UCL Staff Survey 2011 - have your say: headline results

The headline results are now in, and are described below. There is more detail to come, and of course we need to demonstrate that we will act on the findings, so the detailed report and an outline action plan will be made available before Easter.

The headline findings are positive, with many questions scoring as well or better than in 2009, and as well or better than the benchmark for other institutions where using the same questions. As you would expect, there are also areas where we need to improve, and the action plan will focus on these. Encouragingly, 93% of employees would go the 'extra mile' for the University.

Nigel Waugh, Director of Human Resources

Headline results

• Staff are positive about UCL

As in 2009, staff are positive about UCL and feel engaged with the organisation (77% 2011, 76% 2009)

• UCL staff gain a sense of personal accomplishment from their work, are interested in it and also understand the wider context of it.

Comparisons to 2009 survey illustrate that there is a better understanding of the connection between employees' own work and that of their area and how this contributes to the overall success of UCL.

• There has been some improvement in whether employees believe their goals and objectives are aligned to those of UCL

Staff feel that their goals and objectives align with those of UCL but with some variation between academic staff (74%), researchers (66%) and professional/support staff (64%). Managers have a greater clarity and understanding of UCL objectives and goals.

• 78% of employees feel they are treated fairly.

• 16% of employees felt they had been subjected to harassment and bullying, a decrease from 21% in 2009.

• UCL overall is very good at keeping employees informed about what the University is doing (80% positive) but considerably less so at enabling staff to contribute their views upwards (43% positive).

Only 50% feel comfortable to speak up and challenge the way things are done. Academic staff are more positive about speaking up and regarding UCL providing effective leadership (46% compared to 34% professional /support staff).

• We need to do more work to improve perception of the quality of management and academic leadership in some areas

• More staff regularly receive constructive feedback on their performance (8% higher than 2009) but staff lack confidence in the accuracy of feedback at formal appraisal (8 % lower than 2009) and the consistency with which performance management is applied across staff (just 26% positive that poor performance is dealt with effectively).

• Satisfaction with job security is lower than in 2009, likely reflecting the wider economic environment.

• 55% of staff feel their pay is fair, consistent with the previous survey and more positive than many benchmark organisations. Satisfaction with the range of benefits available to staff has declined (by 9%), perhaps reflecting a lower understanding of the range of benefits available (by 10%).

• 84% of staff agree their working time can be flexible and 87% have a choice in deciding how they work, but excessive working hours are a concern (43% positive.)

• Communication is seen to be more effective than in other organisations (80% positive about being kept well informed).

• Working relationships between managers and staff have improved by 5% since 2009, though there is still further improvement to be made.