The Role of Managers in Building a Wellbeing-Focused Workplace

Empower managers to build thriving, wellbeing-focused teams that perform.

Wellbeing is no longer a nice-to-have—it’s a strategic necessity. Yet, in many organisations, the responsibility for wellbeing often falls solely on HR or corporate initiatives. While these play a role, the real day-to-day experience of work is shaped by managers. They're the bridge between organisational intent and employee experience.

Managers set the tone. They influence how work gets done, how people feel about their contributions, and whether individuals feel valued and supported. This blog explores the pivotal role managers play in building a wellbeing-focused workplace—and how they can be supported to lead in ways that help people thrive.

Why Managers Are Central to Employee Wellbeing

The manager-employee relationship is one of the biggest drivers of engagement, trust, and stress. Managers influence everything from workload and expectations to communication tone and psychological safety.

A strengths-based leader doesn’t just manage tasks—they pay attention to how work gets done, how people feel doing it, and how to keep individuals motivated and resilient.

When managers lead with wellbeing in mind, they:

• Foster trust and transparency by listening, not just instructing.
• Set realistic workloads and expectations, balancing performance demands with capacity.
• Promote psychological safety, where team members feel safe to speak up, ask questions, and share ideas.
• Create meaning, helping individuals connect their work to team and organisational goals.

What gets role-modelled or ignored becomes part of the culture. When managers are consistent in demonstrating care, curiosity, and respect, the ripple effects across team culture are significant. For practical ideas, consider these strategies to improve employee wellbeing.

From Preventing Burnout to Enabling Thriving

Historically, wellbeing strategies have centred on avoiding burnout. But to truly support people, we must move beyond "not being unwell" to helping people thrive at work.

Thriving teams experience:

• A sense of purpose: People know how their work contributes and why it matters.
• Connection and collaboration: Teams feel psychologically safe and work together effectively.
• The ability to use their strengths daily, leading to greater energy and satisfaction.
• Recognition that goes beyond metrics and celebrates effort, values, and growth.

Managers who foster these conditions don’t just minimise risk—they build teams that are energised, committed, and resilient. To do this effectively, they can apply these seven development tips to prevent disengagement and burnout.

Five Manager Mindsets That Support Wellbeing

Culture shifts when mindsets shift. Managers who lead with the following mindsets tend to create healthier, more resilient teams:

1. Curiosity over control

   • Instead of micromanaging, ask open-ended questions that show interest in how people work best.
   • Example: "What support would help you most right now?"

2. Listening over fixing

   • Don’t jump to solve problems. Often, people want to be heard more than helped.
   • Practice active listening: reflect back, pause, ask follow-ups.

3. Clarity over micromanagement

   • Set clear priorities, timelines, and goals—then trust your team to deliver.
   • Clarity reduces stress and helps people work more independently.

4. Recognition over correction

   • Acknowledge what’s going well as much as (or more than) what needs to improve.
   • Tailor recognition to individual preferences: private praise, public shout-outs, or written notes.

5. Strengths over deficits

   • Focus on developing what’s already strong in a person or team.
   • Delegate based on what people do best and enjoy most. If you're unsure where to begin, explore this guide on how to be an empathetic manager.

Creating Conditions for Everyday Wellbeing

Wellbeing is built in the moments between big decisions. Managers can take small, practical steps each day that shape a more positive and supportive environment:

• Provide autonomy: Give people flexibility in how they approach tasks and manage their time.
• Co-create goals: Make targets realistic, relevant, and personally meaningful.
• Normalise check-ins: Use regular 1:1s to explore energy levels, challenges, and support needs.
• Role-model boundaries: Take breaks, avoid sending emails after hours, and talk openly about self-care.
• Encourage peer support: Create time for team connection, reflection, and celebration.

These actions build trust, reduce stress, and help people feel that their wellbeing is genuinely valued—not just a tick-box exercise. A great place to start is by using these wellbeing questions to ask your team.

Developing Managers to Lead for Wellbeing

Expecting managers to lead on wellbeing without support is unrealistic. They need development, peer learning, and space to reflect.

Training should go beyond generic leadership and include:

• Strengths-based leadership: Understanding how to spot, nurture, and use strengths in themselves and others.
• Wellbeing frameworks: Practical tools for recognising burnout risk, leading through uncertainty, and promoting balance.
• Reflective practice: Encouraging managers to explore their habits, assumptions, and leadership impact.
• Performance + wellbeing conversations: Helping managers blend delivery expectations with care and compassion.

Strengthify’s Management Development Programme builds these capabilities through experiential learning, real-life application, and strengths-based tools tailored to the realities of public service work.

Conclusion

When managers lead with wellbeing in mind, everyone benefits. Staff are more engaged, motivated, and loyal. Teams are more connected and productive. Organisational culture becomes healthier and more human.

Creating a wellbeing-focused workplace doesn’t mean reducing expectations. It means setting people up to succeed in ways that are sustainable and fulfilling.

It starts with everyday leadership choices—how we listen, support, recognise, and trust.

💡 Explore how Strengthify equips managers to lead in ways that support both wellbeing and performance by visiting our Management Development Programmes.