How to Use the Questionnaire Instruments
The purpose of these questionnaires is to analyze and evaluate “what is.” There are numerous instruments (tools that use a simple system of measurement) including
1. Workplace Alignment, highlights the current degree of “fit” between you and your workplace.
The first tool, Workplace Alignment, enables you to build a workplace where you can do your best work, express more of your talents, and realize more of your potential.
The second questionnaire, Leadership Success Factors, provides a tool for helping to assess and offer constructive and safe feedback to assist with becoming a better leader. This style of leadership — inclusive, collaborative, and “stakeholder-centered” — relies on excellent people skills, clear goals and agreements, and the ability to accept constructive criticism. We hope that these tools help everyone learn and gain additional mastery in the art of facilitative leadership.
In just a few minutes, you can give constructive feedback, gain insight, set some priorities and help establish next steps. You will discover which areas represent existing strengths … and which are calling out for improvement.
Your responses to a series of statements will reveal gaps between what you expect (for the first instrument, for example, what you expect from your workplace) and “what is” — what your workplace truly has to offer.
For each of the following items, pick two number from 1 to 10 (1 = low, 10 = high):
Satisfaction. A low score indicates that you expect much more than you are getting in this area. A high score means that your expectations are fulfilled.
Importance. A low score means “not at all important.” A high score says “vitally important factor.”
Gap is the difference between these two numbers. Subtract the score for Importance from the score for Satisfaction (Gap = S – I).
For example, if “cooperation” is a 2 (there’s lots of fighting and turf wars), but its importance is a 9, there’s a gap of -7. Positive gaps may reflect that you’re getting more than you expected in those areas, or that they’re just not priorities.
The smaller the gaps, the more likely you are to do your best work and get fully appreciated for that work. The greater the gap, the more you might want to pay attention to that factor – it may mirror a difficulty or “problem area” at work. Ironically, a large gap doesn’t work for either you or your employer. In the long run, addressing any situation – a huge Grand Canyon-sized gap or a small one – provides the basis for a stronger win-win.
When you’ve completed all questions, circle or name the factors with the largest negative gaps. In some cases, rather than trying to increase alignment with your present employer, you’ll simply clarify what you want and expect from your next employment situation. Either way, there are choices available for each success factor.
Suggestion: Before you begin this survey, decide on the scope of your assessment – are you rating just your work unit, your division, or the entire organization?
Next step: select the instrument you wish to use …
(1) Workplace Alignment Self-Assessment or
(2) Leadership Success Factors (a 360-degree feedback instrument).
