How to measure employee happiness (and why it's more important than you think).
Emloyee happiness. A term you hear more and more often in organizations. But what does it really mean to be happy at work? And more importantly, how do you measure something that is so personal, emotional and changeable?
Measuring employee happiness may seem complicated at first glance. Yet it is quite possible, provided you know what to look for. In this blog, we take you through the why, what and how of measuring employee happiness.
Why measure employee happiness?
Employee happiness is more than a nice perk. It is the foundation of healthy, productive and resilient organizations. Happy employees are more creative, more loyal and less absent from work. Moreover, they have a positive influence on their colleagues as well as on customers.
But happiness at work is not a fixed given. It can change due to work pressure, leadership, cooperation or even personal circumstances. As an organization, you want to pick up these signals in time so that you can respond to what people really need.
Measuring = knowing = improving. By regularly measuring happiness at work, you gain insight into the factors that contribute to satisfaction and the areas where there is still room for growth.
What do you measure?
Happiness at work is a broad concept. It is not only about pleasure in your work, but also about meaning, connection with colleagues, autonomy and development. And precisely because it is so comprehensive, it helps to divide it into concrete motives. Think about: Psychological Safety, Meaningfulness, Relationship with Colleagues, and Autonomy.
By measuring how employees experience these themes, you get a rich and nuanced picture of employee happiness within your organization.
How do you measure employee happiness properly?
How you measure is as important as what you measure. An annual employee satisfaction survey is often too cumbersome, too general and too late. Employees fill it in reluctantly and the results feel like a snapshot, one that you only do something with months later.
That is why more and more organizations are opting for a different approach: short, powerful and frequent. In other words: a pulse measurement. With short questionnaires that you send out weekly or biweekly, you keep your finger on the pulse. You get real-time insights and show your employees that their opinion counts.
Important here: ensure anonymity, clear feedback of the results and above all follow-up. Measurement is not an end in itself, but a means for targeted improvement.
And then? From measuring to doing
Data are valuable, but people make the difference. The power is in the conversation that follows. What do we see? What does this mean for our team? What can we already change ourselves? And what needs organization-wide attention?
By involving employees and managers in the results and the improvement process, you create ownership and trust. In this way, employee happiness does not become something that "HR will take care of," but a shared responsibility.
The right tool makes the difference
Do you want to measure employee happiness in a sustainable and smart way? Then it helps to work with a platform developed specifically for that purpose. The 2DAYSMOOD platform makes employee happiness measurable with short, scientifically based pulse measurements. You get direct insight into trends, areas for improvement and energy sources within your organization.
And just as important: it stimulates action. Because ultimately it is not only about measuring, but especially about creating a culture in which people thrive.
Measuring employee happiness? Start small, but start today.
By listening to your employees in a smart way, you take the first step towards an organization in which employee happiness is central. And that will benefit everyone, every day.
