The Instant-Online Hospital Registered Nurse Retention Survey
What the Survey Tells You

Overview | How it Works | What the Survey Tells You | Post-Survey Options | How to Start

To view and print information on the WDI RN Retention Survey in
Adobe Acrobat format click here. To download Adobe Acrobat click here.

The survey identifies each nurse's primary work value and what motivates them to stay or leave

Nurses have different reasons for working—no right or wrong reasons—just different. These differences go to the heart of what they value in work. These work values influence their job related needs and thus the reasons that cause them to stay in their current job. The distribution of these work values is unique to each hospital. That is why what works for one hospital may not work for another. Knowing the unique distribution of work values for your nurses is critical in knowing what retention strategies will or will not work. The following is a brief description of the six core work values identified by WDI RN Retention Survey.

Work Value One
This value system is outer directed and describes a nurse who wants to work for a hospital that will voluntarily look out for the welfare and security of its nurses. The unit supervisor is the most important factor affecting retention of this nurse. They prefer a nursing assignment where the work is routine and task oriented. They prefer to work within a group as opposed to working alone. They look to their supervisor to represent their interest, answer questions, show them what to do and give them feedback on how they are doing. It is important that they have a unit supervisor who is personable and friendly, but also firm and fair.

Work Value Two
This value system is inner directed and describes a nurse who has more of a need for power and control than others. They work best in a nursing assignment where they can work alone and use their creativity, toughness and persistence without too many constraints. They may prefer working for a temporary staffing agency where they have variety and take on difficult assignments. Their loyalty is to themselves and, as a result, they tend to change jobs more often than others. This work value typically has the highest turnover.

Work Value Three
This value system is outer directed and describes a nurse who is hard working and loyal. They value longevity, loyalty and length of service. They prefer to follow the rules and value a supervisor who is consistent and fair in making decisions. They like working in a nursing assignment where everything is organized and predictable. They tend to be perfectionists in non-perfect worlds and often have a hard time accepting change. This work preference is ideally suited for a structured staff nurse job that requires conscientious effort and consistency. They have the longest length of service and lowest turnover.

Work Value Four
This value system is inner directed and describes a nurse who places a high value on her/his career and personal achievement. They tend to view money as the primary score card of their success. They enjoy the material things that money can buy and respond favorably to any reward or recognition program that provides bonuses or other financial incentives. They view their time as valuable and will leave their current job for one that provides more money and greater opportunity to advance their career. They prefer variable merit increases where they compete for raises instead of automatic pay adjustments.

Work Value Five
This value system is outer directed and describes a nurse who places a high value on interpersonal relationships and has more concern for others than herself/himself. They tend to be subjective and social in nature. They view nursing as an opportunity to help and interact with others. They have a strong preference for participative management and “group input.” They prefer sensitivity to objectivity and cooperation over competition. They resist pay schemes that cause nurses to compete for amounts of increases. They want and need a supervisor who acts more like a friend than a boss and who “fits in” with the team.

Work Value Six
This value system is inner directed and describes a nurse who prefers a nursing position that allows for autonomy and personal growth. They see themselves as a unique one of a kind individual who values freedom above all else. They tend to be existential thinkers and creative problem solvers. They resist manipulation and avoid conformity. They maintain an internal sense of direction and principles. Money is important to them not to buy material things but to ensure their freedom. They are primarily motivated by opportunities for personal growth and development. They prefer a supervisor who helps set the goals and then stays out of their way and lets them do their job in their own way. They are less interested in titles, job security or status and more interested in freedom, flexibility and personal competency. They are self motivated and tolerate change.

Inner-directed versus outer-directed work values
Our research shows that 62% of hospital registered nurses fall into the outer directed work values. That is they have a strong preference for structure, security and stability. They tend to be influenced most by their peers and other individuals. For these nurses, retention is more a matter of inertia; that is, they tend to stay until some force causes them to leave.

The other 38% of hospital registered nurses fall into the inner-directed work values. Their preference is for less structure, and rather than be controlled by their environment, they prefer to change it, get control of it or leave. They are influenced most by factors internal to the hospital and decisions to stay or leave are made based upon their own internal priorities.

The survey rank orders the top five reasons your nurses stay The reasons nurses stay are different for each hospital. By knowing the top five reasons your nurses stay, you are able to reinforce the "right reasons" for staying and avoid spending time or money on the "wrong reasons." When taking the survey, your nurses choose from sixty different reasons for staying broken down into the following categories. The sixty choices themselves represent both internal/controllable and external/uncontrollable factors:

The survey rank orders the top three reasons your nurses are
considering leaving
Nurses who indicated that in the last six months they have seriously considered leaving select from forty different options and rank order the top three reasons they are considering leaving. This information not only tells you how many nurses are considering leaving, but also their precise reasons. Knowing in advance the work area and demographics of those considering leaving places you in a strategic position to prioritize your retention efforts for maximum results. The forty different reasons for leaving are broken down into the following subgroups:

The survey tells you the number of years your nurses plan on working

We have found nurses to be very candid about how long they plan on working. With an aging RN workforce, this information is important in forecasting future staffing requirements. It is also enlightening when you see the average number of years your nurses plan on working, broken down by work value, age and length of service. Depending on your particular survey results, you may be surprised when you realize the magnitude of your projected recruitment needs. Providing this information to your hospital today will help you minimize recruitment problems tomorrow.

Optional: You can measure your nurses' satisfaction with the following key employee relations categories:
The survey provides you the option of measuring your nurses' satisfaction of the following key employee relations categories through thirty core questions and comparing your results to our national norms.

Opportunities for Advancement	Benefits	Input in to Decisions
Job Security	Job Satisfaction	Loyalty
Pay	Senior Management	Supervision
Teamwork	Work Environment	Staffing
Due Process

Custom questions can be added to address specific areas of concern.

Optional: Written Comments:
The survey provides you the option of allowing your nurses to make written comments and suggestions. These are then edited and provided to you by work unit.

Overview | How it Works | What the Survey Tells You | Post-Survey Options | How to Start

To view and print information on the WDI RN Retention Survey in
Adobe Acrobat format click here. To download Adobe Acrobat click here.