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UW Campus Climate Survey

UW Workplace Climate Toolkit

Background and context of overall climate survey

A professor working with a student in a prosthetics orthotics labTo guide actions that improve the experiences and well-being of our students, faculty and staff, the UW conducted a University-wide climate survey on the Bothell, Seattle and Tacoma campuses and at UW Medicine, April 22 through May 30, 2025. This survey offered an opportunity for students, faculty and staff to share their personal experiences at the UW. Feedback from over 11,000 respondents will help us improve the climate on our campuses and individual units.

To Learn more about the UW Campus Climate Survey: University of Washington Campus Climate Survey

In response to the climate survey a toolkit series was developed to guide University of Washington community members in understanding, interpreting, reflecting on, and responding to findings of the 2025 Campus Climate Survey at a local level.

The purpose of each toolkit is to help UW leaders understand a climate survey theme, interpret their local results, facilitate meaningful conversations with their teams, and identify evidence-informed actions that support a positive organizational climate.

Findings varied by campus and units and while overarching themes are presented below specific details pertaining to one’s specific campus unit can be found on the Climate Survey Dashboard.

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What is workplace climate?

Workplace climate is the shared experience and perception of what it is like to work in an organization. In a university setting, it is shaped by policies, practices, structures, relationships, and day-to-day interactions that influence how employees experience their workplace. This includes whether they feel supported, valued, fairly treated, heard, and able to do their work effectively.

Workplace climate operates at multiple levels, including an employee’s immediate team, department, school or college, campus, and the broader university. As a result, experiences and perceptions may vary across these different contexts.

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Why does workplace climate matter?

Researchers studying data displayed on a large screen in a conference roomA healthy workplace climate supports people and the work of the university. Staff and academic personnel are essential to UW’s teaching, research, service, and operational missions. When people experience their workplace as supportive, fair, transparent, and respectful, they are better positioned to engage in their work, collaborate with colleagues, contribute their expertise, and sustain their commitment to the institution. Research in higher education connects workplace climate with important outcomes including job satisfaction, engagement, productivity, organizational commitment, and retention.

Workplace climate is also an organizational responsibility. Climate is shaped not only by individual interactions but by the policies, practices, structures, and decisions through which work gets done. This means that improving workplace climate is not simply about asking individuals to have better experiences; it involves examining the conditions the organization creates and identifying where leaders and units can make meaningful changes.

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Survey questions asked

All employees were asked a series of eight matrix questions addressing various aspects of their workplace experience, including role expectations, professional development and career support, work-life balance, compensation, benefits, and perception of their value in the workplace. Academic personnel were asked four additional matrix questions specific to their roles, while staff were asked one separate matrix on role-specific topics. Finally, we asked all employees to share additional comments about the workplace climate, using an open-ended text box. All quantitative questions asked respondents to rate their level of agreement with various statements about workplace climate on a scale from 1 “Strongly disagree” to 5 “Strongly agree” or, in some cases, “Not applicable to my role.” The following questions can be found in the UW Climate Survey Dashboards:

  • I feel positive about my career opportunities at the UW.
  • I have job security.
  • The UW provides me with resources to pursue training / professional development opportunities (e.g., conferences, materials, research and course design, traveling).

  • I am satisfied with my total benefits package.
  • I am satisfied with my total compensation package.
  • The UW provides adequate resources to help me manage work-life balance (e.g., childcare, wellness services, elder care, housing location assistance, transportation).
  • UW policies (e.g., FMLA, leave policies, telework policies) are fairly applied across the university.

  • My current distribution of work across service (e.g., clinical work, administration, committees), teaching / mentoring, and research / scholarship is balanced.
  • My current distribution of work is equitable compared to colleagues of the same rank and title.

  • Employees in positions like mine are treated with dignity and respect at the UW.
  • I feel that my skills are valued.
  • I feel that my work is valued.
  • I feel valued by coworkers in my department / unit.
  • I feel valued by my supervisor / chair.
  • I would recommend the UW as a good place to work.

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Key findings

Students collaborating in a maker space with 3D printersOverall, the findings reveal important strengths in UW workplaces alongside areas where staff and academic personnel see opportunities for improvement. Employees generally report positive experiences with supervisors and colleagues and identify meaningful aspects of their work that keep them connected to UW. At the same time, the findings point to concerns about workload and capacity, compensation, career growth, fairness and transparency, and the connection between employees’ immediate workplace experiences and the broader institution.

The survey findings suggest that employees can have a positive experience within their immediate team or department while holding less positive perceptions of the broader institution. Workplace climate can vary across teams, departments, schools or colleges, campuses, and UW as a whole. Experiences may also differ by role, identity, and other characteristics.

Leaders are encouraged to use the interactive dashboard to explore results for their own campus or unit and consider where experiences may be similar or different across groups.  https://sites.uw.edu/yourvoice/

  • Across UW, employees generally report positive relationships with their supervisors and colleagues. Roughly three-quarters of employees report feeling valued by their supervisor.
  • Employees report that their work is valued by coworkers and immediate unit leadership, and most agree that employees in positions like theirs are treated with dignity and respect.
  • Supervisors are identified as important sources of support for professional development, work-life balance, and taking leave.
  • Employees generally report more positive experiences within their immediate work environments than with senior university leadership.
  • Academic personnel report a lower sense of being valued by senior institutional leadership, while staff describe feeling less connected to the broader department, campus, or university.
  • The findings suggest that employees can feel supported, valued, and connected within their local workplace while holding less positive perceptions of the broader institution.

  • Employees remain strongly connected to the UW mission, but many describe increasing tension between meaningful work and workplace sustainability. While employees value the purpose and impact of their work, many report concerns about workload, staffing capacity, and compensation.
  • Workload and staffing capacity are recurring concerns across UW settings. Employees describe increased workloads when positions remain vacant and pressure to take on additional work.
  • Employees report concerns about compensation, particularly salary and total compensation, while perceptions of benefits are generally more positive.
  • Employees also identify gaps in family-supportive resources, particularly access to affordable and reliable childcare. These concerns suggest that perceptions of compensation and total rewards extend beyond salary and benefits to include the practical supports that help employees balance work and personal responsibilities.
  • Employees describe tension between the amount of work expected and the time and resources available to complete it effectively.
  • The distribution of work, including less visible or uncompensated work, shapes employees’ perceptions of workplace climate. Some employees, particularly those from historically underrepresented groups, report carrying additional mentoring, advising, service, and community-building responsibilities. Employees also describe uneven expectations for student support and emotional labor, suggesting that important contributions are not always distributed or recognized equitably.
  • Workload pressures can affect employees’ ability to participate in professional development, build relationships, and maintain work-life balance.

  • Career advancement and opportunities for professional growth are recurring areas of concern for staff and academic personnel.
  • Some staff describe feeling “stuck” with limited opportunities to advance or develop professionally.
  • Employees report concerns about the clarity and fairness of advancement processes and about whether opportunities for growth are equally accessible.
  • Academic personnel identify questions about promotion, tenure, reappointment, and recognition of different forms of academic work.
  • Professional development opportunities are valued, but workload and limited resources can make participation difficult.
  • Employees expressed interest in career pathways that allow them to grow professionally without necessarily moving into management.

  • Employees report mixed experiences with the fairness and consistency of workplace policies and practices.
  • Concerns include how policies related to telework, leave, workload, and other workplace conditions are equitably applied across different roles and circumstances.
  • Employees want greater clarity about how decisions are made, how operational needs are assessed, and how policies are applied.
  • Employees expressed a  desire to “remove the mystery” around organizational decision-making.
  • Employees report that some voices and roles can carry more weight than others, contributing to perceptions of hierarchy and inequity.
  • Opportunities to provide input and confidence that concerns will be heard are important elements of the workplace climate.
  • Employees want effective avenues for raising concerns, addressing conflict, and influencing change between climate surveys.

  • Staff and academic personnel share many important workplace priorities, including supportive leadership, clear expectations, meaningful recognition, and opportunities to contribute to decisions that affect their work.
  • Many workplace climate concerns are shared by staff and academic personnel, but the nature of those experiences can differ by role.
  • Staff identify concerns related to career pathways, staffing capacity, professional development, and recognition of their contributions.
  • Academic personnel identify concerns related to the balance and distribution of teaching, research, and service responsibilities.
  • Academic personnel also raise questions about how different forms of academic work are valued and recognized.
  • Promotion, tenure, and reappointment processes are particularly important dimensions of workplace climate for academic personnel.
  • Both groups identify the importance of supportive leadership, clear expectations, meaningful recognition, and opportunities to contribute to decisions that affect their work.

The survey findings suggest that workplace climate is connected to employees’ decisions about whether they see a future at UW. Meaningful work, supportive relationships, and connection to the university’s mission can strengthen employees’ commitment to staying. At the same time, concerns about workload, compensation, career growth, recognition, fairness, and organizational support can affect employees’ intentions to remain.

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Suggested discussion questions for leaders and their team to engage with the data

Once you have had a chance to explore themes across your campus and your unit-specific data, we encourage you to work through the following questions. In addition to filtering for your unit in the dashboards, we also recommend filtering by different participant demographics to examine differential experiences for staff and/or faculty in your unit. These questions can be helpful for individuals to reflect on the climate in their units and at UW, as well as serve as a resource for leaders to reflect with their teams about how to make sense of this data for their units.

  • What is your initial response to this data?
  • What stands out in these findings?
  • After looking at your unit’s data in the Campus Climate Dashboard, what stands out?
  • What strengths in your workplace climate should be celebrated and built upon?
  • How do these findings compare to what you or others may experience in your department/unit?
  • Does this data reflect your experience as a staff or faculty member? Why or why not?
  • What are the opportunities suggested by the data?
  • What does the data actually tell you? What additional information would help you understand why?

  • Which employee groups appear to be experiencing the workplace differently?
  • Where do you see meaningful differences across employee groups, identities, roles, or work settings?
  • What patterns emerge when you look at the experiences of different populations within your unit?
  • Are there groups whose experiences warrant additional attention or deeper exploration?

  • What currently helps employees feel valued, supported, and connected in your unit?
  • To what extent do employees feel connected to the broader UW community, and what opportunities exist to strengthen that connection?
  • What practices, relationships, or conditions contribute positively to your workplace climate?
  • Which strengths within your unit should you intentionally preserve and build upon?
  • What barriers may prevent employees from feeling fully included, supported, or successful?
  • What aspects of culture, practices, policies, or communication may be contributing to concerns reflected in the data?
  • What decisions, processes, or expectations may feel unclear or inconsistent to employees and how could we improve transparency?
    • How clear and equitable are workload and service expectations across different roles in your unit?
    • How consistent, transparent, and equitable are telework and leave-related policies and decisions across your unit?
  • Where are employees experiencing workload or capacity challenges, and what work could be clarified, reprioritized, redistributed, or better recognized?
  • How can your unit better support employees’ professional development?
  • How effectively are contributions recognized and valued?
  • How comfortable do employees feel sharing concerns, providing feedback, or raising new ideas?
  • How effective and accessible are current approaches to addressing conflict, and what opportunities exist for improvement?
  • How are teaching, research, service, leadership, mentoring, and administrative responsibilities distributed, valued, and recognized within your unit?

  • What would an even stronger workplace climate look like in your unit?
  • If employees felt consistently valued, supported, and connected, what would be different?
  • What are your biggest hopes for the future in terms of unit workplace climate?

  • Considering both what is actionable and where you feel you can have a positive impact, what issues are you most interested in addressing or prioritizing at this time, and why? 
  • Which aspects of our climate are shaped primarily by local practices and relationships, and which are influenced by broader institutional factors?
  • What is one meaningful action you can take to strengthen workplace climate in the coming year?
  • What should we start, stop, continue, or improve?
  • How can you build on existing strengths while addressing areas of concern?
  • What resources, partnerships, or support will help you succeed?
  • Who will be primarily accountable, along with school/college/administrative unit leadership, for advancing the action plan?

  • How will you measure progress?
  • How will you communicate progress?

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Action planning

An art teach working with a student at an easel in drawing classWe hope your unit’s dialogues and discussions about workplace climate data yielded opportunities to recognize strengths and identify areas for meaningful change.  Moving from observation and reflection to meaningful action takes detailed planning.

An action plan helps the team:

  • Develop priority goals (such as SMART Goals)
  • Clarify responsibilities by assigning tasks to specific individuals or groups.
  • Set timelines for each step, keeping progress on track.
  • Identify needed resources ahead of time to avoid delays.
  • Monitor progress and adjust as needed.
  • Increase accountability and teamwork by making expectations transparent.

Here is an action planning template that you and your team can use to move toward meaningful action: Download Microsoft Word Document | Download PDF

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Opportunities for continued learning and engagement

Connection and well-being resources:

  • Whole U: A hub for UW faculty, staff and students offering programs, events and resources that nurture physical, mental, financial and social well-being.
  • UW Medicine Well-being & Support: Provides programs, resources, and initiatives that support employee, trainee, and learner well-being by reducing burnout, promoting professional fulfillment, and fostering a workplace where people can learn, grow, and thrive.

Conflict resolution resources:

Career development resources:

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