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Surveys

Pulse survey template

A two-minute pulse survey with five rated statements, one open question and one slot you swap each round, to fill in, copy or print.

TemplateWhat you type stays in your browser.

This month

Rate each line from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree).

I had the energy to do my work well.

My workload was manageable.

I got the support I needed from my manager.

I knew what my priorities were.

My work was noticed.

In your own words
Rotating question

Swap this one each round, to follow up on the last results.

Ideas for this slot

Do you have what you need to work well from home? How clear was the last company update? Did the change we made last month help?

Last updated

A pulse survey is a short check you can repeat every month.

A pulse survey is a short, frequent survey, often a handful of questions sent monthly or quarterly, used to track how people feel between full engagement surveys. Frequency is the point: an annual survey tells you about a problem long after the people affected have made their decision.

This template keeps five rated statements the same every round, so you can follow the trend, and adds one open question and one slot that changes. It takes about two minutes to answer.

Here is how to use the pulse survey template in five steps.

  1. Fix the five core statements. Keep the same five statements and the same 1 to 5 scale every round. The trend is the result.

  2. Choose a rhythm you can keep. Monthly or quarterly both work. Send it on the same day each time.

  3. Use the rotating slot. Ask one question about something you changed or are about to change.

  4. Share results within a week. A pulse is quick to answer and should be quick to report. Show the trend to the whole team.

  5. Act on one thing each round. Name one small change, make it, and mention it when you send the next round.

Here is a worked example with invented names.

Take an invented company, Marlowick Studio, where all 25 people answer a pulse survey every month.

The statement my workload was manageable averages 3.9 out of 5 in March, 3.4 in April and 2.7 in May. The other four statements move by less than 0.3. The open answers in May mention two client launches booked for the same week.

The studio lead moves one launch by two weeks and uses the rotating slot in June to ask whether that helped. Workload is back to 3.6 in June.

These mistakes spoil a pulse survey.

  • Changing the core statements every round, which erases the trend.
  • Sending it weekly with ten questions. That is a full survey sent too often.
  • Asking again before reporting on the last round.
  • Reading a single month's dip as a crisis. Look for a statement that falls two rounds in a row.
  • Treating the pulse as a replacement for conversations. It tells you where to ask, not what the answer is.

People ask these questions about pulse surveys.

A pulse survey is a short survey sent to employees at regular intervals, usually monthly or quarterly, with the same few questions each time. It tracks how sentiment changes between larger engagement surveys and catches a problem while it is still recent.

These glossary terms explain the ideas behind it.

  • Pulse survey

    A pulse survey is a short, frequent survey, often a handful of questions sent monthly or quarterly, used to track sentiment between full engagement surveys.

  • Survey fatigue

    Survey fatigue is the fall in response rate and answer quality that follows asking people the same questions too often, especially when nothing visibly changes afterwards.

  • Employee engagement

    Employee engagement is how committed and involved people are in their work and their company, beyond simply doing the tasks assigned to them.

  • Employee Net Promoter Score (eNPS)

    eNPS is a single-question engagement measure: how likely an employee is, on a zero to ten scale, to recommend the company as a place to work.

  • Leading indicator

    A leading indicator moves before the outcome you care about. In retention, engagement scores, absenteeism and flight risk signals lead, while the turnover rate lags.

These pages on this site go deeper.

These templates pair well with this one.

Put a score on how your team feels.

Turn promoter, passive and detractor counts into an eNPS you can track over time, with the free calculator.

Calculate your eNPS

Free, no signup required.

Back to the HR templates, where all 22 are listed.