Introducing Slack’s UK State of Work report

To uncover the human experience of today’s workplace, Slack partnered with market research firm GlobalWebIndex in 2019 to survey 17,000 knowledge workers across 10 countries. We captured the deep insights from the survey in our global State of Work report.

While international trends are instructive, country-specific results shed light on local operating conditions and offer points of comparison. Which is why Slack set off on a second journey to understand the unique forces at play within individual countries.

Today we’re pleased to present the UK State of Work report, which offers an in-depth insight into our survey results for 3,000 knowledge workers in the United Kingdom.

These findings will help you understand the conditions in the UK that engage knowledge workers and drive alignment – and those that do the opposite.

The data from our global survey shows that alignment in the workplace is beneficial for innovation, productivity and business growth. The data for the UK mirrors this finding. In fact, we discovered that workplace trends in the UK – automation, immigration and growing labour force participation – underscore the importance of alignment.

As work becomes more complex and companies more diverse, UK employers must find ways to help employees collaborate effectively and achieve shared goals. This is where alignment comes in.

Our new report paints a full picture of alignment in the UK, detailing how it affects business outcomes and the factors that drive and undermine it.

Here are a few highlights that we’ve captured from our data.

Context creates alignment

Ensuring that workers understand how their work fits into the larger picture is critical to alignment. The data backs this up: Aligned workers in the UK are more than three times as likely as unaligned workers to indicate that they understand their company’s strategy.

Not only that, they’re twice as likely to understand how their day-to-day work contributes to their company’s strategy. When workers understand why they’re doing what they’re doing, they’re naturally more motivated to do the work that helps the company grow.

The power of alignment

Unaligned and aligned workers experience the workplace in profoundly different ways. When workers feel aligned, they’re more likely to rate their company highly across a wide range of factors.

Case in point: A majority of aligned workers rank their companies favourably for things like collaboration, productivity and communication, all key indicators of a successful workplace. Unaligned workers, on the other hand, are more likely to rank their companies poorly for these same factors.

Investing in alignment makes business sense

Today’s economy demands innovation and action. Aligned workers are four times as likely as unaligned workers to feel empowered to make strategic decisions or to pursue new opportunities. This type of initiative is conducive to business growth. More than half of aligned workers in the UK anticipate revenue growth for their companies, while just over a third of unaligned workers expect the same result.

The benefits of alignment are readily apparent. Companies want and need workers who understand their purpose, are engaged in their work and are willing to take action.

Fortunately, alignment is not a finite resource. It’s available to companies across the UK and worldwide. The solutions are fairly simple, especially considering the complexity of work today. We’ve included actionable steps in the report to help you achieve alignment at your workplace.

Download the full report for:

• More insights on why alignment matters and how it affects innovation, productivity and growth
• How alignment in the UK compares with global and regional rates
• Real-world examples of multinational companies, such as Vodafone and Deliveroo, that nurture alignment
• Best practices for driving alignment across your own organisation