Take the themes back to the room.

Before the session

• Group people who share an experience. That might be region, function, a larger team or a profession. When one group feels differently about something than another, hearing from them separately makes that easier to see, and people tend to speak more freely with others in a similar situation. Region is a good place to start: meet people where they are, since each part of the world has its own strengths and challenges.
• Run separate sessions for individual contributors, managers and senior leaders. People share more openly when no one in the room has a say over their work. Senior leaders often read the results differently, and it helps to hear that separately.
• Keep groups small. Roughly 5 to 8 people gives everyone room to talk. Online, go a little smaller.
• Don’t record. Have a note-taker capture broad themes instead, and turn off automatic transcripts or AI recaps in your meeting tool. People speak more freely when nothing is saved word for word. If you truly need to record, say so plainly in the invite and again at the start, and explain who will hear it and when it will be deleted.
• Say what the session is for, and what it isn’t for. It’s about shared experiences and themes. Personnel issues or conflicts with a specific person belong with an HR business partner, and you can point people there.
• Explain confidentiality plainly. You won’t keep an attendee list, and you’ll remove identifying details like team or project names from what you capture. Be honest that very specific feedback is harder to anonymize.
• Connect it to what happens next. If the company has already said results will feed action planning, repeat that here, so people know where their input goes.

By format

• In person: choose a private room where people won't be seen or overheard by others walking past.
• Virtual: keep cameras optional and let people share in the chat if that's easier. Online groups work best a little smaller, and a little shorter if energy drops.
• Hybrid: have someone watch the chat, and invite the people on screen in first so the room doesn't take over.

The hour About 60 minutes

1. 0–10Open and set ground rules. Explain why you’re there, how confidentiality works, and the ground rules: keep what’s shared private, no cross talk, and let people finish their point.
2. 10–15Share what you’re hearing. Walk through the top and bottom themes from the survey. Say that you want to check whether you’re reading them right.
3. 15–50Open up each theme. Take them one at a time. Make sure you’re capturing how people feel about each, and what’s behind it.
4. 50–60Close. Recap the broad themes you heard, remind people how their input will be used, and thank them. End on time. If there’s more to say, offer another way to share it, like a follow-up session or a confidential channel.

Opening

“We’re here to talk through what we heard in the survey and make sure we’re reading it right. Nothing you say today will be tied to your name or team.”

• Be empathetic and stay neutral. Acknowledge how people feel without adding your own view, so the room stays about their experience.
• Frame the results as your best read so far. You’re asking people to help you interpret them.

Prompts for each theme

• “Here’s what we heard: [theme]. Does that match your experience?”
• “What’s behind that for you?”
• “Is there anything we’re missing, or reading the wrong way?”
• “What would make a difference here?”

Add one or two for the group you’re meeting with:

• Individual contributors: “Is this something you feel you can raise with your manager?”
• Managers: “What would help you support your team on this?”
• Senior leaders: “Does this match what you’re hearing from your teams?” and “What’s getting in the way of acting on this?”

In the room

• Let silence play out. People often need a moment to think before they speak up. If it goes on too long, ask the same question another way, or move to the next theme.
• If someone raises an issue with a specific person, thank them and point them to an HR business partner, then return to the broader theme.
• If one voice takes over, thank them and invite others in: “I’d love to hear from anyone who hasn’t shared yet.”

After

• Capture broad themes only. No names, no teams, and no details specific enough to point to one person.
• Feed it into action planning, as you promised in the room.
• Close the loop. Let people know what came of the sessions, even when the answer is that something can’t change yet, and why.