The latest IC Index report from Ipsos Karian and Box and the Institute of Internal Communication paints a fairly stark picture of organisational life right now.
Trust in leadership is falling. Employees are feeling overwhelmed by constant change. Many don’t feel supported to adapt. Confidence in the future is fragile. And despite organisations investing heavily in communication, less than half of employees believe the reasons behind organisational change are clearly communicated.
At first glance, it might look like a communication problem.
But when you look more closely, it feels much bigger than that.
This is really a human experience problem.
Because behind almost every trend in the report sits the same underlying issue: people are struggling to make sense of what’s happening around them, what it means for them personally, and whether they trust the people leading them through it.
The report highlights a 9-point drop in employees rating communication as “excellent”, alongside significant declines in trust in senior leadership teams and CEOs. Meanwhile, only 42% of employees feel their organisation is good at helping people adapt to change.
That should concern every organisation.
Change is no longer temporary
One of the strongest themes running through the report is the idea that change itself has become relentless.
Restructures are increasing. Redundancies are becoming more common. AI is creating uncertainty about the future of work. Employees are expected to adapt continuously, often while still trying to maintain performance and wellbeing.
But many organisations are still communicating change as though it is a one-off event rather than a constant operating reality.
That creates a disconnect.
Because people do not experience change through strategy documents or leadership presentations. They experience it emotionally and practically in everyday moments:
- uncertainty
- changing expectations
- pressure to adapt quickly
- concern about the future
- loss of clarity and connection
This is where employee experience and internal communication become deeply connected.
The organisations navigating change most effectively are not necessarily the ones communicating the most. They are the ones helping people genuinely understand what is happening, why it matters, and how they can navigate it successfully.
Managers matter more than ever
One of the clearest messages in the report is the critical role line managers play in helping communication “land”.
Employees are most likely to hear about major organisational changes from their direct manager. And yet most managers spend 30 minutes or less per day communicating with their teams.
At the same time, managers are increasingly expected to:
- explain strategy
- support wellbeing
- answer questions about AI
- maintain engagement
- help teams navigate uncertainty
…often without the confidence, capability or support needed to do it well.
This is one of the biggest employee experience gaps organisations need to address. Because strategy does not become meaningful through one organisation-wide announcement. It becomes meaningful through everyday conversations within teams.
Trust is built through honesty, not perfection
Another important takeaway from the report is that employees are not expecting organisations to have all the answers.
What they are looking for is honesty.
The strongest drivers of confidence in the future are clarity, openness, honest communication and connection.
Interestingly, the report also highlights how many organisations are struggling to communicate clearly about AI. Only 35% of employees believe their organisation is using AI to solve the right problems.
Many organisations are rushing to position themselves as innovative or AI-enabled, while employees are still trying to understand what this actually means for their role and future.
Again, this is not just a communication challenge. It is a trust challenge.
And trust is built when leaders are visible, transparent, willing to acknowledge uncertainty and genuinely listening to concerns.
What organisations should focus on next
The organisations likely to navigate the next few years most successfully will not necessarily be the ones with the most communication channels or the slickest AI tools.
They will be the ones that:
- equip managers to facilitate meaningful conversations
- listen continuously
- create clarity during uncertainty
- communicate honestly, even when the message is difficult
- involve employees in shaping change
- focus on human experience, not just information flow
Because ultimately, communication alone does not create trust. Human experience does.
At People Lab, we help organisations move beyond transactional communication and engagement approaches to create more human-centred employee experiences. Through insight-led listening, manager capability building, co-design and practical insight-to-action approaches, we help organisations build trust, strengthen communication and create cultures where people feel informed, involved and supported through change.
If you’d like to explore how your organisation can create a more connected and human-centred approach to employee experience, we’d love to talk.
