|
A salary survey is an important tool that allows compensation analysts to understand and explain trends in the labor market and in employment. Employers use the results that are gathered from compensation survey to assess whether or not the payscales that they offer are aligned in accordance with industry standards. They also use the results that such a survey tool provides to determine if new salary scales are necessary.
At first glance, conducting a payscale survey may seem like a difficult task; however, thanks to survey software and the general straightforward nature of these types of surveys, they are actually fairly easy to conduct.
The following steps, along with online survey software, can make the process of creating and successfully executing a payscale survey an easier task than you may have first imagined.
Determine who to include in your survey
Demographics plays a key role in successfully creating and executing a salary survey. It also plays an important role in the type of information that you will collect. For instance, if the goal of your survey is to find out if the salaries of your personal assistants is aligned with the salaries of other personal assistants, it is vital to include a demographic that closely matches your demographic. Selecting several offices in a similar field who employ personal assistants for example will allow you to effectively determine if the salaries your personal assistants earn is similar to what other professionals in this industry are earning.
Select the occupational groups for your study
Make sure that the occupations you are surveying are similar to the staff that you are trying to understand salary needs for. For example, if you are collecting information for registered nurses, make certain that you are only collecting salary data from registered nurses.
Contact prospective applicants you would like to Survey
Before sending out a salary survey, make sure you contact your intended applicants. Introduce yourself and the agency, company or firm that you are conducting the study for. Also, highlight the reason why you are conducting the survey and what you hope to achieve from the data you collect.
Be sure to include a confidentiality statement with your letter of introduction. This statement should clearly highlight that the information obtained from the survey will not be released to other agencies, companies or firms.
Create Your Questionnaire
Make sure that your questionnaire is clear, concise and easy to follow. An effective questionnaire should include the following:
- Positions
- Titles
- Tenure with the agency, company or firm
- Seniority
- Credentials
- Licenses
- Any special training that has been received
- Job responsibilities
- Supervisory responsibilities
- Analyze the Data
Once the surveys have been completed, assemble them and analyze the data they offer. Calculate the average salary, as well as the mean and median salaries for each position. When conducted properly, a salary survey can offer valuable information for an organization and its employees.
|