Overworked HR Departments Are Struggling to Take Action on Employee Feedback

Perceptyx’s fourth annual State of Employee Listening report reveals that despite continued growth in listening efforts, fewer than one in three HR leaders feel their organization does a great job of sharing listening feedback widely

TEMECULA, Calif., March 04, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Organizations with mature employee listening and action programs are 6x as likely to exceed their financial targets as those without. Yet, the fourth annual State of Employee Listening report, published today by Perceptyx,

the global leader in employee listening and actioning for a better workplace, reveals that HR leaders are less confident in their programs’ ability to deliver measurable impact than they were a year ago.

The survey of 750 HR leaders, conducted by Perceptyx’s Center for Workforce Transformation, found that, while 95% maintained or increased their listening efforts in the last 12 months, only 27% are confident their listening program will help them achieve their desired business outcomes, compared to 43% in 2024.

“There’s no lack of imperative to gather insights. The problem is not when or how organizations listen — it’s how they act on that feedback and follow through,” said Emily Killham, Senior Director and Head of the Center for Workforce Transformation at Perceptyx.

Organizations are diversifying their listening programs, with many more using methodologies such as crowdsourcing (60% in 2025 vs. 43% in 2024) and listening for behaviors in 360 feedback (36% in 2025 vs. 28% in 2024) than in prior years.

However, they face a challenge with taking action in response to employee feedback across all levels of the organization. Less than one in three HR leaders feel strongly that their organization does a great job of sharing listening results across all levels of the organization. This is further highlighted by only a quarter saying that their organizations had direct team meetings, and just one in ten saw their organizations do one-on-one meetings to share results and plan action steps.

The number one barrier to actioning feedback? Intense HR workloads. More than four in ten HR leaders say their jobs have become much more difficult over the past year, and a full 30% have considered leaving the HR profession entirely. One in three is experiencing mental and physical exhaustion — early warning signs of burnout — while one in four admits to already being burned out.

“Organizations have more data than ever, but many people leaders don’t have the necessary skills or time in their day to sort through and create actions that will be effective. Additionally, getting teams together to plan and execute actions can be disruptive to work, especially for distributed teams. This is why using advanced and AI-powered analytics to identify and surface areas where action is most needed and which actions will be most effective is important to ensure no time is wasted in the activation process,” continued Killham.

Organizations that are able to continuously act in response to employee feedback are not only 6x as likely to exceed financial targets as those that aren’t, but also 8x as likely to achieve high levels of customer satisfaction, 6x as likely to adapt well to change, and 8x as likely to innovate effectively.

“Successful organizations today understand that their greatest competitive advantage lies in motivating their people to action — not only listening to their feedback, but also equipping them with the right skills and resources, and creating space for them to be involved in actions to improve their employee experience. This is literally the key to a high-performance culture,” said Lisa Sterling, Chief People Officer at Perceptyx. “HR professionals know this and it’s what inspires them to do their best work every day. That’s why it’s so important for HR leaders to have the resources, skills, and buy-in they need to drive this level of strategic change.”

The Perceptyx State of Employee Listening report details the key practices employed by the most successful organizations and the resulting business success they experience relative to their peers. For the first time, the report also includes new insights from learning & development (L&D) professionals to reveal how the most mature organizations are uniting listening and learning to make both more effective. It includes:

• Perceptyx’s 4-stage maturity model, describing the progression of an employee listening and action program from its most fundamental to its most robust,
• Access to an interactive assessment to help any organization determine where they sit today along this continuum, and
• Proven strategies to evolve both listening and action-taking in order to realize the associated business benefits.

Research Methodology
Research for the report utilized panel interviews, conducted in early 2025, with 750+ human resources decision-makers at global organizations with more than 1,000 employees. This sample included leaders in the United States and Europe, with organizations headquartered in seven countries and operating in all regions of the world. Since its inception, Perceptyx’s workplace leadership panel has interviewed more than 4,100 senior leaders representing large, global organizations across all major industries. Comparison data points from previous studies are also included in the report.

About Perceptyx
Perceptyx is the Employee Experience (EX) transformation company, providing enterprise-grade employee listening, analytics, and behavioral science that activates people and delivers business impact. More than 600 global enterprises, including one-third of the Fortune 100, use Perceptyx’s multi-channel employee listening, AI-powered recommendations, and personalized coaching to close the loop between insights and action. With an unrivaled technology platform and an in-house team of EX Experts, Perceptyx makes it easy for managers, HR executives, and business leaders to align their key business and talent priorities and drive positive organizational change.

About the Center for Workforce Transformation
The Center for Workforce Transformation, operated by Perceptyx, has a mission to educate and inspire executive leaders, managers, and employees through timely, relevant, and actionable insights about the modern work experience. Via original research, media, industry-focused Consortia, peer groups, and exclusive events, the Center is helping to amplify the practices of the world’s leading organizations — driving leader and workforce transformation at speed, at scale, and in sustainable ways.

Media Contact:
Brianna Bruinsma
Firebrand Communications
perceptyx@firebrand.marketing
415 848 9175