Sustainable HRM research 2026

Why are we conducting this research?

In an era of rapid change, Human Resources plays a crucial role in building a future-proof organization. Sustainable HRM is not just about compliance; it's about attracting and retaining talent, fostering employee wellbeing, and ensuring a positive impact on both business results and society.

Why Your Participation Matters

Your input is invaluable. We are gathering crucial data to understand what's working, where improvement is needed, and which factors are driving success in sustainable HRM practices. By participating, you directly contribute to the research that elevates sustainable HR practices across the industry.

Our goal is simple: to create clarity and provide HR decision-makers with independent, data-backed knowledge. By participating, you help the Foundation to:

• Define Sustainable HRM: Sharpen the collective understanding of what truly constitutes effective and future-proof Sustainable Human Resources in practice.
• Inform Strategic Choices: Equip HR Leaders with independent, objective insights needed to guide their HR transformation and drive measurable results.
• Map Key Trends: Independently chart industry priorities in areas like employee wellbeing, the development of a skills-based organisation, and effectiveness of remote jobs.
• Accelerate Impact: Distill best practices that organizations can adopt to create more humane, effective, and sustainable HR solutions for all employees.

Key findings 2025

Half of organizations have no strategy for sutainable HRM
At a time when employees expect more from their employers and employee wellbeing is crucial for attracting and retaining talent, the results of our latest research are deeply concerning:

50 percent of Dutch organizations have no strategy for essential themes within sustainable HRM.

Attracting talent remains the biggest challenge.
Attracting enough talent is mentioned by 90% of respondents as a top priority. Larger organizations in particular struggle with this, partly due to labor market shortages and changing employee expectations.

Lack of priority and strategy hinders the sustainability of HR.
Despite the urgency, 42% of organizations pay insufficient attention to sustainable HRM, and over half lack a clear strategy for key themes such as employee wellbeing, innovation, and diversity. Organizations with a concrete strategy are demonstrably more satisfied with their progress.

About ImpactWork

ImpactWork is a consultancy and social enterprise founded to help organizations transform towards sustainable work. We believe that sustainable work is key to a future-proof society. As a consultancy, we focus on designing flexible and resilient organizations where employees flourish and innovation is central. Our mission is to support companies in creating work environments that are not only productive, but also people-centric and future-proof.

We help our clients with today's and tomorrow's challenges, such as labor market shortages, technological transformation, and changing employee expectations. ImpactWork is known for our practical approach: no thick reports, but workable solutions that make an immediate impact.

 Interested? 

Head over to the survey at the top of this page and receive the e-book after completion. 

We appriciate your involvement and will keep you updated during the research. You'll be the first to receive the report!