What Boards & CEOs Need To Know About Psychosocial Safety
Making Leadership Work - Fostering Psychosocial Safety at Work.
Release Date: 02/25/2025
Leading Human-Centered Change - Your HEART Check
Making Leadership Work - Fostering Psychosocial Safety at Work.
While new data suggests 58% of changes fail, organizations using human-centered methods achieve 93% success rates. What's the difference? This final episode reveals how the HEART framework helps teams thrive through today's supercycle of change by helping people feel 'safe enough' to embrace not having all the answers, self-organize around actions they care enough to own, and measure success by growing their capabilities to navigate uncertainty together. We bring together all five HEART factors into one simple practice you can do anywhere, anytime. 02:00 Michelle shares how she talks...
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Take Tiny Steps – Sustaining Momentum
Making Leadership Work - Fostering Psychosocial Safety at Work.
Change initiatives often start with such confidence - neat timelines, clear milestones, everyone aligned - yet within weeks things feel messy and unpredictable. What makes the reality so different from the plan? This episode explores why "tiny is mighty" when it comes to navigating complex change. We share the T in our HEART framework with practical tools for embracing polarities rather than false choices, starting where you are, sensing when to adapt, and celebrating small wins that build the resilience needed to thrive in ongoing uncertainty. 01:04 Chelle explains the benefits of Taking...
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Reach Out – Connecting Ideas & Resources
Making Leadership Work - Fostering Psychosocial Safety at Work.
Why do some teams emerge from uncertainty stronger and more connected, while others splinter into silos where everyone's fending for themselves? The difference lies in whether people feel safe enough to admit they're struggling and ask for help. This episode reveals why reaching out is often the one simple act standing between you and success during change. We share the R in our HEART framework with practical tools for normalizing struggle, making it easier to ask for and offer help, and ensuring no one burns out from caring. 01:12 Chelle explains why Reaching Out helps us to navigate the...
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Appreciate Strengths – Fuelling Confidence & Capability
Making Leadership Work - Fostering Psychosocial Safety at Work.
Ever notice how some changes leave people feeling energized and capable while others leave them exhausted and overwhelmed? What creates this difference? Why do some uncertainties feel like exciting challenges while others trigger that familiar "Oh FUD!" spiral of fear, uncertainty and doubt? This episode explores how to fuel people’s confidence, make the most of their capabilities, and help them stay curious about how they can navigate change more effectively together. We share the A in our HEART framework with evidence-based approaches to help you build on people’s strengths while also...
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Engage Purposefully – Winning People’s Commitment
Making Leadership Work - Fostering Psychosocial Safety at Work.
Have you ever been in a meeting where someone shares a "big announcement" and you can practically hear everyone's minds turning off? Compare that to times when you're figuring out a problem together with people you trust - same amount of work, totally different feeling. What makes some complex changes feel safe enough to lean into while others feel dead on arrival? This episode explores how to turn grudging compliance into willing commitment during change. We share the E in our HEART framework with practical tools for meaningful conversations that support self-organization. 01.09 Michelle...
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Honor Feelings - Your Nervous System’s Navigation System
Making Leadership Work - Fostering Psychosocial Safety at Work.
Why do some people thrive during change while others get completely overwhelmed? It comes down to whether their nervous system feels "safe enough" to stay curious and collaborative. This episode explores how your emotions impact your brain's internal navigation system and energy for change. We share the H in our HEART framework with concrete tools for reading these signals at individual, team, and organizational levels, transforming emotional chaos into psychological safety. 3:00 Chelle explains why Honoring Feelings is the best neurological place to start when navigating change. 8.13 Chelle...
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Navigating The Human Side Of Change
Making Leadership Work - Fostering Psychosocial Safety at Work.
Ever wonder why change feels so much harder than it did in the past? We're in an unprecedented supercycle where disruptions collide and create ongoing "Oh FUD!" responses - Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt that are flooding our nervous systems. Based on our work with organizations around the world, we share why traditional approaches miss what matters most and introduce our HEART framework for supporting teams through the emotional reality of transformation, even when uncertainty is the only constant. 1:49 Michelle discusses the concept of a "poly crisis" and why we are in a supercycle of change...
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Leading Human-Centered Psychosocial Safety Changes
Making Leadership Work - Fostering Psychosocial Safety at Work.
Addressing psychosocial safety requirements often creates additional change and potential stress in organizations. This episode explores how to implement safety initiatives without creating the very risks you're trying to prevent. We share practical approaches that reduce overwhelm, build genuine psychological safety, and transform defensive reactions into productive conversations. Discover simple language frameworks and team activities that help normalize uncertainty while maintaining momentum, even during complex organizational transitions. 0:00:35 Katie explains how addressing psychosocial...
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The Nervous System Toolkit For Psychosocial Safety
Making Leadership Work - Fostering Psychosocial Safety at Work.
Do your people need more tangible skills to manage their own emotional and social responses at work? This episode explores evidence-based tools to help people understand their nervous system responses—whether they're in the "red zone" (urgency), "blue zone" (withdrawal), or "green zone" (connection)—and offers simple techniques like oxytocin shots and bridge-building that restore safety even during challenging moments. 0:00:35 Katie and Chelle breakdown the responsibilties of employees and contractors for psychosocial safety. 0:07:25 Chelle explains how we can build psychological safety...
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Building Psychological Safety Between Leaders & Teams
Making Leadership Work - Fostering Psychosocial Safety at Work.
Studies consistently find that psychological safety reduces workplace hazards. In this episode, we explore concrete ways to strengthen safety at the "We” level (leaders and teams). We break down our Psychosocial Safety Lego Challenge that transforms abstract concepts into tangible team experiences, discover dynamic techniques to improve role clarity, and help team members find meaning during difficult organizational changes. 0:00:38 Katie and Chelle breakdown the responsibilties of leaders for psychosocial safety. 0:03:31 Chelle explains why psychological safety has consistently been found...
info_outlineBoards and CEOs are still learning how to meet psychosocial safety requirements in a way that is both practical and effective. Uncertainty around roles and responsibilities can lead to fragmented efforts and increased risk. This episode explores how HR, OH&S, and wellbeing teams can align their efforts to create workplaces that are both legally compliant and genuinely supportive of employee wellbeing.
0:00:55 Chelle and Katie share the recent concerns of boards and CEOs when it comes to implementing psychosocial safety requirements in their workplaces.
0:03:08 Chelle and Katie explore who they are finding "owns" psychosocial safety in most workplaces. Is it HR leaders, OH&S teams, or wellbeing champions?
0:08:02 Chelle and Katie unpack the important value wellbeing champions bring when it comes to promoting mental health in workplaces.
0:09:17 Chelle and Katie clarify the essential role of OH&S teams in bringing a risk management lens to preventing psychosocial injuries.
0:12:03 Chelle and Katie explain the valuable role of HR leaders in supporting cultures of psychological safety across workplaces.