The problem I've found is that they're never really looking to solve big problems that lead to the issues like the ones detailed at the end of the article. I find that when I talked to people who work in customer service at the actual customer facing level, surveys were more used to justify performance bonuses. As someone who feels that customer service people are already underpaid it feels weird not to just blindly hit five stars or whatever equivalent. Often times the reason I'm having issues is because of a corporate policy or a flawed piece of software that they use which they're not soliciting feedback on.
Sometimes it's used to fire people that don't get a high enough rating. Either way, it's best to just be overly positive, as it can really impact people if your not, which really negates the entire point of the surveys.
Yeah they are so shit eh? Like they have no relationship to how I think or feel in reality and I don't think treating humans like rodents in a maze or pushing cocaine or sugar levers you know we got to pick some number on a scale like when some random like the question and the way the questions are worded oh my God I think that space is ripe for psychological innovation isn't there a better way to test people's I don't know opinions. F**
It is funny for me to see this now. I hadn't thought about how much I agree with the author, and here I am days away from starting a new position on this very space at my current company.