Introduction

Good performance starts with good employee attitudes, and that stems from how they are managed every day. In a world in which everybody is subject to rapid change, it is important for organisations to investigate the opinion of their employees, by conducting an Attitude Survey on a range of factors that can have a profound effect upon their, and the organisation's, well being.

Information from conducting an Attitude Survey will point to what you can do practically to develop positive employee attitudes and will help make good people management a priority in the mind of every manager in your organisation. Rather than guess what your people are thinking an Attitude Survey will help establish the facts, identify the problems and what action needs to be taken. Repeatedly conducting an Attitude Survey will over time not just achieve this, but will monitor reaction to initiatives taken and monitor improvements made and identify scope for further improvement.

An Attitude Survey can supply key information to fuel the decision making and planning processes. By acting upon elicited opinions from an Attitude Survey the organisation can identify ways in which employee support, commitment, morale and performance can be improved.

For organisations needing to effect any organisational change, or HRD investment decision, the application of a well constructed Attitude Survey is usually seen as the most effective starting point.

The Attitude Survey design however is not straight forward. The organisations objective(s), underpinning an Attitude Survey, must be fully understood and must not be too complex. The Attitude Survey questionnaire must not be too short as to be meaningless, and lack collaborative data or the means to generate useful and varied views, information and statistics; nor must the Attitude Survey be over complicated or too long, as to provoke responders into making inaccurate or inappropriate retorts.

Participant support and belief in the value of the Attitude Survey and management's commitment to Attitude Survey outcomes is required, not alienation, disbelief or distrust.

A carefully constructed Attitude Survey can help organisations to obtain valuable information about employee perceptions on a host of topics.