Here’s a seemingly simple question: What draws someone to a job?
Being able to offer a competitive salary obviously helps. Offering good benefits helps, too. But believe it or not, the No. 1 reason job candidates choose one job over another is company culture, according to a recent study. The second and third most popular answers were career progression and benefits.
The results are especially interesting considering compensation was the top priority for employees when the same survey was run five years ago. Clearly, as the economy and workplace demands have changed, so too have the needs of employees. Today, people want to feel connected to a company’s mission and purpose, and are seeking companies that give them opportunities for career growth.
How do you know if your company fits that bill? Luckily, there are many ways for HR leaders to check the pulse of their culture. One way is through the employee Net Promoter Score (eNPS). The concept behind is it simple: it asks employees to answer, “How likely are you to recommend your employer to a friend or acquaintance, on a scale of 1 to 10?” The goal is to get a quick and easy reading on how loyal and engaged a company’s employees are.
How your eNPS score is calculated
How does it work in practice? Employees who answer the question with a rating of 9 or 10 are considered “promoters”; those who answer 7 or 8 are “passives” who aren’t ultimately counted in the score; and those who answer 0 to 6 are “detractors.” The final score is calculated by subtracting the percentage of detractors from the percentage of promoters (see here for more). The end result is a single score -100 to 100, where -100 to -10 is a poor score, -10 to 20 is good/average, and anything above 20 is excellent.
Related: How to Improve Your Employer Brand
Companies with great eNPS scores
So what’s a well-known company with a great eNPS score? With a score of 55, Adobe is one that tops the charts, ranking in the Top 5% of similarly sized companies and top 25% of other companies headquartered in San Francisco. According to reviews left by employees at Comparably, Adobe makes people “feel valued and compensated” and provides “great challenges, lots of diversity in work, great extra opportunities.”
For a full list of large, mid-size and small companies with high eNPS scores, check out Comparably’s Best Company eNPS 2017.
How to improve your company’s eNPS score
If you do an eNPS analysis and find that your less than pleased with the results, it’s time to take action. Business leaders and HR execs should focus on honing in on where there culture problems exist. Do people feel challenged by the work? Do they feel adequately compensated? Do they have a good relationship with their managers? Do they have a clear idea of what’s expected of them? (That last question is particularly poignant — according to data by Comparably, 42% of people say having unclear goals is their biggest stressor at work.)
Sites like Comparably can help, providing you with employee reviews about a company’s culture, management, perks/benefits, compensation, and more. (Microsoft used here as an example.) The site also gives you information on how female employees and minorities feel about the company.
Related: 6 Ways to Motivate Employees Right Now
Don’t forget: It all takes time
Culture changes don’t happen overnight, but with small and deliberate steps like interviews, observations and feedback from employees, leaders can make changes that will help create a culture people believe in. And at a time when unemployment is at historic lows and employers are desperately in need of top talent, that may be the best investment you can make.
