Today, loneliness isn’t just a personal struggle, it’s an emerging business risk. According to Gartner’s ‘9 Future of Work Trends for 2025’, loneliness has shifted from a wellbeing concern to a workplace liability.

The good news? Leaders can shift this trend by cultivating workplace communities where people thrive and deliver by using their strengths and collaborating with others.

The loneliness challenge

In an era of hybrid teams, economic uncertainty and digital communication, loneliness may be the defining workplace challenge of our time.

Gallup’s ‘State of the Global Workplace 2024’ reports that one in five employees experience loneliness. Remote workers often feel isolated. On-site workers may mask their struggles behind a performative veneer. Across the board, many might wear a competence mask while silently craving real connection.

And this affects everyone, from young professionals finding their footing to senior leaders under pressure to always appear in control.

Loneliness isn’t just a problem – it’s a cultural invitation

Loneliness is more than a red flag. It’s a culture-change invitation. It’s a call to humanize our workplaces, where people are seen not just as roles or results, but as valued human beings.

This requires leaders to connect to their own humanity by fostering:

• Emotional intelligence: Leaders high in EQ foster stronger and safer team environments.
• Intentional engagement: Engaged employees are 70 percent more likely to thrive in life.
• Human-centered strategy: Bain & Company recently advised, “It is more critical than ever for business leaders to try to understand the hopes and fears of their workers. Reimagining the workplace as a collective human endeavor will be the winning talent strategy of the future.”

What can leaders do?

I coach leaders to communicate not just from their brilliant problem-solving minds but also to lead with their feelings. When leaders speak from the heart, everyone listens.

Here are four powerful ways leaders can foster deeper connection:

1. Meaningful meetings 

Check-in, not check-the-box. Open meetings with a question from the heart, not just the head:

“How are you feeling about the task, project or day ahead?”

If people struggle to respond, you can use some prompts:

• “What’s giving you a spring in your step?”

• “What’s feeling heavy or worrying?”

• “What’s frustrating you?”

• “What are you feeling proud about?”

Leaders need to first model this skill of emotional pinpointing so others know that it’s safe to be real. If this feels unfamiliar, I recommend leaders start by checking in with themselves. The How We Feel app by the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence is a great daily tool.

2. Learning circles 

Small group spaces for honest conversation build trust and solidarity. Since 2008, I’ve supported CEOs to participate in these circles and introduce them into their workplaces. They become brave, innovative spaces where people can speak freely – and be heard.

Simon Sinek said it well: “When people feel safe at work… they are able to work together to face danger and seize opportunities.”

3. Mentorship, reimagined

Mentorship doesn’t only mean career advice. It’s about cultivating well-wishers in the workplace – people who share encouragement, insights and support.

Unilever, for example, trains all line managers to actively help reduce stress in their teams. Mentorship, when done well, is an expression of leadership generosity and wisdom.

4. Vulnerability at the top

Brené Brown’s large-scale research confirms that vulnerability is the doorway to belonging, creativity and resilience. A recent Bain report echoes this: “Workers want leaders who display honest and judgment-free empathy around their professional and personal struggles.”

When leaders model realness, others feel safe to do the same.

The hopeful view

Workplaces that honor the human in the role don’t just reduce loneliness. They increase:

• Confidence to ask for help

• Creativity and collaboration

• Loyalty that is driven by a sense of belonging

The evidence is showing us that loneliness is real. But it’s not a fixed state. It’s a signal that we need to remember our interconnectedness. With conscious leadership, we can build workplaces where people don’t just come to do a job. They come because they feel like they belong.

Opinions expressed by The CEO Magazine contributors are their own.