Why leading with compassion pays off

The transition that most workplaces need to go through to really engage with the new positive duties compliance obligations is a significant one. It involves a new way of looking at compliance and a new approach to managing risks that really require quite a shift in organisational psychology, language and culture. And guess what? It is also how you improve engagement, productivity and wellbeing. We asked ChatGPT the question and here is what it said.

The challenge

The world has fundamentally changed in the last decade firstly with COVID and now with financial and international insecurities. Added to that is the fact that, for generations, workplaces have been increasingly driven by process control, risk management and shareholder return and changes in technologies, compliance requirements and commercial realities are running at a rapid pace and don’t look like slowing down.

People are feeling that pressure and resilience is really being tested.

So when you come to work, are you expecting to have purposeful conversations that generate hope and positivity?

Or are you finding that it is centred on risks and problems and gaps and what needs fixing?

That’s not very engaging, is it? And it doesn’t do a lot for morale or worker participation, does it?

With the new positive duty to eliminate or reduce psychosocial hazards, we all have to make our workplaces psychologically safe so people will put their hands up. Is that likely to happen if we are just talking about the negative stuff?

Of course, it isn’t. So what can you do about that?

Changing up the conversation

All businesses have legal responsibilities to consult their workers about matters that affect them at work under a variety of jurisdictions. For that reason, most see consultation as a compliance measure – we’ll tell you what we have to and go through a process of letting you have your say before confirming and implementing our decision.

Few have genuine consultative vehicles to engage their people on any form of forward planning or workplace improvement agenda. They also tend to have a blame culture focused on finding and punishing who was responsible rather than seeing a mistake made as an opportunity for learning. So people don’t put their hands up.

Building Psychosocial Safety Through Strengths

Workplaces that intentionally recognise and develop individual and team strengths create the conditions for psychological safety and wellbeing. Here’s how:

• Enhancing control and autonomy: When people use their strengths, they experience greater self-efficacy and control over their work—key factors in reducing stress and burnout.
• Fostering positive relationships: Strengths-based cultures encourage appreciation, collaboration, and respect for diversity of talent, reducing interpersonal conflict and social isolation.
• Clarifying role purpose: Helping employees align their strengths with organisational goals clarifies expectations and meaning, which reduces role ambiguity—a known psychosocial risk.
• Encouraging constructive feedback: Strengths conversations shift the focus from criticism to growth, supporting learning without fear of judgement.

Better Outcomes for Employers and Employees

For employers, the benefits are tangible. Research consistently shows that strengths-based organisations report higher engagement, productivity, and retention, along with lower absenteeism and turnover. These outcomes directly reduce the costs associated with psychosocial hazards, such as stress-related leave and workplace disputes.

For employees, the experience is transformational. They feel seen for what they contribute best, leading to a stronger sense of belonging and satisfaction. As workers become more confident and energised, they are better able to cope with challenges, communicate needs, and support one another—further reducing psychosocial risk exposure.

Embedding Strengths into Psychosocial Risk Management

Integrating a strengths-based approach doesn’t mean ignoring compliance obligations under models like Safe Work Australia’s Code of Practice. Rather, it complements them by embedding proactive wellbeing strategies into the fabric of work. This might include:

• Incorporating strengths assessments (e.g. VIA Character Strengths or CliftonStrengths) into onboarding and development;
• Training leaders to hold strengths-focused conversations that build trust and motivation;
• Designing roles and workflows that leverage team strengths to distribute demands more effectively.

Ultimately, managing psychosocial hazards is not just about avoiding harm—it’s about creating thriving workplaces. A strengths-based approach transforms compliance into culture, prevention into empowerment, and obligation into opportunity.

When people work from their strengths, they don’t just survive—they flourish. And when they flourish, so do the organisations around them.

CONCLUSION

We agree with Chat GPT and what this says aligns exactly with our own beliefs and why we created PosWork in the first place.

Note: we don’t have a problem with using AI to fast track tasks and make better use of our time but we also believe we need to verify what it says and that we should acknowledge that our use of AI and not claim creative credit when we do use AI.