There’s a lot of hidden action taking place under the radar in today’s business world. Quiet culture workplace trends—quiet firing, quiet hiring and quiet cutting on the part of higher-ups–have resulted in quiet quitting, quiet vacationing and shadow policies from employees. These actions and reactions symbolize the great divide between companies and the workforce, creating suspicion, mistrust and low morale. Now, another hidden trend called “quiet constraint” is raising eyebrows and costing money.
What Is The ‘Quiet Constraint’ Hidden Threat?
“Quiet constraint” happens when employees avoid sharing essential information or hold back ideas that can benefit the team. A new Kahoot survey asks, “Is ‘Quiet Constraint’ Quiet Quitting’s New Rival?”
The study concludes that “quiet constraint” is corporate America’s hidden threat, revealing that 58% of corporate workers are withholding important knowledge that could benefit their coworkers. A sizable 77% of Gen Z employees claim to sit on valuable knowledge they could share at work.
Annie Rosencrans, director of people and culture at HiBob, calls the trend “a risky game.” Why? “Teams grow stronger and more resilient when information flows freely, and withholding valuable knowledge from colleagues can hurt the company,” she points out. “Employees should see themselves as part of a unit, rather than as isolated individuals, which fosters collaboration and boosts productivity.”
The turbulent in-flux workplace, creating “quiet constraint,” is a serious wake-up call, according to Jenny Shiers, chief people officer at Unily. She warns that these behaviors are signals that culture is cracking under the pressure of a changed workplace.
Is ‘Quiet Constraint’ Intentional Or Incidental?
At first thought, you might assume employees are sitting on valuable information intentionally, driven by resentment towards rigid workplace standards. But Shiers tells me, “When people stop sharing ideas, it’s rarely about motivation; it’s about trust, connection and clarity of purpose. In today’s era of constant change and disruption, that’s the real challenge leaders need to solve.”
I also spoke with Fineas Tatar, co-CEO at exeviva. He says the trend is common in remote or hybrid setups when members are overwhelmed, unsure if they can speak up and lack the proper avenue to share what they know. “Without conversations or collaboration, knowledge gets trapped in the head, in an inbox or down below in a message thread,” he explains.
Marium Lodhi, CMO at Software Finder, Linkedin, cautions to distinguish between “quiet constraint” and “quiet quitting.” Unlike “quiet quitting,” Lodhi describes “quiet constraint” as a self-preservation tactic when employees actively question and re-calibrate what’s worth their attention and strategically conserve their energy.
She likens “quiet constraint” to workplace’s version of airplane mode. “You’re still powered on, but only for the essentials.” Employees, working in systems that never shut off, choose to avoid overextending themselves by rationing their energy before it runs dry and they burn out. She believes opting out of optional meetings, Slack chatter or after-hour emails are efforts to preserve mental bandwidth.
According to Tatar, “quiet constraint” happens at every level in an organization. “Top performers unconsciously do this because they go so fast that for them stopping to explain things will only slow them down.” He describes how junior employees think twice about speaking up because they don’t want to look like they’re clueless or step on a coworker’s toes.
Rosencrans also suggests that “quiet constraint” can happen without an employee realizing it and that it’s important for leaders to understand the reasons behind the silence. “During large meetings, someone might hesitate to speak up out of shyness or uncertainty,” she notes.
According to Tatar, “Even senior leaders are sometimes guilty because they assume their teams immediately understand what they’re talking about,” adding, “I see it a lot in startup and VC-funded environments, where the pace is relentless and folks like speed over clarity.”
How To Address ‘Quiet Constraint’
1. Prioritize Team Collaboration
Lana Peters, chief revenue and customer experience officer at Klaar, notices that “quiet constraint” more often plagues competitive and cutthroat cultures where employees feel they must protect any edge they have on their coworkers.
Rosencrans recommends that companies encourage employees to view one another as a part of a unit instead of as isolated individuals. She argues that treating each other as teammates rather than rivals builds collaboration, innovation and trust, plus, it strengthens the team and achieves better results together.
2. Create a psychologically safe work culture.
Vicki Salemi, career expert at Monster, asserts that a lack of psychological safety negatively impacts work satisfaction and productivity. A toxic workplace, dismissing innovation and creative ideas and demanding conformity, inevitably encourages “quiet constraint.” Employees with new ideas will be reluctant to share information if they fear ridicule from their employers.
Rosencrans agrees that tackling “quiet constraint” starts with building psychological safety: creating a culture where people feel their input is welcomed and respected, adding that identifying these behaviors early is essential to prevent a toxic culture from taking root.
3. Employ collaborative tools for real-time communication.
Lodhi stresses that leaders should view employee opt-out as an opportunity to reassess and refine their processes and tools. She argues that smart tech decisions that match the right solutions to workflow pain points can give teams back time, reduce collaborative friction and make speaking up feel worth it.
She explains that the rise of “quiet constraint” reflects a growing demand for fewer meetings and smarter workflows. If employees are stuck toggling between ten different platforms or drowning in redundant tools, she states that it accelerates fatigue. “Clarity like the correct software tool can help companies cut through the noise and streamline how people work and make the difference between quiet constraint and engaged contribution.”
4. Invest in digital culture building.
Shiers suggests that culture doesn’t live in office walls or town halls anymore. It has to live digitally, in spaces where everyone can access it, contribute to it and see it reflected back in meaningful ways. “That means investing in digital culture-building: platforms that make communication transparent, celebrate the right behaviors and keep the company purpose front and center,” she says.
5. Encourage an open-door policy and knowledge-sharing
Tatar sees the goal as making knowledge-sharing part of how things are done, rather than one of those extra things people need to overthink. If you’re a manager, he suggests you begin this culture by asking open questions, rewarding openness and setting simple ways where information is not lost.
“Employees need to consider knowledge-sharing as a means of simplifying everybody’s work, including their own,” he advises. “Since information is shared freely, it reduces duplication, encourages trust and allows the whole team to move forward quickly and efficiently.” Sharing notes, transparency and frequent check-ins are good ways to start.
6. Model continuous feedback.
Peters recommends leaders emphasize the importance of collaboration and engagement in daily one-on-one communications and performance reviews. “Managers and HR teams often have the undivided attention of employees as they focus on their growth during review season,” adding that modeling continuous feedback is the key.
According to the Kahoot survey, given adequate opportunities and resources, most employees (78%) are eager to share knowledge, but businesses must stop encouraging isolationism. If they pivot and promote the value of each person’s voice along with information-sharing and open communication, they can turn “quiet constraint” into stronger collaboration, shared success and greater profitability.