Disengaged? Why you should care about not caring.
This week, Gallup released their latest “Global State of the Global Workplace report” looking at how trends evolved in 2025.
Honestly, I find the results shocking…
“In 2025, 20% of employees worldwide were engaged at work. Global employee wellbeing improved for the first time in three years, increasing by one percentage point to 34%.”
Are we supposed to be celebrating a 1% increase in employee wellbeing from 33% to 34%?
Zooming in “In Ireland, 9% of employees are engaged at work. This compares to the Europe regional average of 12% and the global average of 20%. This reflects no change from the prior three-year rolling average.” (find yours here)
…….9%!! Am I the only one that is appalled by this!
Employee engagement is critical for both the employee and the employer.
I feel like that is stating the obvious but sitting with my data & research, I wonder!
From the employee lens:
On average, we spend 35-45% of our waking lives at work.
You deserve to invest this time in something that makes you feel engaged, challenged and rewarded (in whatever combination works for you).
If you are craving more, remember, you are in control. Change is scary, there can be more unknowns than knowns. Ask yourself are you at the point where the risk outweighs the cost of staying.
I am working with brave job seekers every day to explore their future paths & help them to find their way towards a new role. I see the relief first hand when people land their new job that fits with what they need. Their shoulders drop and immediately, the hard work to get there was worthwhile.
From an employer lens:
I'm confused to be honest. The maths does not add up. Employers are ignoring the most important component of their strategic planning & investments.
People are the primary asset in most companies. And yet, people do not feel like a priority in companies today. (Just one data point of many - 1-3% of total payroll is invested in training and learning.)
Putting wellbeing aside for a moment-Employers, disengaged employees are impacting your bottom line.
According to Gallup’s "State of the Global Workplace", a disengaged employee costs their company approximately 34% of their annual salary.
Adding more people to fill the gap in your disengaged workforce is throwing money into the wind, unless you are going to do something about your company's approach to your employees.
I believe that everyone has a choice. Employees are choosing to stay unhappy and play safe and employers are choosing to ignore the big leaking bucket in their company.
This month, I have been conducting research interviews for my company, focused specifically on identifying where my skills and experience could be best used to create a more engaged and fulfilled workforce.
Here are the key themes that have jumped out from my research so far (aligned to the Gallup findings):
A meaningful and growing % of employees are disengaged and/or burnt out.
Managers have been squeezed at the centre of ongoing change & resource cuts and their resilience is at an all time low.
Yet, everyone agrees that their Managers are the key to a team and companies success.
The top tables are not talking about employee disengagement (but are aware it exists). “They don’t care” was a message I heard over and over.
There is less training, support and budget to support manager development than ever before. Equally, managers do not have the time & are not actively encouraged to step away from the day to day fires.
Coaching platforms are not solving the problems. Within a company, they feel like a tick box investment by a company who keep this resource, even though adoption is usually ~5%
Leaders of a business area are actively trying to plug the gapping hole - Running their own training, listening circles and wellbeing initiatives. They are frustrated, drained and overstretched.
This challenge is big and complex and I am under no illusion that I can fix it. But, what I can do is share practical recommendations based on what I see working in my work with individuals and companies.
Employees
How are you doing, for real? Start with a quick check in to ask yourself - 1. On a scale of 1-10, how energised are you by your work? 2. What would you like this score to be?
If you are struggling, remember that you always have a choice. First, you need to get clear on what you need to feel engaged. Get in touch if you would like some exercises to explore this.
Don’t wait for your manager to ask. Instead, take control and share with them what you need. It could be clearer goals, more recognition, access to coaching, time for learning or maybe a discussion about the types of leave available to you.
Employers
Start small. Really pay attention to your employee wellbeing surveys. Listen (like really listen) and share openly a commitment to investing in one area.
Invest in recognition. In my experience, recognition is an underutilised way to boost engagement. A simple thank you, time off as a prize and celebrating wins are all a great start.
Listen to your managers, like really listen. They have the best pulse of what is happening and also, they might be more open to sharing what they need too. Bringing managers together for workshops and leadership training (with the time protected for them to be fully present) is a great way to build community, connection and psychological safety.
I feel passionately that we all deserve our biggest and best lives and if we are not happy in work, then it is hard to feel fulfilled in your life. Every challenge starts with talking about it and breaking it down into the controllables.
If you would like to invest in your team, drop me a message. I am actively working on developing programs to create tools and space for people to understand themselves and how to thrive with those around them, as my small contribution to this big challenge.
Shout out to Aoife O'Brien who has gone BIG to tackle the topic of thriving talent with her new book. Her book launch in Dublin was a ray of hope to see the level of engagement in the room on this topic. I am looking forward to getting reading this weekend.
