Improving the engagement and career satisfaction of your team is a constant issue for most executives, including me. But a recent report, The 2025 State of Company Culture Report, which surveyed thousands of employees, provided new insights on the challenge.

When it comes to engagement, the study found that it is peers that have the greatest effect on employee engagement—45% of employees said it was most important. This was followed by managers and then the organizations’ executive leadership. This was supported by the findings that 62% of employees said they would likely leave their current organization if a close friend left—followed by 50% who would leave if their manager left.

But despite these responses, 69% of employees said that…