Dear Seniors,
My management wants the HR team to have periodic one-on-one discussions with the employees to inquire about their grievances or discomforts, if any. The main goal is to understand and address any issues they may be facing with their immediate reporting manager or any role conflicts. Could you please share some insights on how to successfully carry out this task and also provide me with some suitable questionnaires for employees to aid in better understanding?
Thanks,
Divya Vijayakumar
From India, Chennai
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11My management wants the HR team to have periodic one-on-one discussions with the employees to inquire about their grievances or discomforts, if any. The main goal is to understand and address any issues they may be facing with their immediate reporting manager or any role conflicts. Could you please share some insights on how to successfully carry out this task and also provide me with some suitable questionnaires for employees to aid in better understanding?
Thanks,
Divya Vijayakumar
From India, Chennai
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Dear Divya,
Indirectly, what your management has told you is to conduct a stay interview. You may click the following links to know the questions that you can include in the stay interviews:
- [6 Stay Interview Questions That Top Employers Ask](http://www.insperity.com/blog/6-stay-interview-questions-that-top-employers-ask)
- [Stay Interview Sample Questions](http://humanresources.about.com/od/employeeretentio1/a/stay-interview-sample-questions.htm)
As far as this forum is concerned, click the following link:
[Stay Interview Career Path](https://www.citehr.com/141306-stay-interview-career-path.html)
All the best!
Dinesh V Divekar
From India, Bangalore
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Indirectly, what your management has told you is to conduct a stay interview. You may click the following links to know the questions that you can include in the stay interviews:
- [6 Stay Interview Questions That Top Employers Ask](http://www.insperity.com/blog/6-stay-interview-questions-that-top-employers-ask)
- [Stay Interview Sample Questions](http://humanresources.about.com/od/employeeretentio1/a/stay-interview-sample-questions.htm)
As far as this forum is concerned, click the following link:
[Stay Interview Career Path](https://www.citehr.com/141306-stay-interview-career-path.html)
All the best!
Dinesh V Divekar
From India, Bangalore
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Hi Divi,
I am really happy to know that you are trying to do some useful stuff for your employees. Congratulations! Let me also share a few points that may make sense to you.
1. Do not make it a formal session with your employees, as this will definitely make your people act formally, which will not serve the purpose. Try to make it an informal meeting or session, even a little outside the office or factory premises, which will encourage them to open up.
2. Clearly explain the purpose of the meeting to your employees.
3. Ensure that your employees do not perceive you as a spy for management. Treat them in a friendly manner and address their small issues or problems as soon as possible after they are brought to your attention.
4. Avoid talking too much and instead encourage your employees to open up and share their thoughts during the meeting. Support and motivate them by using phrases like "Good point," "Excellent," "You are right," "Exactly," or "Wow, you have valid points."
5. Listen carefully to your employees and make sure they understand that you are actively listening to them.
6. Although your goal is to identify any issues they may have with their boss, do not focus solely on that aspect. Ensure they do not feel that their boss is trying to understand their opinions through you.
7. Take immediate action after the meeting to resolve any small issues or grievances as much as possible. This will show your employees that you are genuinely working for their benefit. Consequently, they will be more willing to meet with you in the future and feel comfortable opening up.
Regards,
M. Kannan
From India, Madurai
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I am really happy to know that you are trying to do some useful stuff for your employees. Congratulations! Let me also share a few points that may make sense to you.
1. Do not make it a formal session with your employees, as this will definitely make your people act formally, which will not serve the purpose. Try to make it an informal meeting or session, even a little outside the office or factory premises, which will encourage them to open up.
2. Clearly explain the purpose of the meeting to your employees.
3. Ensure that your employees do not perceive you as a spy for management. Treat them in a friendly manner and address their small issues or problems as soon as possible after they are brought to your attention.
4. Avoid talking too much and instead encourage your employees to open up and share their thoughts during the meeting. Support and motivate them by using phrases like "Good point," "Excellent," "You are right," "Exactly," or "Wow, you have valid points."
5. Listen carefully to your employees and make sure they understand that you are actively listening to them.
6. Although your goal is to identify any issues they may have with their boss, do not focus solely on that aspect. Ensure they do not feel that their boss is trying to understand their opinions through you.
7. Take immediate action after the meeting to resolve any small issues or grievances as much as possible. This will show your employees that you are genuinely working for their benefit. Consequently, they will be more willing to meet with you in the future and feel comfortable opening up.
Regards,
M. Kannan
From India, Madurai
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Thank you for the input, Mr. Kannan. By now, I have got an idea about the task which I need to perform and the purpose of conducting it. I'm planning to have a few questionnaires for the employees to answer in order to have a better understanding of the overall ratings. Please share samples if any and also suggest how to evaluate the feedback taken from the employees. I think this would help us to clearly understand the areas on which the management needs to concentrate and improve, facilitating employee retention.
Thanks,
Divya Vijayakumar
From India, Chennai
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Thanks,
Divya Vijayakumar
From India, Chennai
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Thank you for the input, Mr. Dinesh. By now, I have a clear picture of the task I need to perform and its purpose. I'm planning to have a few questionnaires for the employees to answer to gain a better understanding of the overall ratings. Please suggest how to evaluate the feedback from the employees. I believe this will help us clearly apprehend the areas on which management needs to concentrate and improve, thus facilitating employee retention.
Thanks,
Divya Vijayakumar
From India, Chennai
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Thanks,
Divya Vijayakumar
From India, Chennai
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Dear Divya,
You have not mentioned the total employee count or your designation. Designation is important because those who are senior to you but from other departments: will they open up in front of you? Another important aspect is the length of service in your current company. Those who have stayed longer in the company are naturally more attuned to the company's culture. What if they are part of some wrongdoing?
The analysis of these questions is a time-consuming process. Therefore, talk to management and inquire whether they are ready for the organization's survey. A simple yet very effective survey is Gallup's Q12 Survey (https://q12.gallup.com/Public/en-us/Features?ref=homepage). It will provide you with quantitative output, making it easier for you to take corrective action based on the results of Gallup's Q12 in an organized manner. Moreover, to take corrective action, you would need buy-in from the management. This will give you an opportunity to understand how serious the management is about bringing about change or if it is merely lip service. On one hand, they instruct their HR to engage with the employees, but the ground reality remains the same.
What you are doing is moving straight to the second step of the feedback process. "Periodic 1-2-1 discussions" come a little later. In addition to Gallup's Q12, there are several other organizational surveys that you can conduct to obtain quantitative outputs.
Thank you,
Dinesh V Divekar
From India, Bangalore
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You have not mentioned the total employee count or your designation. Designation is important because those who are senior to you but from other departments: will they open up in front of you? Another important aspect is the length of service in your current company. Those who have stayed longer in the company are naturally more attuned to the company's culture. What if they are part of some wrongdoing?
The analysis of these questions is a time-consuming process. Therefore, talk to management and inquire whether they are ready for the organization's survey. A simple yet very effective survey is Gallup's Q12 Survey (https://q12.gallup.com/Public/en-us/Features?ref=homepage). It will provide you with quantitative output, making it easier for you to take corrective action based on the results of Gallup's Q12 in an organized manner. Moreover, to take corrective action, you would need buy-in from the management. This will give you an opportunity to understand how serious the management is about bringing about change or if it is merely lip service. On one hand, they instruct their HR to engage with the employees, but the ground reality remains the same.
What you are doing is moving straight to the second step of the feedback process. "Periodic 1-2-1 discussions" come a little later. In addition to Gallup's Q12, there are several other organizational surveys that you can conduct to obtain quantitative outputs.
Thank you,
Dinesh V Divekar
From India, Bangalore
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Hello Divya,
It's good that your management is keen to address the grievances of their employees. As you have already had an idea of what your management and you want, it would be advisable to design your questionnaire yourself and share it on the site. Some of the learned followers will fine-tune the same, and by this, you will really benefit yourself for such future assignments also.
However, the basic areas of grievance I have gone through in my career mostly relate to welfare measures (Housing, Sanitation of colonies, Medical facilities, transport for children to and from school, drinking water supply - if you have your own colonies, maintenance of quarters provided by the Company, etc.), establishment matters (like promotion, pay anomalies, arrears of wages on any account, transfers/postings, uniform and safety appliances timely supply, etc.).
You can design your sample based on the above criteria and ask for feedback after you have addressed their grievances. Try to follow up on the action taken on the grievance by the concerned department, put a notice showing the resolved grievance details along with the name of the employee so that the employee may be able to counter if a fake report has been given to the HR department (Sometimes it happens). In case of a difference between the ATR and the employee's confirmation, a joint inspection team should inspect on the spot and take account of the factual position.
By this, your Grievance redressal team will gain confidence for your sincere efforts amongst your employees.
Wish you Good Luck.
AK Jain
From India, New+Delhi
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It's good that your management is keen to address the grievances of their employees. As you have already had an idea of what your management and you want, it would be advisable to design your questionnaire yourself and share it on the site. Some of the learned followers will fine-tune the same, and by this, you will really benefit yourself for such future assignments also.
However, the basic areas of grievance I have gone through in my career mostly relate to welfare measures (Housing, Sanitation of colonies, Medical facilities, transport for children to and from school, drinking water supply - if you have your own colonies, maintenance of quarters provided by the Company, etc.), establishment matters (like promotion, pay anomalies, arrears of wages on any account, transfers/postings, uniform and safety appliances timely supply, etc.).
You can design your sample based on the above criteria and ask for feedback after you have addressed their grievances. Try to follow up on the action taken on the grievance by the concerned department, put a notice showing the resolved grievance details along with the name of the employee so that the employee may be able to counter if a fake report has been given to the HR department (Sometimes it happens). In case of a difference between the ATR and the employee's confirmation, a joint inspection team should inspect on the spot and take account of the factual position.
By this, your Grievance redressal team will gain confidence for your sincere efforts amongst your employees.
Wish you Good Luck.
AK Jain
From India, New+Delhi
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Dear Divya,
Please do not post MULTIPLE THREADS for the same query or problem. As you can see, members have provided their answers on different threads, which makes it difficult for anyone to get a complete picture of the suggestions offered. Furthermore, you had to post IDENTICAL RESPONSES to all the members. If there had been only one thread, this could have been avoided by including all members in your response, like: "Dear Mr. Dinesh, Mr. Kannan, and Mr. ...".
As good managers, we should work towards minimizing our efforts rather than scattering the work and providing multiple responses in different places. It is commendable that Ms. (Cite Contribution) has DELETED one such identical post from you, and I have MERGED two of your threads into one here.
Warm regards.
From India, Delhi
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Please do not post MULTIPLE THREADS for the same query or problem. As you can see, members have provided their answers on different threads, which makes it difficult for anyone to get a complete picture of the suggestions offered. Furthermore, you had to post IDENTICAL RESPONSES to all the members. If there had been only one thread, this could have been avoided by including all members in your response, like: "Dear Mr. Dinesh, Mr. Kannan, and Mr. ...".
As good managers, we should work towards minimizing our efforts rather than scattering the work and providing multiple responses in different places. It is commendable that Ms. (Cite Contribution) has DELETED one such identical post from you, and I have MERGED two of your threads into one here.
Warm regards.
From India, Delhi
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Dear Mr. Dinesh,
You rightly pointed out my concerns about the senior members in my office. Our strength is 120, and I'm the only HR executive here. I joined this company just a year back. My management wants me to create a friendly relationship between HR and the employees and to be a trusted member to help them out. At the initial level, they want me to have a general discussion to understand their expectations and grievances, if any.
As advised by Mr. Arunjain, I have attached a format which I prepared by taking inputs from various threads posted in CiteHR. I request senior members to review and leave their comments or corrections, if any. Please suggest how to evaluate the feedback taken from the employees.
Finally,
Dear Moderators,
I feel apologetic for posting multiple threads, and thanks for advising me on that.
From India, Chennai
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You rightly pointed out my concerns about the senior members in my office. Our strength is 120, and I'm the only HR executive here. I joined this company just a year back. My management wants me to create a friendly relationship between HR and the employees and to be a trusted member to help them out. At the initial level, they want me to have a general discussion to understand their expectations and grievances, if any.
As advised by Mr. Arunjain, I have attached a format which I prepared by taking inputs from various threads posted in CiteHR. I request senior members to review and leave their comments or corrections, if any. Please suggest how to evaluate the feedback taken from the employees.
Finally,
Dear Moderators,
I feel apologetic for posting multiple threads, and thanks for advising me on that.
From India, Chennai
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Dear Divya,
I have gone through the file that you have attached to your last post. I find two major parts in the document. Part one obtains quantitative feedback whereas the second part is subjective.
You have written that you are the only HR professional in your company. Therefore, it goes without saying that you are responsible for a whole lot of other activities. When you get feedback from all the members, you will have to dip your hand deep into the jar of feedback even though both of your hands are full. In the deluge of data, you could get submerged. To describe your situation, I have attached one cartoon. Go through that.
To avoid this situation, the best thing is to keep part one as it is and just ask one simple question instead of 16 other questions. It could be "Please comment on how to improve the culture of BDS". This one single question will spill a lot of beans. Counting those beans will consume your sufficient time.
There is nothing wrong in asking those additional questions per se. Nevertheless, you need to have that kind of support mechanism to do proper analysis, lest it becomes an exercise in futility.
After analysis, there has to be definitive change. You or your management should be able to show change at the end of 2014. Please do not forget this fact.
All the best!
Dinesh V Divekar
From India, Bangalore
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
I have gone through the file that you have attached to your last post. I find two major parts in the document. Part one obtains quantitative feedback whereas the second part is subjective.
You have written that you are the only HR professional in your company. Therefore, it goes without saying that you are responsible for a whole lot of other activities. When you get feedback from all the members, you will have to dip your hand deep into the jar of feedback even though both of your hands are full. In the deluge of data, you could get submerged. To describe your situation, I have attached one cartoon. Go through that.
To avoid this situation, the best thing is to keep part one as it is and just ask one simple question instead of 16 other questions. It could be "Please comment on how to improve the culture of BDS". This one single question will spill a lot of beans. Counting those beans will consume your sufficient time.
There is nothing wrong in asking those additional questions per se. Nevertheless, you need to have that kind of support mechanism to do proper analysis, lest it becomes an exercise in futility.
After analysis, there has to be definitive change. You or your management should be able to show change at the end of 2014. Please do not forget this fact.
All the best!
Dinesh V Divekar
From India, Bangalore
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