Leadership and mental health: practical manager actions

Ask which tasks the employee is working on and where the work exceeds the time or resources available. Review priorities and dependencies before adding another responsibility.

Managers need to review their own capacity too. Taking on every unfinished task can leave the original workload problem unresolved.

Explain the responsibilities and decisions within the role. Agree how employees can raise a difficulty and when they can expect a response.

Internal communication helps keep those expectations and contacts clear. Review whether employees can use the route in practice.

Give the employee space to explain what support they need. WHO recommends manager training that includes listening, communication and recognising when someone may need support.^[1]

Use the relevant HR, occupational-health or other workplace arrangements. Explain available resources accurately and avoid asking an employee to disclose more personal information than the conversation requires.

WHO recommends addressing workplace risks through changes to the working conditions and environment, with meaningful employee involvement. A wellbeing message should be accompanied by a review of the work causing concern.^[1]

Ask the employee which change would help and explain what you can decide. If they raise a concern about their manager or another colleague, explain the alternative contact in the organisation’s established process. Avoid promising absolute confidentiality; use the relevant process to explain how the information will be handled.

Discuss development interests and the support needed for a new responsibility. Ask about preferences without assuming that every employee wants promotion.

Review any flexibility available within the role and the organisation's arrangements. Give agreed actions owners and revisit them with the employee.

In an illustrative fintech infrastructure team, a Support colleague is assigned a release briefing while covering an existing case queue. They tell the manager that both need the same afternoon. The manager checks the competing commitments with them and with the team responsible for coverage.

They agree when the briefing can take place and who will cover the queue. A follow-up checks whether the arrangement was used and whether the colleague still needs support. This illustrates a workload decision, not evidence of improved mental health or authority to change operational coverage without its responsible owner.