Employee feedback is crucial for building a better workplace, and companies are constantly innovating their approaches to collecting such data. We asked industry experts to share one unique way their company gathers employee feedback to improve company culture—and how that feedback has been used to drive positive change.
- Recognize Quiet Culture Builders Weekly
- Implement Anonymous Insight Capsule Feedback System
- Conduct Quarterly Reverse Exit Interviews
- Host Casual End-of-Week Dock Chats
- Integrate Feedback into Care Processes
- Use AI to Analyze Peer Evaluations
- Establish Reverse Mentoring for Junior Employees
- Layer Formal and Informal Feedback Methods
- Foster Culture of Continuous Employee Input
- Gather Feedback from Declined Job Candidates
- Utilize Anonymous Comment Boxes for Suggestions
- Engage in Relaxed One-on-One Check-Ins
- Hold Quarterly Anonymous Story Sessions
- Launch Multi-Layered Voice of Team Initiative
How to Gather Employee Feedback to Build a Better Workplace
Recognize Quiet Culture Builders Weekly
We ask one question every Friday: “Did someone make your week better?” Staff submit names and a sentence about why. We display those notes in our morning huddle room the following Monday. It’s not about flattery; it’s about seeing who’s quietly holding the culture together. After six months, we had a record of who was being recognized and why. That data helped us identify informal leaders and shift responsibilities accordingly. One case manager was consistently praised for calming family tensions, so we created a new liaison role around that skill set. These acknowledgments now influence promotions, not just morale. Our culture grew stronger when we stopped managing people and started noticing them.
Tyler Bowman
Founder & CEO, Brooks Healing Center
Implement Anonymous Insight Capsule Feedback System
We designed a tool called the “Insight Capsule,” a quarterly, anonymous digital feedback system in the form of an interactive “blind box.” Our employees log in to a private portal and respond to one of 5 rotating prompts, with queries such as, “What has gone unsaid that needs to be addressed?” or “Do you have any friction points in your day-to-day?”—without knowing what other people were saying as a reply.
After the window closes, Vader (a tool for sentiment analysis) runs a sentiment and keyword analysis, clustering common themes and outliers. The dashboard then displays this data, breaking it down by trends per team, tone, and urgency—without ever revealing an identity.
This process revealed that around 20% of our team was silently frustrated with delayed cross-departmental communication. As a result, our Slack protocol was improved and weekly stand-ups were introduced, reducing project delays significantly over the next two quarters. We realized that it’s not so much about the feedback; it’s about building a feedback loop that transforms “unvoiced patterns” into actionable steps.
Seann Malloy
Founder & Managing Partner, Malloy Law Offices
Conduct Quarterly Reverse Exit Interviews
We run anonymous “exit-style” interviews every quarter, but with current team members.
It’s a reverse check-in where we ask, “If you were leaving today, what would you tell us to fix?”
One team member flagged that we were great at celebrating client wins but dropped the ball on internal shoutouts.
We built a Slack bot that automatically surfaces team milestones each week, from strategy breakthroughs to small personal wins. Morale and collaboration lifted very quickly.
This kind of feedback loop works because it’s honest, proactive, and comes from a place of trust.
Callum Gracie
Founder, Otto Media
Host Casual End-of-Week Dock Chats
We’re a small team, so feedback doesn’t get buried in surveys or long processes. One thing that has worked really well for us is conducting end-of-week dock chats. After the last tour on Friday or Saturday, we grab a drink, sit by the boat, and simply talk about how the week went—what went great, what was stressful, and any ideas for making things run more smoothly.
It’s casual but intentional. I always ask something open-ended like, “What could have made your job easier this week?” or “Did anything feel off on the tours?” That kind of setting makes people feel comfortable enough to be honest without it feeling like a performance review.
One change that came directly from those chats was adding a better system for gear checks. One of my team members mentioned they were stressed about making sure everything was restocked between trips. So now we keep a quick checklist in the boat’s storage area and rotate who handles it for each tour. It’s simple, but it has made a real difference in keeping things smooth and stress-free.
Listening doesn’t have to be formal. It just has to be consistent and genuine.
Christopher Farley
Owner, Flippin’ Awesome Adventures
Integrate Feedback into Care Processes
We gather employee feedback through regular one-on-one check-ins between team leads and staff, where we encourage open and honest discussions about their experiences and ideas for improvement. These sessions go beyond just talking about job performance; they focus on understanding the challenges employees face in their roles, their needs for support, and their ideas for improving the workplace.
One unique aspect of our approach is that we integrate feedback directly into our care processes. For example, after a few team members expressed a need for better communication around shift scheduling, we implemented a more transparent scheduling system and introduced real-time shift updates, reducing confusion and stress. As a result, our caregivers feel more supported, and the team’s overall satisfaction and retention have improved.
This ongoing feedback loop helps us stay connected to the pulse of our company culture and ensures that the changes we make are driven by the needs of our employees. By listening and acting on feedback in real-time, we create a more positive and collaborative work environment, which ultimately improves the quality of care we provide to our clients.
Moti Gamburd
Chief Executive Officer, CARE Homecare
Use AI to Analyze Peer Evaluations
One of the most impactful things we’ve done is to rethink how feedback flows across the team. Instead of the traditional top-down review cycle, we introduced a system where team members evaluate not just themselves but also each other and their managers. We then use AI to analyze the patterns and extract insights that might otherwise go unnoticed.
At first, it felt like an experiment. But as the data came in, we started building personalized performance targets based on what mattered most to each individual. This meant less one-size-fits-all coaching and more support where people actually needed it.
Over time, we added monthly team check-ins to monitor collective performance, which helped us catch issues early and keep everyone aligned.
The result? People felt heard. Engagement went up. Productivity followed. It wasn’t an overnight change, but now our culture feels more responsive and grounded. It came from listening to our team in a smarter, more structured way.
Alexander De Ridder
Co-Founder & CTO, SmythOS.com
Establish Reverse Mentoring for Junior Employees
We have established a reverse mentoring program where junior team members are connecting directly with senior leadership and providing input about company culture. This has fostered communication and engagement throughout the organization and has produced measurable improvements such as improving visibility on career development.
By engaging junior employees who bring new perspectives, we are progressing toward building a more inclusive, growth-oriented workplace. These changes have improved employee satisfaction and contributed to a stronger sense of belonging to our company.
Christopher Pappas
Founder, eLearning Industry Inc
Layer Formal and Informal Feedback Methods
One unique way we gather employee feedback to improve our culture is through a blend of formal and informal methods that create continuous listening opportunities.
We start with an annual anonymous employee engagement survey that gives us a high-level view of what’s working and where we need to grow. We use this feedback to prioritize the critical needs of our employees and to act. From our annual survey, we were able to improve our benefits offerings based on our employee feedback.
Another opportunity to gather information is through real-time polling. During team meetings and company training, we launch polls to gauge engagement and gather instant feedback on the experience. We measure how well our training met their needs and what additional resources would be helpful.
We are committed to constantly including the voice of our customers in our solutions. To that end, we engage in informal, one-on-one interviews throughout the year. These conversations create space for employees to share insights and ideas in a more relaxed setting, which often surfaces valuable feedback we might not capture in a survey.
This layered approach helps us stay connected to what matters most to our people and continuously improves our culture in ways that are responsive, authentic, and human-centered.
Laura Budke
VP, Talent Management and Development, PatientPoint
Foster Culture of Continuous Employee Input
For us, it’s about having a culture of continual feedback, in which employees are encouraged to share feedback as much as possible, in ways that they feel most comfortable.
This means having processes in place to ensure that employees can give feedback however they want, and that senior leadership has the mechanisms to act on that feedback (and let employees know that their feedback has been taken into account as part of company updates).
Tracey Beveridge
HR Director, Personnel Checks
Gather Feedback from Declined Job Candidates
Conduct “exit interviews” with candidates who decline job offers. This unconventional feedback approach revolutionized how we help clients improve their hiring culture.
Most companies only gather feedback from employees who leave, but we discovered that candidates who turn down offers often provide the most honest insights about company culture red flags. After implementing this practice three years ago, we’ve collected over 200 detailed feedback sessions from qualified candidates who said “no thanks.”
The insights were eye-opening. One manufacturing client kept losing top supply chain talent at the final stage, and our candidate feedback revealed their interview process felt “interrogational rather than collaborative.” Another logistics company discovered their salary ranges were competitive, but their inflexible remote work policies were dealbreakers for 80% of declining candidates.
We package this feedback into quarterly “Culture Reality Checks” for our clients, and the results have been remarkable. The manufacturing client redesigned their interview process and increased offer acceptance rates by 65%. The logistics company implemented hybrid work options and filled three director-level positions within two months.
People are brutally honest when they’re walking away, giving you unfiltered insights into what’s actually happening in your hiring process versus what you think is happening.
Friddy Hoegener
Co-Founder | Head of Recruiting, SCOPE Recruiting
Utilize Anonymous Comment Boxes for Suggestions
I use an anonymous employee comment box for this purpose. I have seen this specific practice less and less with companies in the last several years, but it works very well for us. We also use an anonymous online submission form for our remote teams so they also have the opportunity to take advantage of this. I have found that sometimes employees are too nervous about potential repercussions to make suggestions about how company culture could improve, so having the ability to do this anonymously has resulted in some great suggestions or even complaints that can drive positive change.
Soumya Mahapatra
CEO, Essenvia
Engage in Relaxed One-on-One Check-Ins
We don’t conduct formal surveys—we’ve found people are much more open when it’s just a relaxed chat. Periodically, I’ll check in one-on-one, usually over a quick call or during a team catch-up, and simply ask how things are going—no agenda, just a genuine conversation. That’s where the most valuable feedback comes from. One person once mentioned they felt a bit out of the loop with what other teams were doing, so we introduced short Friday updates where everyone shares something they worked on that week. It’s simple, but it helped people feel more connected. We try to keep it all low-pressure so feedback doesn’t feel like a “thing” but just part of how we work.
Kristiyan Yankov
Growth Marketer, Co-Founder, AboveApex
Hold Quarterly Anonymous Story Sessions
One of the innovative ways we gather employee feedback is through quarterly anonymous story sessions, where employees individually share their experiences related to company culture, highlighting both successes and challenges.
This format enables candor and emotional nuance, allowing leadership to discern patterns that might not emerge through conventional surveys.
Feedback from these sessions has led to meaningful changes, such as implementing mental health days and shifting team communication norms to be more inclusive.
George Fironov
Co-Founder & CEO, Talmatic
Launch Multi-Layered Voice of Team Initiative
We’ve rolled out a thoughtful, multi-layered initiative called “Voice of the Team,” aimed at gathering meaningful feedback from our employees that directly shapes our cultural evolution. Unlike traditional engagement surveys, this program combines real-time pulse checks with small-group discussions led by cross-functional culture champions. Our goal is to capture not just the feelings but also the context, helping us understand the “why” behind the data.
What makes this approach unique is its deliberate emphasis on psychological safety and actionable insights. By fostering an environment for open and honest conversations among trusted peers, we can uncover more profound organizational truths, including everything from communication dynamics to team-level challenges that typical surveys often overlook.
One significant outcome of this feedback mechanism was the overhaul of our internal communications strategy. Employees voiced a strong desire for more transparent and consistent access to leadership and the reasoning behind decisions. In response, we introduced monthly executive-led company briefings with interactive Q&A sessions, along with tailored asynchronous updates for different departments and time zones. This initiative not only enhanced internal alignment but also led to noticeable increases in engagement and trust scores in our subsequent feedback cycles.
The success of any feedback program hinges on what we do after receiving that feedback. At Nextiva, we prioritize closing the loop, showing employees that their insights genuinely impact strategic decisions. This transparency and responsiveness have become foundational to our culture and a key driver of employee loyalty and performance.
Yaniv Masjedi
Chief Marketing Officer, Nextiva
