2022 Working at Iowa Survey
Main Campus Results
University of Iowa faculty and staff continue to report a high level of engagement with their work in support of the university’s mission and strategic goals, according to results from the 2022 Working at Iowa Survey. This is particularly encouraging, given the emphasis in the UI Strategic Plan 2022-2027 on creating a welcoming and inclusive environment, and holistic well-being and success.
The 2022 Working at Iowa survey was administered to 6,310 regular faculty and staff from Oct. 12-27, 2022. Sixty-nine percent, or 4,355 of the eligible population responded, making it a highly reliable representation of university employees. UI Health Care’s Working at Iowa survey was conducted in partnership with Press Ganey and included 10 UI Working at Iowa survey questions. This allows for benchmarking against other health care organizations, and correlation with patient satisfaction surveys also conducted by Press Ganey. Trends noted in the UI Working at Iowa Survey do not include UI Health Care results.
Working at Iowa University Report - 2022
Working at Iowa University Report - 2022 - alternate color palette
Campuswide results on the 10 survey questions included in the UI Health Care Working at Iowa survey
Data Highlights
UI employees taking the 2022 Working at Iowa survey reported high levels of agreement to all survey questions. UI faculty and staff consistently indicate widespread agreement with items related to alignment with mission, service, and role expectations. Responses continue to highlight strengths of the university workforce and culture, as identified by the highest levels of agreement with the following individual survey items:
- I know what is expected of me in my work (95% agreement)
- I understand how my job fits into the overall mission of the UI (94% agreement)
- My supervisor treats me with respect (93% agreement)
Areas for improvement are also relatively consistent across survey years. Although they are the lowest scores, it is notable that more than 70% of faculty and staff agreed with the following in 2022:
- My unit distributes workload fairly (73% agreement)
- The UI recognizes the accomplishments of faculty and staff (72% agreement)
- There are opportunities for promotion at the UI (71% agreement)
The most substantial difference in strongly agree scores between 2018 and 2022 surveys was “My supervisor acknowledges my good work” (q4), increasing from 40% strongly agree in 2018 to 48% strongly agree in 2022.
Responses vary based on job classification of respondents. Merit respondents agree less often with the statement “My professional development is encouraged” (q5) and “My supervisor treats me with respect” (q6). Faculty respondents agree less often that “My work unit supports work and personal life” (q10). Professional and Scientific staff respondents agree more often that “Coworkers are civil and respectful” (q13).
In January, each college and central service unit will receive results for use in gaining local perspective, celebrating successes, and creating action plans for specific improvement areas. Campus units that requested reports and had 10 or more employees participate in the survey also will receive unit-level reports in January.
Engagement Index
In 2022, the survey continued to use a validated scale[1] for measuring engagement. The engagement index shows how personally connected people are to their jobs in terms of giving their full effort, paying close attention to their work, and emotionally caring about what they do.[2]
Averaged scores for the engagement index for the university as a whole show that UI faculty and staff are “mostly engaged” or four points on a five-point scale.
Analysis of data by Tippie College of Business researchers and the College of Public Health shows that Working at Iowa survey items are correlated with one another and with the engagement index. Thus, improvements made in any items will be associated with improvements in engagement overall.
Reporting Features
Survey results for each college and central service unit provide additional opportunities for leadership to gain perspective and meaning from the data. Reports of the 2022 data for colleges and units will feature:
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A percentile ranking that compares each org report to the overall university for greater perspective-building.
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A “Top Three Strengths and Opportunities” section for beginning the local discussion of data and action planning. With this data, local leaders, in collaboration with faculty and staff, can identify objectives consistent with their strategic priorities and develop action plans to create positive change.
With the correlation noted above, colleges, units, and departments can focus on any of the Working at Iowa items to address engagement locally.
Action Planning
Learn more about action planning by visiting the Using Working at Iowa Results website.
Human resources leaders on campus are available to assist individual colleges and units in communicating and utilizing the Working at Iowa results in their respective work areas. University leaders will utilize Working at Iowa survey data to inform actions and measure progress in the UI Strategic Plan 2022-2027.
1Crawford, E.R., LePine, J.A., & Buckman, B.R. (2013). Job engagement scale short form items adapted from Rich, B.L., LePine, J.A., & Crawford, E.R. (2010). Job engagement: Antecedents and effects on job performance. Academy of Management Journal, 53, 617-635.
2Kahn, W.A. (1990). Psychological Conditions of Personal Engagement and Disengagement at Work. Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 33, pp. 692-724. May, D.R., Gilson, R.L, Harter, L.M. (2004); The psychological conditions of meaningfulness, safety and availability and the engagement of the human spirit at work,” Journal of Occupational & Organizational Psychology, Vol. 77, pp. 11-37.