Workplace 2025: What Employees Can Expect

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What can employees expect from their leaders and organizations in 2025? When the research and consulting firm Gartner recently surveyed more than 1,400 HR leaders inquiring about their 2025 priorities, they found that leader and manager development tops the list, with organizational culture, strategic workforce planning, change management, and HR technology following close behind. 

After partnering with dozens of organizations and developing thousands of leaders this year, I couldn’t agree more with the Gartner survey results. Leader and manager development remains a critical priority for our clients.

Our team of coaches and consultants has also observed that organizations are still knee-deep in shaping their post-pandemic workplaces. They are grappling with balancing hybrid work models, responding to heightened worker expectations for purpose-driven work, and addressing broader societal changes like diversity and inclusion.

While the workplaces of 2025 will look unique to every industry and perhaps to each organization, the following themes and trends reflect what we see on the horizon.

Flexible Learning Options 

Most organizations prefer in-person learning experiences for their leaders and managers. However, live-online options remain popular for organizations conscious of travel time and costs.

They are also mindful of the disruption that occurs when pulling leaders off the job. Some organizations are even experimenting with hybrid learning models that blend self-paced digital content with live, interactive sessions to create flexibility without sacrificing the personal touch.

An Emphasis on Well-Being

Organizations are looking beyond specific objectives and competencies to consider the leader or manager as a whole person. Resilience, stress management, personal balance, mindset, courage, and empathy are topics integral to our leadership development programs.

Leaders increasingly expect their organizations to consider their mental and physical well-being, and workplaces seeking top talent are listening.  Well-being initiatives now extend to offering flexible work schedules, mental health support, and policies that promote a healthy work-life balance as essential parts of employee development programs.

The Fundamentals Remain Fundamental

Many organizations have more first-time managers than they’ve had in over a decade. Executives understand that a manager’s effectiveness is directly linked to their employees’ engagement, desire to stay with the organization and overall productivity.

Forward-thinking organizations recognize that basic management practices must be regularly taught and reinforced. Leaders from the front line to the C-suite benefit from a return to basics such as increasing self-awareness, building relationships, communication, and navigating change.

Many human resource leaders recognize that the new skills (AI, for example) needed for the future workplace remain deeply rooted in the fundamentals of human relationships. The ability to adapt, collaborate effectively, and lead teams with empathy are all being highlighted as critical areas of focus.

Egalitarian Approach to Development

Development dollars are no longer reserved for high-potential and senior leaders. Organizations are opening learning to employees at all levels, including professional staff, to boost engagement, facilitate alignment, and provide common points of reference and accountability across the enterprise today and tomorrow.

This democratization of development is not only leveling the playing field but also fostering a culture of continuous learning and improvement where all employees have the opportunity to grow and contribute to the organization’s success.

The future of work in 2025 will be a complex yet exciting landscape driven by evolving technologies, shifting expectations, and the continued need for strong, agile, and resilient managers and leaders.

Employees can expect their organizations to invest in their development, well-being, and overall success, setting the stage for a workplace that is both more human-centered and future-focused.

Steve Dion is the Founder and CEO of Dion Leadership, a leadership and organization development consulting firm based in Michigan. Steve has dedicated his career to understanding and improving organizational cultures through the creation and deployment of innovative leadership development programs, executive coaching, team effectiveness programs, and talent assessment.

His passion for improving businesses through harnessing the power of their people has led him to work with many progressive, global Fortune 1000 organizations. Serving in corporate roles for over 25 years, Steve has leveraged this real-world experience as a CHRO and global business leader to provide leadership and organizational development consulting for over a decade.

Steve is a member of Fast Company’s Executive Board. He is a regular contributor to CEOWORLD magazine, Chief Executive, TrainingIndustry.com, ATD’s Talent Development Leader Blog, and HRCI’s HR Leads Business Blog. Steve and Dion Leadership were recently featured on the Public Television segment “ViewPoint with Dennis Quaid.”