Employee Retention Survey

An employee retention survey is a structured tool used by HR teams to understand why employees stay, what could drive them to leave, and how to improve long-term retention. These surveys help identify satisfaction levels, workplace concerns, and areas for strategic HR action.

With the right employee retention survey questions, organizations can gather insights that directly inform retention programs and engagement efforts.

What is an employee retention survey?

An employee retention survey is a questionnaire designed to assess the factors that influence employee decisions to stay with or leave a company. It typically focuses on engagement, satisfaction, leadership, compensation, and work environment.

Used to uncover key drivers of employee turnover
Helps HR take proactive steps to improve workplace culture
Typically distributed annually or during major organizational changes
Enables data-driven decisions to support retention strategies

Why are employee retention surveys important?

Retention surveys provide measurable insights that go beyond guesswork. They help organizations identify early warning signs of disengagement or dissatisfaction.

Reduce turnover costs through early intervention
Improve employee morale by acting on feedback
Align company practices with employee expectations
Support long-term workforce planning

When should you conduct an employee retention survey?

Timing depends on your organization’s needs, but consistency is key. Surveys are most effective when used regularly and strategically.

Annually, alongside performance review cycles
After major internal changes like leadership shifts or restructuring
During onboarding (early-stage retention indicators)
During offboarding to analyze turnover reasons

Who should participate in an employee retention survey?

The entire workforce, or relevant departments, should take part to get a comprehensive picture. Different groups may provide different insights.

Full-time employees across all levels
New hires for early impression insights
Exit survey respondents for comparison
Remote and hybrid staff to highlight environment-specific concerns

Where can you find a good employee retention survey template?

You can find sample employee retention survey templates from trusted HR platforms, consultants, or internal HR libraries. These templates offer ready-to-use questions aligned with proven strategies.

HR software like Culture Amp, Qualtrics, or SurveyMonkey
Internal HR toolkits or policy manuals
Industry-specific HR blogs and resources
SHRM or similar professional HR associations

What are common employee retention survey questions?

The questions should explore job satisfaction, leadership, communication, development opportunities, and sense of belonging. They can be both multiple-choice and open-ended.

Here are some sample employee retention survey questions:

“Do you feel valued and recognized at work?”
“Do you see a future for yourself at this company?”
“Are your contributions acknowledged by your manager?”
“How would you rate your current job satisfaction?”
“What could we improve to make your experience better?”
“Do you feel supported in your career development?”
“Would you recommend this organization as a great place to work?”

Employee pulse surveys:

These are short surveys that can be sent frequently to check what your employees think about an issue quickly. The survey comprises fewer questions (not more than 10) to get the information quickly. These can be administered at regular intervals (monthly/weekly/quarterly).

One-on-one meetings:

Having periodic, hour-long meetings for an informal chat with every team member is an excellent way to get a true sense of what’s happening with them. Since it is a safe and private conversation, it helps you get better details about an issue.

eNPS:

eNPS (employee Net Promoter score) is one of the simplest yet effective ways to assess your employee's opinion of your company. It includes one intriguing question that gauges loyalty. An example of eNPS questions include: How likely are you to recommend our company to others? Employees respond to the eNPS survey on a scale of 1-10, where 10 denotes they are ‘highly likely’ to recommend the company and 1 signifies they are ‘highly unlikely’ to recommend it.

Based on the responses, employees can be placed in three different categories:

Promoters
Employees who have responded positively or agreed.
Detractors
Employees who have reacted negatively or disagreed.
Passives
Employees who have stayed neutral with their responses.

What makes a strong employee retention survey questionnaire?

A strong survey uses clear, unbiased questions and allows employees to share both ratings and comments. It should balance depth and length to avoid fatigue.

Keep the tone neutral and non-leading
Mix quantitative (scale-based) and qualitative (open-ended) questions
Group questions by theme—culture, compensation, leadership, growth
Allow anonymity to encourage honesty
Test and refine the survey before full rollout

How to analyze employee retention survey results?

Once you collect responses, focus on interpreting the results to identify retention risks and areas for improvement. Break down the data by teams, demographics, and engagement trends.