Lots of feedback, little change: Which levers HR needs to strengthen in everyday life

Through various forms of employee listening, HR can now learn a lot about the mood and needs of employees. But there is often a gap between knowledge and concrete further work with the information. This is the result of the study “State of HR in Germany 2026” by the German Society for Personnel Management (DGFP) and the analysis and consulting company Gallup.

The study authors describe this problem as a so-called “action gap”. HR departments identify problems, seek feedback, and collect more and more data, but often fail to translate it into actual decisions or actions. How can this be changed?

Why good HR ideas stall

From the perspective of the study authors, the challenge for HR lies less in introducing new instruments than in transferring projects into everyday work. Clear priorities, “quick decision-making and action skills” or consistent support from managers are often missing. This becomes particularly clear when it comes to employee listening: Although many companies regularly collect feedback from their employees, they do not always draw concrete conclusions from it. 73 percent of those surveyed in the study stated that they regularly conduct employee surveys. However, for a quarter of all survey participants, feedback does not lead to concrete measures.

1. Make performance management more practical

This is also evident in performance management. Although the topic is one of the top areas of action for HR with 38 percent of those surveyed, the majority of those surveyed expressed dissatisfaction with the implementation in their company. Kai H. Helfritz, Head of Membership Management & Cooperations at the DGFP, explains that the main challenge lies in effectively anchoring performance management in everyday work. In some cases, this is a “home-made problem” that HR professionals can actively help shape.

The study therefore suggests that performance management should be made more practical. Marco Nink, study author and Director of Research and Analytics EMEA at Gallup, specifically recommends: Instead of just documenting performance, it is important to focus on continuous improvement. Classic annual discussions and target agreements are usually too slow for this because there are too long periods in between. Instead, he advocates regular check-ins between managers and employees. Short, structured conversations in which clear expectations are defined can be more effective.

At the same time, Nink emphasizes the management task of regularly recognizing good performance, addressing problems at an early stage and supporting employees in their development. The study data shows that there is a lack of this so far: only 20 percent of employees in Germany receive helpful feedback on a weekly basis. HR therefore has the task of enabling managers to conduct such conversations effectively and safely through training, coaching or specific guidelines.

2. Base employee listening on guidelines and benchmarks

The study cites so-called “employee listening” as a second lever. According to Nink, employee surveys only create added value if the documented feedback does not remain without consequences: “Weighing the cow doesn’t make it fatter, you have to feed it,” is the comparison. HR can help by encouraging managers to identify two to three priorities after each survey, while clearly assigning responsibilities. According to Nink, the following question could provide guidance: Who is responsible for what, until when and with what goal?

According to the Gallup expert, communication is just as important as the measure itself. To achieve this, HR must also actively involve management. Benchmarks are a central lever: According to the study, measures are implemented more frequently if they are based on reliable, external comparative values. For example, if a company realizes that its performance is below the industry average, the need for action can be classified and prioritized much more clearly.

3. Improve leadership quality

From the point of view of the study authors, high leadership quality is the decisive lever for successful change in the company. “The biggest hurdle to successful change is the daily behavior of managers and employees,” says the classification. Improving leadership quality in HR is also a lever that HR departments can actively strengthen.

HR has the task of not only informing managers, but also actively enabling them to accompany changes in everyday life. HR can provide managers with guidelines for major changes to improve communication with the team, recommends Nink. Such a guide offers orientation and can be consistently oriented towards three questions:

• Why are we making the change?
• What does this mean for us specifically?
• What do we need for it to succeed?

This is what HR can specifically implement to ensure high leadership quality:

• Appropriate leadership: It’s not just experience or professional performance that counts when selecting managers, but above all real leadership skills. HR can start here and develop measurable criteria for leadership talent.
• Make leadership visible: Human resources departments should regularly make the quality of leadership more visible by collecting feedback from employees. In this way, HR can guarantee that managers receive honest feedback.
• Develop leadership: Feedback must be translated into behavior through training, coaching and concrete support.
• Control and support leadership: Good leadership is an integral part of performance management. Poor leadership needs to be addressed.

4. Systemic competence building

The authors of the study advocate placing a much greater focus on reskilling and upskilling. This applies to both employees and HR departments themselves. The aim is to identify and develop future skills at an early stage. “Learning should be integrated directly into everyday work – with enough time for application, practice and transfer,” says Nink.

For example, a particular focus is currently on building AI skills. The study authors advocate binding learning paths instead of individual training, as well as practical formats with time to try things out. HR can encourage managers to actively anchor AI in everyday life. The study data shows: When managers actively use and promote AI, the regular use of this technology in the team increases by 60 percent. In this context, it is also the task of HR to develop clear guidelines for dealing with AI in the company.

5. Strengthen your own contribution to the corporate strategy

Last but not least, the study authors advocate that HR makes its own contribution to the company’s success more visible, actively strengthens its own strategic role and better translates its own impact into business strength. Nink emphasizes that it is also crucial to gain management as allies.

In order to strengthen their influence, HR managers should, according to the study authors, communicate more in the language of business. Instead of talking about HR tools or concepts, HR should focus on the business benefits of their work. This requires a clear, data-based argument. “Without this evidence, HR cannot win over top management for its issues,” says Nink.

Mara Marx is a volunteer at Human Resources.