Knopman Marks Releases Study Identifying a “Readiness Gap” in the Modern Workplace

New research reveals misalignment between emerging talent and managers is driven by missing development conditions, not motivation or work ethic

New York, NY – February 2026 — Knopman Marks today released The Readiness Gap: Why Expectations Are Misaligned, and How Readiness Is Built, a new research report examining performance perceptions between emerging professionals and their managers across high-pressure industries.

The study, based on a survey of 400 U.S.-based early-career professionals and managers, identifies a widening disconnect in how performance is defined, evaluated, and developed in modern work environments.

The findings challenge common generational narratives.

“The data makes one thing clear,” said Liza Streiff, CEO of Knopman Marks. “This is not a talent problem. It’s not a motivation problem. It’s a readiness problem. And readiness is something organizations can design for.”

A Growing Perception Divide

The study reveals a sharp mismatch between how Gen Z professionals and managers assess performance:

• 90% of Gen Z professionals believe they are meeting or exceeding expectations.
• Only 16% of managers agree.
• Nearly one-third of managers believe early-career performance has declined compared to prior generations.

This divide is not rooted in lowered standards or disengagement. It reflects differing definitions of performance.

Emerging professionals tend to evaluate their own performance through visible output: tasks completed, deadlines met, responsiveness. Managers, meanwhile, prioritize promotable behavioral capabilities such as communication, initiative, judgment, and composure under pressure.

In fact, managers most frequently identified the following as recurring gaps:

• Communication (64%)
• Initiative (57.5%)
• Ability to handle pressure (54%)
• Responsiveness to feedback (53%)

“These aren’t character flaws,” said Streiff. “They’re skills that traditionally developed through proximity, repetition, and real-time feedback. When those conditions thin out, the behaviors thin out.”

Stress Is High. Feedback Is Low.

The study also finds that stress and uncertainty are shaping the Gen Z workplace experience:

• 65% of Gen Z professionals cite stress or overwhelm as their top barrier to performance.
• 48% point to limited feedback or communication from their manager.
• Only 20% say they receive actionable feedback weekly or more.

The report suggests that stress is less about workload and more about operating in high-visibility environments without enough signal.

“When feedback is infrequent, delayed, or overly cautious, uncertainty grows,” Streiff said. “Hesitation becomes rational. People don’t slow down because they lack ambition. They slow down because they’re unsure where they stand.”

A Structural Shift in How Readiness Is Built

The research highlights broader shifts in workplace design that have altered how readiness develops:

• Leaner teams and hybrid work have reduced informal apprenticeship and real-time modeling.
• Digital tools and AI have compressed low-stakes learning opportunities.
• Performance expectations have accelerated without a corresponding evolution in development systems.

As technical execution becomes faster and increasingly automated, the skills that differentiate performance such as judgment, communication, and composure, now surface earlier and with higher stakes.

“AI didn’t create the readiness gap,” Streiff said. “It exposed it and accelerated its consequences. The human skills that remain are the ones we’ve practiced the least.”

A Leadership Mandate

The report concludes that closing the readiness gap requires intentional redesign, not lower standards.

Organizations that respond effectively will:

• Rebuild feedback as a consistent operating rhythm
• Reintroduce real practice under pressure
• Align expectations through clarity
• Treat readiness as a core performance capability

In an AI-accelerated environment, Streiff argues, readiness is no longer optional.

“Performance is no longer defined by what people know,” she said. “It’s defined by who can lead, decide, and communicate when the work becomes ambiguous and high-stakes. Readiness is the next competitive advantage.”

About the Study

The Gen Z Readiness Gap is based on a January 2026 survey of 400 U.S.-based respondents, including 200 emerging professionals and 200 managers across high-pressure industries. Survey design was informed by decades of qualitative insight from Knopman Marks’ work with leading organizations.

The full report is available here.