In the last three months, three major clients have asked me questions about the validity of their employee engagement, satisfaction, and cultural surveys.  They weren’t concerned because the scores were so low. They were worried because the survey results were significantly  higher (read: better) than they would have expected based on their own gut instincts about how things were going.

Employees are getting saavy about how to answer surveys to reduce the amount of noise and churn in their lives. And…. there are some things that are simply best left unquantified. The idea that data is emotionless and factual is sometiems a fiction, a wishful hope, a belief that makes us feel comfortable but doesn’t necessarily reflect organizational experiences.

If your gut is telling you your survey results are a little too rosy, it is worth asking some questions, digging in, and opening up to alternative forms of understanding satsifaction, engagement, and culture.