Author: Chris Dustin
Organizations today are navigating unprecedented transformation driven by new technologies, changing customer expectations, evolving workforce needs and ongoing restructuring. Yet amid this complexity, one theme is clear: Engagement, communication and culture are now central to how organizations thrive.
Gallagher's recent polling — representing employees at all organizational levels, from frontline contributors to senior leaders — shows that people across the workplace ecosystem share a common view: Engagement and culture are essential to business success. But while individuals across organizations understand this truth, the systems supporting engagement often lag behind what employees actually need.
Combined with insights from Gallagher's People and Workplace Experiences (PWE) normative database, the data calls HR leaders to manage the employee experience intentionally and consistently, with a listening strategy that keeps pace with change.
Engagement matters — and people across the organization agree
In Gallagher's poll, 73% of respondents say employee engagement is the most important people metric for determining future business success. With this perspective coming from employees at all levels — not just employers — it signals that engagement isn't an HR initiative but a shared priority that helps shape performance, retention, innovation and culture.
However, even with broad agreement on the value of engagement, gaps in listening remain. Twenty-five percent of respondents report that their organization doesn't have a clearly defined employee listening strategy.
Without a structured approach to gathering and acting on feedback, organizations risk relying on assumptions instead of insight.
Listening tools vary widely:
- 65% use engagement surveys.
- 39% rely on one-on-one interviews.
- 31% use pulse surveys.
- 28% conduct focus groups.
While these are powerful tools, they are often used in isolation and result in fragmented and inconsistent signals. To build a meaningful picture of the employee experience, organizations need a connected and intentional listening ecosystem.
Culture is under pressure and employees are feeling it
Another key finding from the poll: 25% of respondents believe their organization's culture has eroded over the past year.
Culture challenges often emerge gradually:
- Unclear or inconsistent communication
- Increased workload pressures
- Frequent organizational changes
- Lack of transparency
- Weak follow-through on commitments
When employees feel disconnected from the organization's direction or unsure how decisions are made, culture becomes more fragile — even in otherwise healthy workplaces.
Normative data reveals deeper challenges in change and communication
While the Gallagher poll captures perceptions from employees across roles and levels, the PWE normative database provides deeper insight into how employees experience their workplace environments.
In the 2025 normative dataset:
- 26% of employees don't believe their organization does a good job dealing with change.
- 27% don't agree that change is handled positively when it occurs.
- 29% of employees don't feel adequately informed about new developments in their organization.
These findings signal a critical gap between the pace of organizational transformation and employees' readiness to adapt. Employees often experience change as confusing, disruptive, or poorly communicated — even when leaders believe they're being transparent.
Together, the poll insights and normative data highlight a consistent pattern:
When listening isn't strategic, communication suffers. When communication suffers, trust erodes. When trust erodes, engagement and culture decline.
How PWE helps organizations close these gaps
These findings are more than just statistics. They reflect operational and cultural risks that can hinder an organization's ability to execute strategy. Gallagher's PWE team helps organizations move from fragmented insights to strategic action with a comprehensive set of solutions.
PWE equips organizations with:
An integrated listening strategy — Holistic frameworks that connect engagement surveys, pulse checks, interviews and qualitative feedback into a coherent, actionable insight system
Culture and employee experience diagnostics — Data-driven insights that reveal what employees need, what's driving sentiment and where culture is helping or hindering organizational goals
Change and communication assessments — Clarity on how employees experience change and where communication gaps are creating friction or uncertainty
Action planning and leadership enablement — Support to help leaders interpret insights, prioritize focus areas and follow through on commitments to employees
Ongoing partnership through transformation — A sustained advisory relationship to help organizations maintain engagement and trust even during periods of disruption
Your people are already sharing what they need — now it's time to listen strategically
As organizations navigate enter 2026, the path forward will be built on intentional listening, transparent communication and thoughtful change leadership. Those who invest in these areas will create cultures strong enough to withstand disruption and adaptive enough to empower high performance.
Gallagher's PWE team is ready to partner with you to build a more engaged, informed and resilient workforce.
Reach out to your Gallagher contact to explore your results and learn how PWE can help your organization take the next step.
