Despite facing a steady decline from 2021 to the start of 2024, one particularly important group of workers appears to be reconnecting with their company culture: managers. According to a recent article by Heather Barret and Kate Den Houter, Senior Consultant and Research Fellow at Gallup, managers’ connection to culture is up four percentage points from its lowest point in recent years.

“Since the pandemic, managers have been struggling. A year ago, Gallup reported that managers were more likely than non-managers to be disengaged at work, burned out, looking for a new job, and feeling like their organization does not care about their wellbeing. These new data paint a hopeful picture for managers and highlight an opportunity for leaders to build on positive momentum,” they say.

In the first quarter of this year, managers dropped below average when it came to feeling connected to their organization’s culture. Since then, manager connection to culture has recovered somewhat. This recovery is good news not only for managers but also for those they lead. Managers communicate organizational culture to their teams and play a critical role in any culture initiative.

According to the latest findings, when employees feel connected to their organization’s culture, they are:

• 4 times as likely to be engaged
• 62% less likely to feel burned out
• 43% less likely to be job searching

What’s more: wen employees strongly agree that they know what their organization stands for and what makes their brand different from competitors, they are 11.3 times as likely to strongly agree that they feel connected to their organization’s culture. And when they strongly agree that their leaders are committed to their cultural values, they are 9.8 times as likely to rate the culture of their workplace as “excellent.”

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Source: Gallup