5 Ways Anonymous Feedback Tools Improve Your Workplace

13th June 2022

In this article we discuss anonymous feedback tools and the five ways they can improve your workplace culture today.

A problem shared is a problem halved, but people feel hesitant sometimes to talk about what is affecting them at work. 

For instance, some people might feel too intimidated to share their issues for fear of professional repercussions, or they may fear the social impact of speaking up about specific topics. However, 74% of employees say they’d be more willing to give feedback to HR teams if communication channels were genuinely anonymous. 

Anonymous feedback tools can provide an open forum for sharing many kinds of work issues –– everything from troubleshooting working processes to addressing wellbeing needs. 

Helping employees raise awareness of potential work issues can help managers turn comments into actionable insights, making their organisations better places to work. This article will list 5 ways to use anonymous employee feedback to improve your workplace.

How anonymous feedback drives change

Employee feedback surveys play a crucial role in helping organisations gather (hopefully honest) comments and review them to drive improvements. However, there is no guarantee you will uncover helpful company insights just from polling people on an ad hoc basis. 

Surveys act as a snapshot in time, and often companies poll employees once or twice a year to collect people’s opinions on a range of topics. The results of quick polls are usually not shared between departments or compared with previous survey findings. Plus, many feedback surveys are not designed to allow employees to expand their answers with more detail. 

It’s also likely that some team members may feel like their survey comments will get traced back to them somehow. As a result, there’s the chance that employees may hold back or even be dishonest when answering questions about how they’re really feeling. 

Employee engagement tools like Trickle are packed with features that motivate people to give suggestions and genuine opinions regularly. The platform also makes it easy for HR managers to share survey results with teams in real-time. But, most importantly, Trickle gives users the chance to share their ideas anonymously –– which can be crucial for encouraging employees to open up about what’s really bothering them. 

Anonymity allows people to feel more comfortable highlighting sensitive issues, calling out problems that negatively affect the company, or even revealing that they might need more support. 

Therefore, the key to driving lasting change through feedback is using employee engagement tools like Trickle that offer anonymity options and an appealing website experience. Create opportunities for teams to regularly leave anonymous constructive criticism by designing questions that encourage specific insights. 

With that in mind, here are 5 ways HR teams can harness anonymous employee feedback to improve their organisation. 

1. Provide anonymous feedback tools to boost engagement 

According to findings from Gallup, organisations that report high levels of employee engagement will have a 59% reduction in employee turnover rate. The same study found that motivated employees are, on average, 17% more productive than disengaged teams. 

These figures suggest that actively creating opportunities for employees to provide anonymous feedback can positively impact morale and, ultimately, employee performance. 

Many feedback tools also allow teams to track engagement levels in real-time. For instance, you can use tools like Trickle to ask employees their opinion of your company’s mission statement and how they think it affects their daily activities. If you get a mix of responses, this could mean that your organisation needs to refine its ethos or find a better way to articulate your message so that it boosts motivation levels.

2. Provide anonymous feedback tools to identify issues

If your organisation uses many working processes, it can be challenging for employees to see how their input affects others at your company. 

A lack of inter-departmental communication can be problematic. It can prevent employees from raising issues simply because they feel it’s not their place to share opinions on areas of the business they are less involved in. 

Therefore, creating a space where employees can anonymously give feedback, and make suggestions —regardless of your job role — is a less intimidating way to find out where you can make quick improvements. 

Trickle allows staff to start two-way conversations anonymously, opening up communication channels between employees. Team members can quickly raise comments on emerging issues without worrying about if they know all the details. Operational managers can then respond and act based on the information received. 

3. Use anonymous employee feedback to foster innovation 

Many employees may have ambitious ideas for innovations right on the tip of their tongue but may feel embarrassed to share them with other team members or as part of a general ideas meeting. 

Providing employees with an opportunity to raise suggestions anonymously encourages creative thinkers to develop new ideas in an open and free environment. 

4. Use anonymous company feedback to promote inclusion 

Improve your organisation’s inclusiveness by giving employees a place to discuss broader societal issues (such as diversity) which may impact their motivation at work. 

In our previous post, why psychological safety should be a part of every work culture, we explore how fostering an open and safe workplace culture improves team members’ feelings of inclusivity. Anonymous employee feedback can be fundamental to ensuring that all people’s comments are taken seriously on important issues such as diversity and inclusion. 

Trickle’s MoodSense feature measures the temperature of your company’s culture, allowing you to tailor questions towards sociological issues, gathering honest feedback in an entirely un-intimidating way. 

5. Use anonymous feedback to come to a quick consensus

Sometimes in company meetings, less outgoing employees may go along with an idea they don’t like just because the majority are going in a particular direction. 

Providing a platform where employees can raise further suggestions anonymously if they wish makes it easy to get democratic input on all sorts of company issues, such as where to host your summer party. 

With these tools, you can strip group bias away and accurately measure your team’s opinion on any subject. 

Trickle makes gathering anonymous feedback easy

Anonymous company feedback can be an invaluable resource for any organisation. By tracking and monitoring honest employee input, you can make vast improvements to your workplace’s culture. 

Trickle has a plethora of features that encourage people to open up and share their true feelings in a psychologically safe and engaging way. 

If you’d like to find out more, chat with our team and book a demo — or why not jump right in with a free trial?