Sharing employee survey results with employees is the most often skipped, yet most effective, step of a survey. Results should be shared within 4–6 weeks of the survey closing, presenting strengths, areas for improvement and the chosen priorities together. If employees never hear the results, they conclude their participation was wasted and skip the next survey. In this article, we explain when, how and in how much detail to share the results.
- Results should be shared within 4–6 weeks of the survey closing; delays leave employees feeling their participation was wasted.
- Sharing only the good news damages trust. Strengths, areas for improvement and the chosen priorities should be presented together.
- Sharing happens at two levels: senior leadership presents company-wide results and priorities, and managers discuss their own team's results with their team.
Why sharing results matters so much
A survey tells employees "your opinion matters". Not sharing the results takes that message back. "We filled it in last year too; what changed?" is one of the biggest reasons for low participation.
Sharing results achieves three things:
- Trust: Employees see that their voice was heard.
- Shared understanding: It becomes clear that problems are seen the same way at every level of the organization.
- Ownership: Teams are invited to help design the actions.
When to share
Within 4–6 weeks of the survey closing. That is enough time to analyze the results, review them with senior leadership and choose priorities. Waiting longer makes employees forget the survey and conclude the results were not taken seriously.
Even before the full analysis is finished, a short message shortly after the survey closes, with the response rate and a thank-you, is a good start.
What to share
- Response rate: Share how many people took part and thank them.
- Overall engagement level: Show the company-wide picture and, if available, the comparison with the previous period.
- The 2–3 strongest areas: Explain what the organization does well and wants to keep.
- The 2–3 areas for improvement: Name the lowest-scoring areas, or those with the biggest drop, openly.
- Main themes: Summarize the topics raised most often in open-ended comments.
- Chosen priorities and next steps: Explain what will be worked on and by when.
Sharing only the good news means ignoring problems employees already know about. Acknowledging negative results does not damage trust; it builds it.
What not to share
- Results for groups of fewer than 10 people: Employees in these groups become identifiable.
- Verbatim comments: Writing style or the incident described can reveal who wrote them. Share the themes instead.
- Rankings between teams: Ranking units makes results look like a competition or a tool for punishment.
You can find the other rules for protecting anonymity in our article on anonymity in employee surveys.
Two levels of sharing
From senior leadership to the whole organization
A short message or meeting from senior leadership shows that the topic is being taken seriously. It should cover the company-wide picture, the chosen priorities and the people who own those priorities.
From managers to their teams
The most effective sharing happens when each manager discusses their own team's results with their team. Company-wide results can feel abstract; team results connect directly to employees' day-to-day experience.
A simple meeting flow for managers:
- Thank the team for taking part and briefly show the team's results.
- Talk through the strengths together.
- Pick one or two of the lowest-scoring areas and ask, "What is behind this result?"
- Collect one or two concrete suggestions the team can act on together.
- Agree on the next step and a follow-up date.
In this meeting, it is essential that the manager does not get defensive and that the conversation does not turn into "who answered like this?"
Do not treat sharing as a one-off announcement
Sharing results is not an announcement you make once and forget. Throughout the year, announce every step you take and link it to the survey: "Internal communication was the topic you raised most in the survey, so starting this month we are holding monthly briefings." That message becomes the strongest invitation to the next survey.
To reach frontline employees, use shift meetings, notice boards and screens alongside email. You can find more detail in our article on how to survey blue-collar employees.
If the results were worse than expected, we explain how to plan the sharing and the first steps in our article on what to do when employee survey results are bad, and how to turn results into lasting change in our article on turning survey results into company culture.
Frequently asked questions
Should all survey results be shared with employees?
There is no need to share the detailed result for every question. The overall engagement level, the strongest and weakest areas, the response rate and the chosen priorities should be shared. What matters is that negative results are not hidden.
Should results be shared even if they are bad?
Yes. Not sharing bad results means ignoring something employees already know, and it lowers trust in the next survey. Acknowledging the result and explaining the steps you will take builds trust.
Can open-ended comments be shared with employees?
Share the main themes, not the comments themselves. Quoting comments word for word can make the writer identifiable and undermines anonymity.
What if managers are reluctant to share team results?
Give managers a short briefing on how to discuss results with their teams and a simple meeting template. Make it clear that team results are for improving together, not for evaluating the manager.
