By Vuslat Serenay Arı Şafak
Working with industrial and software engineers has changed how I explain HR decisions. I still care about how people feel, but I have learned to make room for the numbers, too. Questions about employee happiness often become questions about evidence: what improves wellbeing, how we measure it, and what changes at work when people feel supported.
Social connection, work-life balance and psychological safety all belong in that conversation. They affect the experience of doing a job, from whether someone asks for help to whether they have enough energy left at the end of the day.
What the research tells us
Research from the University of Oxford’s Wellbeing Research Centre found that higher employee wellbeing was associated with higher company value, return on assets and profits. An association does not prove that a wellbeing programme caused the improvement. It does give leaders a reason to take employee experience seriously when they look at business performance.
Gartner has reported that managers who create a psychologically safe environment can drive up to a 54% reduction in change fatigue. That finding concerns people’s responses to change. It should not be read as a 54% productivity increase or a guaranteed reduction in clinical burnout.
For me, these findings make a practical case for paying attention to what people experience at work. They also show why we need to be precise about the outcomes we measure.
Positive psychology and mindfulness at work
Positive psychology encourages us to notice people’s strengths and the conditions that help them use those strengths. Mindfulness adds another practice: paying attention to what is happening, including signs of stress, before reacting automatically.
Companies such as Google and SAP have introduced mindfulness training. SAP’s Global Mindfulness Practice, led by Peter Bostelmann, is an example that interests me. SAP describes a programme that grew from internal training into courses and support for other companies. It offers a concrete example of an employer making space for a practice employees can use in their working lives.
The value of a programme still needs to be assessed in its own setting. A mindfulness session cannot resolve an unreasonable workload or poor management on its own.
What a return on wellbeing investment means
A Harvard Business Review article reported Johnson & Johnson’s estimate of $2.71 returned for every dollar spent on its wellness programme between 2002 and 2008. A separate meta-analysis in Health Affairs estimated medical cost savings of about $3.27 per dollar spent on workplace wellness programmes.
These are historical findings from particular programmes and studies, not a promise of what every employer will save. They are useful starting points for asking better questions about cost, participation and results.
Social connection and morale
From an HR perspective, social connection deserves attention alongside individual wellbeing tools. Volunteer activities, team gatherings and community projects give colleagues opportunities to know each other beyond their immediate tasks.
People also need room for ordinary conversations. A team that can ask questions, share concerns and give honest feedback has more ways to notice when a colleague is struggling.
What HR teams can put into practice
Start with a baseline. Use surveys and relevant measures to understand stress, engagement and psychological safety. Give people a way to respond anonymously, and explain what will happen with the information they share.
Train managers in mental health awareness and inclusive communication. Help them recognise when someone needs support and understand the limits of their own role.
Consider flexible hours, hybrid arrangements and scheduling autonomy where the work allows them. Ask employees which arrangements help them balance their responsibilities, rather than assuming one model will suit everyone.
Offer access to wellbeing resources, such as mindfulness sessions, fitness support or qualified mental health professionals. Check whether people can use them in practice and whether they find them helpful.
Keep feedback channels open through pulse surveys and Q&A sessions. I would also put time into teaching both leaders and colleagues how to give and receive feedback. A survey can reveal a problem; the next conversation helps determine what happens to it.
Review the results over time. Look at employee feedback alongside absence, retention and the other outcomes your organisation is trying to improve. Then change the parts of the programme that are not helping.
More about our culture
Read about People & Culture at Solvoyo and the team behind our work.
