Gallup Q12 Survey: How Leaders Can Successfully Act On Question 11

The eleventh question in Gallup’s Q12 engagement survey is, "In the last six months, someone has talked to me about my progress."

This question emphasizes the importance of ongoing feedback. Employees who receive regular feedback about their progress feel more engaged and motivated to improve. This helps them stay aligned with both personal and organizational goals.

In this eleventh of twelve articles on Gallup’s Q12 engagement survey, we unpack this important question by covering the following topics:

• What High-Performing Organizations Do for Q11
• Where Organizations Can Go Wrong on Q11
• Suggestions for Improvement
• Tips for Managers to Support Q11
• Tip for Employees to Support Their Own Engagement on Q11
• Bonus: Q11 Engagement Activity

What High-Performing Organizations Do for Q11

1. Frequent and Constructive Feedback: High-performing organizations prioritize feedback, ensuring that employees receive both positive reinforcement and constructive criticism regularly.
2. Development-Focused Conversations: These companies regularly engage in development conversations, helping employees track their progress and set goals for improvement.

High-Performing School Example: Mentorship programs are in place, where experienced teachers provide guidance to newer educators. Administrators actively work with teachers to identify areas for growth and provide opportunities for professional development, including workshops, conferences, or graduate courses. Teachers are given clear career advancement pathways and opportunities to take on leadership roles, whether it’s leading professional learning communities (PLCs) or being part of the school’s strategic planning committees.

Where Organizations Can Go Wrong on Q11

1. Annual-Only Feedback: Limiting feedback to annual reviews can leave employees unsure of their progress. Continuous feedback is crucial for employee development.
2. Ignoring Employee Development Needs: If managers fail to discuss progress, employees may feel unsupported and uncertain about their career growth.

Suggestions for Improvement

1. Implement Regular Check-ins: Establish a cadence of one-on-one meetings where managers can offer feedback, discuss goals, and provide direction for growth.
2. Encourage Self-Reflection: Encourage employees to regularly assess their own progress, which can create a proactive mindset around feedback and development.
3. Create a Development Plan: Work with employees to create personalized development plans, outlining goals, feedback areas, and progress checkpoints.

Tips for Managers to Support Q11

1. Schedule Regular Feedback Sessions: Make feedback a continuous process by scheduling monthly or quarterly check-ins with each employee to discuss their progress.
2. Be Constructive and Supportive: Ensure your feedback is specific, actionable, and framed in a way that encourages improvement rather than discouragement.

Tips for Employees to Support Their Own Engagement on Q11

Request Feedback: Don’t wait for feedback to come to you. Be proactive in seeking guidance from your manager on how to improve and where you can make progress.

Bonus: Q11 Engagement Activity

Q11: "In the six months, someone at work has talked to me about my progress.."

Activity: "Development Pathway Review"

Goal: To highlight and encourage learning and development opportunities.

Instructions:

1. Development Reflection: Ask employees to reflect on the learning opportunities they’ve had in the last year and where they’d like to grow moving forward.
2. Growth Mapping: Have each employee create a “learning roadmap” that outlines areas for growth and possible opportunities for development.
3. Commitment to Growth: Discuss how the team can support each other’s growth and make learning a key focus moving forward.

Outcome: Employees feel that development is valued and are motivated to continue growing, with the support of their manager and peers.

Conclusion

Regular feedback is key to employee development and engagement. By fostering a feedback-rich environment, both managers and employees can work together to ensure that progress is tracked, celebrated, and continuously improved upon.

As we move through 2025, let’s make Q11 a priority in fostering an engaged and high-performing workforce. Stay tuned for next month’s issue, where we’ll dive into Q12: “In the last year, I have had opportunities at work to learn and grow.”

Need help with employee engagement? Contact us for guidance on measuring, analyzing, and improving employee engagement to drive better outcomes. Let’s work together to create a more engaged and successful workplace.