How to have more productive conversations with staff

Getting staff to share their real feelings about issues in school can be tricky – but can reap enormous rewards

Tes Marketing

Valuable staff conversations image

Teaching is a tough job, and it’s crucial that schools are equipped to listen to their staff about how they are feeling. Some may not be comfortable voicing their concerns, or may feel that their opinions are being drowned out by more vocal colleagues, but it’s important to be able to hear from the whole school community. 

Giving staff a safe space to voice their opinions can have a transformative effect on wellbeing, allowing leaders to address the most pressing issues quickly and track changes over time.  

But how can you get these kinds of granular insights without spending all of your time on the process?

Staff Pulse, our wellbeing survey software designed specifically for the education sector, can help. Here’s how:

Regular feedback and insights

Product shot of dashboard

Surveys are sent to staff on either a weekly or fortnightly basis and take less than two minutes to complete.

This regular routine provides senior leaders with a rich dataset, enabling them to track wellbeing throughout the year and find out when staff need more support and in what areas. In a constantly changing environment, Staff Pulse provides a framework to monitor how effectively changes to policy and practice are being received.

Giving a voice to all staff

Product shot of conversations/comments feature

Not all staff feel comfortable sharing their feedback openly, especially in a meeting environment, but you can empower staff across all segments to share their insights and feedback in an anonymous way with Staff Pulse.  

Staff can leave comments anonymously using the survey tool, then senior leaders can respond directly, showing that you acknowledge their feedback and encourage an open, two-way conversation, all while protecting their anonymity.  

Understand how different departments are feeling

Product shot of segmentation feature

Not all departments have the same struggles and concerns. With Staff Pulse, you can segment your staff into different groups and compare wellbeing across multiple staff segments, tailoring improvement plans to suit them. 

Your school is unique and will have its own successes and challenges. Staff Pulse offers a dedicated channel for staff communication and allows you to track wellbeing over time. It promotes a proactive, positive approach to retaining staff and ensuring that they are able to focus on delivering the best results for students.

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