Employee Satisfaction

What is Employee Satisfaction?

Employee satisfaction is a broad term used by the HR industry to describe how satisfied or content employees are with elements like their jobs, their employee experience, and the organizations they work for. Employee satisfaction is one key metric that can help determine the overall health of an organization, which is why many organizations employ regular surveys to measure employee satisfaction and track satisfaction trends over time. A high satisfaction level indicates that employees are happy with how their employer treats them

Often, employee satisfaction is used interchangeably with employee engagement; however, while engagement is one factor influencing overall satisfaction (and it may be said the reverse is also somewhat true), the two are not the same. Satisfaction, while important for retention, is not necessarily a predictor of performance, while engagement—which indicates an employee’s passion for their work, among other things—is directly tied to output. Ideally, satisfaction occurs as a result of both material factors like compensation and benefits as well as less-tangible elements like engagement, recognition, and strong leadership. If an organization fails to address both sides of the equation, they may find they have a complacent team made up of materially satisfied employees who are content to do only what’s required to remain employed, or a staff of highly engaged employees who are performing well while they look for new opportunities at companies more willing or able to fill their material needs.