Artificial Intelligence offers a powerful opportunity to expand access to mental health care. But not all AI tools are designed with the safeguards and clinical rigor that people engaging in mental health support need, especially when they’re in crisis. At Lyra, we believe that AI should never lower care quality—it should elevate it.

The most pressing question now is how we can effectively and safely harness AI’s power for mental health. 

AI is evolving quickly, but the foundations of safe, ethical, and effective mental health care remain the same. Lyra’s Polaris Principles ground us in these fundamentals. They’re our blueprint to ensure AI is used responsibly in mental health to deliver on its transformative potential.

For a decade, Lyra has delivered evidence-based mental health care to millions worldwide, combining technology with a human touch. As we expand the role of AI to strengthen our care, we continue to uphold strict ethical standards and keep people’s wellbeing at the center of everything we do. Preserving the humanity at the heart of care is essential, which means respecting each person’s autonomy, lived experience, and background, as well as retaining connection to human providers when needed. With clinical outcomes as our north star, our approach is guided by science, member and customer feedback, and wide-ranging expertise.

Principle I: Safety is paramount

Lyra is committed to following strong ethical guidelines and clinical protocols to deliver safe, effective, and practical AI support for mental health, including those from respected organizations like the American Psychological Association, World Health Organization, and the International Coaching Federation.

What makes this possible is the guardrails we built in our AI solutions from the start. Unlike generic AI, Lyra AI is designed with mental health-specific protocols at its core to protect people and promote therapeutic progress. These guardrails include: 

• Clinical-grade training – Decades of evidence-based training shape how Lyra AI responds, guiding members towards more helpful choices and behaviors and not validating harmful ones.
• Active monitoring and escalation – AI interactions are monitored, with clear protocols for looping in a human provider if risks or other concerns arise.
• Rigorous testing and evaluation – Predefined benchmarks assess the safety, appropriateness, and inclusiveness of Lyra AI, promoting meaningful outcomes for each innovation.
• Human expertise at the core – Clinical experts guide every stage of AI development and provide oversight. Drawing on diverse backgrounds and specialties, they ensure Lyra AI is both effective and inclusive.

Principle II: Human providers are critical 

AI can offer tremendous value to members via round-the-clock support. AI also has limitations which is why expert mental health providers remain the foundation of care. Lyra AI is designed to enhance and complement clinicians, creating a synergistic solution that drives better outcomes, accountability, and engagement.

Key clinical priorities:

• Integrated care – Human providers and AI deliver a stronger care solution that is more coordinated, timely, and personalized for each client. Clients retain access to human providers when that is the right level of care for their needs. 
• Accountability and oversight – Clinicians maintain ultimate responsibility for care, ensuring overall care supported by AI aligns with best practices and therapeutic goals. 
• Enhanced outcomes – Combining human expertise with AI allows for more consistent, around-the-clock support and reinforcement of skills, improved monitoring of progress, and timely intervention when challenges arise. 

Principle III: Culturally responsive care is key to global reach 

AI has the potential to expand mental health support around the world, reaching people who might otherwise experience significant barriers to care. To be truly inclusive and effective, AI must reflect the values, language, and culture of the people it serves. Lyra prioritizes culturally responsive care to build trust, reduce stigma, and ensure meaningful impact across diverse populations.  

Key clinical priorities:

• Inclusive AI design – Lyra AI is trained on diverse datasets and tested to reduce bias, to increase its relevance and effectiveness across different communities.
• Local expertise – We tailor AI for local languages, customs, and cultures, in close collaboration with regional clinical experts.
• Equity and accessibility – Lyra AI is designed to support people with a wide range of comfort with technology, so care is accessible and inclusive.

Principle IV: Innovation driven by science

Lyra advances mental health care by leveraging rigorous clinical science and research in AI development, so every intervention is evidence-based and designed to deliver meaningful clinical outcomes. Our approach sets a high standard for AI in mental health, which is not yet common across the industry.

Key clinical priorities:

• Evidence-based – Lyra AI is trained on high-quality data linked to proven clinical outcomes.
• Ongoing research and knowledge sharing – Lyra contributes to the field through peer-reviewed publications and clinical studies, transparently sharing outcomes to advance best practices in AI-supported mental health. 
• Measurable clinical outcomes – AI innovations are evaluated for real-world improvements in clinical effectiveness, impact on overall well-being as well as client engagement and satisfaction.

Guiding the future of mental health care

We’re excited about AI’s potential to expand access to mental health care at an unprecedented scale – and we’re committed to doing it with the highest ethical and clinical standards.

In honor of World Mental Health Day this year, HR and benefits leaders are taking the opportunity to re-evaluate how their organization supports employee well-being. 

Because when you better understand your employees as full people, you can begin to implement holistic care solutions that keep them healthy and happy. You stop reacting to symptoms of employee stress, and start to proactively build workplaces that protect from the kinds of stress that are hazardous to employee wellbeing and job performance.

The traditional wellness vendor approach tends to treat employee mental health as an individual-level problem, with minimal collaboration among organizations and their benefits partners. Companies that want to help stressed employees might offer a menu of one-off benefits, like yoga classes, meditation apps, or individual therapy sessions. 

While all of these solutions are useful, they’re not enough by themselves. This approach manages surface-level challenges without addressing what’s causing them—whether that’s work-related stressors that call for systemic solutions, or personal issues like caregiver burden or childcare needs that go beyond what individual therapy can address. Like giving cough drops to someone with strep throat, they might temporarily ease pain, but they won’t make the underlying infection go away.

Addressing mental health effectively requires turning the workplace into a strong community of care. This means treating mental health as an organizational responsibility and creating a culture of sustainable work that supports employees both at work and at home. 

As part of World Mental Health Day, we’re providing managers with practical resources for preventing burnout, addressing workplace loneliness, and fostering psychological safety. Get the “Manager’s Toolkit” here.  

A culture of sustainable work thrives on three key elements: workplace transformation, whole-family support, and culturally responsive care. 

Workplace transformation: Addressing the root causes of stress and burnout, not just symptoms 

Almost one-third of employees today list work-related stress and burnout as their top mental health concern, highlighting the importance of direct workplace interventions to support employee wellness. 

Creating a strong community requires evaluating the working environment to identify factors that contribute to mental health challenges, which can be complex. At work, these factors could include unclear role expectations, poor working conditions, or lack of support from a manager. Stress and burnout are systemic issues, so organizations must change how they operate rather than simply provide employees with tools to manage issues on their own. At home, they might include navigating caregiver responsibilities and financial pressures.

What you can do:

• Include thorough overviews of wellness benefits as part of new employee onboarding, manager training, and internal community resources. Routinely remind your employees of the resources available to them.
• Managers have a profound impact on employees’ day-to-day lives—but 40% lack confidence in supporting employees with mental health challenges. Give your managers the training and tools they need to help their teams prioritize wellness. Start by conducting role clarity exercises to identify gaps between manager and employee expectations and align teams.
• Set individual, team, and company-level goals that are related to employee wellness, such as retention rate, employee engagement scores, and time-to-fill open positions. 
• Develop events programs that invite employees and leaders to share stories about their mental health struggles and how resources like clinical therapy have helped them.

Ready to make lasting changes in your work environment? Our Workforce Transformation team is here to help.

Whole family support: Benefits that extend to home life 

What happens at home doesn’t always stay at home. When employees worry about their family members, like their children and parents, it becomes more difficult for them to focus and fully engage with their peers. 

More than half of working parents in the US support children struggling with mental health. One in three parents in this situation report a decline in their own mental health, with many of them expressing that their mental health challenges have a “strong” or “significant” impact on their ability to do their job. 

When families receive proper support, employees are better equipped to do their best work. Rather than suffering from burnout that may force them to leave the workforce altogether, they have the energy to collaborate with their colleagues and grow within their role.

When you build your baseline policies around the people most in need of support, you inevitably create work environments that are better for everybody. For example, sick leave and flex work policies that support single parents will also be better for employees with other family structures, creating a culture that values work-life integration and driving retention and overall job satisfaction. 

A rising tide lifts all boats. 

What you can do:

• Make sure your mental health benefits include specialized offerings for children and teens, from educational content to coaching and therapy options. Offer personalized care solutions for common mental health challenges, such as Autism Spectrum Disorder. 
• Connect parents and caregivers with personalized coaching that helps them build skills to navigate unique parenting challenges. 
• Go beyond individual therapy to offer couples therapy and family therapy benefits. 
• Provide comprehensive dependent care assistance, including backup childcare and elder care support. 
• Create realistic parental leave policies and structured return-to-work plans that include phased re-entry options and ongoing check-ins for employees transitioning back after parental or FMLA leave. 

Lyra can work with you to offer coaching and specialized support for employees and their family members, including for children and teens.

Culturally responsive care: Benefits that acknowledge everyone’s perspective  

Mental health support only succeeds when it prioritizes cultural understanding. 

Employees need to feel genuinely understood and valued for who they are, without having to constantly explain their background or experiences. Cultural alignment helps prevent employees from having to take on the burden of educating their provider about their experiences while trying to work through the challenges they face.

For example, Kamila Jones, a Lyra client and senior project engineer at JE Dunn, suffered from panic attacks driven by a combination of work and home stressors. After working unsuccessfully with multiple therapists who didn’t understand her cultural background, her employer connected her with a Lyra provider who shared her identity as a woman of color in a specific age range. 

“The things we deal with on a daily basis come from when we grew up and the environment we were raised in,” she shares.

https://video.lyrahealth.com/watch/Jg1bAEvdNo6Q7DCmcV7wLe

Cultural competence makes mental health care more accessible and effective for LGBTQIA+ communities, Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) employees, and other underrepresented populations. 

What you can do: 

• Establish employee resource groups to support employees with specific identities and backgrounds. Provide resources and budget for employees to launch and run organization-backed communities to discuss issues, share how they’re using relevant resources, and celebrate their voices. 
• Identify internal advocates who understand local cultures and employee backgrounds to run group sessions, ERGs, and cultural events.
• Partner with mental health providers who can offer care in multiple languages and understand diverse cultural approaches to wellness. 
• Ensure your training and internal communications reflect diverse family structures, cultural backgrounds, and life experiences. 

Lyra can help you make this outcome a reality for all your employees, by connecting them to our diverse network of providers trained in culturally responsive care.

A shared journey

World Mental Health Day reminds us that mental health is a shared journey. 

Mental health challenges don’t take shape in isolation—factors at work and at home all play a role. Every individual deserves holistic support that acknowledges their unique experience and helps them connect the dots to the resources, care, and community that can help them. By understanding your people, you can begin to guide your organization to tackle the root issues that impact your employees.

The most productive, forward-thinking organizations build strong communities of care. They treat mental health as a collective, organizational responsibility and create a culture of mental well-being.

By focusing on the these elements, organizations can proactively address mental health challenges at their source:

• Workplace transformation tackles organizational stressors before they drive burnout and turnover.
• Home support addresses family stressors before they derail work performance.
• Cultural alignment ensures that these support is accessible and effective for everybody. 

When you build systems that support employees as the whole people that they are, they thrive—and your organization does too.

GLP-1 medications can be an important tool in supporting physical health, but they can’t do everything. A prescription can’t heal someone’s relationship with their body or teach healthy coping skills. Without addressing these root causes, the pounds often return once the medication stops.

This isn’t just frustrating for employees—it’s unsustainable for organizations. With an almost 600% increase in GLP-1 prescriptions, the rising health care costs are paying for temporary results, not long-term health improvements that truly support your people and workplace.

Lyra’s solution: healing the mind-body relationship

We believe there’s a better way to support your employees—one that honors their full experience. That’s why we’re expanding our care for chronic conditions to include dedicated behavioral health support for weight concerns and body image. Lyra’s integrated care is a proven approach that addresses physical, mental, and social health for long-term change.

Our care for weight concerns offers:

Support from all angles

We help people explore the why behind their weight concern and body image journey. This includes behavioral and mental health factors like emotional eating, stress, and self-worth. Employees build healthy coping skills and change behavior patterns for sustainable health.

Evidence-based care

Our providers use proven therapies like cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT).

Personalized support

Health can be shaped by an individual’s culture, identity, and lived experiences. Our care is never one-size-fits-all; it honors what matters most to each person. This inclusive approach helps your entire workforce feel seen and supported on their own terms.

A connected care experience

Today, care is often fragmented, mental and physical health providers operate in silos, leaving members to piece everything together on their own. Our vision with Lyra Link is to change that. We’re building toward a future where mental health providers and physical health partners are seamlessly connected, creating a truly coordinated care experience. In this future, every member of the care team works together, ensuring people receive whole-person support that feels integrated, not fragmented.

Our goal is helping people build a healthier relationship with their bodies and live fuller lives. It’s not weight loss for its own sake. Based on their individual needs and goals, members work with their therapists to gain insight and learn skills that can support making sustainable changes to their lives. This can reduce a reliance on medication. The payoff: employees feel more in control of their health, and employers see lower GLP-1 spend with lasting results.

Beyond weight concerns

Lyra’s specialty care doesn’t stop at weight and body image concerns. We know that chronic conditions often come with complex mental health needs, and our approach addresses them together. Some of these include:

• Cardiovascular disease – Lyra helps people build lasting habits around nutrition, movement, and sleep while staying on track with their medical treatment. Just as importantly, our therapists support people in managing the stress and anxiety that often come with heart conditions.
• Insomnia – Sleep is one of the most important foundations of health, but stress, anxiety, and unhelpful habits can disrupt it. Lyra clinicians use CBT-I—the gold standard for treating insomnia—to help people reset their sleep patterns and feel more rested and functional during the day.
• Chronic pain – Living with ongoing pain affects more than the body—it takes a toll on emotional well-being too. Lyra therapists use research-backed approaches to help people manage pain, build resilience, and restore a sense of balance and quality of life.

Support long-term well-being

Forward-thinking benefits leaders are moving beyond quick fixes to deliver care that addresses mental and physical health together. The outcome: healthier, more resilient employees, measurable impact on costs, and a benefits strategy that truly moves the needle.

Every workforce is made up of people at very different points on the mental health continuum. Some employees are facing challenges and stressors that stretch their ability to cope. Others are doing ‘fine’ but could benefit from support to feel more resilient, flexible, and able to thrive. Leading organizations tell us they want to meet all these needs, not just respond when issues become urgent. That’s where mental fitness comes in.

Mental fitness is about strengthening the brain’s ability to adapt, recover, and perform under stress—like cross-training for the mind. By helping employees build this resilience, flexibility, and stamina, employers can help workers reach their full potential.

What is mental fitness?

Mental fitness is your capacity to draw on your skills and resources to help tackle challenges, increase positive emotions, and thrive. Think of mental fitness like a muscle—you can build it over time through small, purposeful habits and routines. And while 73% of employees say their mental health has affected their work, most won’t seek out traditional therapy. But many are open to approachable, stigma-free mental fitness activities like meditation, reflection exercises, or gratitude practices.

Historically, mental health has been associated with illness or struggle. But in reality, it’s a spectrum that includes challenges on one end and thriving on the other. Mental fitness supports us across that full spectrum, helping to buffer against challenges while also helping us savor positive experiences.

Mental fitness works because our brains are designed to change. Thanks to neuroplasticity, the brain can adapt and form new connections based on how we think, act, and respond to our environment. That means small, intentional shifts—like new ways of handling stress, relating to emotions, or approaching challenges—can add up to big results. Each time we practice these habits, we’re reinforcing new neural pathways, creating a positive feedback loop where change becomes easier and mental fitness grows stronger.

Consider a situation where two sales managers face the same setback: a major client unexpectedly backs out. One spirals into self-doubt, loses momentum, and struggles to rally their team. The other feels the sting but recovers quickly, reframes the loss as a learning opportunity, and leads the team toward new prospects. The difference isn’t luck—it’s mental fitness.

Why mental fitness matters

The speed of change at work isn’t slowing down. Economic uncertainty and shifting expectations are fueling higher cognitive load and emotional strain. Left unchecked, that strain leads to burnout, turnover, and costly disengagement.

Organizations that weave mental fitness into their culture see measurable gains:

• Protection against burnout. At its core, burnout is a systemic problem. But there are things we can do as individuals to lower our burnout risk and guard against its consequences. Employees with stronger mental fitness recover from stress faster and are less likely to experience emotional fatigue because they’re resilient, self-regulating, and flexible.
• Enhanced work-life balance. Strong mental fitness helps us be more focused and intentional, freeing up valuable mental energy for life outside of work.
• More effective leadership. Mental fitness allows leaders to zoom out and see the full picture—both internally and externally—leading to better decisions and stronger relationships.
• Sharper decision-making. Greater cognitive flexibility and clarity under pressure lead to better business outcomes.
• Stronger teams. Mental fitness supports better communication and conflict resolution.
• Talent magnetism. 81% of employees say they’re more likely to join or stay with an employer that prioritizes mental health.
• Cost savings. Proactive mental health strategies and comprehensive benefits help reduce absenteeism and downstream health care costs.

Making mental fitness part of your workforce strategy

The organizations that excel in the next decade will be the ones that treat mental fitness as a core performance driver. That means:

• Embedding mental fitness into performance culture. Celebrate skills like resilience, adaptability, and emotional regulation as much as business results. Recognize employees who demonstrate these strengths and make them part of what “great performance” looks like.
• Auditing work design to support mental fitness habits. For employees to practice awareness, set boundaries, and respond intentionally instead of reactively, the work environment must make those habits possible. For example, if leaders expect immediate responses at all hours, employees can’t practice the mental fitness skill of setting healthy boundaries. Designing work and norms that respect recovery time enables people to build—and sustain—mental fitness.
• Providing tools for everyone. Guided meditations, digital exercises, coaching, and peer programs help employees strengthen everyday mental fitness skills like focus, self-awareness, and stress management—before challenges escalate.

Mental fitness tips for leaders

As a leader, building your mental fitness has a ripple effect. Not only will it benefit you and your well-being, but by modeling mental fitness habits, you can shape a culture where others feel empowered to do the same.

#1 Cultivate flexible thinking

Strong leaders are open to new ideas, perspectives, and information—a mindset that fuels innovation and better decisions. Flexible thinking is the skill that makes this possible. It doesn’t mean abandoning your beliefs or avoiding strong opinions. Instead, it’s about building the habit of examining your views and updating them when new evidence or perspectives warrant it.

You can practice this by noticing when you hold a strong opinion and asking yourself—or your team—‘What would it take to change our minds?’ This simple question helps you pause, broaden your thinking, and welcome fresh insights.

Over time, these intentional moments of openness strengthen new brain connections, making flexible thinking a natural part of how you approach challenges and opportunities. Leaders can also model this skill by showing intellectual humility with statements like, ‘I don’t know yet, I need to learn more.’ These small shifts encourage flexibility in yourself and create a culture where others feel safe to think differently too.

#2 Model mindfulness and balance

Your team takes cues from you. Protect time for breaks, block your calendar when you’re offline, and set clear boundaries around after-hours communication. When leaders show they prioritize rest and recovery, they give employees permission to do the same.

#3 Use gratitude as a leadership tool

We can rewire our brains to be more biased toward positive thoughts, emotions and experiences. One of the most effective and straightforward ways we have to do that is via practicing gratitude.

For a leader, practicing gratitude not only strengthens your mental fitness, but it’s also a powerful tool for building a culture of recognition and appreciation on your teams. You can build this habit with consistent practice: set aside a consistent time each day to reflect on three things you’re grateful for, a practice shown to shift your brain toward noticing more positives. You can also make it a routine to thank someone directly—a coworker, friend, or family member—with a quick message of appreciation.

Research shows this not only boosts your own well-being but also uplifts the recipient, creating positivity for both. Even taking 30 seconds to thank a teammate for their help or a partner for a small act at home can make a lasting impact. Over time, these small practices train your brain toward gratitude and strengthen the kind of positive mindset that benefits both you and the people around you.

Mental fitness tips for employees

Building mental fitness doesn’t require huge amounts of time. Small, consistent actions can help you feel calmer, more resilient, and more focused, both in and out of work. Here are a few skills you can start building today.

#1 Practice mindfulness with a quick check-in

Mindfulness is the practice of noticing your thoughts, feelings, and environment in the present moment and without judgment. You can build this muscle by creating brief, intentional opportunities to hit pause and check in with yourself. This is something that can be done anytime, anywhere, and requires no equipment. Even check-ins as short as 90 seconds can help you build your mindfulness muscle.

First, intentionally focus your attention on the here and now. Then, simply notice your thoughts, emotions, and any physical sensations. As you’re noticing, be curious about your experience, observing your thoughts, feelings, and environment just as they are. The final step is to observe this experience with curiosity and without judgment, just as it is.

#2 Regulate strong emotions with opposite action

Big emotions can hijack our reactions—especially when stress runs high. The problem is, our first instinct isn’t always the one that helps us in the long run. That’s where the skill of “opposite action” can help.

Before reacting, pause and ask yourself two questions:

• Does my emotion (and the intensity of it) fit the facts of this situation?
• Will acting on my instinct help me in the long run?

If the answer is no to either one, that’s your cue to do the opposite of what the emotion urges. For example:

• Anger: Instead of criticizing or lashing out, seek calm and understanding
• Anxiety or fear: Instead of avoiding, take a step closer
• Sadness or grief: Instead of withdrawing, reach out
• Depression: Instead of staying in bed, engage in activity

This shift doesn’t mean your feelings aren’t valid—it means you’re choosing a response that protects your long-term goals and well-being. Over time, practicing the opposite action helps strengthen emotional balance, build resilience, and prevent stress from snowballing.

#3 Start a gratitude habit

Practicing gratitude is one of the easiest ways to strengthen your own mental fitness. When you train your brain to focus on what’s going well, it helps balance out stress and makes it easier to stay resilient.

Build stronger teams with mental fitness

Mental fitness helps people feel grounded and engaged and keeps organizations agile. When leaders prioritize it, they create an environment where people can thrive.

A one-size-fits-all approach to global workforce mental health can’t meet the diverse needs of employees based in different parts of the world. To improve employee satisfaction and quality of life as well as minimize issues such as turnover and reduced productivity in your global workforce, company benefits leaders need a more personalized approach to workforce mental health solutions. So how can organizations make sure that employees in all corners of the world have access to mental health support?

Mental health around the world: global mental health statistics

Rates of mental health disorders are escalating worldwide, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. One in eight people worldwide has a mental health disorder, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). In a study of global employees, 41 percent of respondents reported declines in mental health due to the pandemic. “The mental health and well-being of whole societies have been severely impacted by this crisis and are a priority to be addressed urgently,” said Devora Kestel, director of the WHO’s mental health department. Mental health disorders are the leading cause of disability worldwide. The WHO estimates that the loss in productivity due to depression and anxiety alone costs the global economy $1 trillion each year. Some of the countries with the highest rates of mental disorders include China, India, and the U.S.

Barriers to global mental health care

Although effective treatments exist, few people receive the care they need. Globally, more than 70 percent of people with mental health disorders don’t have access to care. The 26 million people worldwide with severe mental illness face some of the heaviest challenges; nearly 90 percent of people who need treatment for schizophrenia in low-income countries do not receive it. Common barriers to care include:

Discrimination and stigma against people with mental disorders

Seeking mental health care remains taboo throughout much of the world. Many developing countries lack funding for mental health, primarily delivering care through psychiatric institutions. This drives many people to keep their struggles secret. Research shows that people in Eastern countries are more likely to view mental illness as shameful or a moral failing than Western countries. People in Asian countries face especially heavy stigma; for example, as many as 80 percent of psychiatric patients in China experience discrimination.

Shortage of trained mental health care workers

With just 1 percent of the global health workforce choosing to work in mental health, there is a glaring shortage of mental health professionals worldwide that severely limits access to treatment. Almost half (45 percent) of the world’s population lives in a country with less than one psychiatrist for every 100,000 people.

Limited education, awareness, and research related to mental illness

Just as there is a shortage of mental health professionals, there is a lack of trained mental health researchers, leaving gaps in understanding mental illness. In developing countries, limited education about mental illness as a health condition that requires treatment prevents people from seeking help.

Geographical distance from providers

In many low- and middle-income countries, mental health conditions are treated in centralized psychiatric hospitals rather than primary care or community health centers. This makes it difficult for people who live far away from a facility to access care.

Fragmented delivery models

In both developing and developed countries, the health care system typically deals with mental health care separately from physical health, creating a confusing maze for people to navigate. Rather than taking a holistic approach, mental health treatment options are often limited, with long wait times.

Cost

Costs and not having health insurance are barriers to mental health services. Even for those who do have insurance, mental health treatment may not be covered in some countries. In addition, many mental health providers are out-of-network, which is expensive.

Inadequate preventive services

The challenge of addressing global mental health can’t be addressed through treatment alone. Prevention is key. Mental disorders typically emerge in childhood and adolescence. Identifying and treating these issues early in life can help prevent disability and improve outcomes in adults. Yet in many countries, child mental health care is still in early stages of development.

Tips for supporting your global workforce’s mental health

Faced with different barriers and needs across a variety of locations, what can managers and company leaders do to support their global workforce? Developing specific programs and messaging to decrease stigma is a good place to start. Employers play an important role in destigmatizing mental illness and nurturing a positive work environment. When managers and company leaders talk openly about mental health, they send a message that employees are safe talking about their challenges, too. Research shows this type of authentic leadership builds trust and improves employee performance. Here are a few ways you can make mental health part of an ongoing conversation in your workplace:

• Be conscious of the language you and others use, and respond quickly to inappropriate remarks about mental illness
• Share internal videos of company leaders discussing their mental health
• Develop a team of “mental health champions” who build awareness of mental health and are non-judgmental sources of support
• Create ongoing mental health awareness campaigns, trainings, or workshops that educate employees about mental illness and encourage them to seek help
• Talk about mental health on all-company calls
• Model healthy behaviors by using paid time off (PTO) or telling employees you took time for a mid-day walk, therapy appointment, or other form of self-care
• Develop and enforce anti-discrimination policies

The importance of localized care

Global workforces require easy access to professional, confidential, consistently high-quality mental health care regardless of where they are in the world. To be effective, that care must also be locally nuanced and relevant.

“There’s an extraordinary difference in how people think about mental health concepts in different countries, from how we describe illness to how we ask people if they’re OK,” says Gus Booth-Clibborn, chief technology officer at ICAS World, a Lyra Health company. In some parts of the world, people express mental health challenges through physical symptoms rather than talking openly. Or people may ask for help with practical concerns like housing or legal status rather than asking directly for mental health support. Understanding these different manifestations can be powerful in getting people the care they need.

With 35 years of experience providing mental health services on a global scale, leaders at ICAS have found that care has to be delivered at a local level to achieve the best outcomes. “And when it comes to local, we mean much more than just language,” says Andrew Davies, chief executive officer at ICAS World. “Language is absolutely critical, but it also involves an understanding of local culture, health care infrastructure, legislation, and geo-political and socioeconomic situations.”

For example, in some countries being part of the LGBTQIA+ community is illegal and members of that community are persecuted. In other countries, suicide is criminalized. In these areas, it’s critical for care providers to offer support that doesn’t put people at risk. Even small actions, like the “thumbs up” symbol, eating during meetings, or calling someone on a Friday can be significant because they may be considered offensive in some regions.

And while it’s critical for global workforce mental health to understand these differences, it’s also important to remember the similarities we all share. “Thinking globally is essentially about cultural competence. At the heart of it is awareness, but awareness isn’t enough,” says Davies. “Sometimes we think too much about how we’re different and not how we’re the same. Certain fundamentals traverse almost every culture—showing respect, listening, acknowledging others, asking questions, being tolerant, expressing interest and gratitude, and finding something in common.”

Balancing global parity with local concerns

Most organizations strive for parity in their global mental health benefits, so that there’s a similar standard everywhere in the world for the types of services available, wait time to access those services, and quality of care. But what does global parity look like?

“It’s critical to realize that the world is not the same,” says Davies. “And it’s a mistake to try and treat it as the same because different countries have different languages, cultures, religions, health care systems, legislative environments, geographical challenges, and attitudes towards mental health. A great global mental health program is one that’s able to recognize, respect, and accommodate those differences.”

At Lyra, we do this by ensuring that our services are relevant and appropriate to every country. Care is not only provided in local languages, but also adapted to local conditions. For Lyra, parity means global operational consistency and ease of access, along with flexibility at the country level to accommodate important local considerations.

For example, in many Western countries, we often respond to a critical incident by running a group trauma debriefing session with those who are impacted. However, in countries such as Japan, where there’s a heavy stigma around mental health and expressing emotional distress can be perceived as a weakness and bring shame to an individual’s family, a group session is often contraindicated and we would need to intervene on an individual level more appropriately. 

Some essential ways to achieve balance between global strategic alignment and local relevance are:

• Identify a strong in-country program champion or local custodian who understands the unique local needs and challenges and can communicate those to stakeholders
• Choose a global mental health benefit that understands the local environment and can work with a company custodian to position the program to meet those needs
• Make sure the benefit has a robust local clinical presence with providers who are equipped to deal with local issues and challenges

“Mental health is deeply bound to context and culture,” says Davies. “An employee in Germany isn’t too concerned about whether or not she has exactly the same service as her colleagues in the U.S. She’s more concerned about having easy access to high-quality care that’s relevant and appropriate to her needs. Seeking parity is a noble pursuit—one that should be about consistency in standards of care and an ability to manage local differences effectively.”

Mental health care hasn’t reached its Waymo moment just yet.

At the Lyra Breakthrough 2025 Conference, Dr. Tom Insel, former director of the National Institute of Mental Health, explored how AI has evolved in mental health. “I tend to sort of put this into a timeline where I think about how we did navigation,” he said. “When I was growing up, we had these paper maps to go on a trip, and now we use GPS. And I guess the question is: Are we ready for Waymo?”

His answer: Not yet. Autonomous AI therapy is still worlds away. But he emphasized that generative AI could still have a profound impact on mental health care right now. It has the potential to improve care navigation, patient engagement, and the quality of therapeutic interventions.

For benefits leaders looking to bring a mental health benefits provider on board, this development presents both opportunities and risks. By choosing a generative AI-focused vendor, you can empower your employees to live better and perform at their best. But if that partner has rushed into adopting the tech without proper human oversight, it can have the opposite effect.

At Breakthrough, Jen Fisher—Creator and Host of The WorkWell Podcast—discussed the benefits and drawbacks of generative AI in mental health with three brilliant panelists:

• Dr. Tom Insel, psychiatrist, neuroscientist, and author
• Dr. Alethea Varra, Senior VP of Clinical Care at Lyra
• Briana Duffy, Market President at Carelon Behavioral Health

Their perspectives demonstrate how responsible vendors are embracing generative AI, creating a valuable learning opportunity for those who are looking to scale care for complex employee issues without compromising quality.

Discover how we’re using AI to bring life-changing mental health care to people across the globe.

Don’t let generative AI drift off course

Dr. Alethea Varra, Senior VP of Clinical Care at Lyra, tells her clients the truth, even if it’s hard to hear. Because that is what exceptional therapists do.

“My job as a therapist so very often is to sit down with a human in front of me and to tell them something that is not actually going to make them happy,” she shares. “I’m asking them to challenge their own beliefs, to challenge their own thoughts, to challenge sometimes very deeply rooted patterns of behavior.”

Generative AI, on the other hand, tends to tell people what they want to hear, even if it hurts them. Unlike traditional rule-based AI that follows strict protocols, generative AI learns as it goes, with the ultimate marker of success being whether the human user is happy with the response.

Its people-pleasing tendencies can have serious consequences. For example, a non-profit organization designed a chatbot to provide therapeutic support for disordered eating. But it started to give feedback that actually affirmed and exacerbated the user’s behavior. While it had clear parameters about appropriate responses, it still drifted from its therapeutic purpose, working against the very people it was meant to help.

Benefits leaders, ensure you’re selecting providers that prioritize clinically sound guidance over feel-good responses. Otherwise, you might end up with solutions that not only undermine therapeutic efficacy but also put employees at risk of receiving contraindicated advice.

The importance of the human touch

While generative AI carries risk, the potential it carries is too valuable to ignore.

Dr. Varra shares that moving forward requires that humans and technology work together. When mental health benefits providers embrace generative AI, they need to keep humans in the loop to prevent it from optimizing for satisfaction rather than effective treatment. “The intersection of AI and humans—it’s the magic we need to figure out,” she says.

This approach enables providers to enjoy the tech’s benefits without compromising patient outcomes. Responsible providers proactively assemble an oversight team first, then use AI for administrative tasks to establish clinician trust before rolling out therapeutic intervention.

1. Establish clinical oversight
2. Streamline administrative tasks with generative AI
3. Apply generative AI to manualized therapeutic interventions
4. Enable continuous monitoring and human intervention

Understanding the rollout of human-centered AI for therapeutic care can help benefits leaders like you understand the qualities to seek (and avoid) when evaluating potential vendors.

How responsible mental health benefits providers approach generative AI deployment

Step 1: Establishing clinical oversight

The humans in the loop can’t be just anyone. Dr. Varra notes that they need to be seasoned clinicians who can understand the subtle nuances between responses that sound good and those that are actually effective.

Forward-thinking providers are hiring clinicians specifically for AI oversight roles. They monitor human-AI interactions and create clear escalation protocols for concerning responses.

Red flag for benefits leaders: Your potential vendor can’t name the clinical leaders responsible for AI supervision.

Step 2: Streamlining administrative tasks with generative AI

Responsible providers are starting with low-risk generative AI applications that don’t directly impact care delivery. They’re using the tech to streamline time-consuming, manual tasks, like data capture and clinical documentation.

This simultaneously frees clinicians to focus on deeper engagement with their patients and builds organizational trust in AI capabilities. Briana Duffy, Market President at Carelon Behavioral Health, shares that mental health remains deeply human work, emphasizing the importance of the bond between therapists and their patients. “Human connection is so critical when it comes to the care journey,” she expresses. 

Technology should deepen rather than disrupt those essential relationships.

Red flag for benefits leaders: Your vendor doesn’t use AI to support clinicians in their day-to-day work.

Step 3: Applying generative AI to manualized therapeutic interventions

When it comes to applying generative AI to actual therapeutic work, Dr. Insel notes that it’s critical to start with manualized interventions, like using cognitive behavioral therapy to address a phobia. These interventions follow clearly defined, standardized steps that help minimize the need for subjective decision-making.

Psychoanalytic interventions, on the other hand, are not appropriate candidates for the use of AI. They’re more open-ended, with a focus on the therapist reading between the lines to explore subconscious thought, which would leave AI with far too much room for interpretation.

Red flag for benefits leaders: Your vendor doesn’t have a framework for determining when AI is appropriate vs. when human therapists must lead.

Step 4: Enabling continuous monitoring and human intervention

The rollout of generative AI for therapy is just the beginning. Leading providers are calling on their oversight teams to evaluate therapeutic interactions on a regular cadence and flag concerning patterns that need to be addressed.

Human intervention goes beyond correcting AI when it starts to drift. Providers also need teams of skilled humans who are prepared to respond when AI identifies patients in need of urgent care. 

Duffy’s team at Carelon can identify patients at risk of self-harm or suicidal ideation, typically five months prior to an attempt. She highlights that having that predictive capability is only valuable if there are skilled clinicians ready to perform trauma-informed, compassionate interventions when AI sounds the alarm.

Red flag for benefits leaders: Your vendor doesn’t have systematic review processes or established protocols for emergency response.

Moving into the future with confidence

Mental health benefits providers who thoughtfully balance AI with human oversight take advantage of everything the tech has to offer while keeping patients safe.

They care for larger populations by automating manualized interventions, while ensuring that patients receive constructive, not counterproductive, guidance. Meanwhile, by using AI to free clinicians from routine administrative tasks, like data capture and documentation, providers enable them to engage more quickly and meaningfully when human intervention is required.

For benefits leaders, partnering with a responsible vendor can create unprecedented value for employees. Your employees will have more immediate access to care when they need it. They’ll receive clinically sound care that helps them genuinely heal. And they’ll benefit from deeper, more meaningful relationships with clinicians when they need them the most.

When providers demonstrate that they are responsibly using AI, you can take confidence in the fact that your investment is having a deeply positive impact on the well-being and performance of each member of your workforce.

At 2 a.m., a mother on leave in Mexico City is overwhelmed by postpartum depression. In your London office, a manager is worried about a grieving employee. Neither knows exactly what to do, but they know they need help now.

These aren’t rare events—they’re everyday realities for a global workforce. When someone is struggling, a robotic dead-end or a delayed, impersonal response only deepens their sense of isolation. Mental health care isn’t one-size-fits-all, especially when your workforce spans continents.

At Lyra, humans are always available. We offer a round-the-clock Care Navigator with the clinical expertise and local knowledge to guide a crisis to a turning point.

5 ways Lyra redefines care navigation 

We’ve built a care navigation system designed for real impact: expansive, responsive, and always there. Here’s what sets it apart:

#1 Unmatched global reach with local expertise

Lyra has the largest care navigation network in the industry. With support in 220 countries and territories and 55+ languages, we connect employees with an in-country care navigator who understands the cultural and regulatory landscape. 

Impact: Consistent quality of care and local compliance knowledge across your global workforce, without adding administrative burden for your HR team. 

#2 The industry’s only 24/7 care navigation team

In case of crisis or a risk flag, members always have access to round-the-clock clinicians. This isn’t just a feature; it’s our global standard of care.

Impact: Employees aren’t left waiting during their most vulnerable moments, and HR teams can rest assured that crises are handled by experts, not left to managers.

#3 Integrated care for every need

From small concerns to serious struggles, our navigators are there every step, providing trusted support for:

• Coordinating smooth transitions when members need more specialized treatment
• Connecting members to resources for legal services and financial support 
• Offering real-time guidance for leaders handling sensitive employee or team challenges
• Global support in areas like addiction, neurodiverse support, and women’s health

Impact: A healthier, more resilient workforce and fewer distractions that pull employees away from their jobs.

#4 Human support, AI-enhanced

AI helps with administrative tasks so navigators can spend more time listening, understanding, and guiding people to the right care, freeing care navigators to focus on more complex and nuanced conversations. 

Impact: More time listening to members than writing summaries and a benefit that puts people first.

#5 Measurable outcomes

Last year alone, we supported more than 240,000 people worldwide—guiding them to the right care, so they weren’t left to figure it out alone. And this year, our care navigators proactively reached out to over 17,000 members who had been identified as high-risk, making sure they got the support they needed. The result is life-changing: 9 out of 10 Lyra members get better.

Impact: Employees get the support they need quickly, and employers see stronger engagement, retention, and productivity.

Your trusted partner in mental health

When your employees can easily access care, they show up healthier, more focused, and more committed. With Lyra’s Care Navigation, you get:

• Better outcomes for employees: Faster access, personalized guidance, and wraparound support
• Less strain on your HR team: Crises and complex needs are handled by professionals
• Global consistency: High-quality care navigation anywhere your employees live or work

Better care starts here

A mental health benefit only works if people actually use it. Lyra’s 24/7 global care navigation provides your employees with a lifeline whenever and wherever they need it. 

You can’t fix what you can’t see. An employee engagement survey shines light on the moments that make work great, and the ones that drain productivity. It’s the first step in turning feedback into smarter strategy and strategy into results that stick.

What is employee engagement? 

Employee engagement is how much people are invested in their work and their organization. When employees feel connected to a company’s mission and values, they give more, bring extra effort and creativity, and solve problems better. 

The stakes are high: Disengaged employees drain an estimated $8.8 trillion from the global economy. Employee engagement grows when companies support workplace wellness and equip managers with tools to understand and help their teams (including employee engagement surveys). 

Why are employee engagement surveys important?

A thoughtfully designed employee engagement survey is more than a measurement tool. When organizations not only gather feedback but also act on it, they can boost retention, strengthen trust, and improve both productivity and profitability. the results can make the difference between changes in retention, productivity, profitability, and trust. 

Gallup surveys on employee engagement and employee turnover found engagement surveys may help:

• Reduce absenteeism. Engaged workplaces can experience up to 78% less absenteeism, 14% higher productivity, 23% higher profitability, and 10% higher customer loyalty
• Boost retention. Employee turnover can cost 40–200% of an annual salary. High engagement helps, cutting turnover by 21% in high-turnover industries and 51% in low-turnover ones
• Strengthen the bottom line. Engaged teams can deliver up to 21% higher profitability and 17% higher productivity
• Elevate company culture. The survey process itself often brings teams together, aligns values, and reinforces the company’s mission
• Improve psychological safety. When employees take part in feedback, they feel more heard and valued, fueling trust, collaboration, and creativity

Turn feedback into action (and trust)

Collecting feedback isn’t usually a heavy lift. Acting on it is where many companies stumble. Only 21% of organizations run surveys three or more times a year, even though 58% of employees want more frequent check-ins. This gap between listening and doing can erode employee trust. But when companies design employee feedback surveys with action in mind—digging into what motivates people and turning insights into concrete steps—they don’t just boost engagement. They build the kind of trust that fuels innovation.

How to create an impactful employee engagement survey 

Your employee engagement survey can be more than a check-the-box exercise. It can spark real culture and performance gains when feedback is tied to visible action.

#1 Communicate intentions

Effective engagement surveys communicate why the employee survey matters, how HR will use the data, and what employees can expect afterward. Emphasize anonymity to encourage candid, honest feedback.

#2 Use the LEAD framework

Consider using the LEAD framework for survey questions. It ensures you’re covering areas that matter most to employees:

• Leadership. Gauge how well leaders inspire and communicate. Example: “My team leader communicates a clear vision for our work.”
• Enablement. Find out if employees feel equipped and empowered. Example: “I have the resources and autonomy to do my job effectively.”
• Alignment. Test whether people see the connection between their role and the bigger picture. Example: “I understand how my role contributes to company goals.”
• Development. Explore growth and learning opportunities. Example: “I have opportunities to grow and develop in my role.”

#3 Standardize with a 5-point Likert scale

A simple scale (Strongly disagree → Strongly agree) makes responses easier to track, compare across teams, and measure over time. Consistency is key. It helps you spot trends, identify strengths and weaknesses, and focus your actions where they’ll make the biggest difference.

#4 Drive high participation

Promote the employee feedback survey through email, team meetings, and leadership endorsements. It’s essential to dedicate time during work hours to complete tasks since this tends to improve response.

Taking action on employee engagement surveys

Running an employee engagement survey is just the beginning. What you do next determines whether employees feel heard or ignored.

• Set clear expectations. Share results on a set timeline and outline what happens next.
• Align leadership. Make sure leaders are on the same page about priorities before rolling out to the wider team.
• Equip managers. Give them team-specific data, talking points, and training so they can lead open, productive conversations.
• Co-create solutions. Involve employees in action planning so solutions feel owned, not imposed.
• Keep the loop open. Schedule regular check-ins to show progress and make engagement part of an ongoing rhythm, not a one-off event.
• Tell a story, not just the numbers. Raw metrics don’t move people, stories do. Use employee survey data to build a clear narrative, supported by visuals, that connects insights to real action. This includes using visual storytelling that humanizes the data through heat maps, a trends dashboard, and employee quotes. 

Turn surveys into a tool that drives results

Employee engagement surveys work best when they’re purposeful, timely, and followed by action. Done right, they reveal what fuels your people, build trust through follow-through, and turn feedback into lasting business impact.

Trigger warning: Contains references to suicide and self-harm.

One of the most distressing scenarios for an HR leader is learning that an employee is experiencing a severe mental health crisis and may not be able to keep themselves safe. When a member of your team is struggling with suicidal thoughts or behaviors, your top priority becomes supporting them in receiving the care they need to successfully manage the current crisis and prevent future ones.

Unless you’re familiar with the ins and outs of specialized mental health care, however, you will likely find yourself flooded with a number of questions: Where do we start? Who provides this level of specialized care? How do we vet them for quality? What if there’s a waitlist when this person needs help now? How do I support their manager through this? What can we do differently in the future to catch the warning signs earlier?

This is the moment when you, your organization, and your employee are most in need of specialized, dedicated support to navigate the complex healthcare landscape and connect your employee to the high-quality care they urgently need.

Building a safety net proactively

When an employee’s safety and well-being are on the line, hoping for the best is not enough. An effective workplace suicide prevention strategy requires a comprehensive approach including:

• Immediate access to high-quality, effective care
• A reliable path for accessing higher levels of care when needed
• Support for everyone involved, including the employee, their family, and you and your organization

Lyra takes the guesswork out of this process, providing access to the specialized care and support your employee and their family need.

Immediate access to evidence-based treatment

The treatment of choice for someone struggling with suicidal and self-harm behaviors is dialectical behavior therapy (DBT). DBT is a comprehensive treatment program that combines skills groups, individual therapy, and real-time skills coaching to provide your employees with the skills they need to manage overwhelming emotions, resist urges to harm themselves, navigate interpersonal relationships, and avert crises. With Lyra’s DBT program, members work with a team of expert DBT clinicians and have access to 24/7 skills coaching from trained professionals to assist them in applying new skills in their daily lives.

What sets Lyra’s DBT program apart is its accessibility. Whereas most comprehensive DBT programs have waitlists of three to six months, Lyra connects members to care in just days – ensuring that this life-saving treatment is available when it’s needed most. The Lyra DBT program is also more efficient, lasting four months instead of the standard six, thanks to Lyra’s between-session digital tools that reinforce skills practice throughout the week. Notably, the outcomes speak for themselves: 91% of members who complete the program demonstrate meaningful symptom improvement. This is the treatment you want your employees to receive if they are at risk of harming themselves.

Access to higher levels of care when needed

Although outpatient DBT can help many people through a crisis, some may need more intensive care to ensure their safety. Intensive outpatient programs (IOPs) and partial hospitalization programs (PHPs) can provide a helpful step-up in care to prevent hospitalization, or serve as a vital step-down to help someone safely transition back to their daily routine and outpatient care.

Finding a high-quality intensive program in the midst of a crisis can be a daunting task, however, especially if you are starting from scratch. Lyra has done the hard work ahead of time, building a robust network of 1,000 trusted facility partners so that we are ready to act immediately when members need more support.

Support for the support system

When someone is in crisis, the people around them can feel the weight too. If you are not a trained mental health provider, helping someone navigate a suicidal crisis can be overwhelming and frightening. Family members, managers, and HR leaders alike may struggle with how best to support an employee in crisis and help them traverse the complex and often confusing healthcare system. With Lyra, you don’t have to navigate this maze alone. We provide dedicated support and guidance not just for employees, but for the families and organizations supporting them.

Be ready when your team needs you the most

A mental health crisis is one of the most difficult challenges a workplace can face—not just for the individual, but for their manager, HR leader, and co-workers. With Lyra, you have a pre-built, high-quality safety net that reduces risk, controls costs, and provides a clear path forward for everyone involved.

The support you put in place today can help your employees recover from a crisis and move forward in their lives with a renewed sense of purpose and the ability to navigate crises more effectively in the future.

Employee experience is the beating heart of your workplace. And for benefits leaders, it’s one of the most powerful levers you have to drive engagement, retention, and well-being. When employee experience is positive, people do their best work. When it’s not, even the best benefits can fall flat.

What is employee experience?

Employee experience is the sum of everything an employee encounters at work—interactions with co-workers, the tools and systems they use, leadership behaviors, culture, and support. It spans the entire employee journey, from their first interview to their last day. 

Employee engagement is the indicator. Business results like performance, turnover, and health care costs are outcomes. Employee experience is the input. You can’t demand employee well-being and engagement, but you can design an experience that makes people want to show up, stay, and thrive.

Why is employee experience important?

Employee experience shapes every corner of your organization, from performance to retention and innovation.

A strong employee experience can: 

• Boost performance and profits – Companies with high employee experience scores consistently outperform their peers.
• Improve retention – A poor experience fuels turnover and burnout. A better one keeps people energized, present, and committed.
• Support mental and physical health – Chronic job stress is linked to depression, anxiety, and physical illness.
• Build psychological safety – When employees feel safe and supported, they’re more likely to speak up, take smart risks, and innovate.
• Strengthen inclusion and belonging – A thoughtful experience makes people feel seen, heard, and valued—key drivers of equity and inclusion.

Stages of the employee experience 

Employee experience unfolds over time, with each stage shaping how people feel and perform.

• Recruiting – This is where first impressions are made. Transparency, respect, and communication set the tone for what’s to come.
• Onboarding – A strong start helps new hires feel welcome, prepared, and connected from day one, providing the best employee onboarding experience.
• Engagement – Day-to-day support, tools, and culture drive how  people feel in their roles.
• Performance – Ongoing feedback, recognition, and growth opportunities show employees their work matters.
• Development – Stretch assignments and learning paths build long-term commitment and satisfaction.
• Transition/exits – Thoughtful offboarding creates alumni who may return, refer, or advocate.

How to improve employee experience

A strong employee experience is about more than policies or perks. It requires clear strategy, consistent action, and a culture that puts people first. Here are some tips to boost employee experience:

#1 Measure psychosocial risks

Leaders need to understand how aspects of work are impacting employees adversely so that they can take action to make improvements. A psychosocial risk assessment can also help to measure outcomes like levels of psychological safety and burnout.

#2 Build psychological safety

People do their best work when they feel safe to be honest, take risks, and admit mistakes. Psychological safety is the permission slip your team needs to be fully engaged. It starts with small, consistent actions like leaders modeling vulnerability and inviting feedback, which signal that it’s safe to show up authentically.

#3 Get everyone involved

Employee experience isn’t just top-down. Research shows that even a 15-minute weekly check-in from a manager can significantly improve employee engagement and well-being. Equip managers to lead with empathy and consistency, give leaders the tools to act on what they hear, and invite employees to co-create culture and norms.

#4 Prioritize mental health

For today’s workforce, a supportive culture often matters more than salary. Culture is stronger when mental health is core, not a side benefit. Normalize open conversations, train managers to recognize burnout, and ensure employees have easy access to high-quality care. Small actions, like modeling boundaries or starting meetings with check-ins, reinforce that well-being is valued.The lasting impact of employee experience

#5  Provide real flexibility

Work-life balance looks different for everyone. Redefine it as freedom within a framework—whether that’s hybrid models, flexible core working hours, or recharge days during high-stress periods. For shift and gig workers, this could mean the ability to choose schedules that fit with personal commitments and childcare needs. 

#6 Fuel growth and purpose

People do their best work when they see a future for themselves and understand why their work matters. Generic learning libraries aren’t enough. Personalize development paths, connect employees’ work directly to your company’s mission, and celebrate the impact they create.

#7 Offer recognition that resonates

Recognition should be frequent, specific, and meaningful. Public shout-outs, peer-to-peer kudos, handwritten notes, team-based awards (“Most Creative Problem-Solver”), or even extra time off show people they’re valued.

#8 Supercharge your managers

Managers shape the daily employee experience more than anyone else. Equip them with training in particular for  hybrid leadership, trust-building, and sensitive mental health conversations. Give them the tools to support, not just supervise, their teams.

The lasting impact of employee experience

Improving employee experience isn’t a one-time initiative. It’s an ongoing commitment to your people’s well-being, growth, and sense of belonging. When you design that experience with care and intention, you build a workforce that’s resilient, high performing, and ready for what’s next.