Organon is a pharmaceutical company focused on a portfolio of women’s health, biosimilars, and established medicines. Created following a spin-off from Merck & Co. in 2020, Organon’s leaders are fully invested in employee listening as a means to understand and support the needs of its diverse workforce.
Why Perceptyx?
As a wholly new company, Organon decided to start fresh with a new survey partner. Matt Grossman, Ph.D., Organon’s Head of Workforce Analytics, explained, “We felt like the dashboards we built previously were too complicated for what we wanted to do. Perceptyx helped us simplify and helped our leaders focus on the metrics that matter most to their jobs.”
After considering various vendors, Organon chose Perceptyx for its simplicity and customizable reporting. Today, the company uses Perceptyx’s Ask and Sense products for its employee engagement and lifecycle listening. “So far, we’ve been thrilled by the products and the partnership,” Grossman said.
Laying the Groundwork for a Comprehensive Listening Strategy
Organon began its listening journey with the Founder Experience Survey. Grossman described the process: “This was a census survey that included all employees. After that, we started to roll out the other components of our listening strategy.”
These other initiatives included an onboarding survey (at 30, 45, and 90 days post-hire), a candidate experience survey, a hiring manager survey, and an exit survey — a holistic approach that enables Organon to think about the hiring process from both sides, capturing how the applicant perceives the company and how managers are engaging with recruiting, as well as the entire employee lifecycle. The company also runs ad hoc surveys with the self-service version of Perceptyx’s Ask product, including a core set of 10 questions repeated in every survey.
Capturing Data on Flourishing, Well-Being, and Belonging
Based on 88% participation in the Founder Experience Survey, Organon saw steady engagement across the company. However, they identified focus areas in well-being, such as work-life balance and workload challenges, which were intensified by the transition from Merck to a smaller organization.
Grossman elaborated on the challenges faced by Organon’s workforce: “Our roles have all expanded since we’ve come over from Merck, and we confirmed that through the survey. We have the data and now we’re responding to that.” To address these concerns, the company is working on streamlining processes and reallocating resources where needed.
Organon is dedicated to taking action in response to employee feedback. “We feel very strongly that the survey results are important, but what you do about the results is much more important,” said Grossman. By addressing issues raised in the surveys, Organon wants to send a clear message that they value their employees’ voices and are committed to making improvements based on their feedback.
Ensuring Managers Have the Data They Need
Organon prides itself on being a transparent company. Survey findings are shared with everyone in the company, starting with an all-manager call to discuss high-level findings. Managers are then asked to share the results with their teams, ensuring everyone is aware of the feedback and actions being taken.
To avoid overwhelming managers with excessive data, Organon created a focused dashboard that highlights the key areas for improvement. Grossman touched on the importance of presenting the most relevant information to managers: “When managers log in to see their data, we want to make sure that they focus on what’s really important, so we make the key metrics very obvious.” By making the dashboard intentional and providing managers with only the necessary filters, they can act on the data in the right way.
Office Attendance: Striking the Right Balance
Employee listening also played an important role in the evolution of the US office attendance policy at Organon. During the pandemic, most employees were working remotely, but as the world began to open up again, leaders started to consider how they could safely reintroduce in-person collaboration. Organon’s CEO noticed a disparity in office attendance between regions, with Asia and Europe having higher attendance rates than the United States.
To understand this difference, Organon included questions about office attendance in the annual Founder Experience Survey and discovered regional, hierarchical, and gender-based variations in attendance rates. They found that men who came into the office more frequently were more engaged, experienced greater well-being, and felt a stronger sense of belonging. In contrast, women experienced the opposite effect when they came into the office more frequently, with engagement and well-being decreasing.
To address these findings, leaders examined the available listening data and determined that a once-a-week attendance policy would be optimal, with flexibility to accommodate different schedules and work styles. They also adjusted their expectations for productivity on in-office days, recognizing that it was important to focus on collaboration rather than individual tasks.
The Power of Partnership
Organon’s thoughtful approach to employee listening and action demonstrates the power of using surveys to create a more positive employee experience. By rapidly addressing employee concerns, consistently connecting actions to survey results, and sharing data transparently, Organon has created a culture where employees feel heard and valued. The partnership with Perceptyx, Grossman said, has helped Organon listen to its “founders” in ways that can ultimately lead to higher productivity and a stronger sense of belonging within the organization.
Read the full story to learn more about how Organon has partnered with Perceptyx to develop and implement a comprehensive listening strategy.