In order for the University to fulfill its mission of teaching, research and public service, we need to know what we are doing well and areas in which we can improve. A customer satisfaction survey, administered as part of the Transforming Administration Program (TAP), is the opportunity for faculty, staff and students to give feedback.

We've compiled responses to common questions about the survey below. If your question isn't answered on this page, please reach out to assessuw@uw.edu.

Background:

Data and Results:

Taking the Survey (Spring 2019):

Roles and Eligibility (Spring 2019):

When did the 2019 survey take place?

The survey opened January 28, 2019 and closed on February 19, 2019. Results were released to unit leaders in June 2019.

Who conducted the survey?

To conduct the survey, we contracted with the University of California San Diego’s Tritonlytics unit at the Office of Operational Strategic Initiatives. The UCSD team is a recognized leader in survey design and planning, with a proven, industry-standard approach. Since 2011, the team has completed similar work at their own campus, as well as for others including UC Irvine, UC Riverside, and Cal State University.

How were services selected for review in this survey?

Each administrative unit was asked to list and describe the five core or most important services that unit provides to the UW.

Units were asked to exclude services where the only customers are within that unit (e.g. unit-level HR) and services that they provide to community partners outside of UW (i.e. those who aren’t faculty, staff, or students).

How were the questions developed?

A survey design team, with members from units across central administration, worked together to develop a set of general questions that could best highlight successes and opportunities within any unit’s services. By focusing on services, the team’s intent was to keep attention on the work each unit does for the university, rather than the unit’s stated role or structure.

Once the team had a draft in place, and had reviewed it with the TAP Team, the team compared its draft with questions from the survey vendor (UCSD) and used the vendor’s wording where possible so that the UW could benchmark with, and learn lessons from, peer institutions in the future.

How will information be used?

The survey results will be used to:

  • Celebrate excellence by identifying stand-out core services offered by UW administrative units
  • Help units and leadership identify priorities for continuous improvement
  • Serve as a baseline for future surveys
  • Be research-based and repeatable
  • Provide a complete picture for measuring success across central administration units

Is my feedback confidential or anonymous?

This survey was confidential. By making the survey confidential, we can keep individual responses from being identified, control who can access the survey and keep respondents from receiving reminder emails after they have already submitted their answers.

“Confidential” does not equate to “Anonymous, which would mean data analysts would have no way to know who responded to which survey questions.  As the survey was confidential, the vendor (UCSD) was technically able to identify each respondent but will NOT share that information with anyone, including the UW; your identity and your responses will remain private.

    I haven't seen my unit's results yet. Where can I find them?

    Unit-level results have been shared with the VPs or leaders for each unit. If you are interested in seeing the results and they have not been shared with you directly, please reach out to your unit leader. 

    What’s different on the 2019 survey compared to 2017?

    Improvements to the survey and reports in 2019 include:

    • Rate an improved list of services. More UW units have been added to the survey and many more have added or refined services. The result is a clearer, more comprehensive list, with the continued exception of UW Medicine and Athletics.
    • Only see the services you use. The survey lists relevant services based on who is responding. Students will see only those services that students use, for example.
    • More easily access the survey. Email, newsletters and social media can now include a direct link to the survey website, making it easier to promote participation at every level.
    • Get feedback from everyone. All students, faculty and staff are invited to participate.
    • Compare better data more quickly. Updated reports will include comparisons to 2017 survey results for the same service, if available, and to UW-wide results for each question. To improve data integrity, reports will include only responses from staff members outside the unit.

    How many services should I rate?

    You may rate up to five services that you have used in the last 12 months. Evaluating each service takes about five minutes.

    Do not feel as if you must rate every service you have used; some feedback is much better than none.

    What if I don't see a service I'd like to rate?

    The survey makes use of categories, service names and keywords to help you find the services that are important to you. If there is a particular service you would like to give feedback on that is not represented in the survey, please use the open-ended question at the end of the survey. 

    Why can’t I see some UW services or units which I know are supposed to be on the survey?

    The services you see after you log in to the survey are filtered to show only those services for which you are a true potential customer. As a customer (rather than employee) satisfaction survey, this means administrative employees may be surprised not to see their own service listed when they enter the survey, or even whole units they know are participating. Those services and units do appear, however, in the surveys of relevant customers. For example, students will see student-focused services like advising and first-year program but faculty and staff will not. Staff will see equipment insurance but students and faculty will not. Units provided information about who their customers are when they submitted services to the survey team and the filter is based on their input.

    What if I can’t finish the survey in one sitting?

    If you cannot finish the survey all at once, you can return to it at a later time. Click the FINISH LATER button. Your responses will be saved from where you left off. Once you hit SUBMIT SURVEY, your survey has been submitted, and you cannot return to make any changes.

    I've submitted my survey, but realized that I wanted to add or change my responses. Is it possible to reopen the survey?

    As the survey has closed for all users, it is no longer possible to reopen the survey or change responses. Please email assessuw@uw.edu if you wish to address an error in your original submission.

    Will there be any incentives to take the survey?

    Yes. The first 150 respondents received a UW coffee mug, and students who complete the survey will be entered to win a laptop, iPad mini and UW Bookstore gift cards. The participants who received these prizes have already been contacted.

    Who is eligible to take this survey?

    All UW faculty, staff, and matriculated students on the UW’s Seattle, Tacoma and Bothell campuses are invited to take this survey. Staff of the Harborview and UW Medical Centers and non-UW-affiliated patients of the medical centers are not eligible to participate.

    Can I take the survey if I did not receive the invitation e-mail?

    All students, faculty, staff should have received an invitation. Please check your clutter or spam folder, or your deleted items. Or, simply visit the 2019 TAP Survey Page to access it directly.

    How does the survey treat someone who is both a student and a staff person demographically?

    Survey participants are invited to respond based on their primary role on campus, and the list of services they can rate are filtered accordingly. A full-time matriculated student will see the student view of the survey, even if they are also working on campus. Similarly, a full-time employee will see the staff view of the survey, even if they’re also taking classes.

    Who is considered a “customer” for this survey? I consider myself a colleague, not a “customer.”

    For the purposes of this survey, a "customer" is any stakeholder of the UW’s mission and success. Faculty, academic staff, administrative staff, and students are all customers of the services that are provided by central administrative units such as Building Services, UW Dining Retail Services, Admissions, Capital Projects, and more. Every individual on our three campuses has a personal stake in administrative success at the University.

    Hasn't UW done a tri-campus-wide survey recently? Why survey again now?

    The Provost feels that there is more to learn about how central administration is working with partners across the UW’s three campuses, so the TAP team is initiating a robust, repeatable, and systematic cycle of surveys of UW’s administrative units. In January 2017, the first TAP Administrative Unit survey was conducted, and in June 2015, the TAP team conducted a broad survey on central administration. These surveys seek to identify areas of excellence as well as opportunities for improvement and to establish a baseline from which to track trends over time.