Talent Trends 2025: Why Inclusive Leadership Is Business-Critical for Executives

Workplace inclusion has climbed steadily up the corporate agenda in recent years, but Page Executive’s Talent Trends 2025: Executive & Senior Leadership Edition reveals that many senior leaders still encounter exclusionary experiences. The data highlights an uncomfortable truth: while progress has been made, too many executives continue to feel marginalised at work, and that has direct consequences for motivation, retention and leadership performance.

The Reality Check: Exclusion at the Executive Level

Executives are not immune to bias. Despite their seniority, 12% report experiencing microaggressions, 1 in 10 say they have been stereotyped, and another 1 in 10 feel marginalised or discriminated against at work.

For businesses competing for top leadership talent, these experiences cannot be dismissed as isolated incidents. Exclusion – even subtle – has measurable impact on careers and organisational outcomes.

The Human Impact of Discrimination

The past 12 months alone show how exclusion directly shapes executive career trajectories:

• 46% experienced reduced motivation
• 44% saw hindered career progression
• 43% reported lower job satisfaction
• 40% considered leaving their roles

When nearly half of senior leaders feel their career is being held back by bias, companies risk losing high-potential executives to competitors who offer more inclusive environments.

Age Discrimination: The Most Persistent Bias

Among all forms of exclusion, ageism emerges as the most pervasive.

• 38% of executives say they have experienced age discrimination in the last year.
• 62% believe age has influenced how they are perceived at work.

This challenge spans demographics:

• 64% of women and 61% of men report age-related bias.
• It affects 68% of leaders in their 30s, 59% in their 40s and 60% aged 50+.
• Regionally, the prevalence is highest in North America (70%), followed by APAC (63%), Europe (62%), and LATAM (60%), with the Middle East (45%) reporting lower levels.

The findings demonstrate that age bias is not just a problem for older professionals, it impacts leaders at every stage of their careers.

Broader Discrimination Landscape

Other reported forms of workplace discrimination amongst executives:

• Gender/Gender Identity and/or sex: 29%
• Ethnicity: 24%
• Socioeconomic status: 22%
• Religion or beliefs: 19%
• Marital status: 14%
• Disability: 10%
• Pregnancy/ maternity leave: 10%
• Sexual orientation: 8%

The Inclusion Gap: Progress Has Stalled

Despite years of investment in diversity and inclusion strategies, executives still report a significant gap between intention and reality:

• Only 38% feel they can be their authentic selves at work (down from 41% in 2024).
• Just 27% believe their workplace is inclusive (vs. 30% in 2024).
• Only 1 in 5 believe their leadership team is inclusive.

This stagnation underscores the need for organisations to move beyond surface-level initiatives and embed inclusion into the leadership experience itself.

Where Executive Priorities & Reality Don’t Align

Executives continue to prioritise inclusion: age, gender and racial equity, however gaps remain between values and lived experience.

Inclusion as Competitive Advantage

As Page Executive’s Director of Inclusive Culture & Social Impact, Rani Nandan explains:

Too often, organisations treat inclusivity as a checkbox, missing the deeper truth: exclusion erodes trust and drives high-potential leaders away. To compete, companies must embed equity into everyday decisions, not just policies. Inclusive leadership isn’t a ‘nice to have’, it’s a business-critical advantage in the fight for talent.

Turning Intention Into Action

To compete for the best executive talent, organisations must shift inclusion from aspiration to execution. That means:

• Auditing the leadership pipeline: Review hiring and promotion data to uncover hidden age or experience bias.
• Investing in cross-generational leadership programmes: Pair emerging leaders with seasoned executives for mutual learning.
• Signalling belonging from the top: Create cultures where leaders can show up authentically, backed by policies that reinforce equity.
• Measuring impact, not just intent: Use experience and retention data to track progress meaningfully.

Unlock the Full Report

Executives who feel seen, valued and included are more motivated, perform at higher levels, and stay longer. Organisations that fail to close the inclusion gap risk losing their strongest leaders at a critical moment.

For more insights, download our Talent Trends 2025: Executive & Senior Leadership Edition and discover how inclusion can be your competitive edge in the fight for top leadership talent.