Your Missing 9%
Gallup's latest State of the Global Workplace research has a number of eye watering statistics.
Low employee engagement costs the global economy $8.9 trillion annually.
Not a spelling mistake - TRILLIONS.
Twelve zeros at the end (and approaching thirteen).
That's 9% of global GDP lost to low engagement.
How much is the 9% of your turnover that you are missing out on?
I’m not pointing the finger at managers here, this relates to overall leadership culture. Since the pandemic expectations of employees, customers and leaders have all risen. The middle managers are stuck in the middle of that.
And if they are left with enough time to invest in their young employees, they will be spending even more time on recruitment.
Worse still, your future managers are not coming through the system.
Your Gen Z employees expect engagement from above, their wellbeing to be looked after and will look elsewhere if they don’t get it.
It’s a vicious circle, but there’s a way out.
Here’s four aspects to consider.
1. Engage your managers first
Gallup's research shows that managers account for 70% of the variance in team engagement. When you have multiple generations working side by side, this becomes even more critical.
When managers are engaged, employees are more likely to be engaged too. Gallup’s data backs that up.
This correlation appears even at country level - nations in the upper half of manager engagement are twice as likely to have engaged employees.
The UK’s standing here is not pretty. Not only is it 30th out of 38 but the percentage engaged is barely a quarter better than Romania in the top spot. And even then almost two thirds are not engaged in Romania, according to Gallup.
The low numbers also show the potential for an organisation who gets it right.
For Gen Z, this relationship is particularly crucial. They've grown up with higher levels of adult support and guidance than previous generations. When they encounter a disengaged manager, the disconnect is jarring.
Ambitious organisations should aim for managers who have a talent and propensity to engage others. They train managers to become effective coaches, not just task masters, who can provide meaningful individual feedback that inspires their colleagues to do better.
The evidence suggests that few are getting it right, and perhaps most are not trying hard enough. Seeking to become the exception to that rule is the start.
2. Wellbeing at work and beyond
I know this can be hard to manage, and expectations may be beyond what can be reasonably achieved.
But why does it matter to staff members so much, and Gen Z in particular?
Gallup’s research shows concerning trends for younger workers. Daily loneliness affects 22% of employees under 35, compared to 19% of those over 35. Both are high, but for younger staff it is higher. Stress levels remain consistently high, and overall wellbeing declined in 2023 for the under-35 group.
Organisations who make their support for employee wellbeing visible and consistent across all generations, opens up a higher calibre of future employees.
Valuing well-being does not mean agreeing to every demand at every level. But it does mean having access to trained counsellors and advice services, and finding out the extent to which they are effective for your staff.
It also means investing in developing productive, high-performing teams who inspire each other without everything going through a manager in a hub and spoke type model.
Investing in well-being takes pressure off your middle managers so they have less to respond to. It also means they can focus on their own priorities and professional development. It also helps to get your employees in a better place so they can perform to the standard you require.
It’s the win-win which breaks the cycle.
3. The economic reality of disengagement
The business case for getting this right is compelling.
High-engagement organisations are likely to see (quoting Gallup again)
23% higher profitability
17% higher productivity
21% lower turnover in high-turnover organisations
68% higher employee wellbeing
Of course it’s a bunch of statistics, and of course there is huge variation.
But if it’s typical can you afford to ignore it?
For organisations struggling with Generation Z recruitment and retention, the outcomes can be transformational.
The research also reveals that actively disengaged employees - those who are loudly quitting - experience stress levels equivalent to or worse than the unemployed. For Gen Z, this represents a significant opportunity cost, both for individuals and organisations.
Intelligent organisations understand that the cost of replacing young talent goes beyond recruitment fees and advertising costs. It generates a multiplier effect.
Engaged Gen Z employees become powerful advocates for the organisation, meaning you can spend less time on finding them. Investment in engagement pays back through retention and productivity.
Time spent on this may seem like a luxury for you, but the business case shows it is essential.
4. Reversing the ‘Intent to Leave’ crisis
The average across a variety of surveys is between 25% to 60% of your current employees think they will have a new job within one to two years.
It’s a broad pattern, but the numbers rise with each generation and Gen Z is the highest.
In many cases it is not that they necessarily want to leave, but they do not know enough about the future of their role or the organisation they work for. Will they be made redundant because of AI? Will it be bought out? Are promotions or pay rises genuine possibilities?
Salaries count, but there is more to retention than a competitive pay packet. Gallup’s research shows a clear relationship between engagement and the intent to leave.
Those who are thinking about elsewhere may not be giving their full attention to their work, or at least not building for the long term.
Gen Z has a different relationship with career progression, and their expectations about engagement are higher. They are more likely to want an opportunity to shape the organisation they work for. You might think there isn’t an issue with psychological safety in your organisation, they may tell you otherwise. Staying needs to be a genuinely attractive option, and not considered the default. If it’s ‘not broken don’t fix it’ is a dangerous approach.
The data proves this works:some organisations see ELEVEN TIMES the ratio of engaged to actively disengaged employees compared to the global average. For organisations struggling with recruitment and retention, including amongst Generation Z, this represents a clear path forward.
Remember that
Find out your own levels of engagement before you start to form a strategy. You need a sense of precision here and not just a closed question about whether your employees are engaged or not ‘in general’.
No organisation gets to 100% engagement or 0% of their employees considering their options. Gallup’s data shows that if you have 75% of your managers and 70% of the rest, the result isn't just better retention - it's a transformation in organisational culture that benefits every generation in your workforce.
Speaking at a PiXL Conference, Westminster Central Hall
How can I help you?
1. Talks, workshops and seminars - including managing topics relevant to the areas below plus explaining Gen Z to Gen X and dealing with the multigenerational workplace. I’m a finalist in the 2025 Speaker Awards. Speaker showreel here.
2. My book The Snowflake Myth will be published in September 2025 - to receive a free chapter (when available 😬) please click here.
3. One to one coaching programmes for senior leaders who are swamped by their jobs so they can thrive in life. Click here to discover where you are on your journey from Frantic to Fulfilled? Just 5 minutes of your time and you will receive a full personalised report with guidance on your next steps.
4. Team coaching programmes - working IN a team is not the same as working AS a team and yet they are often treated as if they are the same. I help teams move from the former to the latter, and generate huge shifts in productivity and outcomes.
