Palmer’s Workforce Adaptation Index (PWAI).
The research and insights from the “How Do You Adapt?” assessment powered by the Palmer’s Trough framework.
The one constant in the workforce is not an annual bonus or raise, it’s not guaranteed promotions — it’s change. And the variable is how we adapt to this change. Sometimes we embrace it and thrive. Sometimes we struggle, and sometimes we have the desire but not the know-how.
Palmer’s Workforce Adaptation Index (PWAI) is a human-centered research instrument that maps how people adapt during one of the most significant eras of change in the workforce. Hundreds of respondents have contributed to population-level research in workforce adaptation. The data is now in empirical validation. Research that centers people in transformation.
How Does Your Workforce Compare?
A behavioral assessment powered by Palmer’s Trough research. Public collection has closed and the data is now in empirical validation. Stay connected to learn how your workforce compares.
Follow the Research →How it works.
What the data reveals.
Workforce archetypes.
Distinct behavioral patterns that emerge when people face integration — and what they reveal about how your organization navigates change.
Position in the trough.
Where your workforce sits in Palmer’s Trough of Potential — the behavioral framework mapping human adaptation to organizational transformation.
What drives adaptation.
Insights into how your workforce meets change — and where the opportunities are.
Powered by Palmer’s Trough.
Palmer’s Trough starts from a simple premise: individuals are the heartbeat of organizations, and every person brings unique perspectives and experiences. From the curious to the skeptic to the early adopter, everyone plays a role in times of transformation. Respondents contributed to a growing dataset that captures how people engage change — so every way of working gets seen, named, and counted in how organizations adapt.