How can improving learning and development strategies make a difference?
More than half of Gen Z employees in Singapore say they are engaged at work, but behind that figure lies a more complicated picture that HR leaders may not be paying enough attention to.
Kahoot!'s Gen Z Report: Singapore Edition found that while 51% of respondents said they were engaged, 20% said they were fully disengaged.
A further 29% described themselves as neither engaged nor disengaged.
Ahteram Uddin, growth director for Asia and MENA at workplace learning platform Kahoot!, said it is the "neutral middle" that has emerged as a growing concern for organisations trying to hold on to early-career talent.
"They go to the office every day, they do what they're required to do, but they're emotionally disengaged or detached from the workplace," Uddin told HRD in an interview.
"This is the group which is quite significant because they're more susceptible to disengagement over time if organisations fail to provide the support and connection that they require."
The findings build on Gallup's recent findings, which found that the majority of workers worldwide remain disengaged, a baseline that prompted Kahoot! to examine whether the same patterns were playing out specifically among Gen Z workers in Singapore.
What the data revealed was a workforce navigating a difficult transition.
Thirty per cent of Gen Z respondents said the pace of the workplace came as a culture shock. Twenty-seven per cent felt that politics took precedence over merit, while 24% pointed to expectations around constant availability as a source of friction. Another 19% said they experienced loneliness or isolation in the workplace.
Factors influencing disengagement
For Uddin, many of these frustrations are due to a mismatch between how Gen Z learned before entering the workforce and what they found when they arrived.
"Gen Z said they had a certain way of studying, learning, and adopting tech or whatever skills they did in school and colleges that was totally different," he said.
"However, when they moved into the workspace, they were expecting a similar kind of – at least not the same but similar – experience when they joined."
That gap manifests most visibly in how workplace learning is designed and delivered.
According to the Kahoot! report, many Gen Z employees view mandatory training as passive, time-consuming, and disconnected from their day-to-day responsibilities.
Another factor worsening the situation is the rise of "micro-boredom."
"Attention span is getting shorter, people are bored – micro boredom has come into play," Uddin said.
This means training needs to evolve from the traditional approach that workplaces used to offer, according to the growth director, a suggestion that is reflected in the Kahoot! report.
When respondents were asked what would make training more effective, 37% said they wanted it to be more fun and engaging. Another 31% called for real-life application and interactivity, with a clearer link to their actual work deliverables.
Interestingly, 47% said they would be more likely to engage with training if it incorporated game-like elements or friendly competition.
"Training needs to become more gamified and mobile-device driven," Uddin said. "It needs to be a two-way communication, not something that's just downloaded and you expect people to learn and evolve from a PDF."
Organisations that have moved in this direction are already seeing results, according to Uddin.
He said Kahoot! has observed improvements in training completion rates, participation, and learning outcomes among corporate clients across the Asia-Pacific region that have shifted to more gamified formats, gains that extended beyond Gen Z employees to the broader workforce.
"We've seen when we change to more gamified and more engaging, the overall participation at the company level has improved significantly," he said.
Impact of remote, hybrid work
The challenge is compounded by the rise of remote and hybrid working.
But Uddin argues that distributed work environments make the case for interactive learning even stronger, not weaker. They also introduce a separate but related problem: belonging.
The report found that even among Gen Z workers who prefer to work remotely, the desire for connection remains strong.
More than half (56%) said having a supportive team was essential to feeling a sense of belonging and connection to their employer.
Uddin noted that mentorship plays a particularly important role in this context.
"Having the right mentor, a mentor who can actually coach them, someone who can give them the hand-holding that they need, even if it's remotely, that is a very important part of the learning, onboarding, as well as growth success," he said.
