In today’s workplace, connection isn’t just “nice to have”—it’s essential. Studies show that employee connection drives retention, improves job satisfaction, and creates healthier workplace cultures. While productivity metrics and digital tools get plenty of attention, the truth is that friendships at work, supportive colleagues, and a culture of belonging often determine whether people stay and thrive or burn out and leave. As someone who learned this lesson long before I became an HR and disability compliance professional, I know that who you work with matters just as much as the work itself.

There’s no shortage of talk about productivity metrics, process flows, and digital tools. All of those matter. But something more human—and a little harder to measure—is just as crucial: connection. Real relationships. Knowing you’re not alone. Feeling like the people you work with don’t just depend on you, but that you depend on them, too.

I learned that back in college at Brown University. Let me take you there.

Snow, Community, and the Ratty

I started working at the Ratty—Brown’s cafeteria—during my freshman year in February 1995. I made $5.25 an hour—excellent pay for an 18-year-old and over 80 cents above minimum wage. Between textbook debt, high interest rate credit cards, and juggling school expenses without any parental support, I was stretched thin. I worked nearly 40 hours a week alongside the professional staff—many of whom had spent their entire careers there.

These full-timers were generous. They offered advice and flexibility when I was behind in class, and they cheered me on like family.

Then came the storm of March 31–April 1, 1997. Forecasts warned of “the largest late-winter storm in a hundred years.” Staff who lived far from campus worried they wouldn’t be able to get to work the next day, which meant fewer hands to open the Ratty and feed students. So we hatched a plan: Those of us living close by would open our homes to our co-workers.

My friends Jean, JP, and I offered our living rooms. Between us, we made space for 12 employees. It was awkward at first—me with a loaf of bread and some jam to share as a midnight snack—but we talked, laughed, and eventually fell asleep to the rattle of old radiators.

By morning, the “April Fools Blizzard” had delivered over 18 inches of heavy snow and shut down Rhode Island. Brown canceled classes for the first time in over a century. But the Ratty opened. More than 25 employees had slept on floors and couches so students could eat. These workers—many making less in a year than the cost of Brown’s tuition—showed up. They cared about their colleagues, and they cared about their why: feeding students.

It was beautiful. And it changed me.

Why Connection at Work Isn’t Just Feel-Good

That night taught me what research now confirms: Connection is not fluff. It’s fundamental.

• According to SHRM, people in positive workplace cultures are four times more likely to stay with their employers than those in poor cultures.
• A recent study found that 76% of employees with close work friends are far more likely to stay put.
• Belonging and interpersonal connection consistently show up as top drivers of engagement and retention.

This isn’t about pingpong tables or casual Fridays (though those may help). It’s about being part of a team that has your back, and knowing that your presence matters—not just your output. Work besties make people want to come in, collaborate, and contribute.

That blizzard night at Brown also showed me that connection changes how work gets done:

• When someone is overloaded, caring co-workers step in. They share the weight.
• Social support makes work more sustainable. It prevents burnout and the sense of isolation.
• Friendships build trust—and trust allows people to raise concerns, offer ideas, and admit mistakes. That’s when better solutions emerge, conflicts are resolved, and investment in the work deepens.

How Employers Can Foster Connection

If you want these benefits in your workplace, connection can’t be an afterthought. It has to be part of how you manage.

Strategy	What It Looks Like
Intentional social time	Shared meals, team outings, or casual check-ins. Not forced but encouraged.
Support in crises	When life happens—weather, illness, family—make space for colleagues to help one another.
Shared goals and stories	Celebrate wins, highlight teamwork, and tell the stories of people stepping in for one another.
Encourage friendships	Pair mentors, build cross-team projects, and allow informal interaction.

Data That Underscores Connection

• When employees rate their workplace culture highly, only about 15% are looking to leave, compared with around 57% in poor cultures (SHRM).
• In hourly workforces, predictability in schedules—and the social rhythms that come with it—are huge for satisfaction (Shiftboard).
• Younger workers often rank their co-workers as one of their top reasons for staying or going.

Connection Culture = Retention + Satisfaction + Purpose

That night in 1997 taught me that paychecks don’t drive behavior—people do. It’s the quality of your colleagues and the mission you share that pulls you through.

As we sat eating toast on mismatched thrift store couches, I learned about their lives—sending money home to parents, raising kids, striving for something better. Their work ethic, their respect for one another, and their willingness to sleep on the floor for their colleagues left a mark on me.

It shaped the kind of teammate—and leader—I strive to be today.

When people feel connected at work, when they know their teammates have their back:

• They stay longer.
• They feel more satisfied.
• They see purpose in their work—not just because of what they do, but who they do it with.

The Power of Taking Connection Seriously

Connection is central to a healthy workplace. And leaders can build it—through policies, through culture, and through small but meaningful actions.

I carry that night at the Ratty with me—snow piling high, people I barely knew becoming family. In work, as in life, connection changes everything. It lightens the load, inspires loyalty, and keeps people showing up even when it’s hard.

If we want workplaces where people don’t just show up for a paycheck but for one another, we have to take connection seriously. Not as a nice bonus, but as the foundation. Because when you care about who you work with, you don’t leave them hanging.