Organizational Excellence

Definitions and Calculations

Below are some definitions of survey terminology and explanation of how scores are calculated.

Survey Score Calculations:

The survey is broken into several scoring units.

Item Score - the average response for a survey item; the average ranges from a score of 1 (Strongly Disagree) to 5 (Strongly Agree).

Construct Score - the average of the Item Scores that belong to the Construct. Each construct consists of several related items. The average item score is multiplied by 100 to get the construct score. Scores of 375 or higher indicate areas of substantial strength. Scores above 350 suggest that employees perceive the issue more positively than negatively, while scores below 350 are viewed more negatively by employees. Scores below 325 should be a significant source of concern for the organization and should receive immediate attention.

Dimension Score - the average of the Construct Scores that belong to the Dimension. Each Dimension consists of several related constructs.

Synthesis Score - the overall score based on the average of all items that belong to constructs. The average item score is multiplied by 100 to get the synthesis score.

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Dimension Descriptions:

Dim#	Name	Description
1	Work Group	This dimension relates to employees' activities within their immediate work vicinity. They include factors that concern how employees interact with peers, supervisors and the quality of work activity.
2	Accommodations	This dimension looks at the physical work setting and the factors associated with pay, benefits, resources and workplace safety. It is the total compensation package and environment provided to employees by the organization.
3	Organization	This dimension addresses the organization's strategic orientation and ability to leverage a diverse workforce towards fulfilling the organization’s mission. It is an internal evaluation of the organization's ability to assess changes in the environment and make needed adjustments.
4	Information	This dimension refers to how consistent and structured communication flow is within the organization and to outside groups. It examines the degree to which information systems and technology are efficient and effective.
5	Personal	This dimension reports on the level of overall job satisfaction and elements of actively engaging employees in the workplace. Personal and career development are assessed as to their ability to improve performance.
6	Climate	The climate in which employees work to a large extent determines the efficiency and effectiveness of an organization. It is a combination of a safe, non-harassing, and ethical abiding employees who treat each other with fairness and respect in an organization with pro-active management and thoughtful decision making capabilities.

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Construct Descriptions

Cons#	Name	Description
1	Supervision	Supervision provides insight into the nature of supervisory relationships within the organization including aspects of leadership, the communication of expectations, and sense of fairness that employees perceive exist between supervisors and themselves.
2	Team	Team captures employees' perceptions of the effectiveness of their work group and the extent to which the organizational environment supports appropriate teamwork among employees.
3	Quality	Quality focuses upon the degree to which quality principles, such as customer service and continuous improvement, are a part of the organizational culture.
4	Pay	Pay is an evaluation from the viewpoint of employees of the competitiveness of the total compensation package. It addresses how well the package "holds up" when employees compare it to similar jobs in their own communities.
5	Benefits	Benefits provide an indication of the role that the employment benefit package plays in attracting and retaining employees.
6	Physical Environment	Physical Environment captures employees' perceptions of the work setting and the degree to which employees believe that a safe and pleasant working environment exists.
7	Strategic	Strategic orientation secures employees' thinking about how the organization responds to external influence, including those which play a role in defining the mission, services and products provided by the organization.
8	Diversity	Diversity addresses the extent to which employees feel that individual differences, including ethnicity, age and lifestyle, may result in alienation and/or missed opportunities for learning or advancement.
9	Information Systems	Information Systems provides insight into whether computer and communication systems utilized by employees enhances the ability to get the job done by providing accessible, accurate, and clear information.
10	Internal Communication	Internal Communication captures the nature of communication exchanges within the organization by addressing the extent to which employees view information exchanges as open, honest, and productive.
11	External Communication	External Communication looks at how information flows out of the organization to various constituencies and focuses upon the ability of the organization to synthesize appropriately.
12	Employee Engagement	Employee Engagement focuses on the sense of trust and the level of employees’ participation in carrying out their work responsibilities towards delivering high quality work.
13	Employee Development	Employment Development captures perceptions of the priority given to the career and personal development of employees by the organization.
14	Job Satisfaction	Job Satisfaction addresses employees' satisfaction with their overall work situation and weighs heavily on issues concerning work-life balance, sense of pride, and offering meaningful contributions to the workplace.
15	Climate/Atmosphere	The aspect of climate and positive Atmosphere of an organization must be free of harassment in order to establish a community of reciprocity.
16	Climate/Ethics	An Ethical climate is a foundation of building trust within an organization where not only are employees ethical in their behavior, but that ethical violations are appropriately handled.
17	Climate/Fairness	Fairness measures the extent to which employees believe that equal and fair opportunity exists for all members of the organization.
18	Climate/Feedback	Appropriate feedback is an essential element of organizational learning by providing the necessary data in which improvement can occur.
19	Climate/Management	The climate presented by Management as being accessible, visible, and an effective communicator of information is a basic tenant of successful leadership.

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Survey Hierarchy

Work Group
Supervision
11:	I have a clear understanding about my work responsibilities.
12:	My supervisor gives me accurate feedback about my performance.
13:	My supervisor recognizes outstanding work.
14:	My supervisor gives me the opportunity to do my best work.
15:	My supervisor is consistent when administering policies concerning employees.
Team
1:	People in my work group cooperate to get the job done.
2:	My work group is actively involved in making work processes more effective.
3:	There is a real feeling of teamwork.
4:	In my work group, I have an opportunity to participate in the goal setting process.
5:	Work groups are trained to incorporate the opinions of each member.
Quality
20:	My work group uses the feedback from our customers/clients when making decisions.
21:	My work group regularly uses performance data to improve the quality of our work.
22:	My work group’s goals are consistently met or exceeded.
23:	Our organization is known for the quality of service we provide.
Accommodations
Pay
24:	My pay keeps pace with the cost of living.
25:	Salaries are competitive with similar jobs in the community.
26:	I feel I am paid fairly for the work I do.
Benefits
69:	Benefits are comparable to those offered in other jobs.
70:	I understand my benefits plan.
71:	Benefits can be selected to meet individual needs.
Physical Environment
40:	Given the type of work I do, my physical workplace meets my needs.
41:	My workplace is well maintained.
42:	There are sufficient procedures to ensure the safety of employees in the workplace.
43:	I have adequate resources and equipment to do my job.
Organization
Strategic
16:	I have a good understanding of our mission, vision, and strategic plan.
17:	I understand the state, local, national, and global issues that impact the organization.
18:	My organization works well with other organizations.
19:	My organization develops services to match the needs of our customers/clients.
Diversity
50:	An effort is made to get the opinions of people throughout the organization.
51:	The people I work with treat each other with respect.
52:	My organization works to attract, develop, and retain people with diverse backgrounds.
53:	Every employee is valued.
Information
Information Systems
6:	My work group uses the latest technology to communicate and interact.
7:	The information available from our computer systems is reliable.
8:	Overall, our computer information systems present information in an understandable way.
9:	Our computer systems enable me to easily and quickly find the information I need.
10:	Information systems are in place and accessible for me to get my job done.
Internal Communication
32:	I feel the communication channels I must go through at work are reasonable.
33:	My work atmosphere encourages open and honest communication.
34:	Overall within the groups I work, there is good communication.
35:	The right information gets to the right people at the right time.
External Communication
36:	I believe our organization communicates our mission effectively to the public.
37:	Our organization communicates well with our governing bodies (i.e. the board, the legislature, etc.)
38:	My organization shares appropriate information with the public.
39:	My organization communicates effectively with other organizations.
Personal
Employee Engagement
44:	The people I work with care about my personal well-being.
45:	I am encouraged to come up with better ways to serve my customers/clients.
46:	I know how my work impacts others in the organization.
47:	I am encouraged to learn from my mistakes.
48:	There is a basic trust among employees and supervisors.
49:	When possible, decision making and control are given to employees doing the actual work.
Employee Development
54:	I believe I have a career with this organization.
55:	I have access to information about job opportunities, conferences, workshops, and training.
56:	Training is made available to me so that I can do my job better.
57:	Training is made available to me for personal growth and development.
Job Satisfaction
27:	My job meets my expectations.
28:	My work environment supports a balance between work and personal life.
29:	I feel my efforts count.
30:	The amount of work I am asked to do is reasonable.
31:	I feel a sense of pride when I tell people that I work for this organization.

Survey Climate Areas and Related Items
Climate/Atmosphere
67:	Harassment is not tolerated at my workplace.
68:	Within my workplace, there is a feeling of community among employees.
Climate/Ethics
65:	I am confident that any ethics violation I report will be properly handled.
66:	Employees are generally ethical in my workplace.
Climate/Fairness
63:	I believe favoritism (special treatment) is not an issue in my organization.
64:	My performance is evaluated fairly.
Climate/Feedback
60:	I believe we will use the information from this survey to improve our performance.
61:	I am satisfied with the opportunities I have to give feedback on my supervisor’s performance.
62:	My ideas and opinions count at work.
Climate/Management
58:	Upper management effectively communicates the reasons behind key decisions.
59:	Upper management tries to be accessible and visible.

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