11 simple survey questions for measuring leadership effectiveness

Why do employee surveys about leadership and management matter?

It may be confronting for your managers and heads of teams to be the subject of a leadership survey, but you have to keep in mind that feedback goes both ways – and if you can consistently measure the KPIs and performance of your teams, you can certainly do the same for your leaders.

Leadership effectiveness plays a really an important part in overall employee engagement and satisfaction, so it’s seemingly obvious that to create a happier and more high-preforming team, you must measure and track how managers are influencing them. By doing so, you will empower your leaders be as impactful and inspiring as they can be.

The influence leadership has on employee engagement

Gallup does plenty of insightful work into the effects of leadership and management on employee engagement, and over the years they’ve uncovered some interesting statistics:

• 70% of the variance in team engagement is determined solely by the team’s manager.
• When leaders communicate clearly, lead and support change, and inspire confidence in the future – 95% of employees say they fully trust their leaders.
• Employees who trust their leaders are 61% more likely to stay loyal to their current company.

What do employees really want from their leaders?

We’ve seen plenty of feedback over the years from manager effectiveness surveys – and the answer is simple, really. Employees want their leaders to care about them, listen to their ideas, and support their growth. They want clear communication, honesty, and accountability – someone who treats them with respect, values their contributions, and follows through on their promises.

How to craft survey questions that get to the heart of leadership

Start by identifying key leadership characteristics that matter most to your teams and drive manager satisfaction – like communication, empathy, and trust.

Then, frame your questions around these traits, asking things like, “Does your manager listen to your concerns?” or “Do you feel supported in your professional growth?”

Keep your questions clear and easy to understand, mixing in both quantitative ratings and qualitative feedback and always avoid leading and double-barrelled questions.

Following these basic best practices will help you create leadership survey questions for employees that capture measurable insights to improve leadership effectiveness within your organisation.

11 simple examples of leadership effectiveness survey questions to ask employees

Our People Scientists have developed these example questions for you. Feel free to use these in your next leadership questionnaire for staff, or as a starting point. These examples could be crafted as Likert scale or rating scale questions.

• Do you feel that your manager cares about you as a person?
• Do you feel that your manager actively listens to your ideas and concerns?
• Do you feel supported by your manager in your professional growth and development?
• Does your manager make you feel comfortable to approach them with a problem?
• Does your manager give you constructive and actionable feedback?
• Do you feel that your manager recognises and appreciates your work?
• Does you manager show empathy towards your challenges – whether personal or professional?
• Do you feel that your manager sets a positive example for the team in terms of behaviour and accountability?
• Do you feel your manager involves you in decision-making processes that affect your work?
• Does your manager deal with conflicts and disagreements fairly?
• Does your manager make you feel like a valued part of the team?

Interested in knowing more about employee surveys and leveraging feedback? You’re in the right place.

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