Australian staff buck global slump in engagement levels

Qualtrics research shows employee engagement rising in Australia even as it declines globally, despite widespread organisational disruption and rapid uptake of artificial intelligence tools in Australian workplaces.

The 2026 Employee Experience Trends Report draws on responses from 33,831 employees across 24 countries, including 2,027 in Australia. Global engagement fell three points, while engagement in Australia rose five points to 68%, above the global average of 65%.

Qualtrics attributes the divergence to more frequent feedback cycles and says Australian organisations have managed change in ways that stop disruption from turning into disengagement.

Change levels

The study suggests disruption has been widespread in Australia over the past year, with 76% of workers reporting significant organisational change.

Leadership changes affected 37% of Australian respondents, compared with 29% globally. Organisational restructures affected 35% in Australia and 32% globally. Manager changes affected 30% of Australian workers, and new workplace technologies affected 39%.

The findings run counter to the view that frequent change reduces engagement. Australian workers reported feeling energised by workplace shifts when leaders communicated clearly about what was changing and why.

"What we're seeing in Australia challenges the narrative of change fatigue. Australian workers - both part-time employees and new hires - are all showing remarkable resilience compared to their global peers, which is a direct result of organisations actively listening to employees and supporting them through transition," said Steve Bennetts, Head of Growth & Strategy for Employee Experience in Asia Pacific and Japan at Qualtrics.

Listening impact

The research links engagement to how often organisations seek feedback and how well they act on it. It found a 56-point engagement gap between organisations that increased listening and those that reduced it.

In Australia, organisations that increased listening recorded 90% engagement, along with inclusion and wellbeing scores of 89%.

Where organisations cut back on feedback mechanisms, engagement fell to 34%. Inclusion dropped to 39%, and wellbeing to 40%.

Retention intentions also diverged. In Australian organisations that reduced listening, intent to stay fell to 31%, compared with a global average of 47%.

Bennetts said some employers are moving away from annual employee census surveys in favour of more frequent check-ins. These include milestone-based "micro-listening" events, such as Day 7 of onboarding, promotions, or returns from parental leave. Some organisations also route feedback to manager dashboards to speed up responses.

"Organisational changes create both risk and opportunity. The data signals that Australian employees are less willing to tolerate being ignored during times of change. These are precisely the moments when employees need to feel heard, and leading Australian organisations will be the ones that couple change with consistent, meaningful listening and support employees with the right tools and processes to navigate uncertainty," said Bennetts.

Shadow AI

The report also highlights widespread AI use at work in Australia, alongside concerns about employees relying on unauthorised tools. It found that 56% of Australian employees use AI frequently at work.

Respondents cited productivity benefits: 60% use AI to complete tasks faster, 57% to improve work quality, and 51% to increase overall output. The report also found 45% of the workforce feels hopeful or excited about AI.

At the same time, only 22% of Australian employees exclusively use company-provided AI tools, down from 25% a year earlier. The report describes the gap as "Shadow AI", where staff use external platforms not approved by their employer.

Bennetts warned that unauthorised use raises security risks and increases the chance corporate data will be shared in public models. He also said businesses miss opportunities to develop internal AI tools using proprietary data when usage shifts to external services.

He recommended providing approved AI tools and training employees to incorporate them into daily workflows. He also pointed to employee working groups as a way to map usage patterns and reduce uncontrolled adoption.

Frontline link

Stronger engagement is also showing up among customer-facing workers. Qualtrics reported a five-point rise in engagement for Australian customer-facing employees, linking the shift to organisational support during periods of change.

The study found 38% of frontline Australian workers felt their workplace exceeded expectations, compared with 32% globally.

"Australian organisations that are getting employee experience right are seeing the payoff filter through to customer experience. When your employees feel heard and supported, that directly translates to better customer interactions. The organisations missing this opportunity will feel it in both employee turnover and customer satisfaction," said Bennetts.

Qualtrics said priorities for the year ahead include increasing listening during disruption, expanding access to approved AI tools, and linking frontline resourcing decisions more directly to customer outcomes.