Turns Out, Workplaces Aren’t That Unique After All

Reflections on Workplaces

By Shaan Ross-Smith

As a psychologist, a mediator, and someone who’s spent almost 25 years inside corporate spaces, I’m still amazed at how siloed we are.

I travel the country meeting extraordinary teams of phenomenal humans deeply committed to looking out for the people in their workplaces and yet, no matter where I go, I hear the same three things.

The first:

“Shaan, let me tell you about the unique patterns we’re seeing in our workplace survey or in our HR data.”

The second:

“Our executives really care about this work so we just need to make sure it meets our needs”

And the third:

“We know something’s missing… and we think it’s the power of the bystander.”

It’s uncanny how similar these stories are. Every workplace thinks it’s unique, yet the themes, culture, leadership, safety, trust, are almost identical.

Sometimes I wish we had a club for the change-makers: the people trying to make their workplaces the safest, kindest, and best places to work. A space where we could share, learn, and laugh together. Instead of reinventing the wheel every time, we could just take turns at driving it.

So that’s my goal for 2026: to find more ways to bring those people together. Because right now, it feels like I’ve got best friends scattered across organisations and industries all over the world, all trying to do the same thing.

And maybe that’s the real reflection: that our workplaces aren’t so unique after all. Our challenges are shared. Our humanity is shared. And our ability to create safe, inclusive, respectful spaces? That’s something we’ll always do better, together.