Action Steps

 

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Action Step – Are We Having the Right Conversation? Five Reframes That Change What Wellbeing, Burnout, and Sustained Excellence Mean in Your Organization

DFA’s Action Steps are designed to assist organizations with implementing practical strategies to humanize the workplace, empower people, and foster innovation. Members can access full versions the Action Steps in the Member Resource Center.

Burnout remains widespread. Engagement has weakened. Manager engagement is dropping. Across recent workplace data, the signal is consistent and sobering: people are being asked to sustain performance in systems that often do not sustain them.

The question across our membership is no longer whether wellbeing depends on organizational conditions. It does. The question now is how to build those conditions inside organizations that were not designed for them, amid pressures that do not pause.

Organizations cannot demand sustainable excellence from people while ignoring the human conditions required to produce it.

Sustained ambition requires sustained energy, which in turn requires structures, norms, and leadership behaviors that many organizations are still learning how to build. Leading these efforts requires us to reframe the conversation around wellbeing:

  • Wellbeing is not only what we provide to individuals, but also the conditions we create around them. Holding both is a shift in how we think about the work.
  • Real wellbeing work shapes staffing, deadlines, performance signals, leader modeling, meeting norms, and recovery rhythms. Those are structural questions, and structural change requires sponsorship, sequencing, and reinforcement.
  • The shifts we are talking about land more deeply when leaders embody them. That is true of every meaningful change effort, and it is especially true of this one.

How do we create the conditions for people to thrive amid overload, fragile trust, constant change, and outdated leadership norms so the organization can continue to deliver sustained excellence?

The five reframes that follow are how we answer this question. They are also the framing shifts that have to land before any organizational wellbeing strategy can move from individual programs to systemic change. As you use them, look for the structural habits, leadership behaviors, team norms, and policies that are shaping people’s capacity to thrive….

Members: Read the full version of this Action Step in the Member Resource Center.

To read this entire Action Step become a DFA member.

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Action Step – Choreographed Connections™

DFA’s Action Steps are designed to assist organizations with implementing practical strategies to humanize the workplace, empower people, and foster innovation. Members can access full versions the Action Steps in the Member Resource Center.

Why Connection, Why Now

People are carrying more than we can see. Burnout is at an all-time high, engagement is at 2014 levels, manager engagement is down, and what researchers are calling “quiet cracking” is often not quiet at all. It is visible. We are just not asking.

Connection is not a nice-to-have, it is the foundational work of organizational life. When people feel genuinely connected, to themselves, to the people they work with, and to the organization they are part of, everything works better: work feels more meaningful, teams function more effectively, and people stay. When connection is absent, everything is harder. And no initiative, program, or policy fills that gap.

At DFA, we believe culture lives at the intersection of intentions and interactions. Intentions are the values and commitments that define who an organization says it is. Interactions are the everyday behaviors that shape how people experience it. Every person in an organization is a culture carrier, every interaction adds to the culture that others experience, and connection is the thread that runs through all of it…..

The Inner Work of Connection

You cannot pour from an empty cup. It is very difficult to connect with others if you have lost connection with yourself. When people feel depleted or cut off from their own sense of purpose, it shows up in how they communicate, how they make decisions, and how they show up in relationships. The inner work of connection rests on three anchors:

  1. Presence is about being honest with yourself about your current state, what you are carrying, what is draining you, and what is giving you energy. Ask yourself: How am I feeling right now? What is draining me? What is fueling me? Where is the imbalance? Sometimes we spend more time thinking about something than it would take to address it. The drains and fuels exercise is a simple way to reconnect with where you are, surface what is within your control, and reclaim micro moments of fuel that may only take minutes.

Members: Read the full version of this Action Step in the Member Resource Center.

To read this entire Action Step become a DFA member.

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Action Step – Purpose & Planning in Affinity Groups

DFA’s Action Steps are designed to assist organizations with implementing practical strategies to humanize the workplace, empower people, and foster innovation. Members can access full versions the Action Steps in the Member Resource Center.

Most affinity groups begin with genuine energy and care. People show up because they want to connect, support one another, and help create a more inclusive workplace. Over time, though, that early momentum can start to fade as leaders change, participation ebbs and flows, and expectations change. What once felt organic can begin to feel heavy or unclear.

The challenge is rarely a lack of commitment. More often, it’s a lack of shared clarity around purpose, planning, and implementation.

This Action Step offers a practical way to re-anchor affinity groups in what matters most. It also provides tools for clarifying roles at the individual, group, and organizational levels, while designing structure in a way that strengthens community rather than constraining it.

When affinity groups are built with purpose, they become spaces where people feel connected, supported, and empowered to contribute.

The 3 Points of Purpose Framework

Affinity groups thrive when they stay grounded in three core areas:

  1. Connection…
  2. Cultivation…
  3. …..

Members: Read the full version of this Action Step in the Member Resource Center.

To read this entire Action Step become a DFA member.

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Action Step – Stewarding Flexibility Forward

DFA’s Action Steps are designed to assist organizations with implementing practical strategies to humanize the workplace, empower people, and foster innovation. Members can access full versions the Action Steps in the Member Resource Center.

One year ago, The Flexibility Paradigm was released into a world eager to regain its footing.

After years of disruption, organizations were ready to move forward, reclaim a sense of certainty, and return to what felt familiar. The urgency that once pushed us to experiment and rethink everything began to soften, and with it came a quiet risk. The lessons we learned during that intense period of change could start to fade.

This book was never meant to capture a moment and move on. It exists to help us carry forward what mattered most, especially the insights that emerged when change forced us to pay attention. When the pressure lifts, we get to choose what we keep. We get to decide which lessons become part of how we operate, not just how we respond in a crisis. What once felt necessary can become foundational.

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This Action Step invites us to view flexibility with a wider lens and deeper intention. Flexibility opened the door to learning, experimentation, and more human-centered choices, and those lessons are still available to us now.

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When organizations were forced to change, they learned something important about work, about people, and about what becomes possible when old defaults are questioned. Flexibility showed us that culture is something you design, practice, and renew over time. This Action Step is about stepping into that next phase, moving from implementation to stewardship, and carrying forward what we learned with intention.

Stewardship means recognizing that flexibility lives inside a broader human-centered culture. One shaped by boundaries that protect wellbeing, by systems that prevent burnout, and by a sense of belonging that allows people to do their best work. It also means understanding that this work is shared, and that culture only holds when organizations, leaders, and individuals all participate in sustaining it.

  1. Organizations Build and Protect Boundaries: For flexibility to work, boundaries have to be real, not just written down. When boundaries are unclear or unenforced, flexibility turns into overwork, constant interruption, and quiet exhaustion. Organizations play a critical role here by setting norms that protect time, reducing unnecessary urgency, and creating environments where people can speak openly about work life conflict without fear…

Members: Read the full version of this Action Step in the Member Resource Center.

To read this entire Action Step become a DFA member.

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Action Step – Celebrating Progress & Designing What’s Next

DFA’s Action Steps are designed to assist organizations with implementing practical strategies to humanize the workplace, empower people, and foster innovation. Members can access full versions the Action Steps in the Member Resource Center.

As we close out the year and look ahead to a new one, reflection often comes with a familiar tension. We want to celebrate what went well, but our attention naturally gravitates toward what didn’t work, what felt unfinished, or what still feels heavy. Even in years filled with progress, our instinct is to zoom in on gaps, missteps, and unresolved challenges.

This tendency is human. Our brains are wired to scan for risk and problems to solve. In fast-moving, high-pressure workplaces, that wiring gets reinforced. What’s broken demands attention. What’s incomplete feels urgent. And before we know it, a year that included meaningful progress can start to feel defined by everything that didn’t go according to plan.

But reflection doesn’t have to work that way.

At DFA, we believe reflection isn’t about perfection or performance. It’s about awareness of patterns and where intention and impact may not yet be aligned.

And awareness is what allows real change to take root.

By slowing down long enough to reflect with honesty and curiosity, organizations can move into the new year with greater clarity, stronger priorities, and a renewed sense of agency.

This Action Step is designed to help you do exactly that.

The 10 Key Drivers of a Human-Centered Organization

Over time, through our research, advisory work, and ongoing collaboration with members, DFA has identified ten interconnected drivers that consistently shape human-centered, high-performing organizations. Together, they create the conditions where people and organizations are better equipped to thrive.

Below, you’ll find each driver alongside a featured resource from our work in 2025 designed to help you reflect, prioritize, and take action. You can find these resources and many more in the Member Resource Center.

CULTURE
The shared norms, values, and behaviors that define how work gets done and how people experience belonging.

Featured resource: Action Step on the Culture Transformation Process

CHANGE MANAGEMENT
How organizations navigate uncertainty, transformation, and disruption with clarity, communication, and care.

Featured resource: Action Step on the S.P.A.R.K. Framework for Change

Members: Read the full version of this Action Step in the Member Resource Center.

To read this entire Action Step become a DFA member.

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Action Step – The Evolving Leadership Framework

DFA’s Action Steps are designed to assist organizations with implementing practical strategies to humanize the workplace, empower people, and foster innovation. Members can access full versions the Action Steps in the Member Resource Center.

The workplace has transformed at a speed few could have imagined. Teams look different. Expectations have shifted. The pace of change has accelerated. Yet the leadership models many organizations rely on were designed for a different era. This gap between new realities and legacy approaches is shaping how people feel about work today.

We are living through what many call a super cycle of change. Technology, geopolitics, climate issues, and economic forces are reshaping the world at a rapid pace. Yet these external forces only tell part of the story. The emotional landscape within organizations is just as influential.

Employees are navigating rising workloads, tighter resources, and shifting expectations. Burnout is increasing, trust is declining, and the sense of connection that supports thriving organizations is harder to maintain.

Leaders today have already done an incredible amount to support their people. This work continues with an opportunity to evolve. The shifting workplace and world invite leaders to build on what is already working and thoughtfully expand their mindset, practices, and approach. Those who embrace this evolution are helping define the future with confidence and care.

At DFA, we have designed a new leadership model. This evolving approach to leadership lives at three levels: Me, We, and Us. Each level invites reflection, responsibility, and action.

The Me Level – How Do I Lead Myself?

Leadership begins with the inner work. The Me Level focuses on self-awareness, self-regulation, and intentionality. It asks leaders to pause and reflect before they react, especially during times of stress or uncertainty. When leaders are overwhelmed, reactive, or depleted, it reverberates throughout a team or organization. A grounded leader creates stability. A clear leader creates confidence. A reflective leader creates trust.

At the Me Level, leaders practice centering themselves. The simple act of pausing to notice what is happening internally can shift the outcome of a conversation or decision. Leaders strengthen their resourcefulness through the ability to choose how they show up…

Members: Read the full version of this Action Step in the Member Resource Center.

To read this entire Action Step become a DFA member.

Action Step – Exit Interview Implementation Guide

The Alliance’s Action Steps are designed to assist organizations with implementing practical strategies to humanize the workplace, empower people, and foster innovation. Members can access full versions the Alliance’s Action Steps in the Member Resource Center.

Transforming culture is not a one-time project but an ongoing commitment that requires clarity, consistency, and accountability. The process begins with a deep understanding of where you are today and moves toward embedding culture into every system and practice across the organization.

When an employee moves on to a new opportunity, it’s both an ending and a beginning. Their departure marks the close of one chapter, and the chance to open another filled with learning, reflection, and connection.

Exit interviews allow organizations to capture that unique moment in time, gathering insights that can strengthen culture, inform future strategies, and build lasting relationships with alumni.

When approached with care, exit interviews become more than a procedural step. They are a meaningful exchange and opportunity to thank employees for their contributions, celebrate what worked well, and listen for ideas that can shape what comes next. The best exit interviews are built on trust and curiosity. They encourage open, thoughtful dialogue and allow departing employees to share their stories in a way that benefits both them and the organization.

This Action Step outlines The Listen–Log–Learn–Link Model, a framework for creating a meaningful, data-informed exit interview process that supports both people and progress….

Phase 1: Listen

The first phase begins with listening—creating space for open, honest, and thoughtful dialogue that captures the full employee experience.

We recommend launching a comprehensive exit interview process. The most effective interviews explore a broad range of topics, including organizational culture, workload and work quality, mentoring and sponsorship relationships, feedback and evaluation processes, advancement opportunities, and compensation. By taking a holistic approach, organizations can identify both patterns and nuances that inform future strategy…

Members: Read the full version of this Action Step in the Member Resource Center.

To read this entire Action Step become a member of the Diversity & Flexibility Alliance. 

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Action Step – Living Your All™

The Alliance’s Action Steps are designed to assist organizations with implementing practical strategies to humanize the workplace, empower people, and foster innovation. Members can access full versions the Alliance’s Action Steps in the Member Resource Center.

There’s a growing unease threading through today’s workforce, a sense of being pulled in too many directions with too little support. Words like “tired,” “overwhelmed,” and “uncertain” are being shared openly, even by those in leadership positions. And it’s no wonder.

We’re living through what many experts are calling a super cycle of change, an era defined by nonstop disruption across climate, politics, technology, economics, and culture. Unlike earlier waves of change that came with a sense of resolution or hope, like a vaccine on the horizon during COVID, today’s change feels constant, accelerated, and indefinite.

Burnout is at an all-time high. Engagement levels have plummeted to their lowest point since 2014. And a new phenomenon is surfacing: “quiet cracking.” It’s the slow unraveling that happens before burnout fully sets in, a withdrawal or hollowing out, often met with organizational silence or denial. In this environment, being overworked is seen as a badge of honor rather than a red flag.

So, how do we respond? We start by shifting the conversation and rethinking how we lead, how we work, and how we live, starting with ourselves.

The Five Paradigm Shifts

  1. Well-being is not a detriment to productivity; it’s a driver…
  2. Productivity happens in both the push and the pause…

Members: Read the full version of this Action Step in the Member Resource Center.

To read this entire Action Step become a member of the Diversity & Flexibility Alliance. 

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Action Step – Assess, Articulate, Activate & Align: The Culture Transformation Process

The Alliance’s Action Steps are designed to assist organizations with implementing practical strategies to humanize the workplace, empower people, and foster innovation. Members can access full versions the Alliance’s Action Steps in the Member Resource Center.

Culture is the heartbeat of an organization. Gallup’s research shows just how powerful it can be: people who feel connected to their company’s culture are four times as likely to be engaged at work, 4.5 times more likely to be high performers, 62% less likely to feel burned out, and 47% less likely to be actively looking for another job. That is not coincidence; that is culture at work.

Many organizations put real effort into defining and communicating culture, yet gaps still remain between the words and the daily experience. Even executive teams can describe culture in different ways, creating misalignment that leads to disengagement, confusion, and turnover…

The Culture Transformation Process

Assess

Start by understanding your current reality…

Articulate

Define the culture you aspire to create…

Activate

Bringing culture to life starts with connection. When people feel culture every day in the way they work, collaborate, and lead, it becomes a source of pride and clarity…

Align

Embedding culture into systems is what makes it last. When hiring, onboarding, performance management, recognition, and advancement are all aligned with cultural values, people experience culture as something they actively live every day…

Members: Read the full version of this Action Step in the Member Resource Center.

To read this entire Action Step become a member of the Diversity & Flexibility Alliance. 

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Action Step – The Business Case for Sabbaticals: A Talent Strategy for Retention, Resilience & Results

The Alliance’s Action Steps are designed to assist organizations with implementing practical strategies to humanize the workplace, empower people, and foster innovation. Members can access full versions the Alliance’s Action Steps in the Member Resource Center.

In today’s high-burnout, high-expectation work cultures, innovative organizations are looking for strategies to nurture their talent and foster sustainable success. Sabbaticals offer a powerful opportunity—intentional, structured time away that replenishes energy, sparks fresh thinking, and deepens the connection between employees and their work.

At DFA, we’ve been studying the evolving needs of modern talent, and what it really takes to build organizations that are both high-performing and human-centered. Through multi-source research and conversations with member organizations, one insight has become increasingly clear: sabbaticals are one of the most underused yet high-impact strategies available today. They support individual well-being, strengthen teams, improve succession planning, and help drive critical business outcomes such as retention, innovation, and long-term engagement.

And yet, most organizations don’t have a formal sabbatical program in place.

As pressures mount on professionals at every level, particularly those in demanding client service or high-responsibility roles, traditional talent strategies are falling short. Top performers are looking for more than promotions and compensation. They’re looking for organizations that see them holistically, and are willing to invest in their long-term vitality (not just their quarterly output).

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Key Components of a Well-Drafted Sabbatical Policy

We strongly recommend that all sabbatical programs be codified in a formal, written policy. As with other forms of leave or flexibility, a clearly documented policy ensures consistency, transparency, and equitable application. It also raises awareness and reduces confusion about eligibility and expectations. Even for organizations that offer unlimited vacation, it’s important to create a distinct sabbatical policy that communicates this benefit as separate, intentional, and supported.

Drawing from our research and extensive experience in organizational consulting, we offer the following recommendations for developing or refining a sabbatical policy:

1. Define the Purpose

Clarity of purpose is essential. Too often, organizations implement policies without articulating what they are trying to achieve or why it is important. A clearly stated purpose—whether improving retention, reducing burnout, supporting long-term growth, or recognizing tenure—anchors the program in business strategy, builds internal support, and brings skeptics on board. This purpose should be stated upfront in the policy and reinforced throughout internal communications.

2. Set Eligibility Criteria…

Members: Continue reading this Action Step in the Member Resource Center.

To read this entire Action Step become a member of the Diversity & Flexibility Alliance.