The headlines
Maintaining high engagement in 2026/27 means demanding more of employees and mangers than it did three years ago.
The question for HR is no longer ‘Are employees engaged?’, but rather ‘What is driving engagement, and can we sustain it?’.
"Organisations can’t keep piling expectations onto line managers and expect high-performing team environments without giving them breathing room. Driving local engagement requires real intentionality to understand what truly matters to the team – and the discipline to decide what must be removed or delegated from the line manager's role."
Alex Williams, Director of Customer Experience, Inpulse
Stand-out trends revealed
- Drop in leadership confidence: central organisational factors like leadership (-13pp) and reward (-11pp) have weakened dramatically, while reliance on immediate line managers has surged (+2.4pp).
- Managers are squeezed: managers report a 10.8-point gap in work-life balance and a 10.1-point gap in clarity and support compared to non-managers.
- 5x spike in workload pressure: employee free-text comments around workload and work-life balance jumped from 2.9% in 2023 to 15.2% in 2026.
“To maintain trust throughout change, organisations must communicate clearly and consistently. People accept that change happens, but they need to understand what’s changing, why it matters, when it will happen and how it will affect them.”
Michelle Page, Head of People Insights, Inpulse
Inside the report
- The "Happy vs Committed" paradox: Employee happiness and productivity are rising, but it’s not translating into commitment, so what does this mean for long-term performance?
- Why retention is giving false reassurance: Why long-tenured employees (20+ years) show a 77% intent to stay despite massive drops in advocacy and work-life balance.
- The reality of change fatigue: Why 85% of leaders say adaptability is critical, but only 7% feel they lead it effectively while 80% of workers lack time or energy.
Four core engagement trends for 2026/27:
- Trust needs receipts: Why communication isn't enough and only 48% of employees believe action follows feedback.
- Engagement is becoming local: How everyday line manager behaviors drive up to a 37.4-point swing in overall engagement.
- Back to basics: Why grand purpose statements can't compensate for weak fundamental conditions like reward, workload, and tools.
- Sector benchmarks: Why a single company score is misleading and how experience varies by industry.
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