Hello Community,
Workplace well-being and mental health have become the condition sine qua non for sustainable performance.
Although a lot has been done to expand awareness on mental health, and companies have invested more in wellness programs and EAPs, things have not improved as expected.
Reality check:
In 2020, nearly half of employees strongly agreed that their organization cared about their well-being.
Today, that number has dropped to around 23%, according to Gallup.
If you think Gen AI is involved, you are right. It is increasing social isolation, stress, and anxiety.
But the story is more complex: 90% of workplace well-being outcomes are driven by factors beyond the individual.
So, why do employees feel less supported?
Inside this Edition:
The Missing Piece: Well-being Intelligence
From Programs to Well-being Intelligence Systems
A Certificate Program to Expand Organizational WBQ Capabilities
NEW! Hacking HR’s May Summit
Hacking HR Chapters updates
🗞️ In case you missed it: ✨ Hacking HR's new website is LIVE! Enjoy this new user experience and let us know your thoughts! ✨
WORKPLACE WELL-BEING
WHY WELL-BEING INTELLIGENCE IS MISSING
The term Well-being Intelligence (WBQ) was coined by Thomas Roulet and Dr. Kiran Bhatti in 2023. It defines the ability to identify, understand, and redesign the conditions that shape well-being at work.
Self: It starts with self-awareness. Being able to understand our own mental health challenges, what things trigger stress and anxiety in us. It also includes self-care and self-help mechanisms we use to address them. For example, if you need to focus on deep work, you might want to pause notifications and silence your phone.
Teams: Knowing our own triggers helps us become more aware of others. And if we normalize these conversations and expand this awareness at the team level, it’s easier to detect when someone is ‘on edge’. This allows us to self-regulate our reactions and behaviors for collective care. And it also helps build better management practices.
Organizations: This awareness at a team level helps embed well-being into culture over time. But it’s not enough. Because the root cause of stress may remain unchanged and may require a systemic approach (for example, redesigning work, establishing processes and policies), improving leadership behaviors (i.e., communication, managing workloads). Sometimes, employees may not recognize when they need support (trained managers are crucial here, so they can intervene early to prevent escalation). The situations are numerous.
Research by Jen Fisher (CEO and Founder of The Wellbeing Team) shows that 70% of workplace well-being outcomes are driven by leadership behaviors and organizational systems, followed by team dynamics (20%). However, the vast majority of investments are focused on the individual level, which accounts for only 10%.
What needs to change?
Shifting to Well-being Intelligence means acting on the real drivers of stress. Here are some actionable strategies HR leaders can start using now.
Redesign work, not just benefits: Assess and fix workload, meeting overload, and unclear priorities and ownership, the most common root causes of burnout.
Make managers accountable for well-being: Leadership behavior drives 30% of outcomes. Train managers to spot early signals and adjust work.
Normalize conversations before a crisis hits: Most employees don’t seek help early. Build team-level awareness so issues are addressed before they escalate.
Measure what actually matters: Move beyond EAP usage. Track workload, recovery time, focus capacity, and team dynamics.
Intervene early, not react late: Stress builds over time. Systems should detect and respond before burnout becomes visible.
For HR leaders who want to build this capability at scale, we are kicking off a Certificate Program next week!
STARTING NEXT WEEK
WORKPLACE WELL-BEING AND MENTAL HEALTH STRATEGIST CERTIFICATE PROGRAM
The Workplace Well-Being and Mental Health Strategist Certificate Program is designed to help HR leaders and managers move from reactive support to proactive strategy by embedding well-being and mental health into daily operations, leadership practices, and work design.
This is a 9-week live program focused on building real capability.
What you’ll learn:
How to identify burnout risks and workload issues at the source, and redesign work before stress becomes chronic
How to guide managers in real conversations about well-being, with clear boundaries and practical escalation paths
How to build psychological safety and team-level awareness, so issues are surfaced early instead of escalating silently
How to design well-being strategies, aligned with business priorities, and integrated into everyday work
Across 8 core modules, you’ll develop the skills to connect well-being with performance, culture, and risk management, so it becomes part of how your organization operates, not a separate initiative.
📅 When: March 24 – May 19, 2026
💻 100% Virtual. Live, interactive sessions + lifetime access to materials
This Certificate Program offers HR Credits: 20 SHRM + 20 HRCI + 20 IHRIM
📜 Students get a Certificate of completion and a Credly badge.
More Certificate Programs Starting Next Week
People, Work, and HR Technology Strategist (Starts March 24) – For HR Leaders and professionals willing to develop the systems fluency, governance depth, and evidence-based leadership required to operate confidently in the era of AI and Digital transformation.
Global Chief People Officer (starts March 23) – For senior HR leaders ready to lead enterprise-wide people strategy, organizational design, and transformation across global tea
Building this capability internally is critical. But it also helps to see how other organizations are tackling the same challenge in real time!
MAY SUMMIT
WORKPLACE WELL-BEING AND MENTAL HEALTH SUMMIT
The Workplace Well-being and Mental Health Summit: Driving Sustainable People and Organizational Success with Holistic Well-being and Mental Health Strategies brings together HR leaders, practitioners, and experts to explore how organizations are redesigning work, equipping leaders, and creating sustainable environments for performance and growth.
Organized in partnership with Mind Share Partners and Counslr, the summit offers a space to learn from real-world practices, exchange ideas, and deepen your understanding of what it takes to embed well-being and mental health into everyday work.
🗓 When: May 5–7, 2026 | ⏰ 7:00 AM – 11:25 AM Pacific Time
🌐 This event is 100% virtual and free to attend
📜 All attendees who participate live or watch the post-event recordings may download a certificate of participation
👑 Premium members of our community gain HR Credits (13.5 SHRMs + HRCIs + IHRMs) and a Credly badge.
SAVE YOUR SEAT
THE AI EXPERIENCE SUMMIT - III EDITION
We're thrilled to announce that registration is open for the third edition of the AI in HR Experience Summit Virtual (June 17–19, 2026) — 100% virtual, 100% FREE.
Expect three days of bold ideas, actionable strategies, and the connections that matter. Each day will revolve around a theme:
Day 1: Strategic Leadership and AI Readiness — Moving from uncertainty to direction in the age of intelligent systems.
Day 2: Execution, Work Design, and Scaling — Turning ambition into systems that work under real conditions.
Day 3: Governing, Protecting, and Sustaining AI at Scale —From experimentation to responsibility.
The Hacking HR Community ecosystem is growing! Read on to learn what’s coming next…
HACKING HR COMMUNITIES
GLOBAL CHAPTERS UPDATES
Something exciting is happening: our global Chapters are beginning to activate!
In cities and regions around the world, community leaders are preparing to host their first gatherings, bringing HR professionals together to learn, exchange ideas, and build meaningful professional relationships locally.
What to expect from Hacking HR Chapters:
In-person gatherings where HR professionals exchange ideas, experiences, and practical insights.
Local communities that connect professionals to a global ecosystem of HR leaders and innovators.
Opportunities for members to collaborate, learn from peers, and contribute to shaping the future of work.
If there is a Hacking HR Chapter in your city or region, join the community and attend an upcoming event. And if you don’t see one yet, consider becoming a Community Leader and helping build the next local hub for HR innovation.
📩 Or reach out to Brizia Ceja Ibarra, Director of Learning and Community Enablement - [email protected]
UPCOMING PARTNER EVENTS
More Partner Events
HumanX 2026 | Human X | April 6–9, San Francisco | Register now | Discount code: HX26P_HackingHR (save $855)
HR Analytics Summit | People Strategy Hub | September 3, London | Register Now | Discount code: HACKINGHR (20% OFF)
Before we wrap up, here’s a small tribute to the everyday magic of working in HR.
Some days, HR feels like conflict resolution. Some days it feels like crisis management. And some days… it feels like magic. ✨☕
For all the HR pros quietly keeping the workplace from descending into chaos, this mug gets it.
Finally, if your organization wants to connect directly with HR decision-makers, our upcoming summits offer unique opportunities to engage with the global Hacking HR community.
SPONSORSHIPS
Thousands of HR executives will gather at these upcoming summits in 2026 to shape the future of work:
Workplace Well-being and Mental Health Summit (May 05-07)
AI Experience LIVE Summit in London (June 16)
AI Experience Summit, Third Edition (June 17-19)
Workforce Strategy and HR Budget Planning Summit (September 08-10)
If your company provides solutions in HR tech, benefits, people analytics, DEI, or workforce strategy, these events are your opportunity to connect with the exact decision-makers who control HR budgets and are actively searching for partners.
👉 Book an Intro Call with Laurie Baggarly: [email protected] to explore sponsorships and secure visibility at the summits where HR leaders are making buying decisions.