The latest L&D news, reports, research and updates, personally compiled by TJ’s Editor, Jo Cook. This week: Managers feel disconnected, menopause support becomes a retention priority, and leaders struggle to turn AI productivity into growth. Also: Skills gaps, graduate hiring, public-sector AI, safety fines and CIPD’s annual conference also feature.
High performers might resent lower-performing workers getting training over them
Should a high-performing employee receive a company’s limited opportunities for training and development, or should those funds go to lower performers to ensure they catch up? The answer may in part rely on a workplace’s culture and “fairness norms,” per a study published in the Journal of Accounting Research.
Half of GenAI users have received no formal workplace training, while 65% do not see leaders discussing AI with good understanding
Deloitte GenAI Workforce Survey of 25,000 workers found that 63% knowingly use generative AI for work. It also found that 31% of GenAI users have used tools without their employer’s knowledge.
- Workers reportedly spend an estimated £958 million a year of their own money on GenAI tools used for work
- Half of GenAI users have received no formal workplace training, while 65% do not see leaders discussing AI with good understanding
- For employers, shadow AI is a security issue, but it is also a trust, enablement, and employee engagement issue
Employee data use: Only one in five trust leaders
The Gallup survey asked employees about two types of workplace data: activity data, such as hours worked, badge swipes, or the number of emails sent; and content data, such as emails, meeting content, or websites visited.
One in five employees who work on a computer or another device regularly have “a great deal” of trust in their organization’s leaders to use employee data responsibly. Another 43% trust leaders “somewhat,” while 23% trust them “not too much” and 14% “not at all.”
Four in five people say a lack of flexible working could be a deal breaker when going for a job
The vast majority of employees say flexible working is important when considering a job, according to new research from workplace advisory body Acas. The YouGov survey found that 78% of employees considered flexible working important, compared with 20% who said it was not. The findings come ahead of changes to flexible working rules under the Employment Rights Act 2025.
Middle managers expected to engage and connect colleagues, but research finds many feel disconnected themselves
New research from The Chameleon Agency reveals a workplace “manager gap”, with managers among the least satisfied with company communication, leadership clarity and values in practice. More than two in five managers (43%) say that while they generally enjoy their role, they don’t feel connected to their organisation’s values and purpose, compared with 31% of UK workers overall.
Middle managers are often expected to act as the bridge between senior leadership and employees, translating business priorities, reinforcing company values and keeping teams engaged but new research from The Chameleon Agency suggests many managers are not feeling connected, supported or properly communicated with themselves.
Gi Group warns menopause support is now a workforce retention issue
Across manufacturing, logistics and warehousing, over 200,000 women are likely to be in the menopause age demographic. Research suggests that 1 in 10 women leave work due to menopause symptoms, contributing to an estimated £1.5 billion annual loss to the UK economy.
Leading HR & recruitment specialist Gi Group is holding a women’s health strategy event to encourage employers to take a much closer look at how they support women going through the menopause. The inaugural event will be held on 14 October at Gi Group’s headquarters in Chesterfield and has been created to put the topic at the top of HR departments’ priority lists for 2026 and beyond, with key advice on important legislative changes coming into force later this year.
AI drives productivity, but CEOs struggle to turn gains into growth
Despite geopolitical uncertainty, slower macroeconomic growth and rapid technological change, CEOs remain firmly focused on creating their own momentum. According to the latest EY-Parthenon CEO Outlook Survey of 1,200 CEOs across 21 countries, growth is increasingly being driven from within, with AI adoption boosting productivity. The challenge for CEOs is translating those gains into measurable business value through deliberate decisions on operating models, talent and capital allocation.
- 50% of CEOs cite AI as biggest driver of material productivity gains, yet 23% struggle to convert gains into measurable financial outcomes
- Only 16% of CEOs have strong confidence in measuring AI ROI and have real-time visibility into AI costs and returns
- 72% of CEOs expect skills shortages to become a greater barrier to growth than access to capital
Employees use AI, but many say they don’t know why
A majority of people are using artificial intelligence at work, with 85% of recently surveyed global employees reporting that they’re being actively encouraged to experiment with the technology, according to a new study from Culture Amp, an employee experience platform.
Despite this, only 58% said their leaders told them why their companies wanted to implement AI. In addition, just 60% of workers said their managers shared examples of how AI supported their work.
AI skills divide risks leaving majority of workers behind, PwC finds
A widening divide between workers who are benefiting from artificial intelligence and those being left behind is emerging as AI use accelerates, according to a global study by PwC. The consultancy’s 2026 Global Workforce Hopes and Fears Survey found that 64% of workers had used AI at work during the previous 12 months, up 10 percentage points from last year.
Keep hiring graduates, or risk the next generation of responsible global leaders, new CEMS report warns
The report, The Missing Rung? AI and the Future of Entry-Level Work, draws on interviews and research with students in more than 20 countries, alongside contributions from senior corporate partners (global multinational companies) and expert academics across the CEMS alliance.
According to report contributors, entry-level recruitment is where companies grow the leaders they will rely on for decades to come. Graduates hired today are the senior leaders of tomorrow, developing the judgement, responsibility and independent thinking that no organisation can shortcut.
Contact centres in public sector have lowest rates of customer satisfaction with AI use
A report exploring the attitudes of contact centre users and providers to the use of AI has found that the public sector has the lowest rate of consumer-reported satisfaction, at 57%, among seven sectors included in a survey.
Public sector contact centres cited difficulty integrating with existing systems as the number one barrier to implementing AI-powered customer services technologies (19%) followed by budget constraints (16%) and finding the right vendor (14%).
Read more on our sister publication Civil Service World.
British businesses fined more than £44m per year for OSH regulatory breaches
Breathe HR discovered that, collectively, British firms were fined, on average, nearly £44.1m annually across a five-year period. Breathe HR is calling on SMEs, which make up 99% of the UK’s businesses, to audit and enhance their health and safety policies to avoid these huge financial penalties and, most importantly, to protect their employees.
The HSE data revealed that the total value of fines handed to employers for health and safety regulatory breaches topped almost £40.9m. This figure falls slightly below the five-year average (£44.1m) and is not quite as high as the £43.9m for total fines issued in 2024.
The CIPD’s Annual Conference and Exhibition is designed for you to discover practical solutions to the biggest challenges facing your organisation
From AI implementation and workforce readiness to employment law and organisational change. Bringing together people professionals from around the world, this essential event is where our global community shares ideas, builds lasting connections and shapes the future of work together. 4–5 November 2026.
