Signs you need to improve psychological safety in your workplace.

Want workplace psychological safety? You need emotional intelligence

One of the most critical topics of the year is psychological safety at work. According to the World Health Organisation – there are ten key psychosocial hazards in the workplace, and four of these are directly underpinned by soft skills. 

Interpersonal relationships, control, organisational culture, and role ambiguity. These four areas directly relate to emotional intelligence and their success or failure is a direct outcome of how we connect, communicate, and collaborate with our colleagues.  

The other hazards aren’t directly linked to EI – such as unpredictable hours. However, wouldn’t an emotionally intelligent leader see the impact such factors have on team members and implement measures to improve their wellbeing? 

No matter which way you look at it – if you want to build psychological safety at work, you need EI. In the face of continuing change, COVID disruption stress and high levels of burn out, people are in desperate need of psychological safety in the workplace, and ready and willing to change jobs to find it. And it’s not just a matter of psychological safety training. 

When employees and leaders are more self-other aware, express how they feel effectively and better manage emotions – they create a psychologically safety environment where high performing teams form and wellbeing flourishes. 

In this episode of EI at Work you’ll gain insight into:  


How emotionally intelligent ways of working can create and support psychologically safe teams.

EI Expert and CEO of Genos International, Dr Ben Palmer, and co-host Marie El Daghl, discuss:

  • What psychological safety is, in the context of the workplace. 
  • How you can tell if your workplace is psychologically safe or not.  
  • The link between EI and psychological safety.  
  • How the pandemic and working from home have impacted psychological safety.  
  • Why ‘average’ is not a good enough level of psychological safety.   
  • How Genos corporate programs can help workplaces develop their psychological safety.  
About Richard E. Boyatzis

About Dr Ben Palmer

Dr Ben Palmer is the CEO of EI network, Genos International. Renowned for transforming workplaces, business outcomes and lives, Genos International is a world leading provider of EI assessments and development programs.

At Genos International, Dr Palmer has been at the forefront of providing game-changing emotional intelligence services to iconic organisations worldwide, such as IBM, Pfizer, Rio Tinto, Laing O Rourke, and Qantas. Through his work with leaders and professionals, he has invaluable insight into how EI significantly improves staff performance, customer satisfaction, profitability and more.

Dr Palmer completed his PhD at Swinburne University, Melbourne. He developed the first Australian model and assessment of emotional intelligence specific to workplace outcomes. Dr Palmer has continued to contribute his extensive knowledge to various global research articles, book chapters and journals.

As our resident EI Expert on EI at Work, Dr. Palmer brings his extensive knowledge to facilitate thought-provoking discussion on the transformative effects of EI.

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