Managers are expected to keep teams steady, but they have become one of the most overburdened layers in today’s organizations. Gallup’s 2026 State of the Global Workplace report shows that the pressure point in many organizations has shifted from employees to middle managers, who are caught between transformation and cost pressure from above and rising expectations from their teams below.

In recent years, companies have been in a near constant state of change. Organizations are restructuring, new systems are being introduced, and priorities continue to shift.

By the time an employee in the Netherlands closes their laptop on Friday afternoon, their counterpart in Türkiye has worked an additional 10.5 hours that week. Over the course of a year, that adds up to roughly three extra months of work.

In recent years, employee experience has largely been discussed through the lens of engagement, belonging, and the search for meaning. Today, another priority has become just as important: the need for stability.

For many years, career success was mostly viewed as a linear path, often compared to climbing a ladder. Moving up in the same field, advancing within the same function, earning titles in sequence, and showing an uninterrupted career path on a resume were seen as key signs of a strong professional profile.

For white collar employees, the concern is no longer limited to falling behind the agenda. Today, many professionals are also worried that their field of expertise, role, or skill set may lose relevance.