Employees’ engagement is greatly influenced by the amount and quality of digital tools and development opportunities at work, according to the “Workplace 2025: The Post-Digital Frontier” study released today by Randstad US.

The report found digital tools now play a leading role in employee satisfaction across organizations of all sizes and industries; however, only 42% of company leaders surveyed completely or strongly agree they are restructuring their HR departments or revising their strategies to leverage digital and mobile tools — and only 51% of those that are said they are highly or very effective at doing so.

“Our survey findings serve as a wake-up call to business leaders that their overall digital readiness could make or break them, as the digitally driven expectations and needs of the modern workforce have changed,” said Jim Link, chief human resources officer at Randstad US.

The survey found the most important needs are related to technology. When asked to rank the importance of the physical aspects of their workplace, workers named:

1. My work computer/laptop/device: 75%
2. Fast internet and Wi-Fi: 68%
3. My office space/cubicle space: 55%
4. Air conditioning and heating: 47%
5. My office chair: 31%
6. Clean bathrooms: 24%

However, less than half of respondents, 45%, said their employers encourage skill development, and only one-third agree their employers offer them ample opportunities to acquire digital skills with training or on-the-job learning.

The research also found employees also have a strong desire for human connection. When asked to name what affected their sense of belonging at work, 72% named face-to-face interactions with their bosses.

Research findings are based on two separate projects programmed and fielded by Research Now: Employee Study and Employer Study. The surveys were fielded from October to November 2017. The employee study included 2,691 employed, adult respondents who worked 20-plus hours per week; the employer study surveyed 819 hiring decision makers or C-suite executives that worked in companies with 10-plus employees.