Employee Pulse Survey Questions Template: Monthly Check-Ins that Actually Drive Action

Short pulse surveys are your regular health check, annual engagement surveys are the full check-up. With the right employee pulse survey questions, you spot stress, confusion and missing support early, long before they explode into churn or burnout. This template gives you ready-to-send questions and clear next steps so every monthly check-in leads to action, not just a dashboard.

Survey questions

All closed questions use a 5‑point Likert scale: 1 = “Strongly disagree”, 5 = “Strongly agree”.

2.1 Closed questions (Likert scale)

Q1: Over the last week, I had enough energy to do my job well.
Q2: My workload feels manageable most days.
Q3: Stress at work stays at a level I can handle.
Q4: I can push back or reprioritize when new tasks exceed my capacity.
Q5: I rarely feel close to burnout because of my work.
Q6: I am clear on my top priorities for this week.
Q7: I understand how my goals connect to our team goals.
Q8: When priorities change, I hear about it quickly and clearly.
Q9: I have the information I need to make good decisions in my work.
Q10: I know what a “good week” looks like for my role.
Q11: My manager is available when I need support.
Q12: My manager gives me useful feedback on my performance.
Q13: My manager helps remove obstacles that block my work.
Q14: I trust my manager to listen and take my concerns seriously.
Q15: I feel comfortable raising difficult topics with my manager.
Q16: My colleagues are willing to help when I ask.
Q17: Our team communicates clearly about who is responsible for what.
Q18: In our team, people can admit mistakes without fear of blame.
Q19: Different opinions are respected in our team.
Q20: Conflicts in our team are addressed and resolved constructively.
Q21: I understand how my work contributes to our company’s direction.
Q22: I feel confident that the company is heading in the right direction.
Q23: I feel proud to tell others I work here.
Q24: I believe my work makes a positive difference for customers or stakeholders.
Q25: I feel optimistic about the company’s future.
Q26: I can take regular breaks without negative reactions.
Q27: I can switch off from work outside of agreed working hours.
Q28: My manager and colleagues respect my boundaries around availability.
Q29: I have enough time and flexibility for my life outside of work.
Q30: Our team culture supports healthy work–life balance.
Q31: Overall, I felt positive about my work experience in the last week.

2.2 Overall / micro eNPS question

How likely are you to recommend your team as a place to work to a colleague? (0–10)

2.3 Open-ended questions

What is one thing that would make the next month at work easier or more energizing for you?
Where did you feel blocked or frustrated recently, and what would have helped?
What should your manager or team start doing to improve collaboration or psychological safety?
What is working well right now that we should protect or expand?

For orientation in later sections:

Energy & Stress = Q1–Q5; Focus & Clarity = Q6–Q10; Manager Support = Q11–Q15; Team & Collaboration = Q16–Q20; Purpose & Confidence = Q21–Q25; Wellbeing & Balance = Q26–Q30; Overall mood = Q31; Team eNPS = 0–10 question.

Decision table

Area / Questions	Trigger threshold	Recommended action	Owner	Deadline
Energy & Stress (Q1–Q5)	Average <3.0 or ≥25% respond 1–2	Rebalance workload in 1:1s; pause low‑priority tasks; review staffing plan.	Direct manager with HR support	Workload changes agreed within 14 days
Focus & Clarity (Q6–Q10)	Average <3.2	Run a 60‑minute team planning session; define 3–5 priorities for next sprint/month.	Direct manager	Session held within 7 days; priorities shared same week
Manager Support (Q11–Q15)	Average <3.0 or ≥20% respond 1–2	Increase 1:1 frequency; manager coaching on feedback and listening; track follow‑ups.	Manager + People/HR coach	Coaching plan agreed within 21 days
Team & Collaboration (Q16–Q20)	Average <3.0 or big gap vs. company average (>0.5)	Facilitate team workshop on roles, communication and psychological safety; address conflicts.	Manager, supported by HR/People	Workshop scheduled within 14 days, completed within 30 days
Purpose & Confidence (Q21–Q25)	Average <3.2	Leaders host Q&A on strategy; connect team goals to company roadmap; share follow‑up FAQ.	Department head or BU lead	Session within 30 days; written recap within 3 days after
Wellbeing & Balance (Q26–Q30)	Average <3.0 or rising negative trend two pulses in a row	Clarify availability rules; adjust schedules; promote rest days; share support resources.	Direct manager + HR/Health & Safety	New norms agreed with team within 21 days
Overall mood (Q31)	Drop ≥0.5 vs. previous pulse	Short team retro on “What changed?” plus 2 concrete improvement actions.	Direct manager	Retro within 7 days of results
Team eNPS (0–10)	Average ≤6 or ≥25% promoters drop to passives/detractors	Focus groups with volunteers; prioritize top 3 issues; document plan and share timeline.	People/HR + manager	Focus groups within 14 days; action plan within 30 days

Key takeaways

Use 5–7 pulse questions, not the whole bank, per month.
Define score thresholds so every red flag triggers a standard response.
Discuss results in teams within ≤14 days to keep trust high.
Track 1–2 concrete actions per pulse, not a wish list.
Combine pulses with an annual engagement survey for deep dives.

Definition & scope

This pulse survey measures short‑term work experience: energy, workload, clarity, manager support, collaboration, purpose and wellbeing. It’s designed for all employees, across office and frontline teams, and can run monthly or quarterly. Results guide decisions on workload, communication, leadership behaviour and support offers, and complement your deeper annual or semi‑annual employee engagement survey.

Scoring & thresholds

The closed employee pulse survey questions use a 1–5 Likert scale (1 “Strongly disagree”, 5 “Strongly agree”). For team‑level decisions, work with these simple bands: <3.0 = critical, 3.0–3.9 = needs improvement, ≥4.0 = healthy. Repeat the same thresholds for each pulse so trends are easy to compare across months.

Turn scores into decisions, not long reports. A practical rule:

If any area average <3.0 → manager and HR create an action plan with the team.
If 3.0–3.4 → 1–2 light improvements (clarify priorities, adjust norms, test a change).
If 3.5–3.9 → monitor trend; use open comments for fine‑tuning.
If ≥4.0 → treat as strength; capture practices to share with other teams.
If team eNPS ≤6 → run short focus groups with volunteers to understand drivers.

Rotating question sets by domain

To avoid survey fatigue, you rarely want to send all 31 questions. Instead, rotate 2–3 items per domain over time while keeping a small “core” constant (for example Q2, Q11, Q18, Q27).

Examples of alternative phrasings you can swap in over time:

Energy & Stress – alternatives

In the last week, my workload left me enough energy for life outside work.
I feel I can sustain my current pace of work over the next 3 months.
How often have you felt exhausted after work in the last week? (Scale: Never–Very often)

Focus & Clarity – alternatives

I know which 2–3 tasks this week matter most for our success.
When I’m unsure about priorities, I can quickly get an answer.
How often do you work on tasks that later turn out not to be needed?

Manager Support – alternatives

My manager helps me balance urgent work with long‑term priorities.
I receive feedback from my manager often enough to learn and improve.
How often does your manager check in about your workload and wellbeing?

Team & Collaboration – alternatives

In our team, people share information before it becomes a problem.
I feel safe to speak up when I disagree with the team.
How often do misunderstandings slow your team down?

Purpose & Confidence – alternatives

I see a clear link between our current projects and the company strategy.
I feel confident talking to friends about why our work matters.
How often do you question whether the company is on the right track?

Wellbeing & Balance – alternatives

My working hours feel reasonable for my role.
I can take time off when I need it without guilt.
How often does work interrupt your evenings or weekends unexpectedly?

Use agreement scales (1–5) for statements and a frequency scale (1 “Never” – 5 “Very often”) for “How often…” items. Keep at least one question per domain stable over several months for trend tracking.

Follow-up & responsibilities

Pulses only build trust if you close the loop. Everyone needs to know who reacts to which signal and how fast. Keep the process light: quick analysis, short conversations, small but visible actions.

Suggested ownership model and timelines:

Direct managers review team results within 2 days and note areas below thresholds.
Managers discuss results with their team within ≤7 days and agree on 1–2 actions.
HR/People teams support managers with templates, coaching and cross‑team benchmarks.
Business leaders watch domain trends (e.g. chronic stress or low purpose) across units.
HR consolidates actions and progress, linking them to broader engagement and retention initiatives.

Typical “if–then” rules you can document in your pulse playbook:

If any wellbeing or workload item <3.0 → manager runs 1–1 check‑ins on workload within 14 days.
If psychological safety items (Q18–Q19) score <3.0 → HR facilitates a team session on norms.
If manager support items average <3.0 → manager joins a coaching or feedback skills session.
If purpose scores drop two pulses in a row → department leader addresses it in the next town hall.
If anonymous comment flags a severe risk (e.g. harassment) → HR follows escalation policy within 24 hours.

Fairness & bias checks

Pulse results can hide big differences between groups. You want to catch patterns early without exposing individuals. Analyse by team, location, tenure, role type (e.g. frontline vs. office) and, where legally allowed, by demographic groups.

Good practice for fairness checks:

Only show breakdowns for groups with ≥5 responses to protect anonymity, especially in DACH.
Compare each group’s domain scores to the overall average; flag gaps >0.4 points.
Ask managers to explain outliers in calibration meetings before jumping to conclusions.
Involve works council or employee representatives early if you plan regular pulses or detailed segmentation.
Document what you look at, who has access and how long data is stored, aligned with GDPR.

Examples of patterns and reactions:

Remote staff score far lower on Team & Collaboration → improve hybrid rituals, async updates and tools.
New hires (<6 months) rate Focus & Clarity low → refresh onboarding and role expectations.
One manager’s teams score low on psychological safety → provide targeted coaching and observe trends.

If you run broader employee surveys or 360° feedback, align scales and timing so you can combine insights. A platform such as Sprad Growth or another talent suite can help automate survey sends, reminders and follow‑up tasks while keeping GDPR controls and audit trails in place.

Examples / use cases

Here are concrete ways teams use this pulse template in practice, with ready‑made blueprints you can copy.

Ready‑made pulse blueprints

Pulse name	Primary goal	Questions to use	Cadence	Audience
Workload & Burnout Pulse	Spot overload and early burnout signs.	Q1–Q5, Q26–Q30, Q31	Monthly for high‑pressure teams, else quarterly	Project, product or operations teams
Engagement & Belonging Pulse	Track connection, pride and inclusion.	Q16–Q20, Q21–Q25, Q31, eNPS	Quarterly	All employees
New Manager Pulse	Check early manager–team relationship.	Q11–Q15, Q16–Q20, Q26, Q31	After 6–8 weeks, then again at 6 months	Teams with a new manager
Post‑Change Pulse	Understand reaction to a reorg or change.	Q6–Q10, Q16, Q18, Q21–Q25, Q31	4–6 weeks after change, then once more	Affected teams or business units
Wellbeing & Balance Pulse	Monitor rest, boundaries and recovery.	Q1, Q2, Q3, Q26–Q30, Q31	Quarterly	All employees or specific high‑load teams
Focus & Execution Pulse	Check clarity and delivery under pressure.	Q6–Q10, Q16–Q17, Q31, eNPS	Monthly during critical projects	Project teams or leadership teams

Mini case stories

Workload & Burnout Pulse. A support team ran a monthly workload pulse. Energy and stress (Q1–Q5) dropped below 3.0 for two cycles, while wellbeing (Q26–Q30) stayed low as well. The manager used 1:1s to map tasks, paused non‑essential work and secured one extra hire. Within two months, energy scores rose by 0.7 points on average and sick days decreased.

Post‑Change Pulse. After a reorganization, a sales region ran a post‑change pulse focusing on clarity and purpose. Scores for Q21–Q25 were <3.0 and comments showed confusion about roles. Leaders scheduled regional town halls and shared written Q&As. The next quarter, purpose scores climbed close to 4.0 and voluntary turnover slowed.

New Manager Pulse. A newly appointed engineering manager triggered a pulse eight weeks in. Manager support (Q11–Q15) looked fine, but collaboration (Q16–Q20) lagged. In comments, people asked for clearer ownership boundaries. The manager co‑created a RACI matrix with the team and clarified on‑call responsibilities. The next pulse showed a 0.6‑point lift in collaboration scores.

Implementation & updates

Roll this survey out like any other people process: small pilot, iterate, then scale. Match cadence to your ability to act. For many teams, monthly or six‑weekly pulses with 5–7 questions work well; high‑change environments may want shorter, more frequent checks.

Implementation steps

Pilot with one department (50–150 people). Decide pulse length (5–7 items) and cadence (monthly/quarterly).
Set clear rules on anonymity (e.g. min. 5 responses per cut) and communication before the first send‑out.
Configure the survey in your tool; a platform like Sprad Growth or similar can combine pulses with performance management workflows.
Train managers on reading results, choosing 1–2 actions and documenting them with their teams.
Review after 2–3 cycles: What worked? Which questions felt repetitive? Adjust domains and thresholds if needed.

Cadence, sample sizes and anonymity

Some simple guardrails help you get robust, trusted data:

Keep it short: 5–7 closed questions + 1–2 open questions per pulse.
Target ≥70% participation per team; if rates are low, address “survey fatigue” in team talks.
Use minimum n=5 for any breakdown (team, location, tenure) to protect anonymity.
Lock questions for at least 2–3 cycles before changing them, so you see trends.
Aim for a predictable rhythm: e.g. first Tuesday of the month, results discussion the following week.

DACH‑specific notes (Betriebsrat & GDPR)

If you operate in Germany, Austria or Switzerland, involve your works council early. Agree on purpose, data access, anonymity thresholds, retention periods and whether results feed into individual performance decisions (often they should not). Use guidance from your legal and data protection teams, but keep explanations to staff simple and transparent. For more detailed checklists you can look at existing employee survey templates with GDPR and works council guidance.

What to track over time

Define a small KPI set so you see if pulses are worth the effort:

Response rate by team and location.
Average score per domain (Energy, Focus, Manager Support, etc.).
Number and completion rate of team actions logged after each pulse.
Time from survey close to team results discussion (target ≤14 days).
Trends in retention, sick leave or internal mobility vs. domain scores.

Over time, combine pulse results with your broader employee surveys, satisfaction studies and development plans. Resources like Sprad’s employee satisfaction survey templates help you align scales and topics so your listening strategy feels coherent rather than fragmented.

Conclusion

Short, focused pulses give you an honest picture of how people feel right now. With a small, well‑designed set of employee pulse survey questions, you catch workload spikes, fuzzy priorities and shaky manager support in weeks instead of waiting for the next annual survey. That means fewer surprises, calmer teams and more predictable performance.

The real win is in the conversations that follow. When teams sit down within a week, look at 2–3 scores and agree on one small, concrete change, the survey becomes a shared problem‑solving tool instead of a black box. Over a few cycles you’ll notice better 1:1s, clearer expectations and more grounded decisions about workload, hiring and development.

Next steps can be simple: pick one pilot area, choose 5–7 questions from this bank for your first pulse and set a fixed date for the team results discussion. Configure the survey in your tool, brief managers on thresholds and follow‑up, and write down your basic rules on anonymity and data use. After two or three pulses, review what changed and refine your question rotation. Step by step, you build a lightweight but powerful listening system that reliably turns employee voice into action.

FAQ

How often should we run pulse surveys?
For most teams, monthly or every six weeks works well. Weekly pulses only make sense if you keep them very short (1–3 questions) and act quickly. Quarterly pulses fit stable environments or when you already run several other surveys. Pick a cadence that leaves enough time to discuss results and implement at least one small change before the next pulse.
What should we do if scores are very low in one area?
Treat it like an early warning, not a failure. First, check comments and talk to a few volunteers to understand what sits behind the numbers. Then agree on 1–3 specific actions with clear owners and deadlines, and communicate them back to the team. Track whether scores improve next pulse; if not, escalate to your HR business partner or leadership.
How do we handle critical or emotional open comments?
Take every comment seriously, even if it’s anonymous or emotional. Look for repeated themes across comments rather than focusing on one sentence. Share with the team what you heard in aggregated form and what you will change. If a comment suggests misconduct, discrimination or health and safety issues, follow your formal escalation and investigation procedures immediately.
How can we get managers and employees to engage with pulses?
Explain clearly why you run pulses: to improve work, not to punish. Make surveys short, run them on a predictable rhythm and always share results and actions. Equip managers with simple discussion and action‑plan templates. Invite employees to suggest topics and questions, and show examples where past feedback led to visible changes. Over time, this builds trust and participation.
How often should we update the question set?
Keep 3–5 “anchor” questions stable for at least a year so you can see trends. Around those anchors, rotate or rephrase 2–3 questions every few pulses to keep attention fresh and cover new topics. Review the full bank annually: retire items nobody uses, fill gaps (for example around hybrid work or inclusion) and align wording with your latest engagement or performance frameworks.

Jürgen Ulbrich

CEO & Co-Founder of Sprad

Jürgen Ulbrich has more than a decade of experience in developing and leading high-performing teams and companies. As an expert in employee referral programs as well as feedback and performance processes, Jürgen has helped over 100 organizations optimize their talent acquisition and development strategies.