Communication is Key

A well publicized survey communication plan conveys that a survey is not simply another flavor of the month exercise. Employees (and even customers) are sick and tired of answering survey questionnaires that have no visible outcome. Why waste my time when it does nothing for me? A lack of courtesy by management in not letting people know about results, or even a giving them a simple "thank you" for giving input on how management and shareholders can make more money. Seems a bit one sided.
If you want to have people respond sincerely, openly and honestly, give them the courtesy of communication with words like "please", "we need your help", "your effort has meaning to us (management) and them (What's In it For Me)", "we appreciate the time spent for honesty and we will let you know how we are doing as an organization" of which they are the MOST critical part. People want to help, you just need to know how to ask for it and show them how their feedback positively contributes to the betterment of the company. This is the key part that many people forget but it insures that our customers are satisfied.