As the foundation of an organisation’s productivity, innovation, and overall performance, employee engagement is a workforce challenge businesses must get right. It is also a key responsibility of managers and higher leaders, with a recent Gallup report stating that up to 70% of team engagement can be attributed to their manager. What happens then when leaders themselves are struggling to feel energised and motivated at work?

According to Kahoot!’s 2025 Workplace Engagement Report, based on a survey of 221 HR and training managers and above in the US and UK, many workforce leaders are significantly less engaged than their teams realise. While 79% believe their teams see them as an energised leader, only 47% report feeling fully engaged. More than a quarter of leaders surveyed have considered quitting their job in the past year due to disengagement, and nearly half say they would give up their management role if they could feel more engaged at work.

What is the number 1 reason leaders point to for their disengagement? Emotional exhaustion from trying to motivate their disengaged team members. This feedback loop has sent both manager and team engagement on a downward spiral that can feel daunting to reverse. However, workforce leaders are also making clear calls for the solutions and support they need. Explore how organisations can equip managers to lead the way in building an engaged workforce with these three steps:

 

1. Set leaders up for success with effective training and tools

Despite the fact that team engagement is a core part of virtually all team leadership roles, more than half of leaders say they have never received extensive training on how to do it, and only 17% say that their company provides them with effective tools for engaging their team. As a result, 70% of leaders believe that their team engagement efforts are falling short.

If organisations want managers to create a truly engaged company culture, it’s essential that they provide the training and tools to deliver this effectively and consistently across the organisation. This training can even be delivered on the engagement tools leaders will use with their teams, allowing them to experience the technology as both a learner and a leader. To meet the needs of different teams, integrate tools that are flexible, intuitive, and easy for anyone to use. Leaders can also make these tools available for their team members to organise engaging and productive activities, such as peer-to-peer knowledge sharing.

 

2. Strengthen employee recognition, learning, and communication

When leaders were asked what would work best to amplify their team’s engagement, their top choice was recognition and incentives. For employees to feel motivated to do great work, they must feel that their effort is worth it – that their

contributions are seen and valued. However, leaders named recognition as one of the top tools missing from their team engagement toolkit, following better access to training and upskilling.

Engagement tools that help weave recognition into the flow of work – from certificates and badges for upskilling to interactive feedback tools – can make this process even more efficient and effective. Over time, this creates a culture of recognition that builds on employees’ strengths and encourages everyone to bring their A-game.

For leaders to feel more engaged personally, they are primarily calling for more energy, creativity, or fun in their day-to-day work, as well as more opportunities to learn and upskill. Managers also report feeling most inspired for team engagement when their efforts get positive feedback from their team, and when everyone is actively participating and engaged in meetings. This shows the importance of communication tools that foster interactivity, knowledge sharing, and two-way feedback.

 

3. Rethink the old engagement playbook for Gen Z

The introduction of more Gen Zs into the workforce is injecting fresh energy and ideas into companies but also creating a mounting challenge for engagement. When asked which generation is the most difficult to engage, 61% of leaders pointed to Gen Z, underscoring a growing urgency to reimagine employee engagement strategies for the needs, goals, and interests of new professionals.

Just as their managers do, younger employees also highly prioritise learning and development, though Gen Zs particularly value learning that is flexible, engaging, and clearly relevant. Bite-sized learning experiences, also known as microlearning, can offer employees quick and interactive upskilling sessions they can complete anywhere and at their own pace. Approaches such as game-based learning and collaborative team challenges are also popular among Gen Zs for the friendly competition, with the added benefits of fostering social connection and containing built-in opportunities for recognition.

By equipping managers with the tools, skills, and strategies to meet the engagement needs of today’s workforce, organisations empower leaders to be engagement champions, igniting motivation across the workforce. This can begin to transform the feedback loop between managers and their teams, leading to a company culture where both sides energise and inspire each other to achieve new heights together.

 

Sean D’Arcy 

Chief Solutions Officer at Kahoot!