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They’re the quiet majority who keep things moving — turning up, getting work done, but rarely leaning in. They’re not detractors, but they’re not advocates either. Increasingly, they’re job-hugging: staying for security, not satisfaction. And as that group grows, belief and performance start to erode.
Every organisation has them. The small but vocal group who love your brand and sing its praises on LinkedIn. The equally vocal few who vent their frustrations on Glassdoor. And then, the biggest group of all. The middle. The steady majority who quietly get on with their work, keeping things moving day to day.
But inside that middle, something is shifting. Across industries, we’re seeing a rise in what the press has dubbed “job hugging.” People are staying in roles they don’t really want. The job market feels unsafe right now, so many are holding on rather than moving on. On the surface, it looks stable. Underneath, a growing number of passives are emerging. People who are staying, but not truly engaged. That’s the real risk for businesses, and for the people themselves.
To create change, you first need to understand where you stand. Our dataset of millions of data points across the globe shows a direct link between happiness and performance:
Happier employees are 16% less likely to leave, preserving critical knowledge and boosting operational efficiency. Even a one-point increase in happiness scores can reduce annual turnover by up to 18 employees in a 1,000-person organisation. That’s an estimated saving of between £25,800 and £57,000 each year in recruitment and training costs.
So when your employee NPS (eNPS) dips, or your passive population swells, it’s worth asking what’s happening inside your organisation.
Detractors aren’t the enemy. They’re often the canaries in the coal mine, signalling disconnects between what leadership says and what people experience.
And those passives? They’re not disengaged by choice. Many are job-hugging. They’re staying put for security, not satisfaction. They’ve stopped believing their voice can create change.
It’s important to remember that not everyone in the middle feels this way.
Many are quietly content and contribute steadily to your culture. The concern is when that healthy stability gives way to growing detachment. That’s when belief and behaviour start to drift apart, leading to friction, inefficiency and lost revenue.
Culture isn’t a soft, feel-good factor. It’s a hard business metric that drives performance. Which is why understanding it isn’t a nice-to-have. It’s essential for growth.
To create change, you first need to understand where you stand.
Our global benchmark compares your organisation against over 50 million data points across 170+ countries. It helps you discover your strengths and see where to focus for meaningful improvement. It’s the cultural compass every leader needs. Especially in a market where more people are staying but fewer are thriving.
Numbers only tell part of the story. To really understand what drives your people, you need to listen to how they think, feel and behave.
Our engagement platform gives you a live view of your cultural health. From research-backed surveys to custom insights, you can explore what’s driving engagement at every stage of the employee journey. Culture, made visible! And it helps you spot early signs of job hugging within your middle before it becomes cultural stagnation.
Data alone doesn’t transform culture. Action does.
Our culture consultancy helps you move from insight to impact. Whether you want to boost revenue, retention or customer experience – our experts help you build the conditions where your people can thrive.
Across our global client base, we see sustained advocacy as a leading indicator of financial stability and growth. Customers using our platform see eNPS scores increase by 55% over three years, from an average of 18.6 to a market-leading 28.8. This advocacy drives brand equity, reduces talent acquisition costs and fuels long-term performance.
Job-hugging might be a sign of the times. But it doesn’t have to define your culture. Imagine if even a fraction of your passives became promoters. Imagine if every detractor became an honest partner in improving your organisation.
That’s not a fantasy. It’s what happens when people feel heard, valued and aligned with purpose. When you turn listening into action, belief follows. And when belief grows, performance does too.
Curious where your culture stands? Let’s find out together.
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