Encouraging Real Conversations in Mental Health: KPMG  

KPMG Australia, a global network of professional services, has over 10,000 people across Australia. The organisation works to ensure its workplaces are environments where individuals feel safe to discuss issues such as mental health.   

When concerns were raised with the leadership team about their people’s mental health, KPMG partnered with Heart On My Sleeve (a mental health and emotional intelligence training organisation) to create the program Real Conversations in Mental Health. The program aims to support leaders with how to engage in authentic mental health conversations.   

The first step focused on normalising and encouraging authentic and inclusive wellbeing conversations, to ensure people felt safe and supported. While managers and leaders had a strong desire to support their people, they felt ill-equipped due to their lack of mental health knowledge.    

To address this, KPMG followed a top-down approach beginning with People Leaders, giving them pragmatic tips and tools to support workers’ mental health concerns. The organisation also established a network of Real Peers – staff accredited by Heart On My Sleeve in mental health first aid, using the same mental health tips and tools provided to People Leaders. Now, over 1,300 KPMG staff are trained and equipped with how to have real conversations concerning mental health and wellbeing.   

The crucial next step involved supporting leaders to model healthy and sustainable work practices. For example, to demonstrate the importance of a healthy work–life balance, a conversation to check-in on someone’s mental health would occur during standard hours.   

Internal surveys found 50% of individuals said they would not feel comfortable disclosing an issue with their mental health to a leader. Real Conversations in Mental Health opened opportunities for local conversations, removing the barrier or discomfort someone might feel discussing their wellbeing. The network of Real Peers gives people access to accredited leaders outside of HR to engage in authentic conversations surrounding all topics, not just mental health. KPMG noted a decrease in escalations to HR and senior leaders at KPMG; workers have a leader to go to and the confidence to confide in that leader.   

The Real Conversations in Mental Health program has been running for 4 years. Internal evaluations display a 9 out of 10 impact rating for participants. The KPMG Global People Survey has revealed that over 85% of KPMG staff feel their leader supports their mental health challenges.   

Since the delivery of the Real Conversations on Mental Health program, the number of people speaking up and leaders listening has increased significantly—a core contributor to psychological safety in the workplace.  

“We asked individuals at the end of the program how equipped they felt. There was a 100% improvement in confidence, and 100% of participants agreed [that the program] made them a better leader.” Lainie Cassidy, Director of People & Inclusion at KPMG.