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Employee satisfaction

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Our employee survey

Our employee survey, which of late has been carried out every two years, is a key indicator of the relationship between our Company and its workforce. The results of the employee survey help us to identify weaknesses and eliminate them. We use the responses to calculate the engagement score, a gauge for employee satisfaction. On top of this, we conduct pulse surveys (carried out twice a year, or once a year in years when the employee survey is carried out), which give us a sentiment snapshot across the Group.

During the 2021 employee survey, the questionnaire and the measurement model were revised and updated based on feedback and the latest scientific findings: New questions were added and some of the existing questions were adapted. In addition, the scale used for the engagement score (formerly, the “commitment index img”) was changed from “1 to 5” to “1 to 100.” The engagement score is calculated based on questions on the following aspects: mood, employer attractiveness, brand identity, and inspiration.

A total of 80 percent of all employees throughout the Group took part in the most recent employee survey in 2021. The engagement score amounted to 77 points.

The employee survey was not carried out in the reporting year on account of a change in service provider, and has instead been rescheduled for 2024.

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Regular pulse survey KPI

In addition to the employee survey, which of late has been carried out every two years, we also conduct regular pulse surveys to measure employee satisfaction – usually twice a year. If the employee survey and pulse survey both occur in the same year, the pulse survey is only carried out once. The most recent pulse survey in November 2023 saw a 77 percent response rate among employees. The engagement score reached a high value of 76 points. The values reflect the survey findings excluding the USA segment, since T-Mobile US conducts its own employee survey.

High ratings = very good, good/agree fully, agree.
Low ratings = poor, very poor/do not agree, do not agree at all. “Neither agree nor disagree” ratings are not shown.

Explanations of questions asked:

  • Mood = How do I feel at Deutsche Telekom.
  • Employer attractiveness = I would recommend our company as a great place to work.
  • Brand identity = I am proud of the Telekom brand.
  • Inspiration = Our company inspires me to do my best every day.
  • Strengths = My job is a good fit for my abilities, knowledge, and experience.
  • Goals = I know what is expected of me at work.
  • Purpose = I perceive my work as meaningful.
  • Involvement = I have influence on decisions regarding my work.
  • Autonomy = I have the freedom I need to do my job.
  • Information = I can get the information I need to do my job.
  • Team feedback = We give each other feedback in order to improve as a team.
  • Manager feedback = I receive feedback from my line manager that helps me to improve my performance and grow.
  • Failure culture = In my team, mistakes are used as a chance to improve and learn.
  • Workload/quality= In my team, the workload and quality requirements are compatible with one another.
  • Work-life balance = My current working hours allow a good balance between private and (family, hobby) job-related interests.
  • Team attractiveness = I would recommend my team as a great community to work.
  • Collaboration = We collaborate effectively with others across our company.
  • Guiding Principles = I experience the Guiding Principles being lived in my day-to-day work.
  • Learning = Our company offers sufficient learning opportunities to enhance my professional skills.
  • Career development = I see motivating development opportunities for my career in our company.
  • Recognition = Considering all my efforts and achievements, I feel that I have received the appropriate amount of recognition at work.
  • Eco-social engagement = I can identify with the environmental and social engagement of our company.
  • Corporate responsibility = Our company acts responsibly towards the environment and society.
  • Digital collaboration = Digital collaboration tools facilitate our day-to-day work.
  • Risk management = In my team, we consistently manage potential risks affecting our business.
  • Strategy = I know and understand the strategy of our company.
  • Culture of trust = In our company, I experience a culture of trust across all hierarchies.
  • Equal opportunities = In our company, we give everyone the same opportunities for hiring and career development – regardless of age, gender and gender identity, sexual orientation, physical and mental abilities, nationality, social and ethnic background, political opinion, religion, and beliefs.
  • No discrimination and safe space = Our company provides a safe and supportive work environment for all – we do not tolerate inappropriate behavior or comments related to: age, gender and gender identity, sexual orientation, physical and mental abilities, nationality, social and ethnic origin, political opinion, religion and belief.
  • Open question on engagement = What would make your engagement at work even stronger?
  • Open question on career development = What else would you like to share on the topic of career development?
  • Open question on the culture of trust = What else would you like to share on the topic of culture of trust?
  • Open question on team attractiveness = What else would you like to share on the topic of team attractiveness?
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Employee identification with CR commitment ESG KPI KPI

We use the “Employee identification with CR commitment” ESG KPI img to determine the degree to which our staff identify with, or how satisfied they are, with our CR commitment. This is based on the Group employee survey (excluding T-Mobile US), which of late has been carried out every two years. The last survey was carried out in 2021: The vast majority of our employees agreed that Deutsche Telekom lives up to its responsibility for society and the environment. And a full 84 percent identified with our commitment. The next Group-wide employee survey will take place in the second quarter of 2024.

Our ambition in this context: Increase the KPI

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Satisfaction and commitment score KPI

We calculate the satisfaction rate and the commitment score as gauges for employee satisfaction. The displayed values are taken from the last pulse and employee surveys. The last pulse survey was conducted in November 2023, the last employee survey in November 2021.

The Group-wide satisfaction among our employees dropped to 78 percent in the reporting year. The commitment score from 2023 was 76 at the Group level, on a scale from 0 to 100. Compared to the previous year, the commitment score decreased by two points, marking a halt in the upward trend of the preceding two years. This was true at all levels.

Satisfaction rate 2020 2021 2022 2023
The displayed values are taken from the last pulse and employee surveys. The last pulse survey was conducted in November 2023, the last employee survey (ES) in November 2021. The engagement score is the mean value calculated from all answers to the questions of the four topics of Mood, Employer Attractiveness, Brand Identity, and Inspiration.

a) Excl. T‑Mobile US.
b) Scale changed: through 2020 scale from 1 to 5; from 2021 on, scale from 0–100.
c) The values of 2020 are taken from the ES of the previous year.

Data verified by Deloitte.
Germany 90% 91% 81% 76%
International 87% 89% 81% 82%
Group (total) 89% 90% 81% 78%
 
Commitment-Score a), scale of 0 to 100 b) 2020 c) 2021 2022 2023
All employees 4.0 77 78 76
All managers 4.4 86 88 87
Employees excl. managers 4.0 76 77 75
 

Further information about this is available in the HR Factbook.

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benchmarking tool

Through our interactive benchmarking tool, important facts and figures of our national companies can be analysed and compared.

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Social

  • Digital society Voluntary & financial commitment Corporate culture & the workplace Employee relations Employee satisfaction Diversity Demography & company pension scheme Training & development Occupational health & safety Headcount & part-time work Staff restructuring Ideas management

    • Highlights

    We are working on behalf

    of an online world in which all people

    can participate and coexist in

    keeping with democratic principles

    We are working on behalf of an online world in which all people can participate and coexist in keeping with democratic principles

    Via our “No hate speech” initiative, we once again reached a great many people (about 865 million media contacts), including the many opinion leaders and educators (about 5.7 million people) we contacted directly.

    Our “ShareWithCare” campaign also reached a great many people – and it has played an important role, worldwide, in discussion about online sharing of photos of children. With over 250 million media contacts, ShareWithCare has successfully raised awareness about issues surrounding online sharing of children’s photos and data.

    Also, via programs such as Teachtoday and Scroller, we have continued working to promote media literacy in people of all ages, always with the aim of helping people navigate cyberspace safely, securely and with confidence.

    More than 200 000 people work at Deutsche Telekom – and every one of them is unique. This diversity is our strength. In keeping with our understanding of diversity, we offer our employees many ways to keep developing and growing professionally and personally. Thanks to such efforts, our employees’ satisfaction levels remain high: In 2023, our “engagement score,” which is calculated on the basis of responses in subject areas such as mood, employer attractiveness, brand identity, and inspiration, totaled 76 percent.

    Detailed examples of our progress in 2023, described from the perspectives of both the Group and our segments, are presented in the subsections.

    Highlight numbers

    Highlight numbers

    Progress of selected KPIs in  2023

    • 2022 2023
    • Community Contribution 2 346m. € 1 504m. €
    • Beneficiaries – Focus Topics 41m. 51m.
    • Reach – Focus Topics 2 070m. 1 734m.
    • Employee satisfaction 78% 76%
    • Proportion of women in middle and upper management 28.1% 27.9%

    Topic overview

    Digital society Voluntary & financial commitment Corporate culture & the workplace Employee relations Employee satisfaction Diversity Demography & company pension scheme Training & development Occupational health & safety Headcount & part-time work Staff restructuring Ideas management

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