This guide will help you:
Choose the right type of survey for your objective
Understand how dimensions work
Avoid common configuration issues that affect reporting later
This article is part of the Entromy onboarding journey. If you haven't already, start with Start Here: Getting Up and Running with Entromy.
Step 1: Define your survey objective
The first and most important decision you'll make is what you're trying to learn.
Entromy supports multiple survey types, each designed for a different purpose and level of depth. Choosing the right one upfront affects:
Survey length and participant effort
How often the survey should be run
What kind of reporting and follow-up actions make sense
Organizational Health Baseline (OHB)
The Organizational Health Baseline (OHB) is designed to provide a comprehensive, point-in-time view of organizational health.
Use OHB when you want to:
Establish a baseline understanding of how the organization is functioning
Identify systemic strengths, risks, and themes across teams
Inform leadership decisions, change initiatives, or transformation efforts
What to expect:
Longer survey (typically 60+ questions, ~20–25 minutes)
Broad coverage across organizational themes
Rich qualitative and quantitative insights
Not intended for frequent use
Typical cadence: Annual or first-time diagnostic
Best for organizations looking to understand what's really happening beneath the surface before taking action.
Value Creation Plan (VCP)
The Value Creation Plan (VCP) survey assesses organizational maturity and value drivers, particularly across roles responsible for creating value.
Use VCP when you want to:
Measure maturity across value creation dimensions
Understand confidence levels in execution
Compare perspectives across key roles or functions
What to expect:
Diagnostic-style survey (similar length to OHB)
Clear alignment to value drivers and strategic priorities
Insights into gaps between strategy and execution
Typical cadence: Annual or milestone-based (e.g., before or after major initiatives)
Best when leadership is focused on execution, accountability, and value delivery.
Executive 360
The Executive 360 survey provides individual-level feedback on strengths, development areas, and leadership competencies.
Use a 360 when you want to:
Support leadership development
Gather structured feedback from peers, direct reports, and stakeholders
Provide actionable insights and recommendations for individuals
What to expect:
Shorter, role-specific survey (typically ~40 questions)
Individual-focused reporting
Higher sensitivity to participation and privacy thresholds
Typical cadence: Annual or as part of leadership development programs
Best when the goal is personal development, not organizational diagnosis.
Pulse Surveys
Pulse surveys are shorter, repeatable surveys designed to track trends over time.
Use Pulse surveys when you want to:
Monitor progress after an OHB or VCP
Check in on specific initiatives or themes
Measure change without creating survey fatigue
What to expect:
Short survey (5–10 minutes)
Narrow, focused question sets
Easier to deploy frequently
Typical cadence: Monthly, quarterly, or bi-annually
Best for ongoing measurement, not deep diagnosis.
Choosing the right survey type
As a simple guideline:
Goal | Survey type |
Deep organizational diagnosis | OHB or VCP |
Track progress over time | Pulse |
Individual leadership feedback | 360 |
If you're unsure which survey type is right, clarify this before moving forward. Changing survey type decisions after setup or launch can be difficult and may impact reporting.
Step 2: Understand dimensions (this affects everything)
Dimensions are attributes used to group and analyze responses, such as:
Department
Region
Role
Tenure
Dimensions allow you to compare results across different parts of your organization, but they also introduce privacy and reporting constraints.
Key things to know:
Dimensions must be planned intentionally
Too many dimensions can reduce report visibility
Some dimension values may not meet reporting thresholds
Related reading:
Step 3: Understand privacy thresholds and reporting behavior
Entromy applies privacy thresholds to protect respondent anonymity. This means:
Some reports or comparative cuts may not appear
Certain results may be hidden by design
This is expected behavior, not an error
Before launching a survey, you should understand:
Minimum response requirements
How thresholds affect comparative reviews
Why reports may look different than expected
Related reading:
Step 4: Clarify roles and responsibilities
Before moving into setup, clarify:
Who is responsible for survey configuration
Who can manage users and settings
Who will monitor participation and reporting
In Entromy, Organization Admin and Survey Admin roles control access to key setup and reporting features. If roles are unclear, implementations often stall or require rework later.
How to know you're ready to move on
You're ready to proceed to survey configuration when:
☐ You've chosen the correct survey type
☐ You understand how dimensions affect reporting
☐ You understand privacy thresholds and their impact
☐ Admin responsibilities are clearly assigned
Next step
Continue to Phase 2: Configuring Your First Entromy Survey to begin setting up your survey in the platform.