GlobalWorkplaceReport_2013

State of the Global Workplace
Employee Engagement Insights for Business Leaders Worldwide
Executive Summary
Currently, 13% of employees across 142 countries worldwide are engaged in their jobs — that is, they are
emotionally invested in and focused on creating value for their organizations every day. As in Gallup’s 2009-
2010 global study of employee engagement, actively disengaged workers — i.e., those who are negative and
potentially hostile to their organizations — continue to outnumber engaged employees at a rate of nearly 2-1.
Employee engagement will become an increasingly important concern for countries and organizations seeking
to boost labor productivity as the global economy continues its rapid pace of change. Even as unemployment
rates remain high in many developed-world countries five years after the onset of the global economic crisis,
growth rates in China and other large developing countries have been falling. Around the world, demographic
trends are having substantial economic consequences. In several regions — including southern Europe, South
Asia, and the Middle East — a “youth bulge” continues to produce record unemployment among young people.
Meanwhile, many large economies — including China, Japan, and the U.S. — face talent shortages as their
workforces age and shrink.
One common factor among organizations worldwide is the need to more effectively understand and use their
people’s talents, skills, and energy. In many countries, raising workers’ productivity levels is critical to business
growth and badly needed job creation. In countries that face talent shortages, companies that meet their
employees’ needs are most likely to win in the competition for top talent. In each case, companies around the
world will need to improve their ability to ensure that workers are in the right roles and are emotionally invested in
their jobs.
In other words, the need to build highly engaged workplaces will become more important than ever. Through
decades of research with hundreds of organizations and more than 25 million employees, Gallup has developed
an unparalleled understanding of what the world’s strongest organizations do differently and how engagement
affects productivity and employee well-being in any workplace.
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