The majority of workers are reluctant to voice concerns at work, according to new research from executive coaching firm Radical Candor.
Kim Scott, CEO coach and co-founder of Radical Candor, says this highlights the growing “trust gap” between leaders and employees. The findings are based on a survey of 600 U.S. employees, including human resources staff, managers, executives and individual contributors, conducted between February 24 and March 30.
Leaders “want to hear the honest truth about what’s going on,” Scott told CNBC Make It. 45.8% of executives surveyed said a lack of honest feedback was their biggest concern.
At the same time, employees are afraid to speak up, Scott says. 45.2% of independent contributors report that psychological safety and trust are their top concerns in the workplace, and 61.3% say they often observe people remaining silent when they disagree.
“People are afraid to tell the truth now that so many companies are cutting jobs,” Scott said.
Many managers struggle with giving feedback
Scott, who was a leader at a technology company before becoming a CEO coach, says the most important thing leaders can do to create a culture of psychological safety is to “solicit feedback from employees and reward their candor.”
However, many managers have no experience giving or receiving feedback. In our survey, more than 70% of managers said they “rarely” or “never” had the opportunity to practice giving feedback before taking on a leadership role. Untrained managers are also more likely to become defensive or “punish the messenger” when employees come forward with criticism, Scott said.
When managers struggle to give feedback, employees miss out on professional development opportunities. Research shows that more than half of individual contributors report that feedback and coaching “rarely” or “never” occur within their organization. Almost 62% of all respondents say the feedback they receive is either “too vague” or avoids addressing real issues.
Lack of quality feedback can also lead to turnover. A 2024 study from Textio, an AI-powered HR software platform, found that employees who receive poor feedback are 63% more likely to quit within the next 12 months.
While some managers avoid giving honest feedback because they don’t want to hurt an employee’s feelings, Scott emphasizes that clear, kind feedback is essential for employees’ “long-term success.”
Employees are concerned about AI
For organizations that already struggle with trust and communication, the introduction of AI could add new challenges, Scott says.
All survey respondents cited “human skills” such as “creating clarity and integrity” (62.1%), “mentoring and developing people” (61.5%), and “consideration of people and relationships” (43.7%) as being more important in the AI era than technical or functional expertise (8%).
However, 57.5% of executives acknowledge that there is a lack of investment in talent development, and 76.3% of employees say they are aware of the same. Scott said some companies are dedicating 100% of their learning and development budgets to investing in AI instead of upskilling their employees. In her view, that’s a “big mistake.”
Scott said many employees are worried about losing their jobs to AI, and in her experience are less likely to point out problems with AI or come up with new ways to use the technology “if they think they or their friends will end up getting fired.”
Ultimately, Scott said he believes companies that ignore employee development “will fail in the marketplace.”
“What we need now is for employees to use their most creative minds to think of entirely new ways of working,” she says. “You need to treat your employees like an asset to invest in, and you need to treat your managers like an asset to invest in.”
How leaders ask for honest feedback
To get honest feedback from employees, Scott says, leaders “need to prove to their employees that it’s okay to say what they really think.”
Kristin Cruzvergara, chief education strategy officer at early-career employment platform Handshake, told CNBC Make It in 2025 that she asks her direct reports five key questions during the first meeting to build trust and rapport.
What do you want, need, and expect from your boss? What are your complaints? How do you want to receive positive feedback? How do you get constructive feedback? How do you typically respond when you receive critical feedback? How do you want to be recognized when you do a good job? What are you working on professionally this year? How can I help?
Asking these questions shows you’re open to employee feedback and invested in their career success, Cruzvergara says.
Both leaders and employees can benefit from learning how to “criticize each other in a way that strengthens the relationship,” Scott said.
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