From Insight to Action: The Key to Happy, Engaged Employees

Keeping your team engaged is priceless. Yet, many organizations get stuck between knowing what’s wrong and actually doing something about it. According to communication expert Elaine Eksvärd, the key is the right kind of communication – and with the help of AI-powered tools like Winningtemp, real change becomes a lot easier.

Did you know that hiring just one new person costs, on average, more than half a million SEK? That’s according to a 2023 study by Vision. Investing in employee experience and retention isn’t just about culture – it’s good for business too.

It all starts with listening. Regular employee surveys are a critical foundation for any high-performing organization. But collecting data without taking action? That won’t get you anywhere. So the big question is: how do you actually turn insights into results – and what does it take to succeed?

Successful companies have three things in common

Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace 2024 report highlights a clear pattern: organizations that have successfully shifted from low to high employee engagement tend to share three key things:

1. They hire managers who actively engage their teams.

2. They treat engagement as a core business strategy – not just an HR initiative.

3. They prioritize employee wellbeing, both at work and outside of it.

Ask specific, tailored questions

Elaine Eksvärd has spent her career helping leaders turn insight into action. One of the most common mistakes she sees? Employee surveys that ask questions that are too broad – which causes employees to lose interest and disengage.

Another issue, according to Elaine, is that many organizations don’t run surveys often enough.

“I think it’s a good idea to go from once a year to at least once a quarter,” she says.

“Strong organizations link their quarterly business reports to employee wellbeing check-ins.”

Leadership is all about communication

To move from insight to action, the questions in a survey need to be framed in a way that sparks engagement and makes employees want to respond.

“But insights aren’t worth anything if you don’t act on them,” says Elaine. “That’s where leadership needs to step up, to communicate clearly and follow through on the feedback.”

Research shows that about 80 percent of a leader’s day is spent on communication. So there’s a lot to gain by getting better at it.

“Not all managers are naturally good at it, but I believe everyone can build strong communication muscles,” she says.

One way to build those skills is by learning from colleagues who are great at giving feedback or presenting.

“Do you have a coworker who gives feedback in a way that makes people feel good? That’s your feedback guru,” Elaine says.

“My advice is to find your communication gurus – and start practicing.”

Winningtemp helps you ask the right questions

Not everyone is naturally skilled at communication — but in addition to the advice above, there are AI- and data-driven tools available to support leaders. Winningtemp is one such tool. Based on the latest research, it assists with both employee surveys and follow-up actions.

“I love Winningtemp’s focus on data. They’re doing everything right when it comes to how they approach surveys,” says Elaine.

Winningtemp’s AI-powered surveys adapt by asking tailored follow-up questions based on each employee’s responses, making sure every individual only gets relevant questions.

The next step: clear actions

Collecting insights is a great start, but without clear actions, they’re just numbers. That’s why Winningtemp provides managers and HR with three practical tools to turn insights into action: Recommended Actions, Guided Temperature Meetings, and Learning.

With Recommended Actions, leaders receive research-based, automated suggestions directly linked to the insights gathered. They can also track these actions to see how they impact employee engagement over time.

Read more about Actions here.

Get support for the right kind of meetings

Guided Temperature Meetings help managers run structured meetings based on insights from Winningtemp’s surveys. The meeting agenda is created directly from the data.

“This helps keep meetings on point and actually meaningful,” says Elaine. “I always say, no agenda, no attenda.”

Relevant training videos

Learning is a collection of short training videos featuring different experts, helping leaders with targeted content based on insights from the surveys. First up are Elaine Eksvärd’s videos on communicative leadership.

The tool provides personalized content with practical tips and tools to drive change.

“Watch a video for ten minutes, read for five, and after fifteen minutes you’re ready to take action,” says Elaine. “I believe in short, focused screen time with tips you can put into practice right away in your leadership.”

Read more about Learning here.

The right actions lead to happier employees – and better results

The road from insight to action is rarely straightforward, but it’s absolutely critical. Organizations that act quickly on the right insights often see both higher employee satisfaction and improved business outcomes.

Winningtemp’s tools support leaders and HR teams in developing data-driven, practical actions with guidance from experts like Elaine Eksvärd — all based on the latest research.