On “The Office,” Michael Scott crowned himself the “World’s Best Boss.” His employees knew better, but the joke was part of the charm. Outside of sitcoms, that same gap between self-perception and reality isn’t charming at all. It’s a recipe for disengagement and turnover.
According to the 2025 MustardHub survey data, nearly one-half of workers have already left jobs because they felt disconnected or unsupported. The problem is worse among the youngest workers. Only 14% of Gen Z workers and 15% of millennials feel engaged at work, compared to 43% of boomer leaders.
This engagement divide isn’t about generational preferences or entitled younger workers. It’s not about bad bosses, either. Many leaders are simply managing based on their own workplace experiences, and the problem is that some of those experiences no longer match what their teams need.
The good news is that this is a training problem, not a talent problem. Organizations can bridge this engagement gap by helping leaders adapt their communication, provide feedback and support development across different generations.
Why Half Of the Workforce Is Walking Out
That disconnect shows up in a lack of trust. The same MustardHub survey found that 1 in 4 workers don’t feel trusted to do the basic job they were hired for. When employees don’t feel trusted, they leave. Over one-half of millennials (52%) and Gen Z (51%) workers have already quit jobs over feeling disconnected. Only 39% of boomers reported the same experience.
Leaders who feel engaged often don’t realize their teams feel differently. Boomer leaders are three times more likely to feel engaged than their younger employees. Without regular feedback mechanisms, they have no way to know the gap exists. They manage the way they learned to be managed, using their own workplace experiences as a guide. Like a boss who thinks Dundie Awards substitute for genuine recognition, they may not see what’s missing until someone quits.
The gap becomes even more visible in feedback preferences. Among all workers, 36% want regular appreciation and feedback as their top engagement driver, especially Gen Z and millennials. Only 14% of boomers want frequent feedback. Without data showing what different team members need, leaders default to what feels right based on their own preferences.
Professional development shows the same pattern. According to recent Go1 research, millennials and Gen Z prefer weekly or monthly learning opportunities. Older generations favor quarterly schedules. The research also found that over two-thirds of workers consider professional development important when evaluating jobs, but only 47% are satisfied with their current company’s approach. The mismatch happens because leaders lack visibility into what their teams actually want.
“Feeling Seen” Matters More Than Standard Benefits
Knowing how often to give feedback solves only part of the problem. Leaders need to understand the full scope of what employees value, such as flexible, tailored benefits and support, which 87% of the MustardHub survey respondents expect. Additionally, more than one-half (53%) say life-aligned support like student debt assistance or elder care “makes me feel seen.” For comparison, only 26% say a sense of purpose in their work drives engagement, and just 5% of workers prefer standard benefits over personalized approaches.
This shift catches many leaders off guard because it contradicts how they were trained. Most managers learned to apply consistent policies and treat everyone equally. That approach worked when workforces shared similar life stages and career expectations. Now, for the first time in history, five generations are in the workforce together, requiring leaders to develop more nuanced skills to best support their multigenerational teams.
For instance, the Go1 research shows that nearly one-half of workers (47%) want clear career progression paths, while less than one-fifth (17%) prioritize traditional performance reviews. MustardHub found that younger workers value regular appreciation significantly more than older ones. Depending on their life stage, some employees value student debt repayment programs while others prioritize elder care support.
In short, leaders who default to annual reviews and standard benefits packages miss what drives retention for most of their team.
Meeting these varied needs can seem overwhelming, but it doesn’t require 50 different management styles. Leaders need tools to understand individual employee needs rather than applying generational assumptions. A 28-year-old might prefer quarterly check-ins while their 55-year-old colleague wants weekly touchpoints. Effective personalization starts with managers learning to ask, listen and adjust their approach for each team member.
Retraining Managers to Lead Differently
Closing the engagement gap requires specific training interventions. Organizations can’t expect leaders to intuitively adapt to multi-generational workforce needs. They need structured development in four areas:
1. Frequency recalibration training
Most managers learned to give feedback quarterly or annually, but that cadence doesn’t work for every employee. Training should help managers match their touchpoints to employee needs, like establishing more frequent check-ins for workers who expect regular communication.
2. Personalization skills development
Individual needs vary widely within any age group. Training should focus on active listening techniques that reveal what each employee actually values. Managers need frameworks for adapting their communication styles, recognition methods and development plans based on these conversations.
3. Proactive support models
Waiting for employees to raise concerns means catching problems too late. Managers need training to spot disconnection signals before employees start job hunting. The MustardHub survey found that 59% of workers welcome employers proactively identifying burnout risk. Only 5% find this type of intervention uncomfortable. Proactivity is evidence that companies care.
4. Manager enablement
Training only works if managers have time to apply it. Organizations need to protect time for development conversations, or even well-designed programs won’t gain traction.
The solution to the engagement crisis isn’t complicated. Leaders aren’t failing because they lack talent or care about their teams. They’re operating with outdated training and incomplete information about what their employees need. Today’s workers have more options. Organizations that update how they train leaders can close the gap before half their workforce walks out the door.
