Characteristic #4: Limited Flexibility Inflexibility. . . a good quality? While flexibility might be a positive attribute of many HR initiatives, it can hamper the effectiveness of measuring engagement. Nearly every organization wants to compare or “benchmark” its engagement results with results from other organizations. The most accurate benchmarking occurs when the same survey items are used. Unless the survey asks the same questions, uses the same rating scale, and employs the same basic survey approach, there will be little value in comparing an organization’s engagement results to those of other organizations. Also, the better engagement instruments are built on a foundation of research. Adding or changing items haphazardly will reduce the accuracy of the instrument in measuring engagement and subsequently will affect organizational performance.