Live Webinar
Employee Engagement and Retention Trends for 2026
After a year of rapid change and rising expectations, employee engagement and retention are at a crossroads in 2026. Only 26% of employees feel engaged, fewer than half are committed to staying, and just 25% see a long-term future with their current employer. How organizations respond now will determine whether their workforce thrives or drifts away.
Join Achievers Workforce Institute’s Managing Director, David Bator, and Global Head of Recognition and Rewards Insights, Emma Harvie, for an exclusive look at the 2026 Engagement and Retention Report. In this session, we'll share what employees expect in 2026, how managers can shape a culture that drives engagement, and practical steps organizations can take to start the year with momentum and build a committed, high-performing workforce.
Join us to learn
- Insights from the latest research on employee engagement and retention
- What’s driving employees to stay or switch jobs in 2026, and the role managers play in closing that gap
- Recognition, reward, and connection best practices that move the needle on employee engagement, belonging, commitment, and productivity
After a year of rapid change and rising expectations, employee engagement and retention are at a crossroads in 2026. Only 26% of employees feel engaged, fewer than half are committed to staying, and just 25% see a long-term future with their current employer. How organizations respond now will determine whether their workforce thrives or drifts away.
Join Achievers Workforce Institute’s Managing Director, David Bator, and Global Head of Recognition and Rewards Insights, Emma Harvie, for an exclusive look at the 2026 Engagement and Retention Report. In this session, we'll share what employees expect in 2026, how managers can shape a culture that drives engagement, and practical steps organizations can take to start the year with momentum and build a committed, high-performing workforce.
Speakers
David Bator
Managing Director, Achievers Workforce Institute
Emma Harvie
Global Head of Recognition and Rewards Insights, Achievers
David Bator
Managing Director, Achievers Workforce Institute
David Bator thinks and writes about how work should work. David leads Achievers Workforce Institute, a strategic practice whose focus on Research, Community and Advisory empowers global executives with tactical, practical approaches to changing how the world works. David is passionate about people, and has spent the last 20 years working closely and consultatively with HR, IT and Communications leaders to build programs that position individuals, teams and companies to grow.
Emma Harvie
Global Head of Recognition and Rewards Insights, Achievers
As Global Head of Recognition and Rewards Insights at Achievers, Emma Harvie helps organisations around the world turn data into action, designing recognition and reward strategies that build stronger cultures, deeper engagement, and measurable business impact. Her work sits at the intersection of research, strategy, and human experience. Emma leads global studies such as the Achievers Workforce Institute State of Recognition report, uncovering trends that shape the future of work and advising leaders on how recognition can drive performance, retention, and belonging at scale.
With more than a decade in employee experience and workforce strategy, Emma is passionate about connecting the science of recognition with the art of leadership, helping CHROs and HR teams create workplaces where people feel seen, valued, and inspired to do their best work.
Beyond Achievers, Emma is a committed advocate for gender equity as a Chapter Member of UN Women Australia and member of the Achievers Women’s Network, working to advance inclusion and belonging in every organisation she partners with. Emma has presented at leading conferences around the world including Gartner HR Symposium, HR Tech Fest, Total Rewards Asia, From Day One, and the National Rewards Group Conference, and facilitates thought leadership and roundtable discussions and webinars across APAC, North America, and EMEA. She believes recognition is more than a moment — it’s a movement that fuels culture, performance, and human connection.
SHRM has pre-approved this webinar for 1 PDC toward SHRM-CP® or SHRM-SCP® Certifications. A program code will be provided to live attendees at end of the webcast.
Achievers is recognized by SHRM to offer Professional Development Credits (PDC) for SHRM-CP® or SHRM-SCP® recertification activities.
This webinar has been pre-approved for 1 HR (General) credit toward aPHR®, aPHRi™, PHR®, PHRca®, SPHR®, GPHR®, PHRi™ and SPHRi™ recertification through HR Certification Institute® (HRCI®). A program code will be provided to live attendees at end of the webcast.
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