One Workforce, Many Worlds

Global trade is teetering on the edge, and businesses face a critical question: How do you attract, engage, and retain talent as workforce expectations evolve?

Korn Ferry’s Workforce 2025 survey—spanning 15,000 professionals across ten countries—offers answers. Our new regional findings point to common ground across markets, but also reveal regional differences that leaders can’t afford to ignore.

What Drives People to Join and Stay

No matter where people live, the basics matter most. Pay, job security, meaningful work, and benefits are consistently at the top when candidates weigh offers and when employees decide whether to stay.

But the story doesn’t end there. Once inside an organization, relationships quickly move to center stage. Trust in a manager and the quality of team connections often determine whether someone feels engaged or starts looking elsewhere. In workplaces that are flatter and less structured than they were before the pandemic, those relationships carry even more weight.

Regional Nuance in Workforce Expectations

While global themes dominate, the survey shows how local context drives distinct priorities:

• Brazil, India, and the Arab world: Employees put greater emphasis on career advancement and learning. These fast-moving markets are fueled by professional ambition and a desire for upward mobility.
• Germany, France, and Japan: Daily convenience and workplace relationships matter more. Commutes, collegiality, and the ability to disconnect outside office hours often tip the scales.

For companies with global footprints, these variations make clear that a headquarters playbook rarely works everywhere.

Why Compensation Still Comes First

With the cost of living outpacing salaries for many, compensation continues to dominate workforce priorities. Nearly 70% of global respondents say expenses are rising faster than earnings, and more than a third believe they are underpaid for their skills.

This is not only about absolute salary levels but also about fairness. Misalignment between skills and compensation drives dissatisfaction and turnover. Aligning pay to true market value—and adapting reward strategies to economic conditions—is essential for long-term stability.

Beyond Pay: Meaning, Flexibility, and Connection

While pay opens the door, it rarely keeps people in the room. Our analysis shows a strong appetite for work that feels purposeful and challenging. Roughly three-quarters of respondents say their roles make effective use of their skills and offer them opportunities to tackle interesting problems.

Flexibility is another theme. More than 70% said a four-day workweek—without a pay cut—would motivate them to work harder. Respecting personal time also matters. In many developing economies, professionals struggle to disconnect after hours, worrying that stepping away could hurt their prospects. On the other hand, employees in countries like Germany are far more comfortable logging off once the workday ends.

Then there’s connection. Even people who prefer remote work say colleague interaction is important. Relationships with managers and peers not only shape day-to-day satisfaction, but also drive long-term loyalty.

Driving a Global Vision with Local Impact

Successful companies place talent at the center, creating cultures where work is meaningful and careers can grow. That starts with listening—looking beyond metrics to understand perspectives from the outside in.

Korn Ferry’s Workforce 2025 survey uncovers both commonalities and regional differences in what employees want. Those organizations that lead take both into account, balancing global consistency with local nuance to build experiences and identities that resonate across markets.

From our global findings, four priorities stand out for shaping a modern talent strategy:

1. Authenticity: Capture the reality of the employee experience—by region, function, and demographic—not just the surface-level data.
2. Differentiation: Define what sets your organization apart in a competitive talent market.
3. Aspiration: Connect everyday work to a larger purpose, mission, or impact beyond the paycheck.
4. Amplification: Treat your employee value proposition like a brand—clear, visible, and consistently reinforced.

When guided by three lenses—global consistency, local relevance, and continuous adaptation—these priorities allow businesses to compete in a dynamic global talent market.

From Many Worlds to One Workforce

The world is pulling apart, and companies can no longer treat their workforce as a monolith. Building a strong employer brand means rethinking how talent is attracted, engaged, and retained across regions. What matters to employees in Germany may not resonate in Japan, and what motivates someone in Brazil may not do so in the United States.

Korn Ferry’s Workforce 2025 survey confirms what forward-looking leaders already know: successful strategies rest on shared values, but adapt to local realities. They strike a balance between consistency and flexibility—aligning the company’s identity with what its people need.

Thriving organizations don’t find that balance by accident. They build it deliberately, creating the agility and resilience that strengthen both people and business over time.