How thrive at work measures employee capacity
An engagement survey can show whether employees are motivated, connected and committed. It does not show whether they have anything left to give.
A team can be committed and still be running low by the end of the week. thrive at work measures capacity: whether people can keep going. It sits next to engagement in the same survey, so leaders see both.
What capacity covers
Four things, described the way employees would describe them:
- What people have when they start the day. Whether they arrive with something to give or already behind.
- Whether the work leaves time to recover. Rest between busy stretches, and a working day that ends.
- Room to concentrate. Whether people can stay with one task long enough to finish it.
- Holding up when pressure keeps going. How people cope when the hard weeks do not stop.
How it is measured
The survey is behavior-anchored. It asks about what happens in the working week, for example whether people can finish a task without being interrupted, not about symptoms or diagnoses. Employees answer a set of statements. The answers are combined into a result for each area, and capacity and engagement are reported together.
The survey is informed by biomarker and physiological research. It does not collect biomarker, wearable or other biometric data.
An analogy for the mechanism
A wearable turns a signal a person cannot feel into something they can read. The survey does something similar with working patterns: it turns what people experience day to day into a result they can read. This is an analogy for how it works, not a claim that the survey measures anything physical.
What it shows
- Each employee sees a private result and short courses matched to it.
- Each manager sees where their team sits: thriving, coasting, at risk or depleted. Teams need 5 or more responses.
- HR and executives see patterns across the organization, without individuals.
What it does not measure
thrive at work is not a medical tool. It does not diagnose, and it does not give employers biometric, medical or individual health information. It does not measure lifespan, biological age or disease risk. Individual results are never shown to an employer.
The research behind it
The capacity model draws on research across physiology, psychology, occupational health and longevity science. Sources and findings: research.
Why capacity matters to a buyer
A high engagement score tells a leader that people want to do the work. It does not tell them whether the working week lets them. Capacity names the second question so it can be asked, compared across teams and acted on.
Related: What is thrive at work? · Full review · Research. A reference definition of the term is at employeecapacity.com.
Questions
Is capacity the same as wellbeing?
No. thrive at work does not measure wellbeing as a category. It measures whether people can keep going at work.
Does the survey collect health data?
No.
Can an employer see my score?
No. Employees see their own. Employers see combined results only.
Is capacity a measure of physical fitness?
No. It asks about the working week, not about a person's body.