Concept: Attribute Data Collection in Surveys

You can collect and validate demographic data using the survey by enabling employees to self-select an option from the attributes that you provide.

As soon as segments from attribute data collection meet your organization's visibility requirements, their dashboards display data in the same way as all other segments.

If you're additionally targeting questions to segments you're using for attribute data collection, employees can receive those questions in the same survey, after self-selecting an option.

If you want to collect data on sensitive attributes, we recommend using the consent requirement setting with an explanation of why you're asking for this data and how you'll use it. This setting also restricts the attributes to ensure that the data is only available to user groups with access to restricted attributes. Administrators can manage user group access to restricted attributes in Access Control.

The kiosk mode doesn't support sensitive attribute data collection (this can be changed on request), and any employee type attributes (Example: Manager, Human Resources Partner), for security reasons.

If a user changes or nullifies an editable attribute value, or resets a survey that had an editable attribute question, the database saves both the original and new attribute value.

The system deletes historical attribute data only in these instances:

A customer admin deletes all attribute data for the user.
The normal de-identification process triggers once the retention period is reached.

Organizations can benefit from attribute data collection by gathering segmentation data that they don't already have in their Human Resources system. Example: Commute type, Working preference (office vs. remote), or sensitive (consent-requiring) attributes such as Ethnicity or Gender identity.

This provides more granular analysis and helps identify areas of improvement. You could use attribute data collection to create intersecting segments by combining it with another already existing attribute. Refer to Concept: Combination Attributes.

Attribute data collection displays at the beginning of every survey as long as the editable attribute is still active within the survey schedule.

If you marked the attribute as

Mandatory

, employees can't proceed to the survey without selecting an option from the attribute. Refer to Concept: Consent Notice for Sensitive Attribute Data Collection to understand how this differs for sensitive attributes.

Alternatively, an employee can select and submit an option from the attribute without choosing to complete the survey. Their selection is still valid, even if they didn't answer any of the regular survey questions. The participation rate on the dashboard of their selected segment will include this employee in the total number only.

If you keep the same attribute data collection across multiple survey rounds, employees that have already self-selected a segment on a previous survey will see their previous selection when they open the survey. This enables employees to change their selection as long as you continue collecting data from the same attributes.

Administrators can delete restricted attribute data collected post-survey, without affecting other employee information.

Once data is deleted, it’s permanently removed from the system and cannot be reinstated. Deleting restricted attribute data removes those attributes from employee profiles, manager dashboards, and the heat map.

Refer to Delete Restricted Attribute Data for steps.