20 pulse survey questions to ask after rolling out AI

Most lists of pulse survey questions were written for HR teams at big companies. "On a scale of 1 to 10, how likely are you to recommend this company as a place to work?" That's no use when you've just paid for 20 ChatGPT seats and want to know if anyone opens it.

These questions are for that situation. Each one comes with answer choices, because tapping an answer takes two seconds and typing one feels like homework. Ask one question at a time. If you want a second, make it optional.

Three rules before you pick

• One topic per question. "Is the tool useful and easy to use?" is two questions. People answer whichever half they noticed.
• Answers they can tap. A few choices that cover the real range, so everyone has an honest option, like "Didn't use it" or "Nothing got in the way." If their answer isn't there, people skip the question or pick one that isn't true.
• Only ask what you'd act on. If no answer could change what you do next, skip the question.

Right after people get access

Ask these in the first week, while the tool is still new and nobody has quietly given up.

1. Have you tried ChatGPT yet? Yes, a few times · Once · Not yet
2. What did you try it for first? Emails · Summarizing something long · Looking something up · Haven't tried it
3. What got in the way? (optional) Didn't know where to start · Not sure what's allowed · No time this week · Nothing, it went fine
4. How confident do you feel using it? Confident · Getting there · Lost

Swap in the tool you actually bought. "The AI tool" sounds like a memo. "Copilot in Outlook" sounds like a real question.

Every week while it's rolling out

Pick one of these each Monday. The first two are the ones to come back to most often, because they show you the trend.

1. How did AI fit into your work this week? Saved me real time · Used it a bit · Tried, got stuck · Didn't use it
2. What got in the way? Not sure what's allowed · Don't know what to use it for · Output needs too much fixing · No time · Nothing got in the way
3. What did you use it for most? Emails · Documents and reports · Research · Something else · Didn't use it
4. Did it save you time this week? More than an hour · A little · No difference · It cost me time · Didn't use it
5. What would help you use it more? Examples for my job · Time to practice · Clearer rules · Someone to ask

"It cost me time" matters. A tool that slows people down at first is normal, and you want to hear about it while you can still fix it. (More on that in Why AI tools slow your team down before they speed it up.)

After a training session

Ask within a day or two, before the training blurs into the rest of the week.

1. Did the training change how you use AI? Yes, I'm using it more · I'll try what I learned · No change
2. What would help it stick? Examples for my role · Time to practice · A follow-up session
3. Was it pitched at the right level? Too basic · About right · Too advanced

After you set a new AI rule

A rule only helps if people understand it. These tell you whether yours landed.

1. Is it clear what you can use AI for now? Clear · Mostly · Still unsure
2. What's still unclear? Client information · Contracts and numbers · Which tools are OK (ask only people who didn't answer "Clear")
3. Does the rule make your work easier or harder? Easier · No change · Harder

No rule yet? Our AI acceptable use policy template is one page and written for small teams.

Once things settle

Every two weeks or once a month, after the first rush is over.

1. Is AI part of your normal week now? Most days · Some weeks · Rarely · Not at all
2. Has anyone shown you a shortcut that helped? Yes · No
3. Are you using any AI tools we don't pay for? Yes · No · Prefer not to say
4. How do you feel about AI and your job? Fine with it · A bit uneasy · Worried
5. What's one task you wish AI could take off your plate? (optional, short answer)

Don't skip the third one. In Microsoft and LinkedIn's 2024 survey, 78% of people using AI at work brought their own tools (Microsoft). You only get an honest answer if people trust the survey is anonymous, and if a "yes" leads to a clearer rule, not a telling-off.

The fourth one needs care. Only ask it if you're ready to say something about it on Friday. Asking people if they're worried and then going quiet is worse than not asking.

Questions to avoid

The first one gets a polite yes, because nobody wants to tell the person who paid that they haven't opened it. The third assumes the person is the problem. The last asks people to rate their coworkers.

What to do with the answers

The "what got in the way" question is the one that tells you what to do. When Gallup asked US workers what held them back, the most common answer was not seeing how AI fit their job, at 16%. Lack of training came lower, at 11% (Gallup). Each reason has a different fix, and How to tell if your team is actually using AI goes through them.

Then tell your team what you heard and what you're changing. That part keeps people answering. Why your team stopped answering your surveys has a short example message you can copy.

WeeklyTake sends one question every Monday, has a ready-made one for each of these moments, and drafts your Friday reply from the answers.