DJ Campbell
Chief HR Officer
Sanford Health
Episode 383
Beyond Feedback: How Intentional Listening and Data Transform Employee Trust
Current chapter: Covering monthly expenses is the number one concern for employees in 2024
Built By PeopleDecember 5, 2024 · 15:42
Thesis
“Intentional listening, facilitated by data-driven tools like employee engagement surveys, coupled with genuine leadership action, builds trust and drives tangible improvements in employee satisfaction, retention, and overall business productivity.”
Show notes
Employee engagement surveys are only as good as the actions that follow them. DJ Campbell, CHRO at Sanford Health, has spent 15 years learning that lesson—and the most important corollary to it: leaders need to be prepared for what they might hear before the results come in, not after.
At Sanford Health, a major health system serving the Dakotas and surrounding region, Campbell runs surveys two to three times a year using real-time technology that allows him to monitor scores and comments mid-survey—a capability that changes how you manage the process and the response. The survey design itself is a multi-stakeholder exercise: questions are built with input from the leaders who will ultimately use the data, because a survey question that leadership hasn't bought into produces data that leadership won't act on. Survey quality is a function of question quality, which is a function of stakeholder alignment upfront.
His most practical observation is about leadership readiness: leaders need "thicker skin" before they see anonymous feedback, not after. The tendency to become defensive rather than curious is the failure mode that kills engagement programs. His antidote is direct executive presence—C-suite leaders going into department teams after survey results, acknowledging the feedback, and articulating what's changing because of it. Actions, he emphasizes, speak significantly more than words in that space. The companies winning the workforce retention game right now are the ones treating that statement as operational guidance, not inspiration.
- Real-time survey technology: monitoring scores and comments mid-survey for faster, more targeted response
- Survey design as a stakeholder exercise: why questions need buy-in from the leaders who will use the data
- Preparing leaders before survey results land: the "thicker skin" mindset that separates defensive reactions from constructive action
- What actually drives survey participation: why employees respond to surveys they believe will generate real change
- The human touch alongside technology: C-suite executive presence in department teams as a validation and follow-through mechanism
- Leadership without formal titles: why the best leaders at Sanford often don't hold traditional management designations
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What you'll take away
- 1Prioritize intentional listening and understanding diverse employee perspectives to effectively lead and drive change.
- 2Utilize modern HR technology for real-time employee engagement survey data, enabling quick and demographic-specific analysis.
- 3Prepare leaders to receive and act on direct, sometimes critical, feedback from anonymous surveys, fostering a 'thicker skin' approach.
- 4Actions based on survey results are more crucial than words for building long-term employee trust and psychological safety.
- 5Combine technology-driven listening strategies with a human touch, like C-suite executives directly engaging with department teams, to validate feedback and articulate actions.
What most organizations get wrong
- •You don't have to have a formal title to be a leader; often, the most effective leaders lack official designations and impact change from the front lines.
- •Leaders must cultivate 'thicker skin' to process harsh, anonymous feedback from surveys without taking it personally, viewing it as an opportunity for deeper understanding and improvement rather than a personal attack.
In DJ's words
“every day is going to be new and there's changes at every corner that you go. And so understanding and listening... I've realized that understanding different perspectives and really being intentional about listening to people and understanding what their needs are has really benefited me.”
This quote highlights the foundational importance of adaptability and active listening for HR leaders in a constantly changing environment.
“The technology that we use is live, and so I can actually check the score in the middle of the survey to see what we're doing and looking at each of the, each of the questions also has a comment section so that we can get some comments of the specific feedback that they want us to look for and understand.”
This emphasizes the practical benefit and immediacy of modern HR tech for real-time insights into employee sentiment.
“your survey is only going to be as good as the questions you're asking, right? And so you need to make sure that not only you're understanding what you need to ask, but also ensuring that you've got buy-in from all of the stakeholders that you're— that's going to— that are going to use that survey to get that meaningful feedback.”
This stresses the critical link between well-formulated questions, stakeholder alignment, and the quality of actionable data derived from surveys.
“you don't have to have a formal title to be a leader. Anybody can be a leader. And typically our best leaders probably don't have that formal leadership title.”
This challenges conventional views of leadership, advocating for a broader recognition of influence beyond formal hierarchy.
“I think sometimes we get very, very reliant on technology and how we use that technology. And there still has to be a human touch to everything that we do.”
This highlights the enduring necessity of personal interaction and empathy, even in an increasingly tech-driven HR landscape.
“your actions are going to speak significantly more than, than your words are in that space.”
This concise statement encapsulates the core message about building trust through consistent follow-through on employee feedback.
The problems this episode addresses
- •Employees are struggling with high monthly expenses and financial well-being, with health plan deductibles often being too high for the average family.
- •Organizations face challenges in providing professional development opportunities for informal leaders who don't hold traditional management titles.
- •Leaders can be unprepared for the emotional impact of receiving negative anonymous feedback in engagement surveys, leading to defensiveness rather than constructive action.
- •Risk of declining employee participation and trust in surveys if organizations fail to take visible, meaningful action on the feedback received.
- •Workforce struggles, including retention and turnover, persist in the current business environment, requiring proactive engagement strategies.
In this episode
Covering monthly expenses is the number one concern for employees in 2024
Built by People
DJ Campbell is the chief HR officer for Sanford Health in North Dakota
Built By People: DJ Campbell
TJ, what are some of the key lessons that you've learned in HR
DW: On The Journey of 15 Years in HR
Sanford uses employee engagement surveys to help employees elevate their overall satisfaction
How Employee Engagement Surveys Drive Organization Change
Sanford uses surveys to help uncover insights that can drive decision-making
Sanford on Formulating Survey Questions
Are there specific initiatives that have come to fruition after surveying workforce
WSJD Live: Responding to the Workforce Survey
A lot of success is contingent on high participation rates, DJ says
Questions for HR Leaders: Employee Satisfaction
DJ, any other insights you'd like to share related to employee engagement surveys
In the Elevator With Employee Engagement Surveys
TJ: Those companies implementing these strategies are winning right now
Built by People: Talking to Your People
Topics covered
Organizations and entities mentioned
Full transcript
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