Have you ever wondered what signs your employees might be giving you, if they are thinking about either “jumping ship” or not being engaged in the workplace?  Let’s look at a few telltale signs that your employees have checked out or become disengaged. This is important because when your employees are happy and fully engaged, their productivity level is going to jump by about 10-20%, however if they’re unhappy and disengaged then it is going to drop by about 10-20%. The net productivity or engagement result is a differential of approximate 20-40%. This is really important because this negativity impacts an organisation’s bottom line. Let’s be honest, without employees and more so, fully engaged employees, there is no company. The emphasis is on FULLY ENGAGED. Employees can be present at work but are they truly fully engaged? Truth be told, employees form the backbone and success of an organisation. Organisational competitiveness and bottom-line driven organisations, need to ensure that their employees are happy, in a good space, motivated and fully engaged in the workplace. This is a fundamental role and responsibility of leadership. There is a saying, “Leaders don’t know what they don’t know!” especially in medium to large organisations with many layered structures. 

As we have already determined, employee engagement in the workplace is critical for organisational success and directly impacts the bottom line. Yet very little focus is given to employee engagement in the workplace. Let’s take a look at and highlight a few telltale signs, so that we can actually look out for them, and be a little bit more proactive in addressing employee engagement in the workplace. Increased absenteeism, basically taking a lot more time off. Employees have checked out - they are no longer engaged in meetings, or excited to share ideas or make suggestions, possibly don’t care about short term or the long-term goals that the organisation is trying to achieve. Checked-out employees become more cynical, they complain more, challenge idea proposals or why certain tasks can’t be done. They could question everything and possibly authority too. Another telltale sign that your employees have checked-out, is that they are now engaged in the spreading of rumours and gossip, the sharing of dysfunction and the lack of effectiveness of a specific manager or department. Another sign could be that the quality of work of that individual has now declined, so they are no longer turning their work in on time or their quality of their work is declining, more mistakes being made or some pieces of key information are not included or they are just doing the bare minimum to get by. They may exhibit a don’t care attitude or don’t voice their true feelings and concerns out of fear of being victimised. I’ve heard many employees use the term “It will be a career limiting move if I raise this or that”, and then resort to keeping quiet, going into self-preservation mode and simply be present to collect a pay check. And the last and the worst-case telltale sign is that employees are starting to “jump ship”. By then it is too late. Normally it is the high performing employees who are the ones who are jumping ship because they know they can find opportunities someplace else. 

The question which we need to ask ourselves is: “Does it make good business sense to invest in employee mental wellbeing?” From an economical, legal, moral and risk management perspective, the answer is a resounding “YES”.

The greatest gift an organisation can give its employees is not a pay cheque - it’s a culture that values employees and the greater humanity. So, together let’s end the ‘silent crisis’ of employee mental wellbeing by embarking on a holistic mental wellbeing strategy. It begins here. It begins now and it begins with US!! 

So, here is our challenge to organisations and leaders - Will you continue to be part of the silence, or part of the solution?

We look forward to guiding, supporting and walking this wonderful journey with you and your employees.

Request a free exploratory session

Contact us for more information.

When it comes to mental wellbeing, organisations generally fall into one of three phases. Which phase does your organisation fall into?

Phase 1 - Organisations are either in the awareness phase, but don’t really know too much about it and as such, feel that they just need to raise awareness of some basic mental wellbeing literacy. Is your organisation? This is very probable.

Phase 2 - Is in a training and building skills phase, where organisations start to build skills in their employees, managers and Human Resource Managers to address mental wellbeing challenges, especially at grass-roots level. Is your organisation in this building, training and equipping phase? 

Phase 3 – is a companywide holistic wellbeing strategy … which is our recommended phase. Employee Assistance Programs “EAPs”, while valuable, are no longer sufficient to address the growing mental health and wellbeing challenges faced in today’s workplace. Employees are often too fearful to speak openly about stress, anxiety, or personal struggles due to stigma, discrimination, or concerns over career limitations. This culture of silence drives disengagement, quiet quitting, and resentment, creating a lose-lose situation for both employees and organisations. Leadership cannot solve what they do not see, and without a culture that encourages open dialogue, hidden issues will continue to erode performance, morale, and trust.

A companywide holistic wellbeing strategy transforms this dynamic by building a culture of psychological safety, open communication, and shared responsibility across employees, line managers, and Human Resources. By breaking down barriers of shame and fear, organisations empower individuals to seek support early, fostering resilience, belonging, and engagement. The result is a win-win: employees feel valued and supported, while companies benefit from higher productivity, stronger loyalty, and reduced turnover. In short, adopting a holistic wellbeing strategy is not just a moral imperative—it is a strategic necessity for sustainable organisational competitiveness and success. 

The question which we need to ask ourselves is: “Does it make good business sense to invest in employee mental wellbeing?” From an economical, legal, moral and risk management perspective, the answer is a resounding “YES”.

The greatest gift an organisation can give its employees is not a pay cheque - it’s a culture that values employees and the greater humanity. So, together let’s end the ‘silent crisis’ of employee mental wellbeing by embarking on a holistic mental wellbeing strategy. It begins here. It begins now and it begins with US!! 

So, here is our challenge to organisations and leaders - Will you continue to be part of the silence, or part of the solution?

We look forward to guiding, supporting and walking this wonderful journey with you and your employees.

Request a free exploratory session

Contact us for more information.
 

Many organisations lean too heavily on Employee Assistance Programs “EAPs”, mistakenly viewing them as a complete solution to employee mental wellbeing. Organisations need to critically reassess their reliance on Employee Assistance Programs, as these interventions are often insufficient in addressing the deeper needs of employee mental wellbeing, and rarely address the root causes of workplace disengagement, stress, anxiety, lack of engagement, being totally present and creating a sense of belonging. External providers lack an intimate understanding of the company’s culture, values and mission, making it impossible for them to fully align employees with organisational objectives or create a sense of positive and lasting engagement. Furthermore, “EAP” consultations are typically brief, transactional, and unequipped to empower employees with self-regulation tools to manage future challenges.

While “EAPs” do serve a limited role within a broader wellness strategy, they fall short as a standalone solution. Companies must instead prioritise building a holistic, fully immersive culture of mental wellbeing - similar to how safety and inclusion are embedded into organisational practice. By taking responsibility for internal wellbeing initiatives, organisations can foster empowered, engaged employees and close the gap between what “EAPs” provide and what the workforce truly needs.

The question which we need to ask ourselves is: “Does it make good business sense to invest in employee mental wellbeing?” From an economical, legal, moral and risk management perspective, the answer is a resounding “YES”.

The greatest gift an organisation can give its employees is not a pay cheque - it’s a culture that values employees and the greater humanity. So, together let’s end the ‘silent crisis’ of employee mental wellbeing by embarking on a holistic mental wellbeing strategy. It begins here. It begins now and it begins with US!! 

So, here is our challenge to organisations and leaders - Will you continue to be part of the silence, or part of the solution?

We look forward to guiding, supporting and walking this wonderful journey with you and your employees.

Request a free exploratory session

Contact us for more information.
 

Innaserenity bridges the gap between personal healing and development, and organisational success by providing practical, human-focused solutions:

Unlike traditional Employee Assistance Programs, that deal with specific isolated scenarios and outside of organisational knowledge, culture, vision, mission and objectives, InnaSerenity is directly involved in not only assisting employees to deal with, and to cope with current life, workplace or relationship challenges, but empowers employees to manage future challenges. In addition, InnaSerenity assists in the empowerment of employees to realign with the company’s culture, vision, mission and objectives.

The question which we need to ask ourselves is: “Does it make good business sense to invest in employee mental wellbeing?” From an economical, legal, moral and risk management perspective, the answer is a resounding “YES”.

The greatest gift an organisation can give its employees is not a pay cheque - it’s a culture that values employees and the greater humanity. So, together let’s end the ‘silent crisis’ of employee mental wellbeing by embarking on a holistic mental wellbeing strategy. It begins here. It begins now and it begins with US!! 

So, here is our challenge to organisations and leaders - Will you continue to be part of the silence, or part of the solution?

We look forward to guiding, supporting and walking this wonderful journey with you and your employees.

Request a free exploratory session

Contact us for more information.
 

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Request a Free Exploratory Session

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Building Strong Minds, Building Stronger Companies

The Story - Why This Matters

Let’s start with something we’ve all seen.

Imagine your best employee or manager - she or he, collectively referred to as “he”, is reliable, respected, knows the ins and outs of the organisation, the office, factory, warehouse, project or site better than anyone. But recently, you’ve noticed changes. He’s quieter. He snaps at his team or colleagues. Mistakes are creeping into his work. He calls in sick more often. Yes, he may be “present” in the workplace, but he’s not really engaged.

Now here’s the truth: this isn’t about laziness or lack of commitment. He’s actually carrying something very heavy – be it workplace or personal struggles, family pressures, relationship challenges or even financial stress. Like most of us, he never went to a “workplace, life or relationship school”. He was never taught how to handle workplace, life or relationship challenges in a healthy way. He bottles everything up and pushes through, until one day he burns-out, gives up or disengages completely.

This is what’s known as either workplace disengagement or even worse “quiet quitting” - doing just enough to get by, to ensure a salary or wage at the end of the month. No extra effort. No initiative. Just survival. The nett effect being a “loss-loss” situation ... where the employee continues to experience all the hurt, pain, anxiety, stress, despair, in short … mental wellbeing challenges, and the organisation ultimately experiences the consequential impact on its bottom line.

This employee or manager was more than likely raised in a conservative middle-class family, where he was taught not to express his emotions and feelings openly. Where he learned not to show signs of weakness or vulnerability in the workplace. Where he was taught to be brave, to be strong or simply put, that which society judges! The sad reality is that business leaders, “don’t know what they don’t know”. Leadership has no knowledge of this man’s internal struggles and challenges, and similarly, leadership don’t have definitive and concrete knowledge of the associated business risk to the organisation’s bottom line.

When an employee “quiet quits”, the organisation loses more than just that employee. The employee’s whole team feels it. Productivity drops, safety risks increase and morale declines … all of which ultimately impacts the organisational efficiency and bottom line. When employees have checked out - they are no longer engaged in meetings, or excited to share ideas or make suggestions, possibly don’t care about short term or the long-term goals that the organisation is trying to achieve, become more cynical, they complain more, challenge idea proposals or why certain tasks can’t be done, question everything and possibly authority too,  possibly engaged in the spreading of rumours and gossip and the sharing of dysfunction and the lack of effectiveness of a specific manager or department. Another sign could be that the quality of work of that individual has now declined, so they are no longer turning their work in on time or their quality of their work is declining, more mistakes being made or some pieces of key information are not included or they are just doing the bare minimum to get by. They too may exhibit a don’t care attitude or don’t voice their true feelings and concerns out of fear of being victimised, but to name a few. 

And this isn’t a rare story. It’s playing out every day across all organisations, offices, departments and on projects and sites. Just look around you with open eyes, and you will start to see a glimpse, a fraction of the struggles your employees may be experiencing. Now multiply that by, and at the very least, 50% and this will give a realistic indication of the true nature, effect and impact that mental wellbeing has on your employees and the organisation as a whole.  The World Health Organisation calls it the “silent crisis” of mental wellbeing. In today’s competitive environment, exacerbated by AI being readily available, companies can no longer rely solely on operational efficiency or technical strategies - those advantages are easily replicated. The true differentiator lies in its people and unless organisations actively address it, it will continue to eat away at both their employees and organisational performance and profits. 

Employee Mental Wellbeing In Organisations

Employee mental wellbeing is no longer just a personal matter. It is a business imperative … with one in four employees globally facing mental wellbeing challenges … compounded by the fact that suicide is on the increase … aggravated by the general demands of social, economic and political challenges. 

Organisations cannot afford to ignore the impact that employee mental wellbeing has on productivity, engagement, absenteeism, and overall employee performance. This is important because when your employees are happy and fully engaged, their productivity level is going to jump by about 10-20%, however if they’re unhappy and disengaged, then it is going to drop by about 10-20%. The net productivity or engagement result is a differential of approximate 20-40%. Take some time consider what is being said here and the impact this has within the organisation and on it's bottom line. Mental wellbeing is a “silent crisis” very often invisible to management, yet its consequences ripple across the organisation. Leadership “don’t know what they don’t know” - disengagement and distress remain hidden until it’s too late, and the organisation’s bottom line is impacted. Companies that proactively create a mental wellbeing culture will gain a competitive edge, just as they once did by embedding a health and safety culture into their core practices. Organisations are all about people, and should organisations wish to gain and retain a competitive edge, people management is going to be critical. The question we need to ask ourselves is - “Does it make good business sense to invest in employee wellbeing?” From an economical, legal, moral and risk management perspective, the answer is a resounding “YES”. 

The Impact Of Mental Wellbeing On Employees

Employees struggling with workplace, life or relationship challenges, may be physically present at work … but disengaged whilst they are there. Often referred to as “quiet quitting” - this lack of engagement leads to reduced efficiency, poor collaboration, absenteeism, and in severe cases, burnout or resignation. Beyond productivity, employees who feel unsupported experience a loss of belonging, direction, and trust, creating a toxic cycle of disconnection that impacts morale and company culture. Left unaddressed, mental wellbeing challenges silently erode a company’s reputation and bottom line.

Closing - Why This Matters To You

At the end of the day, business is more than just finance, assets, systems and procedures. They’re about people, about employees. Business is about people - people are the business!

Employees who are experiencing mental wellbeing difficulties and challenges or a sense of disengagement or non-belonging, for what every reason, are a risk to themselves, their colleagues, and the company.

In today’s competitive environment, exacerbated by AI being readily available, companies can no longer rely solely on operational efficiency or technical strategies - those advantages are easily replicated. The true differentiator lies in its people and unless organisations actively address it, it will continue to eat away at both their employees and organisational performance and profits. By investing in employee wellbeing, you don’t just tick a compliance box. You build a workforce that is stronger, more engaged, and more productive. You create a long-term competitive edge and protect your bottom line. Ultimately, you create a company culture that employees are proud to be part of.

This isn’t “soft” leadership. It’s smart business strategy. It’s about building strong companies by building strong people.

For greater insight into "Why this matters" and the need to adopt a Company Holistic Mental Wellbeing Strategy, coupled to a proposed mental wellbeing solution, please read the Insights / Articles and the FAQs on this page. Start with the first Insight / Article and move to the next, as they follow-on from one another. They are most informative and of great value.

About Michael

Michael DeirinoI’m Michael - a seasoned Human Resources professional, a life-tested soul and a man who has come to deeply understand the complexities of the human experience. For over 35 years, I worked in the corporate world, counselling and guiding individuals through personal and professional challenges in my role in Human Resources. Backed by a postgraduate qualification in Human Resources and numerous certifications - including Life and Transformational Coaching, Relationship Facilitation and NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming), Neuro Coaching and mBIT (multiple Brain Integration Techniques) International Coaching - I’ve spent a fair portion of my life supporting others as they navigated their way through conflict and change.

What I didn’t realise at the time was that all those years of supporting others were quietly preparing me for my own personal journey – and the deep emotional work I’d later have to face myself. In many ways, that path laid the foundation for what would become my greatest transformation: turning my own pain into purpose, and using everything I had learned to guide others through theirs.

Like so many other people, I have faced many challenges I never expected to – I personally experienced professional burn-out on three separate occasions, I struggled with work-life balance and I received numerous death threats, simply for carrying out my professional duties. I also lost a marriage of almost two decades, and experienced the heart wrenching effect of having to live life in a broken family. Simply put, I lost myself and my true essence. I spent many a month gripped by anxiety, stress and sleepless nights. At time the stress and anxiety was so strong, it made breathing feel like a chore. And still, I said nothing. I didn’t speak up. I didn’t ask for help. Why? Because I thought my responsibility - as a man, as a father, as a husband, as a Human Resources leader - was to be the rock, the provider, the carer and continuous giver of unconditional support. Simply put - to hold it all together for everyone else.

With the limited knowledge I had, I tried to keep my relationship, family and profession together … sacrificing my own mental wellbeing along the way.  I simply didn’t have the tools, the support, or the awareness I needed back then … and in the absence of that, my profession became a roller-coaster ride of many lows, trying to navigate many workplace and mental wellbeing challenges, my marriage unravelled, and I experienced the soul wrenching reality of divorce. Looking back now, I realise that with the right guidance, support and tools that we openly share in our Courses and Neuro Coach & Mentor Programs … my life, my profession and ultimately my mental wellbeing could have been very different.

The truth is, none of us were ever taught how to succeed at life, at relationships, at our professions or at navigating emotional pain, experienced when trying to cope with life, workplace and relationship challenges. We never went to “life, workplace or relationship school”. We weren’t handed manuals on how to live a happy and authentic life, or how to overcome life, workplace and relationship challenges. So, when life tests us, we do what most people do - we try, we struggle, and we failed ... often.

But from those failures came wisdom. And from that wisdom came my purpose.

Today, I continue to walk alongside others, coaching and mentoring them, as they navigate their way through their own life, relationship and workplace challenges. My approach is a structured one, blending conscious awareness with evidence-based neuro techniques. I support others to identify and connect with their truths, to balance and align their actions, to reclaim their power, to rebuild connections, and to find the clarity they need to rewrite their own stories - with compassion, with courage, and with the guidance that we all wish we had, back when we needed it most.

Request A Free Exploratory Session

Is your organisation ready to experience the benefits of adopting a transformative and holistic mental wellbeing strategy, but unsure which of our offerings is the best fit for you?

A free exploratory session is the perfect way to find out. In just a few minutes together, you’ll get to meet us, experience our approach, and discover the power and effectiveness of the services we provide to both employees and the organisation. We’ll answer all your questions, ask a few of our own, and help you identify which of our service offerings will be of best support.

Click here to schedule your free exploratory session with Michael, and gain clarity on how our immersive, multidimensional approach to healing and transformation can meet both the needs of the employees and the organisation.

The greatest gift an organisation can give its employees is not a pay cheque - it’s a culture that values employees and the greater humanity. So, together let’s end the ‘silent crisis’ of employee mental wellbeing by embarking on a holistic mental wellbeing strategy. It begins here. It begins now and it begins with US!!

So, here is our challenge to organisations and leaders - Will you continue to be part of the silence, or part of the solution?

We look forward to guiding, supporting and walking this wonderful journey with you and your employees.

Contact us for more information.

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