Employee Satisfaction Surveys - Questionnaire on Employee Job Satisfaction

Let us understand the exact meaning of the term employee job satisfaction. Job satisfaction is directly proportional to the feelings of happiness and contentment in the minds of employees about their jobs. Employers should take care of spiritual, emotional and mental health of their employees. Employee training, feedback and recognition are the three main duties of employers, to keep the employee's interest in their jobs alive. Expecting results without proper training is unjust for the employee. Employees should receive proper feedback for their work so that they can rectify their mistakes. This will enhance their quality of work. Good work should get due recognition to boost the morale of the employees. The organizational structure and design should be proper which will suit all the employees.

Conducting Employee Satisfaction Surveys
There are some recommendations for conducting employee satisfaction surveys. The questions in the survey should be ready by experts who can get unbiased information from the employees. The results of the survey should be studied and maintained properly so that after conducting the next survey, company can note the improvements in policies. The questions should be thought-provoking. The HR managers and not the employees should take the initiative in conducting employee job satisfaction surveys. The employees should be asked to be practical and honest while answering the questions as these employee satisfaction surveys will contribute to the development of the organization and employees.

According to a study, self-confident workers have more job satisfaction. HR managers should try their level best to provide good work environment to the employees. The duty of HR is to take the organization from where it presently is to where it should be ideally. They should promote team spirit among employees. All employees should have friendly relations with each other and with their seniors. Feelings of jealousy and hatred can affect the productivity of employees. It is vital to treat all employees equally irrespective of their caste, sex and physical appearance. Employee performance should be the sole criterion on which promotions should be decided. Counseling should be provided for poor performers. The management should try to solve the personal problems of employees to the best extent possible. Teaching relaxation techniques can help employees beat stress.

Theories of Job Satisfaction
There are some standard theories related to job satisfaction. Edwin A. Locker's "Affect Theory" is accepted worldwide in this regard. According to this theory, job satisfaction refers to what one wants in a job and what one has in a job. It is obvious that a person will be satisfied if he gets what he wants. The theory also states that people who are serious about their employment are more affected (positively or negatively) than those who have a casual approach towards work. "Dispositional theory" put forth by Timothy A. Judge establishes a direct link between self-esteem and believing in one's talent as dispositions leading to job satisfaction. The "Two factor theory" proposed by Frederick Herzberg states that motivation and hygiene factors contribute to satisfaction. Employee motivation means the desire to perform well and emerge victorious in every task and hygiene refers to company policies, pay packet and working conditions. "Job characteristics model" by Hackman and Oldham show how job characteristics, like, task significance, feedback, task identity and skill variety affect job satisfaction.

Measuring Employee Satisfaction
There are many ways to measure employee satisfaction. The administration department conducts feedback sessions frequently in which employees report their reactions and feelings about their jobs. Employees are supposed to fill and submit a sheet which contains questions related to salaries, promotions, responsibilities and other problems. HR managers study the answers and carry out necessary changes. The questions are of yes/no, true or false or multiple choice type. The Enterprise Feedback Management (EFM) system collects the data. Job Description Index (JDI) measures the satisfaction quotient, considering answers to questions related to payment, promotions, fellow employees, supervision and job profile. JDI was created by Smith, Kendall and Hulin. Another questionnaire on employee satisfaction is Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire (MSQ). It has options of 100 or 20 questions. Job Satisfaction Survey (JSS) has 36 item questionnaire. Fraces scale is another questionnaire on employee job satisfaction used widely to get authentic results.

Using a questionnaire on employee job satisfaction and employee satisfaction surveys are effective methods of reading the pulse of the employees. Companies will find it easy to achieve their targets if they consider the above suggestions.