Frequently Asked Questions about Engagement
Find answers to common questions about Engagement Surveys in Trakstar Perform.
Getting started? If you're new to engagement surveys, review the Setting Up Engagement Surveys guide before creating and sending surveys.
Check out our guide to setting up engagement in your Perform account.
What do engagement survey emails and surveys look like for employees?
Employees receive:
- An initial email invitation to complete the survey.
- Reminder emails (if reminders are enabled) until the survey closes.
You can also preview custom surveys, such as Manager Check-In and Poll surveys, from the Review page before sending them.
Can I customize the survey invitation emails?
No.
The email notifications sent for engagement surveys cannot be customized. Employees receive the standard invitation and reminder emails provided by Trakstar Perform.
Here is a screenshot of a survey as an employee sees it. You can also preview custom surveys (such as the manager check-in or poll) on the Review page prior to sending them out:
Can I view the questions included in a Company Pulse Survey?
Yes.
You can review the questions included in any of the twelve pre-built Company Pulse Surveys before sending them.
Viewing a survey also displays the engagement concept associated with each question.
Can I edit the questions in a Company Pulse Survey?
No.
The Company Pulse Survey questions cannot be edited.
They are intentionally standardized to measure employee engagement across the three key concepts of:
- Mastery
- Autonomy
- Purpose
Keeping the questions consistent helps provide meaningful trend data and organization-wide engagement reporting.
Where do the Company Pulse Survey questions come from?
The Company Pulse Survey is based on Daniel Pink's framework of:
- Mastery
- Autonomy
- Purpose
This framework is used to evaluate overall employee engagement and intrinsic motivation. Additional background information is available through Daniel Pink's published work on employee motivation.
How often should I send engagement surveys?
Recommended survey frequency depends on your organization's needs.
Company Pulse Survey
- Every 2 weeks
- Completes all twelve surveys in approximately six months.
- Recommended for organizations experiencing rapid growth or significant change.
- Every 4 weeks
- Completes all twelve surveys over approximately one year.
- Recommended for organizations seeking a longer-term view of engagement trends.
General Best Practices
- Survey employees at least once per year.
- Consider sending surveys following significant organizational changes.
- Managers may choose to send Manager Check-In surveys weekly to help prepare for one-on-one meetings.
Do employees receive Slack notifications for engagement surveys?
No.
Engagement surveys generate email notifications and reminder emails only. Slack notifications are not supported for the Engagement feature.
Why can't I view the results of my anonymous survey?
Anonymous survey results require at least five responses.
If fewer than five employees respond:
- Survey results remain unavailable.
- No exceptions are made.
- This protects employee anonymity.
Important: Once the anonymous option has been enabled for a survey, it cannot be turned off.
Avoid sending anonymous surveys to groups of four employees or fewer, as results will never become available.
What happens if an employee doesn't complete a survey?
Employees who have not responded receive reminder emails until the survey closes.
After the survey closes:
- Reminder emails stop.
- No additional actions or penalties occur for employees who did not participate.
- A survey cannot be reopened once it closes.
What questions should I ask in custom engagement surveys?
Trakstar provides a collection of approximately 250 sample engagement questions covering topics such as:
- Management
- Learning and development
- Job satisfaction
- Performance reviews
- General employee feedback
These examples can help you build effective custom engagement surveys.