order!to!make!the!analysis!and!findings!of!the!survey!most! relevant.! !

!
FIGURE!7a! Employee!Data!Section!of!the!Survey!!Service!Years!and!Job!Level!
!

!

47!

!

!
FIGURE!7b! Employee!Data!Section!of!Survey!!Division!

!

48!

!

!
FIGURE!7b!Cont'd! Employee!Data!Section!of!Survey!!Division!

!

49!

!

!
FIGURE!7b!Cont'd! Employee!Data!Section!of!Survey!!Division! !
!

!

!

!

50!

!

ADDITIONAL! STRATEGIES! FOR! MAXIMIZING! RETURN! RATE! AND! THE! VALIDITY!AND!RELIABILITY!OF!NEW!SURVEY! !
A! comprehensive! system! for! administering,! collecting,! analyzing,! sharing! results,! and!

taking!action!on!the!findings!of!the!survey!are!as!important!as!the!survey!questions!and!

design.! As! discussed! previously,! employees'! attitudes! and! beliefs! influence! motivation!

to! complete! the! survey! as! well! as! to! provide! reliable! information,! and! these! attitudes!

and!beliefs!are!strongly!influenced!by!the!survey!process!and!the!organizational!culture!

supporting!the!survey.!!

!

The! organization's! commitment! to! improving! its! employees'! work! lives! and! to!

retaining!and!growing!its!workforce!from!within!must!be!evident!to!employees,!and!the!

survey! needs! to! be! seen! as! a! reflection! of! that! commitment.! If! employees! do! not! see!

management! committing! time! and! effort! to! the! survey! and! see! no! results! or! actions!

from! the! survey,! they! will! not! take! the! survey! seriously.! Even! if! they! complete! the!

survey,! their! apathy! and! in! some! instances! antipathy! to! the! survey! will! diminish! the!

reliability! of! their! responses! and! any! conclusions! based! on! those! responses! and!

undermine! the! success! of! initiatives! and! programs! developed! from! those! conclusions.!

The! following! are! considerations/recommendations! for! creating! and! maintaining! an!

organizational!culture!that!promotes!the!benefits!of!the!survey!and!reduces!the!costs.!!

Communicate! clearly! and! precisely! to! employees! the! (a)! purpose! and! goals! of!

the! survey! and! (b)! what! outcomes! they! can! realistically! expect! to! see.! If! possible,!

provide!a!reasonable!timeline!describing!when!and!how!employees!can!expect!to!learn!

about! the! results! of! the! survey! and! strategies! for! addressing! any! negative! findings! or!

!

51!

!
concerns!identified!through!the!survey.!Establishing!reasonable!expectations!that!GDOT! leadership!can!accomplish!will!increase!employees'!trust!and!motivation!to!invest!their! time! and! effort! in! the! survey.! Security! measures! established! to! protect! employees'! anonymity!and!to!maintain!confidentiality!should!be!described!at!an!appropriate!level!of! detail! as! well,! especially! if! the! survey! process! and! data! are! being! collected,! analyzed,! and! maintained! internally! by! GDOT.! If! an! external! evaluator! or! surveyor! is! conducting! the! survey,! GDOT! should! inform! employees! of! the! external! evaluator's! roles! and! responsibilities! and! potentially! introduce! the! external! professional(s)! at! organization! meeting(s)!or!through!a!brief!article!or!interview!in!the!Banner.!!
A! short! video! message! from! the! Commissioner! or! another! leadership! representative!could!welcome!and!introduce!employees!to!the!survey!at!the!beginning! of!the!online!version!while!a!letter!could!be!included!with!the!paper!survey.!Other!state! DOTs!have!also!included!a!Frequently!Asked!Questions!section!and!a!description!of!the! actions! that! resulted! from! previous! year's! surveys.! Sending! followCup! reminders! (if! possible!do!not!resend!the!original!request!but!a!new!message)!at!appropriate!intervals! is!critical!as!well!as!thanking!the!employees!when!they!complete!the!survey.!
Identify! and! clearly! define! the! relationships! between! variables! and! topics! assessed! in! the! survey.! ! If! the! survey's! analysis! is! outsourced,! make! sure! the! company! clearly!identifies!what!data!is!needed!in!order!to!construct!the!analysis!to!provide!that! information! in! a! form! easily! understood! and! actionable! and! easy! to! communicate! to! employees.!!

!

52!

!

The! survey! response! should! be! analyzed! by! subgroups! (e.g.,! by! location,! job!

specification,! job! level,! and! years! employed! at! GDOT).! The! results! of! this! method! of!

analysis! will! enable! GDOT! to! create! statewide! initiatives! and! programs! as! well! as!

customized! initiatives! targeted! to! address! subgroup! concerns! and! challenges.! Items!

such!as!defining!and!creating!new!employee!engagement!programs!within!districts!and!

opportunities! for! employee! recognition! within! fields! of! work! are! those! that! can!

demonstrate!action!by!administration!and!appreciation!for!the!employees.!

Creating! or! implementing! a! system! where! the! survey! findings! can! be! easily!

disseminated! amongst! the! workforce! is! essential! to! a! successful! survey! process.!!

Examples!supplied!by!other!state!DOTs!include:!!

Upload! findings! on! state! and! district! websites! or! employee's! online! internal!

portal.!

Ask! professionals! in! managerial! positions--from! executive! management! to!

supervisors--to!review!and!discuss!the!results!with!employees.!

Print!the!survey!findings!in!the!DOT!newsletter.!

Explain! why! and! how! participating! was! important! and! what! possible! change! it! has! to!

bring! about! in! their! work! environment.! New! action! plans! can! be! introduced! with!

periodical! status! updates! sent! to! employees.! ! Upon! sharing! the! findings! of! the! survey,!

explain!how!those!findings!are!going!to!be!put!into!action.!!Finally,!inform!the!workforce!

when!the!next!survey!will!be!given.!

!

!

!

!

53!

!
COST!ESTIMATES!
The! following! is! a! cost! estimate! of! activities! related! to! the! testing,! administration,! analysis,! and! reporting! of! the! proposed! GDOT! employee! survey.! These! estimates! are! based! on! the! average! cost! of! services! for! the! Program! Evaluation! Group! (PEG)! at! the! University! of! Georgia.! PEG! works! with! clients! to! tailor! its! evaluations! to! the! specific! needs! and! resources! of! its! clients,! but! the! following! estimate! is! based! on! PEG's! experiences! with! surveys! of! similar! length! and! complexity.! Costs! are! presented! perC service!so!that!various!combinations!of!services!can!be!considered!that!best!fit!GDOT's! needs!and!preferences.!Explanations!for!costs!are!included!in!Tables!3!and!4.!!
The! Study! Team! recommends! that! the! new! survey! be! tested! before! it! is! administered! to! employees! across! GDOT! to! maximize! validity! and! reliability! of! the! survey!responses.!Although!each!time!the!survey!is!administered!in!the!future!updates! will! be! made! to! align! with! GDOT's! changing! needs,! the! testing! described! here! would! only! take! place! one! time.! The! PEG! proposes! a! sample! of! approximately! 65! employees! take! the! new! survey! and! then! meet! in! focus! groups! of! 5C6! people! to! discuss! their! experiences! completing! the! survey.! The! sample! of! employees! should! represent! the! diversity! of! GDOT's! workforce.! PEG! particularly! would! like! to! include! those! sectors! of! GDOT! that! has! not! had! high! participation! on! previous! surveys! so! that! we! can! better! attract! them! to! complete! the! new! survey.! PEG! used! work! units! to! represent! the! diversity! of! employees,! but! GDOT! will! know! best! how! to! construct! these! groups! to! be! most! representative! of! its! workforce.! Thirteen! (13)! focus! groups! are! proposed! as! follows:!

!

54!

!

Districts:!1!focus!group!of!construction!staff!and!1!from!maintenance!

Administration!(including!Finance):!4!focus!groups!

Engineering:!3!focus!groups!

Permits!and!Operations:!2!focus!groups!

Intermodal!and!Construction:!2!focus!groups!

!

TABLE!3! !PerMService!Cost!Estimates--New!Survey!Testing!
!
Activity/Service!
Administer!the!survey!(both!paper!and!online)!to!representative!sample!of! employees!! Data!entry!for!paper!surveys!
Analysis!and!interpretation!of!responses!
Focus!groups!with!sample!of!employees!who!completed!the!survey!!
Report!including!recommendations!for!revisions!in!survey!and/or!process!
UGA!financial!and!administrative!cost!(@!48.5%)!
Total!
!
!

Estimated!Cost! $104! $30! $125! $4,500! $1,000! $2,728! $8,500!

The! goals! of! the! focus! groups! are! to! identify! potential! problems! with! the!

wording! or! structuring! of! questions,! ambiguity! in! questions! and! instructions,! confusing!

or!distracting!visual!presentation,!unintentional!bias,!and!inaccurate!time!estimates!for!

completion!of!the!survey.!These!are!the!types!of!problems!that!threaten!to!diminish!the!

validity! and! reliability! of! survey! responses.! Participants! will! also! be! asked! for! their!

suggestions!for!improving!the!survey.!!The!survey!responses!from!the!sample!population!

will!be!analyzed,!and!the!focus!group!comments!will!be!coded!and!categorized!using!an!

!

55!

!
instrument! adapted! from! the! Questionnaire! Appraisal! System! (QASC99)! developed! by!
the!Research!Triangle!Institute!to!systematically!identify!and!record!potential!problems!
in!surveys/questionnaires.!The!focus!groups!with!online!users!will!also!identify!potential!
problems! with! functionality! and! usability! of! the! technology,! online! visual! presentation,!
navigation,!and!clarity!of!the!survey.!!
The!costs!associated!with!administering!the!new!survey!to!the!GDOT!workforce,!
analyzing,!and!reporting!the!results!are!not!very!sensitive!to!increases!in!the!number!of!
surveys.! See! Table! 4.! ! For! example,! once! the! analysis! is! designed,! there! is! not! a!
significant!increase!of!time!and!effort!from!1,000!surveys!to!2,000!surveys.!The!primary!
variable!influencing!cost!is!the!percentage!of!paper!surveys!versus!online!surveys.!Based!
on! previous! PEG! projects! using! surveys! similar! in! length! and! complexity! to! the! new!
GDOT! survey,! PEG! has! estimated! the! cost! of! data! entry! to! range! between! 68C82! cents!
per!survey.!!GDOT!estimates!that!the!percent!of!surveys!submitted!in!hard!copy!is!50%!
of!the!total!submitted.!!
! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

!

56!

!

TABLE!4!

PerMService!Cost!Estimates--Survey!Administration,!Analysis,!and!Report!of!Findings!

and!Recommendations!

!

Activity/Service!

Estimated!Cost! Estimated!Cost! Electronic!and! Electronic!Only!
Paper!

Meet!with!GDOT!Leadership!Team!to!update!survey!to! obtain!feedback!on!issues!most!relevant!to!organizational! concerns!and!decisions!and!to!select!variables!for! multivariate!analysis!to!generate!findings!to!answer!the! most!relevant!questions.!(5!people)!

In!person!$800! In!person!$800! (Virtual!$350)! (Virtual!$350)!

Post!survey!and!send!link!to!GDOT!to!include!in! notification/invitation!to!complete!survey!and!followCup! reminders!

$250!

$250!

Data!entry!for!paper!surveys,!including!comments*!!

$2,000!

CC!

Analysis!of!surveys!(response!frequency!counts,!averages,! means)!and!validity!and!reliability!testing!with!larger! sample!size!(e.g.,!factor!analysis)! Analysis!of!survey!comments!(includes!coding!by! categories)!(Note:!Establishing!codes!most!time!consuming! the!first!time)! Submit!a!report!of!results!and!findings!including! recommendations!and!outcomes!for!performance! measures!and!benchmarks!(includes!presentation/meeting! with!GDOT!leadership)!! UGA!financial!and!administrative!cost!(@!48.5%)!

$1,500! $1,200! $3,500! $4,486!

$1,500!
$1,200!
$3,500! $3,516!

Total!

$13,736!

$10,766!

*The!amount!is!an!average!cost!at!60%C90%!response!rates!(4,200!employees)!and!assuming! 50%!of!the!surveys!submitted!are!paper.! !

!

!

!

!

57!

!
CONCLUSIONS!AND!RECOMMENDATIONS!
The!new!employee!survey!instrument!developed!as!part!of!this!study!addresses!several! reoccurring! themes! mentioned! in! the! literature,! focus! group! meetings,! the! other! state! DOT's!survey,!and!example!surveys.!!Specifically,!the!survey!was!restructured!as!follows:!!
Introduction! reassures! employees! that! their! responses! to! the! survey! are! confidential.!
Demographic!information,!which!could!potentially!be!misconstrued!as!personal! and! sensitive! information,! was! moved! to! the! end! of! the! survey! in! an! effort! to! shift!the!employee's!attention!from!confidentiality!concerns!when!answering!the! survey!questions.!
Questions!were!written!to!allow!employees!to!comment!on!their!perceptions!of! GDOT! practices! rather! than! people! (individuals/offices! that! they! are! not! personally!familiar!with).!
Questions!focus!on!employees'!work!and!how!their!work!environment!could!be! improved! to! divert! them! away! from! more! global! issues,! such! as! compensation! and!benefits.!!It!is!perhaps!less!feasible!to!make!meaningful!changes!at!a!global! level! whereas! changes! in! specific! work! units! could! be! feasible! and! substantially! affect!employees'!dayCtoCday!experiences.!
A! section! within! the! survey! was! developed! to! collect! information! about! employees'! awareness! of! GDOT! initiatives! while! simultaneously! increasing! awareness!through!descriptions!of!the!initiatives.!!

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In!the!Work!Environment!Section!of!the!survey,!employees!are!not!asked!to!rate!

their! supervisors! but! rather! their! supervisors'! actions.! Items! were! included! to!

enable!GDOT!to!learn!about!the!quality!of!leadership!in!their!units.!

A!section!on!Safety!was!added!to!the!employee!survey.!

The!Study!Team!believes!the!new!employee!survey!instrument!will!benefit!GDOT!

in! collecting! quality! information! about! the! organization,! what! motivates! employees,!

quality!of!leadership!within!the!organization,!and!the!development!of!new!initiatives!or!

programs.! However,! the! Study! Team! believes! that! an! equally! important! part! is! the!

survey! process--from! administering! the! survey,! collecting! responses,! reporting,!

dissemination! of! the! results,! developing! action! plans! or! initiatives! as! a! result! of! the!

survey,! and! monitoring! and! reporting! progress! towards! instituting! those! initiatives! as!

well!as!measuring!their!effectiveness.!!

!

To!optimize!the!survey!results!and!outcomes,!the!new!survey!instrument!should!

be!tested!qualitatively!through!focus!groups!with!employees!in!different!job!categories!

(specifically! those! used! to! classify! respondents! on! the! survey).! The! attendees! of! the!

focus! groups! should! also! complete! the! new! survey! to! provide! a! sample! of! quantitative!

data! to! analyze.! The! analyses! will! reveal! response! patterns! and! provide! a! better!

understanding! of! which! survey! items! are! working! as! intended! and! which! need! to! be!

improved.!Using!a!mixed!method!approach!will!provide!better!metrics!for!improving!the!

survey!before!it!is!administered!to!the!entire!GDOT!workforce.!

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REFERENCES!
Archer,!Thomas!M.!"Web!Based!Surveys."!Joe.!N.p.,!Aug.!2003.!Web.! <http://www.joe.org/joe/2003august/tt6.php>.! ! Baumgartner,!Hans,!and!JanCBenedict!E.M.!Steenkamp.!(2006).!Response!Bias!in! Marketing!Research.!The!Handbook!of!Marketing!Research.!Chapter!in!this!book! http://www.terry.uga.edu/~rgrover/chapter_6.pdf! ! "Bias!in!Survey!Sampling."!Stattrek.!Stat!Trek,!n.d.!Web.!<http://stattrek.com/surveyC research/surveyCbias.aspx>.! ! Boyer,!S.,!&!Stron,!M.!(March!2012).!Best!practices!for!improving!survey!participation.! Redwood!Shores,!CA:!Oracle!Corporation.! ! Branham,!L.,!(2005).!!"The!7!Hidden!Reasons!Employees!Leave:!How!to!recognize!the! subtle!signs!and!act!before!it's!too!late.!!New!York,!NY.!!Amacon.! ! Brennan,!Mike.!"Techniques!for!Improving!Mail!Survey!Response!Rates."!Marketing% Bulletin,%Massey%University!3!(1992):!24C37.!Massey!University.!Web.!<http://marketingC bulletin.massey.ac.nz/V3/MB_V3_A4_Brennan.pdf>.! ! C.,!Brent.!"How!Much!Time!Are!Respondents!Willing!to!Spend!on!Your!Survey?"!Web!log! post.!Survey%Monkey%Blog.!N.p.,!14!Feb.!2011.!Web.! <http://blog.surveymonkey.com/blog/2011/02/14/survey_completion_times/>.! ! Cobanoglu,!Chihan,!Bill!Warde,!and!Patrick!J.!Moreo.!A%Comparison%of%Mail,%Fax,%and% WebFBased%Survey%Methods.!Oklahoma!State!University,!n.d.!Web.! <http://www.amstat.org/sections/SRMS/proceedings/papers/2000_065.pdf>.!

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! Dye,!David!M.!"Why!Your!Employee!Survey!Is!A!Waste!Of!Time."!Lead%Change%Group.! N.p.,!21!May!2013.!Web.!<http://leadchangegroup.com/whyCyourCemployeeCsurveyCisC aCwasteCofCtime/>.! ! Earl,!Joanne,!Melissa!D.!Lampe,!and!Andrew!Buskin.!"What!to!Do!With!Employee!Survey! Results."!Gallup%Business%Journal!(n.d.):!n.!pag.!10!Aug.!2006.!Web.! <http://businessjournal.gallup.com/content/23956/whatCemployeeCsurveyC results.aspx#1>.! ! "Employee!Surveys."!Survey%Monkey.!N.p.,!n.d.!Web.! <http://www.surveymonkey.com/mp/employeeCsurveys/>.! ! Fairfax!County!Department!of!Neighborhood!and!Community!Services.!Common%Pitfalls% in%Conducting%a%Survey.!N.p.:!Fairfax!County!Department!of!Neighborhood!and! Community!Services,!n.d.!Fairfax%County.!Aug.!2012.!Web.! <http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/demogrph/pdf/pitfalls.pdf>.! ! Fisher,!Sylvia,!John!Bosley,!Karen!Goldenberg,!William!Mockovak,!and!Clyde!Tucker.A% Qualitative%Study%of%Nonresponse%Factors%Affecting%BLS%Establishment%Surveys:%Results.! BLS.!Bureau!Labor!of!Statistics,!19!July!2008.!Web.! <http://www.bls.gov/ore/pdf/st030230.pdf>.! ! Gemmell,!Walt.!"Why!Do!People!Take!Surveys?"!Ezine%Articles.!N.p.,!30!June!2009.!Web.! <http://ezinearticles.com/?WhyCDoCPeopleCTakeCSurveys?&id=2548507>.! ! Halteman,!Ed.!"10!Ways!to!Enhance!Your!Survey!Response!Rate."!Online%Survey% Software%SurveyGizmo%10%Ways%to%Enhance%Your%Survey%ResponseRate%Comments.!N.p.,!

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13!Mar.!2012.!Web.!<http://www.surveygizmo.com/surveyCblog/enhanceCsurveyC responseCrate/>.! ! Hampton,!Chris,!and!Marcelo!Vilela.!"Conducting!Surveys."!Community%Toolbox.!Ed.!Phil! Rabinowitz,!Kate!Nagy,!and!Jerry!Schultz.!N.p.,!n.d.!Web.! <http://ctb.ku.edu/en/tablecontents/sub_section_main_1048.aspx>.! ! Harter,!J.!K.,!Schmidt,!F.!L.,!Killham,!E.!A.,!&!Asplund,!J.!W.!(2006).!Q12!metaCanalysis.! Retrieved!from!http://strengths.gallup.com/private/resources/q12metaC analysis_flyer_gen_08%2008_bp.pdf! ! ! Haynes,!Kammy.!"How!To!Design!and!Implement!an!Effective!Employee!Attitude! Survey."!Practical%Guides.!Ed.!Warren!Bobrow.!N.p.:!n.p.,!n.d.!351C64.!Print.! ! Honisch,!Marty.!"How!to!Analyze!Survey!Results!(without!Getting!in!the!Weeds)."!Next.! Next!Generation!Consulting,!3!Apr.!2009.!Web.! <http://nextgenerationconsulting.com/library/article/howCtoCanalyzeCsurveyCresultsC withoutCgettingCinCtheCweeds/>.! ! Hooper,!Joe.!"How!Long!Should!a!Survey!Be?"!Web!log!post.!Versta%Research.!Versta! Research!Blog,!n.d.!Web.!<http://www.verstaresearch.com/blog/howClongCshouldCaC surveyCbe/>.! ! Leland,!Eric.!"A!Few!Good!Online!Survey!Tools."!Idealware.!N.p.,!Feb.!2011.!Web.! <http://www.idealware.org/articles/fgt_online_surveys.php>.! !

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Lloyd,!Sam.!"Employee!Satisfaction!Surveys:!Do!You!Make!Any!of!These!10!Employee! Satisfaction!Mistakes?"!Qualtrics!Blog,!18!Feb.!2013.!Web.! <http://www.qualtrics.com/blog/employeeCsatisfactionCsurveys/>.! ! McColl,!E.,!Jacoby,!A.,!Thomas,!L.,!Soutter,!J.,!Bamford,!C.,!Steen,!N.,!Thomas,!R.,!Harvey,! E.,!Garratt,!A.,!&!Bond,!J.!(2001).!Design!and!use!of!questionnaires:!A!review!of!best! practice!applicable!to!surveys!of!health!service!staff!and!patients.!Health%Technology% Assessment,!(5)31.! ! Prairie!Research!Associates.!A%Brief%History%of%Survey%Research.!PRA.!N.p.,!n.d.!Web.! <http://www.pra.ca/resources/pages/files/technotes/history_e.pdf>.! ! "Response!Rates."!Utexas.edu.!Instructional!Assessment!Resources,!21!Sep.!2011.!Web.! <http://www.utexas.edu/academic/ctl/assessment/iar/teaching/gather/method/survey CResponse.ph>.! ! "Response!RatesC!An!Overview."!AAPOR.org.!American!Association!for!Public!Opinion,! n.d.!Web.!<http://www.aapor.org/Response_Rates_An_Overview1.htm>.!! ! "Response!Rates!&!Surveying!Techniques."!Survey!Monkey,!14!Dec.!2009.!Web.! <http://s3.amazonaws.com/SurveyMonkeyFiles/Response_Rates.pdf>.! ! Sanchez,!Paul!M.!"The!Employee!Survey:!More!than!Asking!Questions."!The%Journal%of% Business%Strategy!28.2007!(2007):!48C56.!2007.!Web.! ! "Smart!Survey!Design."!Survey!Monkey,!n.d.!Web.!21!May!2013.! <http://s3.amazonaws.com/SurveyMonkeyFiles/SmartSurvey.pdf>.! !

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Smith,!Scott.!"Employee!Satisfaction!Surveys:!3!Sample!Templates!You!Can!Use!Today."! Web!log!post.!Qualtrics%Blog.!N.p.,!4!Feb.!2013.!Web.! <http://www.qualtrics.com/blog/employeeCsatisfactionCsurvey/>.! ! Society!of!Human!Resource!Management!(SHRM)!(2012).!!Executive!Summary!! Employees!are!Focused!on!Meeting!Goals!and!Using!Their!Skills!at!Work."!! http://www.shrm.org/Research/SurveyFindings/Articles/Documents/SHRMCEmployeeC JobCSatisfactionCEngagementCExecutiveCSummary.pdf!!(Accessed!February!5,!2013).! ! "Strategic!Use!of!Employee!Survey!Results."!(1999):!n.!pag.!Rpt.!in!Corporate%Leadership% Council.!N.p.:!n.p.,!n.d.!5C28.!Web.! <http://brucewinkler.com/resources/news/survey.pdf>.! ! "Survey!Design."!Survey%System.!Creative!Research!Systems,!n.d.!Web.! <http://www.surveysystem.com/sdesign.htm>.! ! Thackray,!J.!(2001)!Feedback%for%real.!Retrieved!from! http://businessjournal.gallup.com/content/811/feedbackCreal.aspx#1! ! "The!History!of!Surveys."!Web!log!post.!Squidoo.!N.p.,!2010.!Web.! <http://www.squidoo.com/historyCsurveys>.! ! TRC.!"NonCResponse!Bias!In!Survey!Sampling."!Greenbook.!N.p.,!n.d.!Web.! <http://www.greenbook.org/marketingCresearch.cfm/nonCresponseCbias>.! ! Walonick,!David!S.!"A!Selection!for!Survival!Statistics."!(n.d.):!n.!pag.!Statpac!Inc.!Web.! <http://www.statpac.com/surveys/surveys.pdf>.! !

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Wiley,!Jack.!The%Strategic%Employee%Survey.!Kenexa.!Kenexa!Research!Institute,!n.d.!

Web.!<http://www.kenexa.com/getattachment/d574675fCa339C49d6C809dC

2606d9e29bd1/>.!

!

Wright,!Beverly,!and!Paul!Schwager.!"Online!Survey!Research:!Can!Response!Factors!Be!

Improved?"!Journal%of%Internet%Commerce!7.2!(2008):!253C69.!Print.!

!

Yehuda,!B.,!&!Holtom,!B.C.!(2008).!Survey!response!rate!levels!and!trends!in!

organizational!research.!Human%relations.!61(8),!1139C1160.!

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APPENDICES

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Appendix A GDOT Current Employee Survey!

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Appendix B Review of Literature on Survey Design and Implementation
!
Purpose/%History%of%Surveys% The! use! and! distribution! of! surveys! has! continued! to! increase! with! the! increase! of! technology! into! society,! the! rise! of! micro! and! macroeconomic! market! research,! and! other! local! and! global! factors! that! call! for! policy! development! in! and! outside! of! the! public! sector.! The! first! documented! surveys! of! any! kind! were! those! of! the! Ancient! Babylonians! conducted! in! 3200! B.C.! Surveys! of! antiquity! were! normally! decreed! population!censuses!used!to!account!for!an!empire's!breadth!and!wealth!("The!History! of! Surveys,"! 2013).! As! survey! methods! have! contemporized! with! advancements! in! mathematics! and! communication! technology,! the! use! of! surveys! have! expanded! from! solely! tallying! quantities! to! assessing! the! general! feelings! of! a! population! toward! a! specific!policy!or!law.!Surveys!are!used!to!measure!a!vast!array!of!topics,!but!their!sole,! inherent! purpose! is! to! gather! information! from! a! specific! audience.! The! place! of! the! survey! in! modern! day! society! effectively! serves! the! same! purpose! as! it! has! throughout! timeC!the!need!to!acquire!information!to!make!informed!decisions!and!eventually!work! towards!bettering!the!future.!!! Why%Do%People/Companies/Businesses%Conduct%Surveys?% The!professional!use!of!surveys!spans!a!diffuse!spectrum.!Surveys!can!be!used!to!assess! general! attitudes! of! consumers! or! employees! towards! a! specific! issue,! determine! a! population's!general!opinion!or!support!on!a!matter,!or!identify!ways!in!which!products! or! a! workforce! could! be! improved.! Nearly! every! professional,! academic,! or! service! providing!institution!conducts!surveys!to!determine!what!they!are!doing!well!and!where!

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they! could! possibly! improve! their! services.! Ultimately,! the! purpose! for! conducting! surveys!is!to!gather!invaluable!information,!which!cannot!be!otherwise!deduced!from!a! target! audience! in! hopes! to! improve! a! person's,! businesses',! or! institution's! current! situation!(Wiley,!2009).!Many!managers,!owners!of!companies,!and!businesses!want!to! ensure! that! their! workforce! is! not! only! working! to! their! maximum! potential,! but! also! that! they! are! enjoying! their! work! and! are! engaged! in! what! is! asked! of! them! to! do.! Surveys! provide! a! forum! through! which! managers! of! a! business! or! company! can! determine!where!improvements!inside!of!their!workforce!or!management!are!needed.!! What%Can%Be%Gained%From%Implementing%Surveys%in%Company%and%Business%Settings?%% Following! the! distribution,! collection,! and! analysis! of! an! implemented! survey,! companies! have! the! opportunity! to! capitalize! on! their! findings! by! improving! a! needed! area! or! sector! inside! their! business.! WellCdesigned! surveys! can! distinguish! areas! inside! of!a!company!that!might!be!slowing!production,!or!efficiency;!thus!serving!as!a!"warning! sign"!for!managers!(Wiley,!2009).!Surveys!gain!information!in!which!managers,!owners,! or! employees! can! make! educated! decisions! on! how! and! where! to! implement! a! new! policy,!rule,!or!incentive!to!a!business!or!company.!Surveys!ultimately!gather!invaluable! and! other! otherwise! indiscernible! information! from! an! audience! a! surveyor! wishes! to! learn!from.! !!!!!!!!! The! regular! distribution! of! employee! surveys! inside! of! a! business! or! company! allots! managers! and! other! leaders! the! information! to! maximize! their! workforce! capital! through! whatever! means! their! survey! determined! would! be! the! most! fruitful:! new! incentives,! policies.! etc...! (Wiley,! 2009).! Effectively! implemented! surveys! tend! to!

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"increase! engagement,! productivity,! and! profits! while! reducing! turnovers! and! costs,"! and! therefore! create! the! opportunity! for! businesses,! companies,! or! institutions! to! implement! changes! and! improvements! (Earl! et.! al.,! 2006).! These! aforementioned! improvements! can! only! be! acquired! following! the! design,! distribution,! analysis,! and! implementation! of! the! findings! from! a! created! survey.! Every! step! in! the! surveying! process!is!essential!to!the!overall!goal!of!propelling!a!service!providing!institution!to!its! utmost!potential.!The!remainder!of!this!review!will!discuss!the!entirety!of!the!surveying! process! from! the! design! and! creation! of! the! physical! survey! to! the! development! and! implementation!of!action!plans.!!! Survey%Design%% The!creation!and!design!process!of!a!survey!is!one!of,!if!not!the!most!essential,!steps,!in! the! surveying! process.! Successful! survey! design! begins! by! defining! the! foundation! or! platform!of!the!survey:!what!is!the!purpose!of!the!survey!and!what!are!the!outcomes!or! goals! the! surveyor! desires! from! its! implementation?! Upon! defining! the! purpose! of! a! future! survey,! the! surveyor! can! then! distinguish! the! audience! that! needs! to! be! contacted! and! begin! crafting! and! writing! questions! that! will! elicit! the! desired! information.!Ultimately,!a!survey!can!only!be!as!successful!as!it!is!well!designed.!For!that! reason,!this!review!goes!into!intricate!detail!to!elucidate!pressing!factors!that!influence! design!methodology.!! % % %

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Defining%the%Purpose%of%the%Survey% The!purpose!of!a!survey!can!be!defined!as!the!central!reason!for!why!the!survey!exists.!! Essentially,!the!purpose!of!a!survey!is!the!platform!on!which!the!entirety!of!the!survey!is! created! and! based! (Fairfax! County! Department! of! Neighborhood! and! Community! Services,!2012).!Defining!the!purpose!of!a!survey!can!be!as!simple!as!identifying!a!need! for! a! research! study! or! as! complex! as! the! desire! to! identify! specific! areas! within! a! company! that! could! increase! employee! productivity! or! improve! the! workforce! environment! (Fairfax! County! Department! of! Neighborhood! and! Community! Services,! 2012).! During! the! definition! process,! it! is! important! to! note! that! the! purpose! of! the! survey! should! be! relatable,! or! germane,! to! the! audience's! knowledge! or! collective! experiences! ("Smart! Survey! Design,"! 2013).! Designing! a! survey! from! the! general! perspective! of! the! target! audience! allows! for! the! survey! questions! to! align! with! respondents'! interests! or! knowledge,! ultimately! bettering! the! collected! data.! ! For! example,! if! a! company! has! received! complaints! regarding! its! workforce! environment! from! employees,! the! purpose! of! the! survey! may! be! to! collect! information! from! employees! on! how! exactly! the! current! environment! is! taxing! them! and! what! efforts! could!be!put!forth!to!better!the!work!environment.!% Defining%the%Goals%of%the%Survey% Determining!the!goals!for!a!survey!is!a!similar!process!to!that!of!defining!the!purpose!of! a! survey.! The! goal! for! a! survey! should! be! the! explicit! outcome! desired! following! the! entirety! of! the! surveying! process! and! actions! taken! on! the! survey's! findings.! Defining! the!goals!of!a!survey!is!an!essential!step!in!the!process!of!survey!design!as!it!directs!the!

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creation! of! a! survey's! questions! ("Survey! Design,"! 2013).! The! goals! of! a! survey! can! be! similarly!thought!of!as!final!objectives!or!outcomes!that!the!survey!desires!to!produce.! In!section!3.3.1!an!example!of!a!purpose!for!a!company!a!survey!was!given:!"to!collect! information! from! employees! on! how! exactly! the! current! work! environment! is! taxing! them! and! what! efforts! could! be! put! forth! to! change! that! environment! for! the! better."! From! this! defined! purpose,! a! small! goal! can! be! easily! established! to! distinguish! which! environmental!work!factors!are!impeding!or!decreasing!employee!productivity.%
Much! as! sports! teams! set! small! goals! throughout! a! season! to! reach! an! overarching!goal,!a!business!or!company!may!conduct!a!series!of!surveys!to!achieve!its! goal! or! desired! outcome.! Goal! setting! for! surveys! can! start! small.! The! example! goal! above! of! identifying! an! issue! inside! of! a! company! that! might! be! hindering! its! productivity!is!a!reasonable!goal!for!an!initial!survey.!After!the!data!is!collected!on!this! initial!survey!and!action!is!taken!to!rectify!or!fix!the!hindrance,!a!followCup!survey!might! be! needed! to! determine! whether! the! action! that! was! taken! was! successful.! From! this! point,!if!the!initial!action!taken!to!fix!the!problem!was!not!sufficient!from!the!analysis!of! the!collected!data!from!the!second!survey,!then!new!methods!can!be!adopted!to!reach! a! company's! possible! overarching! goal! of! maximizing! employee! productivity.! Every! survey!should!have!a!series!of!goals!that!lead!to!a!final!resolve!or!outcome!if!more!than! one!survey!will!be!distributed.!!
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Defining%the%Target%Audience%% Defining! the! target! audience! deals! with! determining! what! specific! groups! of! people! should! be! contacted! to! collect! the! needed! information! ("Survey! Design,"! 2013).! Target! audiences! can! be! clearly! distinguished! as! stakeholders,! or! people! who! are! directly! invested! or! affected! by,! the! purpose! of! the! survey.! After! defining! the! target! audience,! the!surveying!group!needs!to!ensure!that!the!audience!can!be!contacted!or!reached!to! acquire! responses! (Fairfax! County! Department! of! Neighborhood! and! Community! Services,!2012).!If!the!initially!defined!target!audience!is!unreachable,!then!the!team!or! individual!needs!to!determine!if!there!is!another!method!for!gathering!the!information! or!if!another!audience!can!provide!sufficient!data.!Even!after!distinguishing!a!population! or!group!of!people!that!the!survey!wishes!to!poll!or!extract!information!from,!not!every! individual! must! participate! to! gather! unbiased! data.! Past! studies,! mainly! in! Victorian! times,! would! sample! thousands! of! people! in! hopes! to! gather! exact! data! on! social! reformation! issues! and! attitudes! when! random! samples! of! the! population! could! have! simplified! the! process! and! generalized! the! findings! (Prairie! Research! Associates,! 2013).! This! inefficient! Victorian! survey! method! has! been! replaced! by! using! statistical! probability! samples! of! populations! to! provide! accurate,! generalized! findings! (Prairie! Research!Associates,!2013).!The!majority!of!surveys!that!are!distributed!use!probability! samples,! as! sampling! an! entire! population! or! defined! target! audience! is! nearly! impossible.! To! ensure! that! probability! samples! yield! unbiased! data,! the! pool! of! respondents!the!survey!samples!should!be!as!random!and!as!eclectic!as!possible.!% %

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Choosing%Survey%Methodology% Technological! advancement! has! brought! along! vast! changes! in! surveying! methods! and! forums.! This! advancement! has! greatly! increased! the! number! of! tools! available! to! surveyors!to!collect!information!and!made!it!easier!to!contact!individuals!included!in!the! target! audience.! To! determine! which! survey! platform! to! implement,! surveyors! need! to! consider!target!audience.!If!the!targeted!respondents!do!not!have!access!to!a!computer! or!are!not!computer!literate!then!online!surveys!are!not!the!best!option.!! Types%of%Survey%Tools%(Advantages%and%Disadvantages)% Distinguishing! which! surveying! tools! to! use! is! largely! dependent! upon! the! surveyor's! evaluation!of!the!target!audience's!readily!available!resources.!From!this!juncture,!there! can! still! be! a! number! of! possible! surveying! options! to! distinguish! between.! Every! surveying! tool! comes! with! its! own! strengths! and! weaknesses.! Assessment! and! consideration! of! the! advantages! and! cons! of! each! survey! tool! can! help! to! further! distinguish! which! survey! tool! is! best! suited! for! the! defined! target! audience's! and! surveyor's!resources!and!constraints.! Online!Surveys!! Online! or! webCbased! surveys! are! created! and! distributed! by! using! either! an! online! survey! provider! such! as! Survey! Monkey! or! Qualtrics! or! another! open! source! platform! such! as! Google.! Both! of! these! forums! for! online! survey! design! are! the! most! recently! developed!methods!for!survey!creation!and!distribution.% ! !

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Advantages!of!Online!Survey!Use! Very! cost! effective! in! comparison! to! other! surveys! (Walonick,! 2010)! Depending!on!the!method!of!online!surveying,!there!can!be!nearly!no!cost!in! creating!or!distributing!the!survey!(Archer,!2003).! Online! surveys! can! be! easily! managed! (e.g.,! opening! and! closing! dates! for! survey!completion).! Online!surveys!can!be!easily!personalized.!Additionally,!they!can!be!designed! to!be!very!interactive!for!participants!(Walonick,!2010).! Compiling! data! is! very! easy,! and! data! can! be! extracted! in! an! analyzable! spreadsheet.! Open! responses! are! easily! managed! compared! to! when! they! are!hand!written!("Survey!Design,"!2013).! Response! rates! are! generally! higher! compared! to! nonCcomputer! based! surveys!("Survey!Design,"!2013).!
Disadvantages!of!Online!Survey!Use:! The!target!audience!must!have!access!to!a!computer!(Archer,!2003;!"Survey! Design,"!2013;!Walonick,!2010).! The! target! audience! needs! to! be! fairly! computer! literate! (Archer,! 2003,! "Survey!Design,"!2013).! The! decision! to! not! respond! to! online! surveys! is! made! more! quickly! compared!to!nonCcomputer!based!surveys!("Survey!Design,"!2013).!
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Mail%Surveys% Distributing! surveys! through! the! mail! is! one! of! the! oldest! methods! of! disseminating! surveys! large! populations.! Mail! surveys! can! still! be! very! effective.! With! the! increase! in! use!of!technology,!however,!the!mail!survey!has!somewhat!been!replaced!by!the!email! distributed!survey!("Survey!Design,"!2013).% Advantages!of!Mail!Survey!Use%
Mail!surveys!have!a!greater!sense!of!"anonymity"!(Archer,!2003).! Mail! distributed! surveys! allow! for! the! respondent! to! look! over! the! entire!
survey! before! it! is! completed.! This! aspect! can! give! respondents! time! to! consider! their! responses! and! has! been! shown! to! increase! the! amount! of! fully!completed!surveys!as!opposed!to!partially!completed!surveys!("Survey! Design,"!2013).! The! survey! can! be! designed! to! have! an! engaging! and! descriptive! layout! or! presentation!("Survey!Design,"!2013).! Mail! surveys! are! generally! less! expensive! compared! to! telephone! surveys! (Walonick,!2010).! Disadvantages!of!Mail!Survey!Use! Mail! surveys! take! a! long! time! to! conduct.! ("Survey! Design,"! 2013;! Walonick,!2010).! Mail! surveys! do! not! easily! gather! or! manage! openCended! responses! from! respondents!(Walonick,!2010).!

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Respondents! can! be! productCpolarized,! either! being! very! pleased! or! very! displeased!with!a!product!or!service.!This!respondent!pool!can!elicit!biased! findings.!
The!target!audiences'!literacy!rates!can!undermine!the!quality!of!responses! as!well!as!the!return!rate!("Survey!Design,"!2013).!
Telephone%Surveys%% Telephone! surveys! by! and! large! are! the! most! popular! form! of! surveying.! Within! the! United! States! alone,! 96%! of! the! all! households! have! a! telephone,! so! there! is! a! high! number!of!potential!respondents!as!well!as!increased!diversity!("Survey!Design,"!2013).!% Advantages!of!Telephone!Surveys!Use!
Obtaining!a!random!sample!of!respondents!is!easily!done.! Telephone!surveys!offer!a!great!deal!of!anonymity!to!the!respondent.! The! surveyor! has! the! opportunity! to! obtain! more! accurate! and! specific!
information! from! each! participant! by! asking! for! clarification! or! additional! examples!("Survey!Design,"!2013).! Disadvantages!of!Telephone!Surveys!Use! The! individualized! nature! of! telephone! surveys! makes! them! more! like! interviews,! which! take! much! longer! and! require! more! staff! to! conduct! the!surveys!than!other!survey!methods!(Dye,!2013;!Walonick,!2010).! There! is! an! increased! potential! for! human! error! as! the! phone! interviewers! record! responses.! In! addition,! interviewers! need! to! be! trained! to! protect! comparability! of! the! responses! for! analyses! and! to!

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prevent!errors,!such!as!leading!the!interviewee,!which!can!undermine!the! validity!and!reliability!of!the!data.! Participants! deem! surveyors! to! be! telemarketers! and! refuse! to! participate!("Survey!Design,"!2013).! Telephone!surveys!cannot!show!or!sample!products!or!services!over!the! phone!("Survey!Design,"!2013).! DirectLComputer%Surveys%% DirectCcomputer! surveys! allow! for! respondents! to! enter! their! responses! directly! into! modules,! setCup! computers,! or! kiosks.! This! form! of! surveying! is! largely! found! in! stores,! malls,!and!other!service!and!product!providing!venues!("Survey!Design,"!2013).! Advantages!of!DirectMComputer!Survey!Use! There! is! little! to! no! data! transference! or! input! costs! with! direct! computer!surveys.! Respondents!are!more!likely!to!give!honest!answers!to!a!computer!than! to!an!interviewer!over!the!telephone!or!in!person.! Response!rates!are!generally!higher!for!stores!that!use!these!rather!than! mail!or!telephone!surveys.! There!is!no!interviewer!bias.!Questions!are!asked!the!same!way!to!every! respondent.! ! ! !

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Disadvantages!of!DirectMComputer!Survey!Use! The!survey!machine!must!be!located!in!an!area!frequented!by!a!large! number!of!people!in!the!target!audience.! Similar! to! online! surveys,! the! defined! target! audience! must! be! computer!literate.! There! can! be! a! baseline! cost! to! rent! or! purchase! the! tools! needed! to! conduct!a!direct!computer!survey.!
Email%Distributed%Surveys%% Email! distributed! surveys! have! become! a! very! popular! means! of! gathering! information! from! a! target! audience! quickly! and! with! little! to! no! cost.! Email! surveys! are! normally! conducted! within! businesses,! colleges,! and! other! institutions! that! have! access! to! their! target!audiences'!email!addresses!("Survey!Design,"!2013).% Advantages!of!Email!Distributed!Survey!Use!
More! often! than! non! emailCdistributed! surveys,! email! distributed! surveys!provide!very!fast!responses!(Walonick,!2010).!
Distributing! surveys! through! email! is! a! very! lowCcost! method! for! conducting!a!survey!(Walonick,!2010).!
Emails! can! be! easily! personalized,! which! is! shown! to! increase! response!rates!("Survey!Design,"!2013).!
Disadvantages!of!Email!Distributed!Survey!Use! Surveyors! must! possess,! or! purchase,! a! list! of! email! addresses! to! reach!their!target!audience!if!they!do!not!already!have!access!them.!

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Email! based! surveys! cannot! generalize! findings! for! an! entire! population! seeing! as! how! there! might! be! significant! percentage! of! individuals! who! do! not! have! access! to! a! computer! or! who! are! computer!illiterate!(Walonick,!2010).!
Responders! can! quickly! delete! or! overlook! an! emailed! request! to! complete!a!survey.!
Scanning%Surveys% Scanning!surveys!use!a!computer!read!scantron!sheet!to!gather!and!collect!information! from! a! list! of! survey! questions.! Typically,! a! paper! copy! of! the! survey! is! provided! and! responders!record!their!answers!on!the!scantron!sheet,!much!like!a!standardized!test.% Advantages!of!Scanning!Survey!Use!
Scanning! surveys! have! the! fastest! form! of! data! entry! for! paper! surveys!("Survey!Design,"!2013).!
Using!a!scantron!machine!ensures!that!there!is!no!human!error!in! data! entry! and! promotes! the! perception! of! confidentiality! if! the! responders! are! allowed! to! insert! their! response! forms! directly! into! the!scantron!machine,!similar!to!the!voting!process.!
Disadvantages!of!Scanning!Survey!Use! Only!multiple!choice!types!of!surveys!can!be!analyzed.!As!a!result,! each!answer!sheet!would!have!to!be!examined!to!access!responses! to!openCended!questions!or!comments!("Survey!Design,"!2013).!

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Inserting! the! response! sheets! into! the! scanning! machine! requires! staff!time.!
Scanning! surveys! require! the! rental! or! purchase! of! scanning! equipment!("Survey!Design,"!2013).!!
Review%of%Some%Available%Survey%Tools% This!review!of!surveying!tools!and!companies!is!by!no!means!exhaustive.!Its!purpose!is! to! display! a! number! of! the! most! popular! surveying! software.! These! programs! provide! some!analytical!tools,!and!the!data!is!generally!downloadable!to!Excel!to!enable!analysis! in!commonly!used!statistical!programs,!such!a!IBM!SPSS!Statistics!or!SAS!Statistics.% !Survey!Monkey!(www.surveymonkey.com)! Survey! Monkey! is! one! of! the! most! popular! online! survey! platform! providers.! Their! business! offers! free! survey! platforms! that! come! with! very! little! data! analysis! support! and! limited! questions! and! responses! to! purchased! platforms! that! can! be! used! to! conduct!rigorous!research.!Purchased!platforms!range!from!$17C$65!a!month.! Moodle!(www.moodle.org)! Moodle!is!an!open!source!survey!creation!software!package!that!supports!educators!in! the! development! of! online! environments! that! stimulate! and! foster! learning.! Moodle! is! largely! used! within! the! world! of! academia! to! gather! information! from! students! ! normally! by! assessing! their! knowledge.! Moodle! is! a! forum! for! service! providing! institutions,!businesses,!and!companies!to!create!tests!and!surveys!that!can!assess!their! workforce's!knowledge!and!competence.! !

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Qualtrics!(www.qualtrics.com)! Qualtrics!is!a!widely!used!professional!surveying!tool!that!manages!surveys!from!start!to! finish.!Clients!hire!Qualtrics!and!provide!them!with!information!such!as!the!length!of!the! survey,!the!purpose!of!the!survey,!and!the!target!audience.!From!this!juncture,!Qualtrics! assesses!the!feasibility!of!the!survey,!and!from!there!conducts!the!entirety!of!the!survey! from!creation!to!analysis.!
SurveyGizmo! (www.surveygizmo.com)! and! Zoomerang! (www.zoomerang.com)! are!other!commonly!used!survey!programs.! Creation%of%Questions% What!is!a!"Good!Question"?! One! of! the! most! important! factors! in! conducting! a! successful! survey! is! communicating! effectively! with! the! target! audience.! How! questions! are! asked! on! a! survey! convey! the! tone! of! the! surveyor.! A! good! question! is! brief,! objective,! simple! and! unambiguous! ("Smart! Survey! Design,"! 2013).! A! good! question! is! also! germane! to! the! purpose! of! the! survey.!It!is!important!to!ask!questions!that!are!relevant!to!the!company!and!have!some! level!of!salience!with!the!respondent!(Perkins,!2011).!Questions!should!not!require!the! respondent! to! put! excess! effort! to! respond! thoroughly,! nor! should! a! question! assume! the! respondent! has! prior! knowledge! on! a! specific! topic! ("Smart! Survey! Design,"! 2013).! Additionally,! questions! should! not! assume! the! respondent! could! provide! a! specific! numerical! answer! (Walonick,! 2010).! Although! considering! these! factors! when! writing! questions! may! not! impact! every! respondent's! interest! in! the! survey,! the! surveyor! is! more!likely!to!obtain!the!desired!information.!

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Question%Types% A! survey! should! include! a! variety! of! question! formats! in! order! to! keep! the! respondent! engaged.! There! are! multiple! types! of! questions! that! can! be! used! in! a! survey! ("Smart! Survey!Design,"!2013;!Walonick,!2010).! OpenMended!Questions! OpenCended! questions! allow! the! respondent! to! write! a! free! response! to! specific! questions.!These!questions!give!the!surveyor!a!great!understanding!of!the!respondents'! opinion!about!the!topic!("Smart!Survey!Design,"!2013).! CloseMended!Questions! ClosedCended!questions!are!also!known!as!single!answer!multipleCchoice!questions.!The! respondent! is! given! a! set! of! preCdetermined! answers! that! are! either! dichotomous! (simple!yes!or!no!questions)!or!multiCchotomous.!MultiCchoice!questions!should!include! the!option!of!"other",!"do!not!know",!or!"not!applicable"!since!some!questions!may!not! be! relevant! to! the! respondent! or! outside! the! respondent's! knowledge! ("Smart! Survey! Design,"!2013;!Walonick,!2010).! Ranked!Questions! Ranked!questions!allow!the!respondent!to!determine!the!importance!of!a!topic.% %Matrix!and!Rating!Questions! Matrix! and! rating! questions! are! best! used! when! the! surveyor! wishes! to! know! the! general! frequency! of! an! opinion! regarding! a! specific! topic! ("Smart! Survey! Design,"! 2013).! !

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! Likert!Scales! Likert!scales!measure!respondents!attitudes,!behaviors,!and!opinions!at!various!degrees! and!levels,!such!as!level!of!agreement!(strongly!agree!to!strongly!disagree),!frequency!of! use!(every!time!to!never),!level!of!satisfaction!(extremely!satisfied!to!not!at!all!satisfied),! and!level!of!support!(strongly!favor!to!strongly!oppose).% Semantic!Differential!Scales! Semantic! differential! scales! use! opposite! ends! of! a! scale! marked! with! two! different! or! opposing! statements.! Respondents! are! asked! to! indicate! the! area! in! which! they! fall! on! the!proposed!scale!("Smart!Survey!Design,"!2013).% Balanced!vs.!Unbalanced!Scales! Balanced! versus! unbalanced! scales! often! use! a! five! point! scale! from! poor! to! excellent.! This! scale! is! used! to! determine! if! there! is! a! general! consensus! in! opinion! among! respondent!toward!a!specific!topic!("Smart!Survey!Design,"!2013).! Wording!and!Sequencing! Questions! presented! in! a! survey! or! questionnaire! should! have! clear,! concise! wording! and! use! common! language.! Questions! should! also! have! neutral! wording! and! avoid! making! subjective! connotations! ("Smart! Survey! Design,"! 2013).! The! opening! questions! of! a! survey! should! be! germane! yet! simple;! these! questions! should! spark! the! respondents'! interest! and! establish! the! ethos! of! the! surveyor! ("Smart! Survey! Design,"! 2013).!In!order!to!maintain!a!sense!of!continuity!and!cohesion!in!the!survey,!questions! should! focus! on! one! topic! at! a! time! and! general! questions! should! be! followed! by!

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gradually! more! specific! questions;! however,! questions! should! not! be! dependent! on! previous! ones! (McColl,! Jacoby,! Thomas,! Soutter,! Bamford,! Steen,! Thomas,! Harvey,! Garratt,&!Bond,!2001;!"Smart!Survey!Design,"!2013;!Walonick,!2010).!Since!respondents! often!don't!finish!the!survey,!it!is!important!to!place!the!heavily!weighted!questions!at! the! beginning! of! the! survey! rather! than! sensitive,! demographical! questions! (Halteman,! 2011;!"Smart!Survey!Design,"!2013).!! Survey%Introduction% The! introduction! of! a! survey! provides! general! information! about! the! purpose! of! the! survey!and!the!survey's!structure.!The!introduction!may!include!an!estimate!of!the!time! needed!to!complete!the!survey!and!simple!instructions!on!how!to!complete!the!survey.! In! addition,! the! introduction! may! also! stress! the! importance! of! completing! the! survey! and! include! a! statement! of! appreciation! for! the! respondents'! time! ("Smart! Survey! Design,"!2013).! Physical%Formatting%of%the%Questions%or%the%Body%of%the%Survey% The! survey! should! be! visually! appealing! and! easy! to! complete.! Text! fonts! should! be! legible!and!the!questions!should!be!orderly,!properly!spaced,!and!numbered.!Questions! should!be!grouped!based!on!topic;!however,!each!question!should!be!placed!on!its!own! line!or!on!its!own!screen!if!possible!("Smart!Survey!Design,"!2013).!Ample!space!should! be!provided!for!free!response!answers!and!other!answers.! Concluding%the%Survey% The! conclusion! of! the! survey! should! once! again! thank! the! respondent! for! his/her! time! and! stress! the! importance! of! returning! the! completed! survey! as! soon! as! possible.! The!

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conclusion!should!also!include!instructions!on!how!to!return!the!survey!to!the!surveyor! and! provide! information! on! whom! to! contact! if! respondents! have! any! questions! or! comments.! Coding%and%Identification% In! an! effort! to! ensure! anonymity! and! to! tabulate! response! rates,! each! respondent! can! be! given! a! number! to! use! as! a! form! of! identification! on! the! survey.! Different! text! formats!and!fonts!can!be!used!to!emphasize!questions!and!statements!throughout!the! survey! as! long! as! they! are! legible! and! have! clear! meanings! ("Smart! Survey! Design,"! 2013).!! PreLtest% An!efficient!way!to!determine!if!a!finalized!survey!will!elicit!a!desired!response!rate!is!to! conduct!a!preCtest!of!the!questionnaire.!A!preCtest!is!a!trial!run!of!a!designed!survey!that! determines! where! there! are! specific! problems! with! its! overall! design.! A! common! problem! found! through! preCtesting! surveys! is! that! some! questions! may! have! a! significant! level! of! ambiguity! that! can! yield! responses! that! the! surveyor! did! not! intend! (McColl!et!al,!2001).!The!preCtest!should!be!conducted!with!a!small!sample!of!the!target! population! ("Smart! Survey! Design,"! 2013).! In! addition! to! determining! the! competency! and! quality! of! a! survey,! preCtesting! also! estimates! the! amount! of! time! necessary! to! complete!the!survey!("Smart!Survey!Design,"!2013).!! % % %

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Survey%Distribution% Communication%% !PreMSurvey!Announcements! An!effective!way!to!increase!the!response!rate!of!a!survey!and!to!establish!its!legitimacy! is! to! send! out! announcements! of! the! survey! to! respondents! prior! to! distributing! the! actual!survey.!The!announcement!should!state!the!purpose!of!the!survey!and!what!the! company! intends! to! do! with! the! data! received! from! the! results! (Halteman,! 2012).! Including! personalized! invitations! shows! that! the! surveyor! respects! the! respondents'! time!and!appreciates!their!individual!participation!(Halteman,!2012).!! Reminders! The!period!of!time!between!the!initial!survey!and!reminders!should!be!relatively!short;! also,! the! reminders! should! be! short! in! length! (Archer,! 2003).! Reminders! can! be! in! the! form!of!email,!phone!calls,!letters,!or!postcards.!The!surveyor!should!try!to!send!at!least! two! reminders.! When! sending! emails,! it! is! suggested! that! the! surveyor! resends! the! hyperlink! for! the! survey! to! the! respondent! (Walonick,! 2010).! When! sending! reminders! by!mail,!the!first!should!be!an!informally!toned!letter!that!includes!another!copy!of!the! survey! and! an! incentive,! if! possible;! the! second! reminder! should! be! a! postcard! that! allows!the!respondent!to!either!request!or!decline!another!copy!of!the!survey!(Brennan,! 1992).! It! may! also! be! helpful! to! use! group! administration,! such! as! during! a! team! meeting,! to! conduct! the! survey! or! at! least! have! team! leaders! and/or! managers! make! announcements!reminding!employees!of!the!survey!(Hampton!&!Vilela,!2013).! !

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FollowMup! After! the! survey! has! been! conducted! and! the! data! has! been! analyzed,! a! plan! to! implement! certain! changes! should! be! drawn! up.! Senior! managers,! human! resources! teams,!or!employee!advocacy!groups!are!typically!tasked!with!communicating!the!new! improvement!plans!with!employees!("Strategic!Use!of!Employee!Survey!Results,"!1999).! Keeping! employees! informed! establishes! trust! and! sense! of! community! that! improves! employee/employer!relationships!(Haynes,!2002).! How!Long!Should!the!Survey!Be?! The! rule! of! thumb! is! to! keep! the! survey! as! concise! as! possible.! Survey! Monkey! conducted! research! to! find! the! average! amount! of! time! respondents! take! to! complete! an!online!survey!based!on!length.!Their!research!shows!that!the!longer!the!survey!is,!the! less! time! respondents! will! take! answering! each! question;! thus,! the! quality! of! the! answers! diminish! and! more! questions! are! abandoned! towards! the! end! (Brent,! 2011).! From! Survey! Monkey's! tabulated! results,! on! average,! a! survey! with! 26C30! questions! takes! a! respondent! around! 9C10! minutes! to! complete,! which! is! about! 19! seconds! per! question.! Surprisingly,! a! survey! with! 3C10! questions! may! take! 2C5! minutes! to! complete! with!an!average!of!about!20!seconds!per!question!(Brent,!2011).!Other!research!shows! that! long! surveys! cause! fatigue! and! loss! of! focus.! In! addition,! respondents! are! more! likely!to!answer!questions!falsely!to!avoid!followCup!questions!(Hooper,!2013).!In!order! to!have!a!better!chance!at!attaining!higher!response!rates!and!better!quality!of!answers,! surveys!should!take!no!more!than!20!minutes!to!complete!(Hooper,!2013).!! !

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Time!Frame! The!amount!of!time!needed!to!complete!the!survey!depends!on!the!survey's!length!and! complexity.!The!amount!of!time!it!takes!for!the!surveyor!to!receive!the!survey!from!the! respondents! depends! on! the! survey! method! used;! however,! respondents! should! be! given! ample! time! to! complete! and! return! the! survey! regardless! of! which! method! is! used.! Recent! findings! have! shown! that! surveys! that! are! to! be! returned! by! fax! take! approximately! 4! days! to! return,! web! surveys! take! approximately! 6! days,! and! mail! surveys! take! approximately! 16.5! days! (Cobanoglu! et.! al.,! 2000).! When! distributing! a! survey,! it! is! important! to! be! mindful! of! the! time! of! day! the! survey! is! being! sent,! especially! for! online/email! surveys,! the! day! of! the! week,! and! even! the! season;! these! factors!impact!how!quickly!the!employee!will!notice!the!survey!and!respond!to!it!(TRC).! Paul!Sanchez!(2007)!of!The!Journal!of!Business!Strategy!suggests!that!the!entire!process! of!conducting!and!analyzing!the!survey!is!complete!by!the!following!business!cycle;!this! is! because! the! beginning! of! a! new! business! cycle! is! an! excellent! time! to! implement! changes.!! Packaging!and!Collection! When! distributing! surveys,! the! packaging/email! format! should! be! visually! appealing.! Using! bulk! postage! or! emails! increase! the! risk! of! the! survey! being! labeled! as! "junk"! or! spam!(Walonick,!2010).!The!address!on!the!envelope!should!be!handwritten,!if!possible.! Additionally,!the!respondent's!home!address!should!be!used,!rather!than!work!address;! the! envelope! should! include! the! respondent's! full! name! and! a! company/organization! stamp.! In! order! to! make! returning! the! survey! convenient,! the! survey! should! include! a!

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postageCpaid! return! envelope.! It! is! also! helpful! to! have! dropCboxes! available! for! returning!written!surveys!(Brennan,!1992).! Who!in!the!Business/Company!Should!Manage!the!Survey?! Another!factor!that!impacts!the!response!rate!of!a!survey!is!who!is!managing!the!survey.! For! the! best! results,! senior! leadership,! human! resources,! or! another! leadership! group! should! manage! the! survey;! however,! all! forms! and! levels! of! management! should! be! involved! with! survey.! Senior! management! has! the! ability! to! stress! how! important! the! survey! is! to! the! company's! future! and! make! the! changes! needed! to! improve! the! work! environment;! thus,! employees! are! more! likely! to! complete! the! survey! when! they! think! they!are!being!heard!("Strategic!Use!of!Employee!Surveys!1999;"!Wright!and!Schwager! 2008).!Although!Human!Resources!is!not!directly!able!to!implement!change,!it!can!relay! employee! concerns! to! senior! leadership.! In! order! to! establish! future! legitimacy,! the! leadership! team! should! also! be! responsible! for! discussing! the! survey! analysis! with! employees!("Strategic!Use!of!Employee!Surveys,"!1999).!Cover!letters!are!a!great!way!to! convince! the! respondent! to! complete! the! survey! and! should! include! the! signature! of! a! senior! leadership! team! member! to! show! sponsorship! and! validity! (Walonick,! 2010).! Cover! letters! should! be! impersonally! toned,! short! in! length,! typed,! and! include! the! company/!organization's!letterhead!(Brennan,!1992).! ! ! ! !

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!Survey!Analysis/Implementation! Survey!data!analysis!begins!with!three!general!steps:!organizing!the!data,!describing!the! data,!and!determining!relationships!between!differing!variables.!Data!analysis!begins!by! organizing!the!collected!information!to!ensure!that!codes!and!commands!can!be!easily! written! to! tabulate! the! data.! The! next,! and! penultimate! step! of! analysis,! is! the! description! of! the! data.! Describing! the! organized! data! is! also! known! as! univariate! analysis,! which! determines! the! frequency! or! likelihood! of! a! single! factor! such! as! age,! gender,!or!ethnicity.!Univariate!analysis!allows!for!the!final!step!of!data!analysis!to!take! place:! the! determination! of! relationships! between! variables! (Honisch,! 2009).! Survey! creators! are! ultimately! interested! in! the! relationships! found! between! different! variables.! Variable! relationships! provide! the! insight! and! knowledge! desired! from! the! target! audience.! If! the! relationships! found! inside! the! collected! data! help! support! and! fulfill!the!goals!of!the!survey,!then!the!survey!can!be!considered!an!overall!success.! !!!!!!!!! Variable! relationships! also! provide! direction! regarding! which! action! or! change! should! be! initiated.! Many! surveys'! purposes! are! to! disperse! knowledge,! better! the! status! quo,! or! achieve! a! diffuse! range! of! different! ends.! The! purpose! and! goals! for! the! survey! can! be! achieved! only! when! there! is! a! plan! or! proposal! put! into! action.! For! example,! a! business! may! implement! new! workforce! incentives! to! increase! productivity! as! a! result! of! relationships! showing! that! incentives! increase! worker! attitudes,! which! in! effect,!increase!employee!productivity.!! ! !

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Determining!Response!Rate! A! survey's! legitimacy! is! dependent! upon! the! amount! of! substantial! information! it! gathers! from! its! target! audience.! The! response! rate! of! a! survey! depicts! how! well! the! target! audience! is! represented! in! the! findings! and! whether! or! not! the! findings! are! legitimate.! The! response! rate! for! any! survey! can! be! quantified! by! the! percentage! of! people! who! respond! to! the! distributed! survey! ("Response! Rates! &! Surveying! Techniques,"!2009).!! !!!!!!!!! Response!Rate!Equation!("Response!Rates!&!Surveying!Techniques",!2009):! !"#$%&#"!!"#$!
= ! (#!!"!!"#$%&!!!"#$%&'&( #!!"!!"#$%&%!"'$(!!"#$%!$&')!100%! Determining!Findings! Determining! the! findings! of! a! survey! can! be! viewed! as! distinguishing! the! relationships! between!single!variables!in!a!data!set!("Response!Rates!&!Surveying!Techniques,"!2009).! There!are!a!number!of!analytic!tools!that!can!analyze!data!and!determine!the!findings!of! a!survey.!Tools!such!as!Python,!MatLab,!and!Microsoft!Excel!are!all!common!computer! programs! that! allow! for! data! to! be! extracted! and! analyzed! by! the! user.! Multivariate! analysis,! which! determines! how! a! number! of! variables! influence! and! relate! to! one! another,! often! reveals! the! most! useful! findings.! Determining! and! defining! the! relationships! between! different! variables! inside! of! the! survey! provide! insight! into! the! target! audience's! attitudes,! knowledge,! or! thoughts! on! a! specific! topic.! Additionally,! survey! findings! are! essential! to! the! future! creation! of! a! solution! or! proposal! that! can! address!maladaptive!areas!inside!of!a!business!or!company.!!

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Sharing!Findings!with!Respondents/!Target!Audience! Once! the! survey! findings! have! been! reviewed! by! the! survey! creators,! it! is! then! the! surveyors'! responsibility! to! present! findings! to! the! respondent! audience! (Fisher! et.! al.! 2008,!"Strategic!Use!of!Employee!Surveys,"!2003).!For!this!reason,!some!businesses!and! companies!have!senior!or!upper!level!management!oversee!the!entire!surveying!process! through! the! sharing! of! findings! with! the! polled! audience! (Wright! &! Schwager,! 2008).! According! to! Wright! and! Schwager,! having! a! known! leader! inside! of! a! business,! company,!or!service!providing!institution!implement!and!advertise!the!survey!has!been! shown! to! elicit! overall! higher! response! rates! to! present! and! future! surveys.! Communication! is! essential! in! every! step! of! the! surveying! process,! even! when! the! survey! itself! is! complete.! Following! up! with! the! target! audience! reaffirms! that! each! respondent's! participation! was! considered! and! potentially! used! to! create! new! incentives,! proposals,! or! other! supplements! for! a! business! or! company! ("Employee! Surveys,"!2013).!! Definition!and!Implementation!of!New!Business!Supplements!or!Employee!Incentives! Surveys! prove! to! be! most! effective! when! owners,! managers,! or! lead! surveyors! create! proposals! that! incentivize! actions! that! increase! productivity.! Defining! new! business! supplements! and! employee! incentives! is! centrally! contingent! upon! analyzing! the! gathered! data! and! looking! at! how! different! relationships! among! variables! impact! and! reflect! one! another! (Honisch,! 2009).! Relationships! amongst! survey! variables! provide! insight! into! the! inner! workings! of! businesses! and! companies! that! might! not! be! able! to! be!distinguished!upon!superficial!examination.!This!aforementioned!insight!additionally!

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serves!towards!the!effective!creation!of!successful!business!supplements!and!employee! incentives! based! upon! empirical! findings.! Following! the! definition! and! creation! of! new! proposals! and! programs,! putting! them! into! action! is! essential.! Implemented! programs! should!be!assessed!to!determine!whether!or!not!they!were!successful.!! Survey%Bias%% Question%Content% What!Should!be!Addressed!in!Questions?! Employee! surveys! should! focus! primarily! on! the! aspects! that! the! leaders! inside! of! a! company! are! most! concerned! about.! It! is! common! for! employee! surveys! to! focus! on! employee! satisfaction.! Factors! that! impact! employee! satisfaction! attitudes,! burnout! tendencies,!enthusiasm,!reliability,!work!environment,!and!knowledge!of!the!market!are! generally! assessed.! Questions! can! ask! if! employees! feel! that! they! are! well! informed! about!company!news,!are!heard!by!upper!management,!have!all!necessary!resources!to! complete! their! job,! and! if! their! skills! are! properly! used! by! their! tasks.! In! addition,! questions!can!address!whether!or!not!the!company!respects!employees'!personal!lives,! rewards! employees,! and! if! employees! believe! they! could! earn! a! promotion.! In! general,! employee!surveys!should!ask!certain!basic!questions!about!diversity,!training,!company! policies,!and!job!benefits.!Lastly,!the!survey!should!ask!demographic!questions!that!will! be! useful! when! analyzing! data.! These! questions! ask! for! each! employee's! age,! race,! gender,!highest!education,!job!level,!and!number!of!years!at!the!company!(Smith,!2013).! ! !

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Response!Bias! Response! bias! may! cause! the! results! of! a! survey! to! falsely! show! that! the! sampled! population! has! a! more! positive! or! satisfactory! opinion! about! the! topic! of! concern.! Ensuring!anonymity!on!the!survey!is!the!main!way!to!reduce!response!bias.!% Leading!and!Loaded!Questions! Questions! presented! in! a! questionnaire! should! be! neutral! and! objective.! Leading! and! loaded!questions!are!two!types!of!questions!that!are!perceived!as!subjective!rather!than! objective.!A!leading!question!is!worded!in!a!way!that!guides!the!respondent!to!a!specific! answer.! A! loaded! question! is! worded! in! a! way! that! indirectly! impacts! the! respondents'! pride! ("Smart! Survey! Design,"! 2013).! These! questions! undermine! the! respondents'! opinions!by!appealing!to!their!emotions!rather!than!knowledge.!Loaded!questions!may! also!be!perceived!as!threatening.! Socially!Desirable!Responding! Socially! Desirable! Responding! (SDR)! occurs! when! respondents! present! themselves! in! ways!that!are!considered!socially!normal.!This!may!cause!the!respondent!to!overCreport! or! underreport,! depending! on! the! topic! and! environment! (Baumgartner! &! Steenkamp,! 2006).! The! two! main! factors! are! impression! management! and! selfCdeceptive! enhancement.! Impression! management! is! when! one! ! person! presents! him! or! herself! positively;! this! is! based! more! on! the! situation.! SelfCdeceptive! enhancement! is! when! a! person! is! honest! about! his! or! herself! and! action! yet! is! positively! biased;! this! is! based! more!on!personality!(Baumgartner!&!Steenkamp,!2006).!This!form!of!response!bias!can! either!be!directed!to!specific!topics!or!the!survey!in!its!entirety.!Ensuring!anonymity!can!

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control! SDR! (Baumgartner! &! Steenkamp,! 2006).! The! impact! of! SDR! on! a! sample! population's!response!data!comes!down!to!the!individuals'!differing!personalities.! Acquiescent!Responding! Acquiescence!occurs!when!a!respondent!has!a!tendency!to!agree,!regardless!of!subject,! and!is!often!considered!a!personality!trait.!Most!acquiescent!people!answer!questions!in! "`impulsive! acceptance'"! or! "`uncritical! agreement.'"! Research! has! found! that! there! is! negative! correlation! between! acquiescence! and! respondents'! levels! of! education,! income,! and! race;! respondents! with! less! education,! low! income,! and! minorities! are! more! likely! to! be! acquiescent.! Research! has! also! found! that! the! ambiguity! of! content,! uncertainty,! and/or! situational! factors! during! which! the! respondent! is! taking! a! survey! may! be! triggers! for! acquiescence.! The! biasing! effect! of! acquiescence! can! be! controlled! but!not!eliminated!by!using!balanced,!or!equal!parts!positive!and!negative!wording!on!a! survey,!making!questions!comprehensive,!and!encouraging!respondents!to!take!surveys! away!from!distractions!(Baumgartner!&!Steenkamp,!2006).! Extreme!Response!Style! Extreme! Response! Style! (ERS)! occurs! when! a! respondent! tends! to! agree! with! the! most! extreme!response!options!regardless!of!subject.!ERS!is!often!found!in!respondents!that! have! a! need! for! high! levels! of! certainty! in! an! uncertain! environment,! high! anxiety,! deviant! behavior,! and! low! cognitive! development.! As! is! the! case! with! acquiescent! responders,! there! is! negative! correlation! between! ERS! and! respondents'! level! of! education,! income,! and! race;! however,! there! is! also! a! significant! positive! correlation! with!age,!since!children!are!more!likely!to!respond!using!ERS.!ERS!can!be!controlled!by!

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using! multipleCchoice! formatting! and! by! reducing! the! length! of! scales! on! questions! formatted!with!scales!(Baumgartner!&!Steenkamp,!2006).! Midpoint!Responding! Midpoint!Responding!(MPR)!occurs!when!the!respondent!habitually!favors!the!middle!of! a! scale! or! middle! ground! on! a! subject.! Little! research! has! been! conducted! on! MPR;! however,! it! is! believed! that! respondents! who! use! MPR! are! characteristically! evasive,! indecisive,! and! indifferent.! Eliminating! the! middle! response! option! or! allowing! the! option! of! "don't! know"! may! control! MPR;! however,! research! has! not! confirmed! that! these!methods!are!effective!(Baumgartner!&!Steenkamp,!2006).% Other!Forms!of!Response!Bias! Other! forms! of! response! bias! include! negative! affectivity,! leniency,! and! consistency.! Negative!affectivity!occurs!when!a!respondent's!negative!nature!is!present!in!his!or!her! responses.!Leniency!refers!to!a!respondent's!tendency!to!positively!support!a!person!or! subject!they!know!well.!For!example,!some!employees!believe!they!may!be!punished!for! voicing!their!opinions!to!their!employers.!Consistency!refers!to!a!respondent's!tendency! to!respond!based!on!his!or!her!memories,!perspective!of!the!present,!predictions!of!the! future!(Baumgartner!&!Steenkamp,!2006).! Nonresponse!Bias! Nonresponse!bias!is!often!found!when!respondents!differ!greatly!from!nonCrespondents! ("Bias! in! Survey! Sampling").! Generally,! nonresponse! bias! pertains! to! the! reasons! why! respondents! might! not! complete! a! survey.! Some! factors,! apart! from! the! content! of! survey,! that! could! cause! an! employee! not! to! respond! to! a! survey! include! the!

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environment!in!which!the!employee!has!to!take!the!survey,!excess!workload,!legal!and! regulatory! requirements,! extensive! security! within! the! company,! and! the! respondent's! position! within! the! company! (Fisher! et.! al.,! 2008).! If! an! employee! is! hard! to! contact,! overworked,!or!disconnected!from!the!company,!it!can!be!difficult!to!motivate!him/her! to! complete! a! survey.! Also,! the! method! of! distribution! used! may! not! be! practical! or! convenient! for! the! survey;! for! example,! some! workers! may! not! have! access! to! the! Internet.! Another! factor! that! can! impact! nonresponse! bias! is! demographics.! A! study! completed! by! David! Walonick,! found! that! single! men! and! the! less! educated! typically! have!the!lowest!response!rates.! The!structure!and!content!of!the!survey!are!other!factors!that!can!increase!nonresponse! rates.!If!the!survey!is!demanding!or!too!general,!then!respondents!may!not!be!willing!to! spend! time! completing! the! survey! (Fisher! et.! al.,! 2008).! Potential! responders! may! perceive! certain! questions! on! a! survey! to! be! insensitive! or! aggressive! (Fairfax! County! Department! of! Neighborhood! and! Community! Services,! 2012).! Most! importantly,! the! employee! may! believe! that! actions! will! never! be! taken! with! the! information! obtained;! thus,!making!completion!of!the!survey!trivial!(Lloyd,!2013).! Response%rates% Response! rates! determine! what! percentage! or! proportion! of! the! surveyed! population! can! be! accurately! spoken! for.! Response! rates! are! dependent! on! the! quality! of! survey! and! how! well! the! surveyor! understands! the! potential! for! nonresponse! bias! within! the! survey's! results! ("Response! Rates! C! An! Overview,"! 2013).! Research! has! found! that! surveys!conducted!inCperson!and!by!phone!have!the!highest!response!rates!with!around!

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80%C85%.! Mail! surveys! have! an! average! response! rate! of! 50%C70%,! followed! by! email! surveys! with! an! average! of! 40%C60%,! and! online! surveys! with! an! average! of! 30%! ("Response! Rates,"! 2011).! However,! another! study! conducted! by! researchers! at! Oklahoma! State! University! showed! that! web! surveys! had! the! greatest! response! with! 44.21%! followed! by! mail! surveys! with! 26.27%! and! fax! surveys! with! 17.0%! (Cobanoglu,! et.! al.,! 2000).! This! discrepancy! shows! that! response! rates! vary! greatly! from! survey! to! survey.!! Why%Do%People%Participate%in%Surveys?%% People! are! motivated! to! complete! surveys! for! different! reasons.! Some! people! like! to! voice!their!opinions!on!interesting!topics,!especially!when!they!think!they!are!helping!a! cause;! however,! others! may! solely! want! the! incentive.! Lastly,! there! are! those! people! who!simply!enjoy!taking!surveys!(Gemmell,!2009).!! Factors%That%Increase%Response%Rates%% This! section! of! the! review! highlights! a! number! of! factors! that! have! been! shown! and! previously! discussed! to! significantly! impact! response! rates! of! implemented! surveys.! These!factors!should!be!taken!into!consideration!throughout!the!entirety!of!the!design,! distribution,!and!analysis!steps!of!a!survey.!!! Factor! #1:! Incentives! ! Displaying! the! potential! benefit! of! completing! a! survey! to! the! respondent! greatly! increases! response! rates.! Incentives! do! not! have! to! be! entirely! monetary;!they!can!be!lottery!based!and!still!prove!to!be!effective.! Factor! #2:! Length! ! Every! survey! should! be! written! to! be! as! concise! as! possible.! Additionally,! the! questions! should! be! written! to! be! completely! devoid! of! ambiguity! so!

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that! respondents! do! not! have! to! guess! or! assume! what! the! surveyor! is! asking.! These! actions!gather!more!complete!responses!and!produce!surveys!with!fewer!questions!left! blank!or!unanswered.! Factor! #3:! Contacts! The! number! of! contacts! the! surveyor! has! made! to! the! hopeful! respondents! has! proven! to! increase! response! rates.! A! notification! prior! to! the! distribution! of! the! survey! and! a! number! of! followCup! reminder! messages! yields! better! response!rates.!If!the!sample!pool!is!going!to!be!surveyed!again,!particularly!in!the!near! future,!providing!thank!you!or!other!notices!of!appreciation!increase!response!rates!on! future!surveys.! Factor! #4:! Personalization! of! Survey! ! Personalizing! surveys! yields! an! increase! in! response! rates,! as! it! calls! the! respondent! to! action.! It! should! be! noted! that! when! designing! online! surveys,! having! too! many! open! response! or! "free! response"! boxes! decreases!the!response!rates,!as!participants!assume!it!will!take!too!long!to!complete.! Factor!#5:!Topic!Salience!!Creating!multiple!surveys!or!attachments!to!surveys!that!are! tailored! to! respondents'! specific! work! has! been! shown! to! increase! overall! response! rates.!This!factor!increases!personalization!of!the!survey!and!also!increases!the!potential! to!maintain!the!respondents'!interest!and!focus!throughout!the!whole!survey.!! Factor!#6:!Share!survey!results!with!participants!and!explain!future!actions!to!be!taken!! Sharing!the!information!gathered!from!a!survey!with!the!respondents!that!participated! increases!future!response!rates!in!later!surveys.!When!employees,!or!a!target!audience,! are! aware! that! surveyor(s)! are! implementing! new! policies! or! different! actions! in! response!to!survey!data!analysis,!future!response!rates!to!surveys!tend!to!increase.!

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Factor! #7:! Design! your! survey! from! the! perspective! of! the! respondents! ! This! factor! aligns!with!salience,!but!adds!the!aspect!of!making!sure!the!questions!and!inquiries!are! short,! concise,! and! devoid! of! ambiguity.! In! designing! a! survey,! the! surveyor! should! consider! characteristics! of! respondents,! such! as! literacy! level,! experience,! and! knowledge! of! topics! in! the! survey.! Additionally,! preCtesting! a! sample! of! the! target! audience!allows!for!the!creation!of!questions!more!suited!to!the!respondent!pool.! Factor! #8:! The! impact! of! who! distributes! the! survey! ! Having! a! known! superior/leader! distribute!a!survey!inside!of!a!business!tends!to!increase!response!rates!compared!to!a! hired! survey! company! or! other! surveying! entity.! Additionally,! this! factor! generally! decreases! the! amount! of! omitted! questions! by! respondents! and! yields! more! full! and! concrete!freeCresponse!questions!in!the!survey.!! Factor!#9:!The!Expectation!of!Implementing/!Acting!upon!Survey!Results!!All!employee! surveys,!whether!they!are!determining!general!attitudes!or!specific!information,!create! the! expectation! that! the! surveyor,! or! upperClevel! management,! will! implement! the! survey! findings! through! some! kind! of! action! plan! that! is! beneficial! to! the! employees.! When! action! is! not! taken,! distrust! and! negative! attitudes! or! feelings! can! be! harbored! towards!future!surveys,!decreasing!response!rates!and!increasing!respondent!bias.! Factor! #10:! PreCtesting! and! correcting! the! survey! ! To! ensure! the! design! process! is! as! effective! as! possible! in! eliciting! the! desired! information! from! the! audience,! preCtesting! the! survey! with! a! select! pool! of! individuals! from! the! target! audience! helps! to! identify! where! there! are! potential! problems! with! the! questions! and! general! layout! of! a! survey.!

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! This! action! will! allow! for! the! survey! designers! to! determine! whether! or! not! questions! are!eliciting!the!desired!information.!!

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!

Appendix C

Minutes of GDOT Leadership and Study Team Meeting

!

Meeting!Minutes!

Review!of!GDOT's!Organization!Evaluation!Process!by!Examining!Current!Employee!

Survey!and!Other!State!DOTs!Methods!!Phase!I!

!

Leadership!Team!Meeting! Commissioner's!Conference!Room!22nd!Floor!

One!Georgia!Center!

600!West!Peachtree!St.!NW!

Atlanta,!GA!30308!

!

Monday,!April!29,!2013!

9:00a.m.!!10:00p.m.!

!

Attendance:!

Stephan!Durham!(UGA!Engineering)! !

Karen!DeMeester!(UGA!Evaluation)!

Scott!Smith!(UGA)! !

!

!

Angela!Alexander!(GDOT)!

Alma!Mujkanovic!(GDOT)! !

!

Matt!Cline!(GDOT)!

Angela!Whitworth!(GDOT)! !

!

Keith!Golden!(GDOT)!

Todd!Long!(GDOT)! !

!

!

Russell!McMurry!(GDOT)!

!

1. Welcome!and!Introductions! Welcome! given! by! Stephan! Durham! of! the! University! of! Georgia's! College! of!

Engineering.! The! project! Study! Team! were! introduced:! Stephan! Durham! (UGA!

College! of! Engineering),! Karen! DeMeester! (UGA! Program! Evaluation! Group),! Scott!

Smith!(UGA!College!of!Engineering!Student!Researcher),!and!Shenell!Robinson!!not!

in! attendance! (UGA! College! of! Engineering! Student! Researcher).! All! the! attendees!

introduced!themselves!and!their!role!within!GDOT.!!

2. Question!and!Answer!with!the!Leadership!Team!

Karen!DeMeester!began!the!question!and!answer!session!with!the!leadership!team!

by!discussing!the!need!for!employee!surveys!including!how!they!are!used!and!their!

benefits.! Surveys! can! be! used! to! measure! more! than! employee! satisfaction.! They!

can!be!used!to!reveal!employee!perceptions!and!beliefs!and!to!identify!factors!that!

potentially! influence! employee! performance! and! retention.! The! survey! findings!

enable! leaders! to! make! more! informed! decisions! about! policies! and! initiatives! to!

create!a!highly!motivated,!high!performing,!and!stable!workforce.!

Commissioner!Keith!Golden!asked!the!question!"How!do!you!get!around!the!topic!of!

compensation,"! stating! that! that! topic! has! been! a! major! issue! for! employees.! In!

addition,! Commissioner! Golden! discussed! the! general! belief! that! employees! largely!

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care! about! three! things:! compensation,! healthcare,! and! increased! cost/quality! of! living.Also,! a! concern! was! expressed! that! employees! may! not! believe,! or! feel,! that! the!Leadership!Group!can!greatly!change!their!current!condition.! ! Deputy!Commissioner!Todd!Long!expressed!three!keys!to!employee!happiness:!
Satisfaction!with!the!work!he!or!she!is!doing!and!the!feeling!that!the!work!is! making!a!difference!or!impact.!
The!employee!enjoys!the!environment!and!people!he!or!she!works!with!on!a! daily!basis.!
There!is!a!sense!of!job!security!in!the!position!an!employee!is!holding.! !
Angela! Alexander! added! an! additional! key! to! employee! happiness:! employees! experience! satisfaction! when! they! feel! as! though! they! are! applying! the! technical! skills!they've!gained!through!a!degree!and/or!have!honed!through!experience!over! time.!! The! Study! Team! asked! a! series! of! questions! to! clarify! what! the! Leadership! Team! wanted!to!learn!from!the!survey!(i.e.,!the!purpose,!intent,!and!focus!of!the!survey).! Questions!were!grouped!into!three!themes:!!
! Purpose!of!Conducting!the!Survey! ! Reporting!Requirements!and!Expectations! ! Logistics!of!the!Survey! ! Purpose% a. Moving!forward!with!the!development!of!a!new!employee!survey!instrument,! what! would! the! GDOT! Leadership! Group! view! as! their! purpose! for! conducting! the! survey?! What! information! is! hoped! to! be! learned! or! uncovered! from! survey!responses?!! ! The!following!items!were!identified!as!results!desired!from!the!survey:! ! GDOT!Policies! ! GDOT!Procedures! ! What!type!of!training/certifications!do!employees!feel!they!need?! ! What!GDOT!programs!do!employees!wish!were!available?! ! What!GDOT!programs!do!employees!wish!were!brought!back?! ! Determine!what!the!best!employee!incentives!would!be!and!how!to!
implement!them.! !
Chief!Engineer!Russell!McMurry!mentioned!that!this!survey!should!be!presented! in! a! way! where! "it! is! the! Leadership! Team! wanting! to! understand! GDOT's! employees"! as! opposed! to! a! survey! to! find! out! what! employees! know! about!

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their! supervisors! and! the! Leadership! Team.! This! philosophy! drew! positive!
responses!among!the!group.!
b. What! are! some! of! the! challenges! or! issues! GDOT! encounters,! such! as! safety! concerns,! work! conditions,! work! space,! etc...,! that! may! not! be! directly! related! to!employee!satisfaction!but!that!employee!feedback!could!help!management! better!understand!and!address?!! !
Several! items! were! identified! as! challenges! that! the! Leadership! Team! felt! were!
important!to!address:! ! What!are!solutions!to!employee!work!environment?! ! Determine!and!eventually!employ!the!most!effective!means!of!
communication!between!the!Leadership!group!and!district!employees!and! middle!management.! ! What! are! employee! challenges?! (What! would! employees! change! in! their! job...do!they!feel!"locked"!into!the!same!position?)! ! To!understand!what!employees!of!different!ages!value!in!their!job!and!work! environment.!! !
Reporting!
a. At!what!level!does!GDOT!what!to!collect!information?! ! How!specific!does!GDOT!want!to!go!in!terms!of!employee!classification!and! location!within!GDOT!(division/office/district/etc...)?! o It!was!mentioned!that!it!was!desirable!to!drill!down!to!the!levels!that! are!currently!being!reported.! ! Why! does! GDOT! want! to! collect! information! at! this! particular! level?! How! will!this!information!be!used?! o The! survey! has! been! and! will! continue! to! be! used! to! identify! which! groups! are! having! issues.! It! has! been! used! to! follow! up! on! concerns! and!whether!things!are!being!fixed.! !
b. What! does! the! Leadership! Group! feel! is! the! benefit! of! sharing! the! survey! results!across!divisions,!offices,!districts,!etc...?! ! How! would! the! Leadership! Group! like! to! see! the! results! disseminated?! Disseminated! to! all! employees! regardless! of! classification! or! only! provided! to!specific!leaders!and!supervisors!within!GDOT?! o It! was! felt! that! the! results! should! be! disseminated! to! appropriate! supervisors! and! managers! such! that! they! can! follow! up! on! concerns,! the!need!for!resources,!etc...! o With!dissemination!to!supervisors!and!mangers,!they!are!able!to!take! on! some! level! of! accountability;! however,! some! factors! cannot! be! controlled.!

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o It!was!mentioned!that!middle!management!needs!to!be!a!focus!area! since! this! is! where! implementation! occurs! and! messages! are! being! sent!through!this!group!from!upper!GDOT!leadership.! !
c. How! does! the! Leadership! Group! feel! about! the! use! of! different! surveys! for! different!employee!levels?!! ! The!possibility!of!two!surveys!was!expressed,!giving!one!survey!to!employees! working!in!the!General!Office!and!another!to!the!employees!in!the!Districts.! ! It! was! expressed! that! employees! should! not! have! to! answer! questions! regarding! offices! and! individuals! of! which! they! are! not! knowledgeable.! The! survey! could! be! developed! so! that! employees! are! asked! to! provide! information! on! aspects! of! GDOT! that! they! know! about! (i.e.,! their! group! or! office,! supervisor,! coCworkers,! GDOT! as! a! whole,! etc...! excluding! questions! about!individuals!that!they!may!not!know).!
! Logistics% a. How!often!would!the!Leadership!Group!like!to!receive!the!desired!information!
that!the!survey!hopes!to!produce?!! ! Each!year?!Every!other!year?!Etc....!
o A! period! of! two! years! for! conducting! the! cycle! was! mentioned.! This! time! seemed! an! adequate! amount! of! time! in! order! to! develop,! implement,!and!see!results!of!initiatives!from!the!previous!survey.!!
! Commissioner! Golden! noted! the! need! for! a! completely! new! survey.! Angela! Alexander! expressed! that! the! past! survey! could! be! completely! tossed! out! and! the! new! survey! replace! it.! ! Karen! DeMeester! noted! that! the! new! survey! could! be! consistently!adapted!every!two!years!to!glean!the!data!and!information!desired!for! GDOT! employees! while! some! questions! could! be! kept! to! provide! for! longitudinal! survey!results.!
3. Open!Discussion!/!New!Ideas! There! was! an! open! discussion! on! the! creation! of! a! focus! group.! It! was! mentioned! that! the! Employee! Advocacy! Group! could! serve! the! role! of! this! focus! group.! In! addition,! Bayne! Smith! could! serve! to! represent! the! district! offices! in! this! focus! group.!
4. Meeting!Summary! At!the!conclusion!of!the!meeting,!it!was!confirmed!that!GDOT!should!develop!a!new! survey! aimed! at! "wanting! to! understand! its! employees."! This! survey,! conducted! every!two!years,!would!need!to!focus!on!middle!management!since!this!is!the!level! at!which!implementation!occurs!and!where!messages!from!the!Leadership!Team!are! being!sent!through!to!the!majority!of!GDOT's!employees.!The!survey!should!serve!to! gain! knowledge! of! employees'! perceptions! of! policies,! procedures,! new! and! old!

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programs,! and! availability! of! training/certifications! as! well! as! to! identify! any! concerns! across! groups! or! offices! providing! a! mechanism! for! following! up! whether! issues! have! been! resolved.! Ultimately,! the! new! survey! will! serve! to! provide! the! GDOT! with! the! information! needed! to! improve! work! environment,! raise! employee! morale,!and!identify!and!implement!new!initiatives!beneficial!to!the!organization.! 5. Adjournment! The!meeting!was!adjourned!at!10:00a.m.!No!future!meetings!were!scheduled.! Distribute:!SD,!KD,!SS,!SR,!AA,!AM,!SK,!GDOT!Leadership!Team!

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Appendix D Employee Advocacy Team Focus Group Agenda
! ! Focus!Group!Meeting!!Tuesday,!June!18,!2013,!10:00a.m.!!10:30a.m.! ! Meeting%Introduction%L%DeMeester% The!organization!is!very!committed!to!getting!your!feedback!and!input!and!they!want!to!be!able! to!respond!to!you!the!best!they!can.!!We!are!here!today!to!find!out!your!experiences!with!the! existing!survey.! ! Your!responses!today!will!remain!confidential!among!the!participants!in!this!group!and!that!of! the!Study!Team.!!The!discussion!today!will!be!used!by!the!research!group!(UGA)!to!improve!the! survey!and!process!for!GDOT.! ! As!a!follow!up!to!this!meeting,!we!plan!to!send!you!all!an!optional!onCline!survey!to!provide!you! an!opportunity!to!provide!additional!comments!beyond!this!meeting!as!well!as!provide! comments!and!responses!that!you!may!wish!to!provide!outside!of!this!meeting!setting.!The! responses!from!this!optional!survey!will!be!anonymous!and!the!responses!will!not!be!shared! with!GDOT,!only!used!by!the!Study!Team.! ! Focus!Group!Questions!! 1. Do!you!feel!the!information!from!the!surveys!is!being!used?!!Durham! a. How!do!you!feel!the!information!is!being!used?! ! 2. What!is!your!process!for!taking!the!survey?!C!Smith! a. How!are!you!notified!to!take!the!survey?! b. When!do!you!normally!complete!the!survey!(during!work!hours,!lunch,!after! work)?!! c. What!influences!you!to!take!or!not!take!the!survey?! ! 3. What!is!your!perception!of!the!survey!process?!C!DeMeester! ! 4. How!do!you!feel!the!survey!and!process!could!be!improved?!C!Smith! ! ! !

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Appendix E Survey of Other State Departments of Transportations

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! Contact Information for Other State Departments of Transportation

State!
Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Hawaii Idaho Indiana Kansas Louisiana Maine Maryland Michigan Minnesota Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada
New Hampshire

Department!Contact!!
aldotinfo@dot.state.al.us EmployeeCallCenter@alaska.gov HREMP@azdoa.gov Crystal.Woods@arkansashighways.com Lydia.Lewis@dot.ca.gov vicki.arpin@ct.gov; wanda.seldon@ct.gov; patricia.dephillips@ct.gov dotpr@state.de.us ddot@dc.gov
lawrence.ferguson@dot.state.fl.us; karen.jones@dot.state.fl.us dotpao@hawaii.gov tj@consultantoasis.org indot@indot.in.gov publicinfo@ksdot.org Nita.Chambers@la.gov; susan.pellegrin@la.gov; Sharon.Gonzales@la.gov humanres.mainedot@maine.gov; exec.mainedot@maine.gov ksaab@mdot.state.md.us KirschenbauerT1@michigan.gov sue.mulvihill@state.mn.us; christine.fisher@state.mn.us lester.woodsjr@modot.mo.gov; tomikia.chalmers@modot.mo.gov brabe@mt.gov; kvert@mt.gov geri.waechter@nebraska.gov; rachelle.rhoades@nebraska.gov PublicRecordsRequests@dot.state.nv.us; kchambers@dot.state.nv.us; mkumar@dot.state.nv.us jankenbrock@dot.state.nh.us

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State!
New Mexico North Carolina Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Utah Vermont Washington West Virginia Wisconsin
!

Department!Contact!!
Melissa.Dosher@state.nm.us; Stefan.Kosicki@state.nm.us afaulk@ncdot.gov; agcobb@ncdot.gov; msmatthews@ncdot.gov Nick.Nicholson@dot.state.oh.us; Deborah.Sauer@dot.state.oh.us humanres@odot.org Williet.m.hogue@state.or.us penndot_webmaster@pa.gov ktravers@dot.ri.gov MontsMG@scdot.org peggy.laurenz@state.sd.us; kristi.sandal@state.sd.us Delaine.Linville@tn.gov; Jerri.Holland@tn.gov ccibrian@utah.gov don.robbins@state.vt.us KinneyJ@wsdot.wa.gov; hernans@wsdot.wa.gov jeff.j.black@wv.gov; Brent.H.Walker@wv.gov opa.exec@dot.wi.gov
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! Examples of Other State Departments of Transportation Employee Surveys! Indiana%DOT%
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Nebraska%DOR%

Employee!Satisfaction!Survey!April!2011!

!

!Instructions:!Complete!all!26!statements!by!circling!the! ! 1.!!Strongly!Disagree!

!

number!that!most!closely!expresses!your!level!of!

2.!!Disagree!

agreement.!Please!provide!any!comments!or!suggestions!

3.!!Agree!

for!improvement!you!may!have!regarding!each!section.!

4.!!Strongly!Agree!

Work!Environment!

1.!I!have!the!materials!and!equipment!to!do!my!job!right!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!

!! ! ! 1! 2! 3! 4!

2.!My!physical!work!environment!is!satisfactory!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!!

1! 2! 3! 4!

3.!I!feel!safe!in!doing!my!job!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!

1! 2! 3! 4!

!

Comments!or!suggestions!for!improvement!concerning!your!work!environment:!

Supervisor!(your!immediate!Supervisor)!and!Management!(anyone! above!your!immediate!supervisor)!
4.!I!am!satisfied!with!my!supervisor's!overall!skill!and!ability.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!! 5.!I!receive!adequate!training!to!do!my!!job!effectively!!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.! 6.!I!receive!recognition!or!praise!for!good!work!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.! 7.!Management!communicates!with!openness!and!honesty.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!! 8.!Management!is!sincerely!interested!in!employee!wellUbeing.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!

!! ! ! 1! 2! 3! 4! 1! 2! 3! 4! 1! 2! 3! 4! 1! 2! 3! 4! 1! 2! 3! 4!

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Comments!or!suggestions!for!improvement!concerning!supervisors!or!management!(section! head!through!division!head):!

Communication! ! ! 9.!I!receive!the!information!I!need!to!do!my!job!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.! 10.!I!regularly!receive!feedback!about!my!job!performance!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.! 11.!I!know!what!is!expected!of!me!at!work!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.! 12.!I!have!adequate!access!to!information!via!the!Department's!computer! systems!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.! 13.!Information!is!freely!shared!within!my!division!or!district!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.! 14.!I!receive!information!on!a!timely!basis!to!do!my!job!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!! 15.!Communication!has!improved!within!my!work!area!in!the!last!year.!.!.!
!!
!Comments!or!suggestions!for!improvement!concerning!communication:!

!
!! ! ! 1! 2! 3! 4! ! 1! 2! 3! 4! ! 1! 2! 3! 4! ! 1! 2! 3! 4! ! 1! 2! 3! 4! ! 1! 2! 3! 4! ! 1! 2! 3! 4! N/A!

!
Employee!Engagement! ! 16.!I!look!forward!to!coming!to!work.! 17.!I!am!provided!opportunities!to!improve!my!job!skills.! 18.!At!work,!I!have!the!opportunity!to!do!what!I!do!best!every!day.! 19.!The!work!I!do!is!important.! 20.!Most!of!the!time,!I!find!my!work!to!be!satisfying!and!rewarding.! 21.!At!work,!my!opinions!seem!to!count.!

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!! ! ! 1! 2! 3! 4! ! 1! 2! 3! 4! ! 1! 2! 3! 4! ! 1! 2! 3! 4! ! 1! 2! 3! 4! ! 1! 2! 3! 4! !

!
22.!The!work!I!do!contributes!to!achieving!the!NDOR's!mission,!to!"provide! and!maintain,!in!cooperation!with!public!and!private!organizations,!a!safe,! reliable,!affordable,!environmentally!compatible,!and!coordinated!statewide! 1! 2! 3! 4! ! transportation!system!for!the!movement!of!people!and!goods."!
Comments!or!suggestions!for!improvement!concerning!employee!engagement:!

Continuous!Improvement!and!Overall!Satisfaction!

! ! ! ! !!

23.!Within!my!division/district,!we!strive!for!continuous!improvement.!.!.!! 1! 2! 3! 4! !

24.!I!would!recommend!the!NDOR!to!family!and!friends!as!a!good!place!to! 1! 2! 3! 4! !

work.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!!

25.!I!am!a!satisfied!employee!of!the!NDOR!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!

1! 2! 3! 4! !

26.!The!NDOR!is!a!better!place!to!work!now!than!one!year!ago.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!

1! 2! 3! 4! N/A!

!

Comments!or!suggestions!for!improvement!concerning!continuous!improvement!and!overall!

satisfaction:!

!

The!following!information!is!being!collected!for!analysis!pu! rpo!ses!! ! !

only.!!By!responding,!you!will!help!us!identify!areas!where!we!are!

strong!and!where!improvement!is!needed.!Your!individual!

responses!to!this!survey!will!remain!anonymous.!!An!aggregate!

summary!will!be!shared!with!Department!management!for! distribution.!!!

! 1.!How!many!years!have!you!been!an!NDOR!employee?!!!(Circle!one)! a)! Less!than!5!years!

!!!!

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b)! 6!to!10!years! c)! 11!to!15!years! d)! 16!years!or!more!

! 2.!From!the!following!descriptions,!please!choose!the!one!that!best!describes! your!job! !!!!with!the!NDOR.! a)! Administrative! b)! Engineering! c)! Maintenance! d)! Construction! e)! Clerical!

! 3.!!Are!you!a...!
a)! Permanent!FullUTime!Employee! b)! PartUTime!Employee! c)! Temporary!Employee!

! ! 4.!!Please!provide!your!Division!Name!or!District!Number:!

__________________________________________________!!

!
! Thank!you!for!completing!the!survey!!!To!return!your!completed!
! survey,!fold!the!survey!in!half![horizontally],%staple,!and!place!in!

! the!Department's!interCoffice!mail.!!Interoffice!mail!envelopes!

! have!been!provided!to!District!Administrative!Assistants!for!an!

!

extra!layer!of!confidentiality!if!you!prefer.!

!

Return!To:!

!

!!

Jane!Sutherland!

!

!!

Measurement!Coordinator!

!

!!

Planning!Division!

!

!!

Materials!&!Research!Building!

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New%Hampshire%DOT%
Here's!a!copy!of!our!2012!survey.!We!have!conducted!three!so!far--2008,!2010,!and!2012! and!have!had!around!a!50%!response!rate!for!all!three.!Not!entirely!if!this!was!the!final! letter!we!used,!but!the!rest!is!correct.....! ! Jen!Graf! Training!and!Development!Manager! NHDOT! 7!Hazen!Drive! Concord,!NH!03302! 603U271U8025! !
! !
New!Hampshire!Department!of!Transportation!Employee!Survey!
FollowTup!Summer!2012!
!
August!20,!2012!
Dear!DOT!employee:!
In!2008,!when!I!was!serving!you!as!Deputy!Commissioner,!the!first!DepartmentUwide! survey!was!conducted!to!solicit!employee!feedback!and!gauge!the!overall!working!climate! at!the!New!Hampshire!Department!of!Transportation.!We!had!a!very!good!survey!return!at! that!time.!You!assisted!us!with!establishing!the!direction!of!the!NHDOT!by!identifying!issues! that!were!most!important!to!our!employees.!This!was!followed!by!another!survey!in!2010! where!you!provided!us!with!more!feedback!and!some!fresh,!innovative!ideas!about!running! the!Department!more!efficiently!and!effectively.!This!survey!also!had!a!very!good!return.! One!important!outcome!was!the!growth!of!a!Lean!approach!at!NHDOT.!The!simplest! definition!of!Lean!is!the!attempt!to!work!on!a!process!so!that!the!end!product!takes!less! time!and!money,!thus!providing!effective!customer!service!to!taxpayers.!The!Department! has!always!had!a!culture!of!innovation!from!one!end!of!the!state!to!the!other,!but!Lean! provides!an!infrastructure!for!innovation.!Since!2010,!Lean!projects!both!large!and!small! have!been!in!place,!ranging!from!a!computer!application!allowing!truck!company!owners!to! obtain!their!oversize/overweight!permits!quickly,!to!cutting!down!the!time!in!getting!plow! trucks!ready!for!winter,!to!making!better!use!of!the!scrap!lumber!in!our!rightUofUways.! The!NHDOT,!like!most!state!agencies,!has!seen!tremendous!change!over!the!last!two!years.!! Tough!economic!times!have!continued!to!change!many!of!our!lives!professionally!and! personally.!!All!of!us!have!gained!two!more!years!of!experience,!while!some!longUterm! employees!have!retired.!!Our!newest!employees!also!deserve!an!opportunity!to!share!their! thoughts.!!Quite!simply,!we!want!to!know!where!you!are!now!and!help!point!us!in!the! direction!we!need!to!take.! We!are!looking!for!a!great!response!to!this!survey.!!We've!included!some!useful! information--answers!to!"frequently!asked!questions"!and!contact!information.!!Please!take!

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the!time!out!of!your!workday!to!thoughtfully!complete!the!survey.!!We!look!forward!to! seeing!what!you!have!to!say.! Sincerely,! Christopher!D.!Clement,!Sr.!
Commissioner!
Frequently!Asked!Questions!
!
Q)!Why!should!I!do!this?!!What!difference!will!it!make?!!
! A)!The!purpose!of!this!survey!is!to!encourage!every!employee!to!have!an! opportunity!to!comment!on!the!department's!work!climate!and!to!seek!ways!to! improve!work!relationships!and!operations.!!You!may!have!that!one!good!idea!that! could!save!money,!improve!public!safety,!and!make!the!department!the!best!place!to! work!in!the!state.!
!
Q)!What!if!I!don't!have!an!email!account?!!
! A)!Paper!copies!will!be!made!available!and!can!be!mailed!directly!to!the!survey! company!in!a!selfUaddressed!stamped!envelope!that!will!be!provided!by!the! Department.!! !
Q)!What!is!going!to!be!done!with!all!this!information?!!
! A)!Information!from!multipleUchoice!questions!will!be!compiled!and!compared!to! the!previous!survey's!data.!Comment!questions!will!be!used!as!a!mechanism!for! creating!initiatives!to!help!all!of!us!run!the!Department!more!efficiently!and! effectively.!! !
Q)!When!can!we!expect!to!see!action!resulting!from!this!survey?!!
! A)!Items!identified!by!the!survey!will!be!categorized!then!prioritized.!Employees! will!be!notified!and!kept!informed!about!the!identified!priorities.! !
Q)!With!all!the!information!I!have!to!give,!how!can!this!be!confidential?!!!
! A)!An!independent!survey!company!will!process!all!the!surveys.!As!part!of!their! contract,!they!will!not!be!able!to!identify!individual!employees!(ie;!who!responded! and!who!did!not,!name,!email,!or!specific!location).!!The!survey!itself!was!crafted!in!a! way!to!allow!employees!to!remain!anonymous.!!Although!there!are!some!questions! that!categorize!respondents,!this!was!done!to!gather!responses!by!similar!work! groups.!A!confidential!employee!will!read!your!comments,!but!will!be!unable!to! determine!your!name.!Paper!surveys!will!be!returned!by!selfUaddressed!stamped! envelopes!rather!than!returned!to!a!supervisor!or!sent!through!Interdepartmental! mail.! !

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Q)!Who!do!I!contact!with!any!questions?! !! A)!Primary!contact!is!Email!address!Employee!Survey!(Employeesurvey@dot.state.nh.us)!or! Jen!Graf!at!271U8025.! ! !

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!

136!

! !

! ! ! ! !

!

137!

!

! !

!

138!

!

! !

!

!

139!

! !

! !

!

140!

!

!

!

141!

!
!
North%Carolina%DOT%
!
NCDOT!EXIT!SURVEY!
!
This!is!the!paper!version!of!the!employee!exit!survey!for!employees!with!
no!computer!access.!!If!you!have!computer!access,!please!complete!the!online!exit!survey!on!
Inside!DOT.!!https://inside.ncdot.gov/forms/Pages/NCDOTTExitTSurveyTInstructions.aspx!!
!
The!purpose!of!this!survey!is!to!gather!information!in!an!effort!to!identify!issues!and!improve! NCDOT's!employment!practices!and!work!environment.!!Please!complete!each!of!the!questions! contained!in!the!survey,!choosing!the!answer!that!best!reflects!your!experiences!and!opinions.!The! survey!should!take!approximately!10U15!minutes!to!complete.! ! By!completing!this!survey!you!are!being!asked!to!supply!information!to!help!NCDOT!understand! what!factors!led!to!your!decision!to!end!your!employment.!Your!responses!will!be!treated!with! strict!anonymity.!The!responses!will!be!compiled!and!analyzed!for!trends!so!NCDOT!may!determine! what!actions,!if!any,!can!be!taken!to!improve!employee!retention.! ! Your!participation!in!this!survey!is!voluntary.!!There!will!be!no!adverse!consequences! should!you!decline!to!participate.! ! The!following!personnel!may!have!access!to!the!information!you!supply!as!part!of!the!exit!survey:!
!
A.!Your!Individual!Responses!
1. Staff!from!NCDOT's!Human!Resources!Department.! Note:!Under!certain!policies!and!regulations,!Human!Resources!staff!may!be!required!to! share!information!with!the!Secretary!and!COO!who!have!a!need!to!know.!!Examples!include! alleged!policy!violations,!illegal!activity,!etc.!
2. Persons!or!entities!authorized!by!state!or!federal!law.!
!
B.!Summary!Data!compiled!from!all!or!a!subset!of!survey!respondents!
!
1. Staff!from!NCDOT's!Human!Resources!Department.! 2. Appropriate!supervisors!and!administrators!from!NCDOT's!departments.! 3. Persons!or!entities!authorized!by!state!or!federal!law.!
!
By!proceeding,!you!acknowledge!that!you!have!read!and!understand!the!information!outlined! above!and!agree!to!supply!some!or!all!of!the!information!requested!in!the!questions!contained! within!the!Exit!Survey.! !

!

142!

!

!

!!I!prefer!to!be!interviewed!by!a!member!of!NCDOT's!HR!staff.!!Please!contact!the!HR! Career!Services!Unit!at!(919)!707T4430,!or!email!lmoser@ncdot.gov!to!schedule!an! interview.! !

Section!I!!Demographics!(Optional)!

!If!you!do!not!want!to!provide!this!information,!please!skip!and!go!to!next!Section.! Please!provide!some!personal!information!about!yourself!including!job!title,!length!of!service!with! NCDOT!and!the!department!you!are!leaving.!!! ! Employee!Name: !

Job!Title: !

Last!Date!of!Employment: !

Gender:!

!

!

Female! !

!

Male!

Race/Ethnicity!

If!you!are!multiUracial,!please!select!one!race!you!most!closely!identify!with.!

!

Asian!or!Pacific!Islander! !

American!Indian!or!Alaskan!Native!

!

Black!

!

!

!

Hispanic! !

!

White! !

!

Length!of!Service:!

Under!2!years! !

!

2!but!less!than!5!years! !

!

!

5!but!less!than!9!years! !

9!but!less!than!15!years!

!

Over!16!years!

Most!Recent!Unit: !

Section!II!!Satisfaction! You!are!being!asked!to!do!two!things!in!the!follow!set!of!questions.!!First,!please!indicate!your!level! of!satisfaction!with!the!various!aspects!of!your!job.!!You!will!use!a!4Upoint!scale!that!ranges!from! very!satisfied!to!very!dissatisfied.!Secondly,!please!mark!the!bubble!to!the!right!if!a!particular!item! was!a!factor!in!your!decision!to!leave!NCDOT.!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

143!

!

!! !

!

!

!

!

!

Very! !

!!!!!!!Very!!!!!!!!!!! Was!factor!in!

!! !

!

!

!

!

!

Dissatisfied! !!!!!!!Satisfied!!!! !your!departure!

!

!!!!!!!!

!

!

Personal!Work!Environment! ! Personal!Work!Area! ! Work!Location! !

Training!and!Development! ! Opportunities!for!NCDOT!Training! ! Opportunities!for!training!through!professional!organizations!or! accredited!schools! ! Management!support!for!career!development! ! Recognition!for!achievements! ! Performance!evaluations! ! Opportunities!for!advancement!in!the!unit!you!are!leaving! ! Opportunities!for!advancement!with!NCDOT! ! !

Most!Recent!Position! ! Understanding!of!my!role!and!responsibilities!in!the!department! ! Variety!of!work!required!in!the!job! !

!

144!

!

Work!Schedule!(Hours!of!Work)! ! Ability!to!provide!input!into!issues!that!affect!my!job! ! !

Most!Recent!Unit! ! Communication!of!unit!goals! ! Communication!of!decisions!affecting!you! ! Management!commitment!to!diversity! ! Treatment!from!coworkers! ! Level!of!teamwork!within!the!unit! ! Level!of!cooperation!with!other!units!

! Section!II!!Satisfaction,!continued!

!

!! !

!

!

!

!

!

Very! !

!!!!!!!Very!!!!!!!!!!! !Was!factor!in!

!! !

!

!

!

!

!

Dissatisfied! !!!!!!!Satisfied!!!! !your!departure!

!

!!!!!!!!

!

!

Immediate!Supervisor! ! Demonstrated!fair!treatment! ! Addressed!my!concerns! ! Welcomed!my!suggestions! ! Was!accessible!

!

145!

!

!

!

Gave!clear!instructions! ! Fostered!a!productive!work!environment! !

Provided!necessary!resources!to!do!my!job!

! Provided!frequent!feedback!on!my!job!performance! ! Consistently!applied!policies!

!

Made!good!use!of!my!skills/abilities! `! Please!provide!the!name!of!your!supervisor!(Optional):! ! !

When!was!your!last!performance!review?!

!

Less!than!1!year!ago!! 1U2!years!ago!

!

!

your!departure!

Over!2!years!ago!

!

Never!

Check!if!this!is!a!factor!in!

!

!! !

!

!

!

!

!

Very! !

!!!!!!!Very!!!!!!!!!!! !Was!factor!in!

!! !

!

!

!

!

!

Dissatisfied! !!!!!!!Satisfied!!!! !your!departure!

!

!!!!!!!!

!

!

Salary!and!Benefits!(Total!Compensation)! ! Salary!

!

Health!Insurance! ! Dental!Insurance! !

Wellness!Program!

!

146!

!

!

! Retirement!Benefits! ! !

Overall! ! Communication!of!NCDOT!goals! ! Communication!of!NCDOT!policies! ! Work!Experience!at!NCDOT!

! Opinion!of!NCDOT!

!

Section!III!!Employee!Retention!Strategies!!

The!next!questions!focus!on!employee!retention!and!will!help!NCDOT!understand!what!strategies!it!

may!take!to!retain!its!most!valuable!resource;!its!employees.!

!

Please!identify!up!to!the!top!three!reasons!you!are!leaving!NCDOT.!

Different!position! !

!

Excessive!workload!!

Family!

circumstances!

Health!reasons! !

!

!

Lack!of!recognition! !

Lack!of!training!

opportunities!

Promotional!opportunities! !

Relocation! !

!

Retirement!

Salary/Wage! !

!

!

Supervisor! !

!

Work!location!

Work!schedule!(shifts)! !

!

Work/Life!balance! !

Workplace!culture!

and!values!

Other!(please!specify) !

!

What!is!your!primary!reason!for!leaving!NCDOT? !

What!could!have!been!done!to!keep!you!from!leaving!NCDOT? !

If!accepting!a!position!with!a!different!employer,!what!does!the!new!job!offer!you!that!your!job!at!

NCDOT!does!not?! !

!

147!

!
!

Section!IV!T!Final!Comments!

Would!you!work!for!NCDOT!again!in!the!future?!

Yes!! !

!

!

No!

Would!you!recommend!employment!with!NCDOT!to!a!friend!or!relative?!

Yes!! !

!

!

No!

Would!you!recommend!employment!with!any!State!agency!to!a!friend!or!relative?!!!!

Yes!! !

!

!

No! !

If!no,!why!not?! !

! Thank!you!for!your!time!and!consideration!for!completing!this!survey.!!Your!responses!are! important!and!will!assist!NCDOT!in!improving!employment!practices!and!the!work!environment.! Please!return!this!survey!to!Human!Resources.!!The!survey!can!be!returned!via!the!NCDOT!Courier! System,!US!Mail,!Fax!or!Email.!

For!NCDOT!Courier:! !

!

!

!

!

For!US!Mail:!

Attn:!Career!Services!Unit!! !

!

!

!

Attn:!Career!Services!Unit!

NCDOT!Human!Resources! !

!

!

!

NCDOT!Human!Resources!

Transportation!Building! !

!

!

!

1517!Mail!Service!Center!

Raleigh,!NC! !

!

!

!

!

!

Raleigh,!NC!!27699U1517!

For!email:! !

!

!

!

!

!

For!fax:!

lmoser@ncdot.gov!! !

!

!

!

!

919U715U3469!

(Please!scan!document!and!put!Exit!Survey!on!subject!line)! !

!

!

If!you!have!any!questions,!please!contact!the!NCDOT!Human!Resources!Career!Services!Unit!at!

(919)!707U4430!or!email!lmoser@ncdot.gov.!!

!

!

!

148!

NCDOT - All Units
The results below reflect the unit's average score for each of the 32 rating statements included in the 2011 NCDOT Employee Engagement Survey. Scores are based on a 7-point scale in which
7 represents a strong level of agreement with the statement.
Commitment to My Job I know what is expected of me in my job. I can see how the work I do makes a difference to NCDOT. In my job I am able to do what I do best. I am continuously learning new things in my job. The work I do is challenging. I get a sense of personal fulfillment from my work.
Commitment to My Immediate Supervisor I get helpful feedback about my performance from my supervisor. I receive recognition for the work I do from my supervisor. My supervisor is helpful in removing obstacles to getting the work done. My opinions and suggestions are taken seriously by my supervisor. My supervisor allows me to make decisions about my work. My supervisor cares about me as an individual. My supervisor supports my professional development.
Commitment to My Work Group In my work group, I like the people I work with each day. In my work group, the emphasis is on doing excellent work. There is a high level of trust in my work group. In my work group, everyone is treated with respect. Poor performance is addressed quickly in my work group. There is an emphasis in my work group on finding better ways to do the job.
Commitment to Organization NCDOT's values are values that I can support. I receive information about what's going on in NCDOT. I am satisfied with the career opportunities here at NCDOT. I have the tools and resources I need to get the job done. Bureaucratic rules don't get in the way of getting the job done here at NCDOT. NCDOT encourages employees to look for ways to improve performance. I am excited about coming to work every day. I am proud to tell other people where I work. I believe the work we do at NCDOT is important. I would recommend NCDOT as a great place to work.
Discretionary Effort I contribute to NCDOT's success by going beyond what's expected of me.
Intent to Stay I seldom think about looking for a job outside of NCDOT. I have not actively sought employment outside NCDOT in the past six months.
Overall Engagement Score

!

149!

!

Unit Average NCDOT (7-pt. scale) Average

5.65

5.65

6.17

6.17

5.80

5.80

5.55

5.55

5.54

5.54

5.56

5.56

5.31

5.31

5.19

5.19

5.19

5.19

4.98

4.98

5.16

5.16

5.08

5.08

5.43

5.43

5.33

5.33

5.14

5.14

5.31

5.31

5.87

5.87

5.62

5.62

5.15

5.15

5.16

5.16

4.86

4.86

5.18

5.18

4.83

4.83

5.20

5.20

4.90

4.90

4.23

4.23

5.05

5.05

3.75

3.75

4.70

4.70

4.74

4.74

5.14

5.14

6.05

6.05

4.54

4.54

5.78

5.78

5.78

5.78

4.93

4.93

4.60

4.60

5.26

5.26

5.32

5.32 !

!
Ohio%DOT%

! !

!

150!

!

! ! ! !

!

151!

!

!

! ! !

!

152!

!

!

! !

!

153!

!
!

! !

!

154!

!
South%Carolina%DOT%

!

!

155!

!

! !

!

156!

!

!

!

157!

!

!

!

158!

!
Appendix F New GDOT Employee Survey
!
Georgia!Department!of!Transportation!
Employee!Survey!!March!2014!
!
GDOT's! workforce! is! its! most! valuable! asset,! and! GDOT! is! committed! to! retaining! and! providing! opportunities! for! growth! to! each! member! of! that! workforce.! The! purposes! of! this! survey! are! to! learn! how! GDOT! can! better! support!its!employees,!improve!the!work!environment,!increase!their!career! advancement!and!professional!development!opportunities,!and!make!GDOT!a! better!place!to!work.!! ! This! survey! is! confidential! and! anonymous.! To! ensure! this,! an! independent! evaluator!collects!and!analyzes!the!survey!responses!and!reports!the!results! to! GDOT.! When! you! submit! your! survey,! it! is! sent! directly! to! the! Survey! Monkey!database.!! !
!

!

159!

!

! ! !

!

160!

!

!

!

161!

!

!

!

162!

!
!

!

163!

!

! ! !

!

164!

!
!

! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

!

165!

!

! !

!

166!

!

!

!

167!

!
!
! ! ! ! !

!

168!

!

!

169!

!

!

!

170!

!

! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !
!

!

171!