The 2020 Civil Service Employee Engagement Survey Report was launched by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Michael McGrath TD, on the 14th of May 2021.
Under Action 25 of the Civil Service Renewal Plan, the Civil Service committed to carrying out a series of biennial surveys, beginning in September 2015, continued in September 2017, with the final survey being conducted in September 2020. The survey is developed and run by the Central Statistics Office. It asks civil servants for their views on working in the Civil Service, focusing on areas such as employee engagement, well-being, coping with change and commitment to the organisation. Departments and Offices put in place a variety of initiatives in response to the results. The third survey was carried out in 2020 and the report details these results and how they have changed since 2015 and 2017.
Civil Service Employee Engagement Survey 2020 Results (PDF 1,077KB)
1. The overall results of the 2020 Civil Service Employee Engagement Survey are very positive
Scores for 21 of the 23 themes measured have increased from their 2015 level and reflect the impact of the Civil Service Renewal Plan and the interventions implemented by organisations in response to their 2015 and 2017 survey results. These positive results also reflect the value of the interventions implemented by the Civil Service Management Board (CSMB) since 2017.
2. The Civil Service reacted positively to the challenges of COVID-19
The 2020 survey was held in September-October 2020 when approximately 50% of the Civil Service was working remotely. Despite these challenges staff reported feeling similar levels of competence as in 2017 (2015: 80%, 2017: 79%, 2020: 79%).
3. The Civil Service is becoming a more innovative place to work
Innovative Climate at 55% is no longer in the top 5 most challenging results and has improved 10 points since 2015 (2015: 45%, 2017: 49%). Just under half (49%) of civil servants feel that their organisation is quick to make changes when they are necessary. This is up from 33% in 2017. Continued leadership on making innovation a core characteristic of the Civil Service will ensure that this upward trend continues.
4. Civil servants continue to feel highly engaged
A key aim of this survey was to measure levels of engagement. Engagement levels across the Civil Service continue to be high (2015: 70%, 2017: 72%, 2020: 75%) and show that civil servants have a strong sense of connection with their work. The increase in response rates from 56% in 2017 to 65% in 2020 is an indicator of the increase in engagement by civil servants and an appreciation of the value of consultation and subsequent action.
5. Civil servants feel more positive about the impact of their work
The overall theme score for Citizen Impact has improved again (2015: 68%, 2017: 70%, 2020: 73%). Feelings of making a positive difference to citizens’ lives and awareness of how their work benefits the public have both experienced significant increases. The widely publicised continuity of service delivery during the COVID-19 pandemic may have contributed to this positive increase.
6. Themes with the lowest scores in 2017 have all experienced positive increases
Themes with the lowest scores in the 2017 Employee Engagement Survey have all experienced large increases. Improvements in these challenging areas are evidence of ongoing improvements as a result of the Civil Service Renewal Plan. These improvements also reflect a commitment made by the Civil Service Management Board following the 2017 Survey to continue to tackle these areas.
7. Civil servants are becoming more positive about the leadership of their organisations
Staff are becoming more positive about Senior Leadership in their organisation (2015: 50%, 2017: 55%, 2020: 59%). Sustained interventions will ensure leadership scores continue to improve.
8. Civil servants have reported that social supports remain strong despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic
Although staff have reported that social supports have slightly regressed since the 2017 Survey (2015: 70%, 2017: 72%, 2020: 71%), this remains one of the more positive results in the survey. The slight decrease is most likely a result of not being able to work from the office during the COVID-19 pandemic which could potentially hamper relationship building.
9. Civil servants continue to feel that the involvement culture in the Civil Service could be strengthened
Although this theme has improved by 5 points since the 2015 survey, Involvement Climate (2015: 36%, 2017: 38%, 2020: 41%) remains the most challenging result from the 2020 survey. This result shows that only a minority of civil servants feel openly involved in decision making in their organisation.
10. Civil servants continue to feel that the public does not value their contribution
Although this theme has improved by 11 points since the 2015 survey (2015: 33%, 2017: 38%, 2020: 44%), most staff continue to feel that the public does not value the work of the Civil Service. This challenging finding stands in contrast to the results of the Civil Service Customer Service Survey 2019 and previous iterations which has consistently shown that citizens are highly satisfied with the work of the Civil Service.
11. A level of frustration with the promotion process is evident amongst civil servants
Only 42% of staff believe that they will have the opportunity to be promoted if they perform well, while only 36% of staff believe that their Department has a clear and fair promotion process. Senior managers are generally more positive than colleagues at lower grades with fewer than 40% of EOs and COs (39% and 38% respectively) agreeing that they have all the opportunities they need for promotion.
12. Civil Servants continue to feel unhappy with how performance is managed
Scores under this theme have improved by 9 points since 2015 (2015: 44%, 2017: 48%, 2020: 53%) but it remains one of the more challenging themes in the survey. Only 20% of respondents agreed that poor performance is effectively addressed throughout their Department (2015: 12%, 2017: 15%), with just 46% agreeing that people in their Department are held accountable for achieving goals and meeting expectations (2015: 35%, 2017: 40%).