Metrics you should be measuring to gauge employee satisfaction

We’ve seen time and time again that engaged and satisfied employees are key to business success.

A 2019 study from the University of Oxford Business School found that happy employees are 13% more productive. A 2023 University of Warwick study supported these stats finding a 12% increase in productivity from happy teams. And according to Slack’s 2023 State of Work report, nearly 9 out of 10 respondents stated that feeling happy and engaged at work is a top driver for productivity.

The research is clear: focusing on employee happiness is critical to business success. Your employees are your greatest investment and ensuring they’re happy will keep your business productive, while also developing a positive work culture.  

But how do we develop processes to boost employee satisfaction and measure the results?  There are several ways to measure employee satisfaction and find ways to improve.

The best metrics to measure employee satisfaction

Attrition rate

Employee attrition rate is one of the most telling metrics of a disengaged and unsatisfied workforce. Attrition accounts for all employees leaving, regardless of the reason. A team member could have been let go for low performance, while another left due to poor work culture and feeling unhappy. Either way, both attrition reasons tie back into dissatisfied team members.  

Attrition percentage can be calculated by: (Number of attritions/ Average number of employees) x 100

Turnover rate

How is turnover different from attrition? Attrition accounts for employees voluntary and involuntary leaving, while turnover is exclusively employees that voluntarily quit. High turnover rates are indicative of a workplace that isn’t investing resources in employee satisfaction. Gallup defines a high-turnover organization as one with more than 40% annualized turnover, while a low-turnover organization has less than 40% annualized turnover.

Employee turnover rate is calculated by: (Number of employees who quit / Average number of employees) x 100

Employee absenteeism rate

Employee absenteeism reflects the rate employees miss work without prior notification. Absenteeism typically refers to employees chronically missing scheduled shifts. Approved time off and occasional concerns like sick days are not usually factored into employee absenteeism rates. High levels of chronic absenteeism can reflect employees feeling disengaged and unhappy with their work schedules. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the 2023 benchmark absenteeism rate across all industries was 3.1%.

Individual employee absenteeism can be calculated by: (Number of absent days / number of total working days) x 100

Employee Net Promoter Score (eNPS)

You’ve probably heard of Net Promoter Scores (NPS) as a way for companies to gauge customer satisfaction and how likely they are to recommend products or services to peers. NPS scores are determined by NPS surveys sent to customers after purchasing a product or receiving a service.  

Like NPS scores, eNPS scores measure employee satisfaction and how likely your team is to recommend the workplace. An eNPS score can be determined by regular employee engagement surveys. Surveys should include a variety of questions, asking employees to answer from a scale of 0 (not likely) to 10 (extremely likely).  

Once the survey results are in, employes will be categorized by their average rating.

• Promoters (scored 9-10) are your company’s biggest cheerleaders

• Detractors (scored 0-6) are more likely to be unhappy in the workplace

• Passives (scored 7-8) are generally indifferent and are not accounted for in eNPS.  

Overall eNPS can be calculated by: (Percentage of promoters – Percentage of detractors)

Don’t forget the value of qualitative data

Numbers are a universal language, making quantitative data exceptionally valuable. Let’s not forget there’s excellent value in qualitative data as well. What are your employees truly saying?  

There’s no better way to get comprehensive feedback than getting information directly from your team. This can be done through:

• Free response answers in employee surveys. If you’ve taken standardized tests in your school years, multiple choice doesn't work for everyone. Having free response options will give you more insight into what employees actually need.

• Follow-ups to employee surveys. There should always be a follow-up process after receiving employee survey results. This can be done through meetings to communicate overall results and present a safe space for team discussion.

• Check-ins with managers and leadership. Clear and respectful communication between managers and teams is one way to get frequent feedback on employee satisfaction.  

What factors contribute to employee satisfaction?

According to Gallup’s 2023 State of the Global Job Climate, only about 25% of employees would recommend their employer as a great place to work, while around 50% of employees are open to leaving their organization for a new company.

Pay and benefits are among the biggest reasons employees are unhappy with their workplace. People need to be paid fairly and desire benefits, that’s simple enough to understand and workplaces should respond accordingly.  

Additional factors that contribute to employee satisfaction include:

• Advancement and career opportunities. Employees want a space to learn and grow, giving them long-term investment in their career at an organization.

• Top-tier management. A workforce will only be as good as its leaders. Direct reports need to feel seen, heard, and respected by management.  

• Positive work culture. Work culture includes a long list of moving parts, but employees need to feel a workplace aligns with their personal values and professional goals.

• Clear job expectations. Unrealistic job expectations or increased responsibilities that are far outside of an employee's job are a one-way ticket to burnout. If any job expectations are changed, there should be transparent communication between leadership and employees.  

• Work-life balance. Employee well-being should be valued above all else and having a balanced work schedule is key to ensuring your team is happy.  

How workforce management tools can improve employee satisfaction  

Workforce management (WFM) software can help measure employee satisfaction and improve the day-to-day experience for teams.

Performance management and quality management tools can help promote communication of expectations and goals. When employees have clear expectations for job performance, they’re more likely to reach goals and finish a workday feeling accomplished. RCN, a digital services provider, decreased employee attrition by 65% after implementing Aspect workforce tools. The company’s shift towards a performance-based culture benefitted employees while reaching important business goals.  

Asurion, a technology protection provider, was able to decrease employee absenteeism through workforce engagement (WEM) tools. Asurion’s employee satisfaction was low, partially due to inefficient communication across the organization. With Aspect's WFM tools, employees could enroll in mobile, email, or SMS notifications for work updates, helping close the communication gap.  

Work-life balance is a growing concern for employees, especially with generations that rightfully value their wellbeing over all else. British Gas Services (BGS) implemented the Aspect suite to effectively forecast labor needs and balance employee schedules accordingly. Not only did this save BGS money in resource planning but it also cut employee attrition by 21%.

A happy workforce is more likely to stay on board and create happy experiences for your customers. Valuing employee satisfaction is critical in developing a positive workplace but also in business success.