Employee Viewpoint Survey results are in; DOT improving across the board

This past summer I asked the DOT family to help shape the future of the Department by taking the 2012 Employee Viewpoint Survey.  A record number responded. 25,892 in all. 

Now, the survey results are in, and I am delighted to announce that the Department of Transportation continues to be one of the most improved agencies in the Federal government.

In fact, DOT was the only agency in the entire Federal government to show improvement across all four survey categories:

• Job Satisfaction—8th, up from 15th in 2011, and from 35th in 2008;
• Talent Management—20th, up from 27th in 2011, and from 33rd in 2008;
• Leadership & Knowledge Management—27th, up from 30th in 2011, and from 36th in 2008;
• Results Oriented Performance Culture—29th, up from 33rd in 2011, and from 36th in 2008.

These figures document the Department’s steady improvement over the past year, and the extraordinary progress we have made in the past four years.

That improvement didn't just happen; it's the result of a conscious effort Department-wide.

When I became Secretary, we promised to address the issues raised by DOT employees in previous annual surveys, and we have done so. We also launched an employee platform, IdeaHub, where people can offer workplace solutions and others can discuss them and even vote them up or down. And we've held town hall meetings, listening sessions, and office hours with managers and senior leaders to hear employees’ concerns directly.

From this feedback, we have made significant improvements--proposed by employees--in how we get our work done, in specific offices and throughout the Department.

The people I see every day at DOT are committed to helping make our Department the best place to work in the Federal government. That’s why we have come such a long way in the past four years, and why we will continue making progress in the next four years.

And while that's terrific for everyone here at DOT, it also benefits the taxpayers we serve.

Do we have room for improvement? You bet--with 7 agencies still ahead of us in Job Satisfaction and even more ahead of us in the other three categories, we can't claim victory yet.

Still, I'm plenty proud of what we have accomplished so far and of those who made those accomplishments happen. This year's results show that our work is paying off, and I know that more improvements are in store.