Pulse survey strategy: best questions for employee pulse survey to drive engagement and actionable insights

A solid pulse survey strategy starts with asking the right questions. The best questions for employee pulse surveys balance brevity with depth, giving you actionable insights without survey fatigue.

This guide delivers 25 proven questions across key dimensions—each with a ready-to-go AI follow-up prompt, just like you’d configure in Specific for richer understanding.

We’ll focus on engagement, alignment, enablement, manager support, and wellbeing—providing practical examples you can use immediately.

Employee engagement questions with AI follow-ups

Engagement questions measure employees’ emotional connection to their work and their level of motivation. With Specific, AI follow-up questions dig deeper based on the initial answer, surfacing nuanced drivers and blockers. Learn more about automatic AI follow-up questions if you’re new to conversational pulse surveys.

Given that only 23% of employees worldwide are actively engaged in their work, it’s critical to uncover what truly drives engagement—or disengagement—on your team. [1]

• 1. “How motivated do you feel to do your best work here?”
  AI follow-up: What factors most influence your motivation on a typical day?

• 2. “Do you feel recognized for your contributions?”
  AI follow-up: Can you share an example of recognition that impacted you?

• 3. “How meaningful is your work to you personally?”
  AI follow-up: What makes your work meaningful, or what could make it more so?

• 4. “Would you recommend [Company] as a great place to work?”
  AI follow-up: What stands out most about your experience here—good or bad?

• 5. “Do you believe your work positively impacts the company’s success?”
  AI follow-up: How do you see your efforts contributing to big-picture outcomes?

Conversational AI follow-ups move beyond scores and yes/no responses; they gently prompt employees to tell the real story.

Alignment questions to gauge connection with company goals

Alignment questions reveal whether employees understand—and support—the organizational direction. They’re vital when you want everyone rowing in the same direction. Through conversational follow-ups, Specific turns abstract concepts into concrete dialogue, surfacing alignment gaps before they become costly.

• 1. “Do you clearly understand our company’s vision and goals?”
  AI follow-up: What helps you stay connected to our mission, or what would help more?

• 2. “Do you know how your work contributes to the company’s objectives?”
  AI follow-up: Can you give a recent example of your efforts aligning with our goals?

• 3. “Do you feel informed about important company updates?”
  AI follow-up: What’s the most effective way for you to receive updates?

• 4. “Are your team goals aligned with broader company priorities?”
  AI follow-up: What changes would help your team's work align better with the organization?

• 5. “Do you feel connected to the company’s values in your daily work?”
  AI follow-up: How do you see company values playing out in daily decisions or actions?

Clarity on goals and values is a proven driver of engagement—and profitability, with engaged teams often reporting up to 23% higher profits. [5]

Enablement questions to identify resource gaps

Enablement questions are about empowering employees to do their best. They uncover practical barriers and highlight quick wins to boost productivity or satisfaction. Often these are the “low-hanging fruit”—the small fixes that drive a big impact. Analyzing response patterns with AI helps you spot issues and themes fast.

• 1. “Do you have the tools and resources needed to do your job well?”
  AI follow-up: What’s missing that would help you be more effective right now?

• 2. “Can you access information and support when you need it?”
  AI follow-up: What’s the biggest barrier to finding help or answers when needed?

• 3. “Do you have opportunities to learn and grow in your role?”
  AI follow-up: What training or experiences would make the biggest difference for you?

• 4. “Are your job responsibilities clear and manageable?”
  AI follow-up: Is there anything unclear or overwhelming about your role?

• 5. “Do you have enough autonomy to decide how you do your work?”
  AI follow-up: When do you wish you had more control or freedom in your daily tasks?

Simple enablement questions can drive major improvement—especially when U.S. disengagement is now at a 10-year low of 31%. [2]

Manager support questions for leadership insights

Manager relationships are critical—great managers boost retention, belonging, and high performance, while poor managers lead to costly turnover. AI follow-ups gently probe sensitive areas while keeping the conversation safe and constructive. By using Specific’s conversational format, employees feel comfortable sharing honest feedback, opening the door for genuine improvement.

• 1. “Does your manager provide clear and timely feedback?”
  AI follow-up: Can you describe a recent feedback moment with your manager?

• 2. “Do you feel your manager supports your career growth?”
  AI follow-up: What’s one area where you wish you had more support?

• 3. “Is your manager open to input and new ideas?”
  AI follow-up: Can you share a time your suggestions were welcomed—or not?

• 4. “Does your manager treat team members with fairness and respect?”
  AI follow-up: What fosters a sense of fairness in your team?

• 5. “Does your manager set clear expectations?”
  AI follow-up: Are there ways your manager could clarify goals or priorities better?

Manager-led recognition and feedback are powerful motivators—91% of employees who receive meaningful recognition monthly report high engagement. [4]

Wellbeing questions to monitor employee health

Wellbeing is non-negotiable. Stress, burnout, and poor work-life balance can spin even the best team off course. Including wellbeing questions in your pulse survey strategy helps you catch early warning signs, intervene, and keep your team healthy and motivated.

• 1. “How manageable is your workload right now?”
  AI follow-up: What’s one thing that would make your workload feel more manageable?

• 2. “Do you feel supported when you’re facing high stress?”
  AI follow-up: What support do you wish you had during stressful times?

• 3. “Can you take time off when you need to?”
  AI follow-up: Is there anything that makes it hard for you to step away from work?

• 4. “How would you describe your current work-life balance?”
  AI follow-up: What’s helping your balance—what’s making it harder?

• 5. “Do you feel psychologically safe sharing concerns at work?”
  AI follow-up: What helps you feel safe (or less safe) to speak up about challenges?

In a world where disengagement costs U.S. businesses an estimated $1.9 trillion each year, paying close attention to wellbeing isn’t just good for people—it’s good for business. [3]

eNPS configuration with smart follow-ups

eNPS (Employee Net Promoter Score) is a cornerstone of most employee pulse surveys. Here’s how I set it up for maximum insight using Specific’s branching logic and follow-up controls:

Standard eNPS question:
“How likely are you to recommend [Company] as a place to work? (0 = Not at all likely, 10 = Extremely likely)”

• Promoters (9-10):

  What makes you most proud or happiest about working here?

• Passives (7-8):

  What’s one thing that could make your experience working here even better?

• Detractors (0-6):

  What are the main reasons you hesitated or gave a lower score?

• Tone: Professional but empathetic

• Stop rules: Max 2 follow-ups for detractors to avoid frustration

Branching logic in Specific applies the right follow-up instantly, so you never have to worry about manual workflows. For adjusting tone or branching, see the AI survey editor—just describe what you need in plain language.

Implementing your pulse survey strategy

Getting the most from your pulse survey strategy means balancing frequency with impact:

• Frequency: Most teams see best results with monthly or quarterly pulses

• Rotate questions: Don’t ask all 25 questions at once—instead, use 5–7 prioritized questions each round

• Consistent timing: Send surveys on the same day/time for each cycle to set expectations

• Maintain engagement: Specific’s chat-like format makes even regular pulses feel easy and personal

Distributing surveys via Conversational Survey Pages makes participation frictionless—no logins or complicated links to manage.

The conversational approach transforms your survey from a checkbox task into a channel for honest dialogue and actionable change.

Build your employee pulse survey with AI

Use these 25 best questions as your foundation. With Specific, you can customize for your company culture, add or refine prompts for your unique challenges, and launch in moments with the AI survey generator.

Create your own survey and start gathering deeper employee insights today.