Leap Trends · Culture · Trust
Theme
Trust
The publications mainly cover trust in the employer as an institution, employees’ trust in their own leadership, and declining trust in politics and institutions.
The conclusions and topics were compiled with AI from the publications on this page, with the sources alongside. How that works · How we count
What the publications show
Edelman finds across 28 countries that people’s own employer is the only institution to score above half as a builder of trust, at 58 per cent. According to the same survey, people are retreating into their own circle.
Statista (based on the Edelman Trust Barometer 2026), 2026 (opens in a new window) · SpotMedia, 2026 (opens in a new window) · Lewis Silkin (commentary on the Edelman report), 2026 (opens in a new window)
In the Netherlands, trust in politicians and the Dutch House of Representatives fell in 2025 to its lowest level since 2012, according to Statistics Netherlands (CBS). Internationally, Edelman also sees business as the only institution that is still widely trusted.
CBS, 2026 (opens in a new window) · SpotMedia, 2026 (opens in a new window)
Trust is thinner within organisations. In the US, according to Gallup, one in five employees trusts their own leadership, and BCG reports that a sizeable share of employees find their own CEO insufficiently open about AI.
Gallup, 2026 (opens in a new window) · Boston Consulting Group, 2026 (opens in a new window)
The high trust in employers seems at odds with measurements by PwC, Gallup and BCG, which see a gap between what executives think and what employees experience. Edelman asks about the employer as an institution, the other surveys about people’s own leadership.
Statista (based on the Edelman Trust Barometer 2026), 2026 (opens in a new window) · PwC, 2026 (opens in a new window) · Gallup, 2026 (opens in a new window) · Boston Consulting Group, 2026 (opens in a new window)
Topics within trust
This list shows what the publications on this theme are about, with the number for each topic. Open a topic to see its publications; if a topic has a briefing, the link is underneath.
- Briefing: Trust in employers and other institutions →
Trust in the employer3 publications
- Employers Seen as Most Effective Trust Builders · Statista (based on the Edelman Trust Barometer 2026), 2026
- Edelman Trust Barometer 2026: societies are retreating into isolation as business remains the only trusted institution · SpotMedia, 2026
- Edelman Trust Barometer 2026 · Lewis Silkin (commentary on the Edelman report), 2026
- Briefing: Trust and culture as seen by executives and by employees →
Trust in leadership3 publications
- Forty Percent of Employees Say Their CEO Isn't Transparent Enough on AI · Boston Consulting Group, 2026
- Global Workforce Hopes and Fears Survey 2026 · PwC, 2026
- Global Indicator: Leadership & Management · Gallup, 2026
Trust in institutions2 publications
Briefings on this theme
Where several organisations publish roughly the same thing on a topic, we have used AI to compile a briefing. Click a card for the key point, the figures with their sources and what it means for the leadership team.
Trust and culture as seen by executives and by employees
- Gap between the top and the front line
- Trust in leadership
- Unwritten rules
Executives think employees trust them and understand the culture. Recent measurements show a widening gap: fewer than half of employees trust their leadership, and only one in five feels strongly connected to their own organisation's culture. Leadership is the last to notice.
| Month | Publications |
|---|---|
| December 2025 | 0 |
| January 2026 | 0 |
| February 2026 | 0 |
| March 2026 | 0 |
| April 2026 | 1 |
| May 2026 | 2 |
| June 2026 | 1 |
| July 2026 | 0 |
| August 2026 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 3 |
| October 2026 | 2 |
| November 2026 | 0 |
updated · 9 publications
Trust in employers and other institutions
- Employer as trust builder
- Polarisation
- Trust in leadership
Edelman finds across 28 countries that people are retreating into their own circles, and that only their own employer still scores above half as a builder of trust (58 per cent). Inside the organisation that trust is thin: in the US, one in five employees trusts their own leadership.
| Month | Publications |
|---|---|
| December 2025 | 0 |
| January 2026 | 3 |
| February 2026 | 0 |
| March 2026 | 0 |
| April 2026 | 0 |
| May 2026 | 2 |
| June 2026 | 0 |
| July 2026 | 0 |
| August 2026 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 0 |
| October 2026 | 1 |
| November 2026 | 0 |
updated · 6 publications
All publications on trust
This list shows every publication on this theme, including those not (yet) part of a briefing. Choose a period; a title opens the publication at its source.
- Forty Percent of Employees Say Their CEO Isn't Transparent Enough on AI (opens the publication in a new window)TrustCommunicationBriefing: Trust and culture as seen by executives and by employeesBriefing: Trust in employers and other institutions
- Global Workforce Hopes and Fears Survey 2026 (opens the publication in a new window)TrustBriefing: Trust and culture as seen by executives and by employees
- Vertrouwen in politici en Tweede Kamer in 2025 laagst sinds 2012 (opens the publication in a new window)TrustBriefing: Trust in employers and other institutions
- Global Indicator: Leadership & Management (opens the publication in a new window)TrustBriefing: Trust and culture as seen by executives and by employeesBriefing: Unbossing and why middle managers want to leave
- Employers Seen as Most Effective Trust Builders (opens the publication in a new window)TrustBriefing: Trust in employers and other institutions
- Workmonitor 2026: The Great Workforce Adaptation (opens the publication in a new window)Trust
- Edelman Trust Barometer 2026: societies are retreating into isolation as business remains the only trusted institution (opens the publication in a new window)TrustBriefing: Trust in employers and other institutions
- Edelman Trust Barometer 2026 (opens the publication in a new window)TrustBriefing: Public support for CEOs who speak out on social issuesBriefing: Trust in employers and other institutions
No publication matches this combination. Choose a longer period or clear a filter.