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The Perch Perspective: Rice University Staff Climate Survey

2C4C912 Rice University,Uptown District,Houston,Texas,USA
Assessing employee engagement and satisfaction at Rice University
  • Client
    Rice University
  • Dates
    August 2023 - May 2024

Problem

Rice University wants to assess its workplace climate for employees. 

Rice University is committed to enhancing its employee engagement and satisfaction. To meet that end, it wants to assess its workplace climate to determine the effectiveness of its current employee engagement initiatives, the quality of interpersonal interactions, and employees’ sense of value and belonging.  

Solution

Leveraging its extensive experience, NORC will assess Rice University’s organizational climate practices using a customized approach.

NORC’s Higher Education Analytics Center has conducted dozens of campus climate studies for many higher education institutions. Leveraging that knowledge, NORC will administer the multidimensional Engagement and Climate Assessment to empower Rice University with data and insights. Our customized and cooperative approach will ensure that Rice University receives the most critical, specific, and actionable data it needs. We will generate measures to address institution-specific topics that were not included in previous surveys. 

Result

Findings will provide insights to enhance employee engagement at Rice University. 

The study results will help Rice University understand faculty and staff needs and hone its engagement efforts to better support its employees.

Are You a Study Participant?

Questions about the survey? Experiencing technical difficulties? Contact us:

Project Leads

FAQ for Study Participants

Participants will receive a personalized link to the web survey via email. The web survey is formatted so that it can be completed on any computer or mobile device. If you believe that you should have been included in this survey, but have not received a survey link, please contact NORC by email at ricesurvey@norc.org.

The intent of this survey is to provide Rice University with data and insights to better understand both the positive aspects and/or opportunities for improvement about working at Rice. NORC will provide Rice with actionable data to understand the needs of its staff, to hone its programs and practices and better support employees, and to support strategic decision-making.

The Rice University Climate and Employee Satisfaction Survey, The Perch Perspective, asks questions about staff members’ workplace experiences at Rice in general and in their particular areas, as well as their perceptions and experiences with workplace practices; mentoring; discrimination and harassment; stress and well-being; and general department climate, including campus and department resources at Rice.

Yes. The privacy of participants is critical. To make sure staff members feel comfortable answering questions freely and candidly, all data will be completed and analyzed by NORC researchers, and no one at Rice will have access to individually identifiable responses. No one at Rice will know who responded to the survey or how anyone answered the questions. Individual identifiers will be kept by NORC under password protected files or on a secure server with restricted rights and will not be shared with Rice. Any results will be reported only in aggregate groupings so there is no method to identify individual participants or associate particular responses with any individual.

 

If you believe that you are in the study population but have not received a census form link, please contact us for assistance by email at afacensusform@norc.org.

NORC will provide Rice with a final report that summarizes the results. All reported data will be in aggregate in order to protect respondent confidentiality, and no individual responses will be reported.  NORC will also provide Rice with a data file from the survey, but the file will contain no personally identifiable information and NORC will take steps to mask the data so that responses cannot be linked with any specific individual through a combination of variables.

Your participation is encouraged but not required. Likewise, should you choose to participate, you may skip any questions that you do not wish to answer.

The survey should take no more than about 20 minutes to complete. If you are unable to complete it in one sitting, the survey instrument will save your spot so you can return to it later.

Rice University is sponsoring the survey. They have contracted with NORC to administer the survey and collect and analyze the data.

A report will be made available on the Rice University website once completed.  Additionally, Deans, Vice Presidents, Vice Provosts, and division leaders will receive an overview report for their specific school or division. 

If you have any questions or concerns pertaining to your participation in this survey, please contact NORC at the University of Chicago by email at ricesurvey@norc.org.

NORC is an independent, nonprofit corporation that conducts survey research in the public interest for government agencies, educational institutions, private foundations, nonprofit organizations, and private corporations. NORC collects data to assist policy makers, researchers, educators, and others with crucial issues facing the government, organizations, and the public. Past uses of NORC’s work have included shaping public policy, drafting laws, and determining how tax dollars and other resources are utilized. For more information about NORC, please visit our website at https://www.NORC.org.

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