"Do you have a best friend at work?"

It may sound like a strange question for an employee engagement survey. Yet according to research from Gallup, it turns out to be one of the most powerful predictors of engagement, performance, and retention.

Over the years, I have seen many employee engagement surveys. Yet one of my personal favourites has always been the Gallup Q12 engagement model. Partly because of its simplicity. But even more because of the depth behind each seemingly simple question. One of the most debated questions in that survey has always been:

“Do you have a best friend at work?”

I remember many colleagues being puzzled by it. They wanted more context.

How do you define a best friend?

Can you even have a best friend at work?

And why would you even ask such a question in a survey about employee engagement?

For me personally, the question was always easy to answer. And intuitively, it was also easy to understand what it was really trying to measure.

In different stages of my career, I had several best friends at work. Having them was probably one of the most joyful parts of the job. Many of those friendships continued far beyond the workplace. Over time, our careers took us to different companies, different countries, different lives. Yet the connection remained. And looking back now, I realise that some of the most meaningful relationships in my life started simply as colleagues sitting next to me at work.

Why does it matter?

Having a best friend at work is not really about friendship in the traditional sense. It is about something deeper.

It is about personal connection — having someone at work who cares about you as a person, not just as a role.

It is about trust — having someone you can speak openly with. Someone with whom you can share not only your successes, but also your struggles, doubts, and fears.

It is about support — knowing that someone truly has your back when work gets difficult and decisions become hard.

It is about accountability — the natural willingness to go the extra mile for people we care about.

And finally, it is about belonging. When you feel emotionally connected to the people around you, work stops being just a job.

We are fundamentally social beings, and these human bonds matter far more than many organisations are willing to admit.

When teams become extraordinary

There were moments in my career when the entire management team felt like a group of best friends. And I can assure you — those teams were unstoppable. The willingness to stay late when needed.The creativity to think outside the box. The collective determination to meet ambitious goals. And the genuine celebration of shared success. Those were some of the most powerful teams I have ever been part of.

I have also experienced teams where most of us were simply colleagues. We were friendly, professional, and collaborative. Everyone performed well. But the energy was different. The deeper cohesion of the team simply wasn’t there. And interestingly, even in those environments, I still had one or two best friends at work. And that was often enough.

Enough to feel belonging. Enough to feel trust. Enough to feel motivated to keep going.

What I found particularly fascinating was that sometimes those friendships were not even within my immediate team. They were somewhere else in the organization — sometimes on the other side of the business, sometimes even on the other side of the world. And yet those relationships still had a powerful impact on my own sense of engagement and motivation.

Because in the end, engagement is not only about strategy, targets, or performance reviews. It is also about human connection.

The leadership question

Can organisations create environments where these connections can emerge?

Not by forcing friendships — but by creating the conditions where human relationships can naturally develop.

By building cultures of trust and psychological safety, where people feel comfortable being themselves.

By encouraging collaboration rather than internal competition.

By creating opportunities for teams to spend meaningful time together — not only in meetings, but in moments where people can connect as human beings.

And perhaps most importantly, by leading with authenticity.

Because genuine relationships rarely form in environments where everyone feels they must constantly wear a professional mask.

Many of my own workplace friendships were formed during moments when a group of people worked together on a tough project. When the exchange of opinions was welcomed in the search for the best solution. When we laughed at our own shortcomings — and sometimes at the situations we found ourselves in. When we grieved our losses. And when we took time to celebrate our wins.

The modern reality of remote and online work makes it harder for companies to create these moments. Nevertheless, it is essential that we continue trying.

Because keeping our human nature alive at work matters more than ever.

The brilliance of a simple question

Looking back, I realise that the Gallup question was brilliantly simple.

“Do you have a best friend at work?”

Not because companies are trying to create friendships. But because that question quietly reveals something much deeper: Whether people feel connected, supported, and valued as human beings. And in my experience, the teams where those connections existed were always the ones that achieved the most — and enjoyed the journey the most along the way.

So now I’m curious. Do you have a best friend at work? Or how different is it compared to the times when you had one?