What's Happened to Trust in the Workplace?

How trusted do you feel on the job? If you’re an entry-level employee, it’s more than likely that your boss isn't sure you're working enough. But seniority doesn’t secure trust either. Fifty percent of CEOs have doubts about experienced staffers, and 55% don’t trust their own C-suite colleagues!

Korn Ferry dives into why trust at the workplace remains a big issue, and what can be done to restore it. Plus, we take a look at the AI-powered work tools that have flooded offices over the last few months and evaluate which are worth your time—and which can get you in trouble. Then we lay out a series of steps that can help anyone de-stress at work.

1) Where?Did the Trust Go?

In the post-pandemic world, companies and employees have gone through a number of high-profile changes. Many firms stopped filling roles by offering high salaries, for example, and began demanding that workers spend more time in the office. But something else has changed in the workplace. Much of the trust firms and employees built during COVID-19 has slipped away. Many employees today resent their firms for laying people off, and don’t understand why bosses are tracking them?so closely. Only 67 percent of employees highly trust their employer, according to one 2024 survey—a decline of 3 percentage points from 2022. In another survey, fully one-quarter of US professionals said they don’t believe their employer trusts them.?

And this makes sense. Many bosses have become frustrated with employees who are consistently disengaged, balk at in-office work requirements, or continually demand bigger titles and higher pay.?

Experts say that any decline in trust is no small matter, as it can threaten an organization’s reputation, productivity, and profitability. Trust can be broken quickly, but can take months, even years, to rebuild. The kinds?of behaviors that erode trust in the workplace include corporate hubris, dishonesty, lack of transparency, and a company’s failure to adhere to?its own rules.

Read the full article here.

2) A Host of New, Nifty AI Work Tools

Outside of ChatGPT, artificial intelligence has been mostly all talk for many workers. An excessive number of new tools for the workplace have been clunky and inaccurate.

That could be changing rather quickly. For a key piece of information or data at just the right time, knowledge workers are increasingly turning to cutting-edge pens, pins, glasses, and apps. Indeed, 75% of employees are using AI at work,?according to Microsoft.?In some ways, the tools are already streamlining the reading workers typically have to grind through to get ahead.

The key help these tools provide is preparation, which for decades has drained so many knowledge workers. Still, experts say that leaning on these technologies in the office still carries risks.

Read the full article here.

3) 5 Ways to De-stress at Work

The stats about?stress at work are startling.?

More than nine in ten workers say they are stressed at work. Nearly nine in ten?say there’s more workplace stress now than there was five years ago. And almost all of them say that this stress affects their well-being. Some stress is good—it’s a signal that you’re being challenged—but too often, stress at work?creates anxiety, fear, a decline in performance, or a combination of all three.

Employee-assistance programs can provide support, experts say, but so can a variety of measures you can incorporate into your workday.?Exercise, sleep, and eating?healthy?are essential stress busters, of course. Here are five?other?ways to help de-stress yourself at work.?

Read the full article here.

Other Must-Reads from Korn Ferry

• A World with No Managers? - With nearly a third of layoffs targeting middle managers, more teams are operating without bosses. How much is this hurting productivity?
• 5 Ways to Look Current on LinkedIn - As the job market slows, job seekers may need to take some key steps to boost their personal brands online.
• The ‘Good Life’ at Work - Best-selling author Dan Goleman highlights how happier workers, not wealthier ones, are often the most engaged and committed.

Check out?Briefings , our bimonthly national magazine, for in-depth and unusual looks at critical leadership issues.