ABOUT MIKE
I spent many years in senior health and safety leadership roles, trying to create workplace environments where the risks associated with work related mental health could be better managed and positive mental health cultures could thrive. However, I came to realise that many of the initiatives commonly implemented over the years, were just improving an organisation’s ability to pull survivors out of the river. We were not preventing people falling into that river, we were not addressing the root causes of poor mental health in the workplace.
I gained a much broader understanding of what could be done, and what needed to be done, when I became a senior HR executive. It quickly became apparent that while workplace health and safety practitioners have the tools, techniques, skills and experience to identify hazards and quantify risks; it’s HR who always have more C- suite influence and access to the people who determine ‘how the work is planned and how the work gets done’.
Mike Hagan
Company owner & Principal Consultant
Mike is available to provide a wide array of workplace solutions and support to help organisations ensure that they have the prerequisite knowledge, behaviours, work design, practices, and policies in place to enable sustainable business growth while fostering a workplace culture founded upon inclusion, respectful behaviour, high performance, and positive mental and physical wellbeing.
Understanding how Health and Safety functions and HR can collaboratively contribute here is vital; the answer to developing and maintaining a mentally healthy workplace is much more about good ways to do the work, rather than having elaborate mechanisms to pull people out the river, only to throw them back in further upstream, once they are feeling a little better!
I have developed and implemented combined HR and Health, Safety and Wellbeing strategies that have increased employee engagement, decreased workplace accident, injury and illness rates, reduced attrition rates and talent migration, achieved double digit percent reduction in WorkCover claims and costs, all while maintaining sustained business growth, increased profitability and improved employee satisfaction.
My career journey has enabled me to witness the impacts of mental health firsthand and through a variety of lenses. I’ve been a shop floor ‘tradie’, a Health and Safety Representative and union rep, a supervisor, a plant manager, a safety manager on a nuclear plant and a senior HR/HSE executive in a multi-national organisation.
I understand the negative impact of mismatches between capacity and resource, inappropriate workplace behaviours, poor change management and inadequate work design. These factors inevitably result in reduced efficacy, employee burnout, high attrition rates and significant additional costs to business. Let’s also not forget here, the debilitating impact upon employee’s mental and physical wellbeing that these factors inevitably cause, at every level of an organisation.
I know how to help organisations identify their own pain points. I know how to keep solutions simple. I know that the answer lies in a strategic but straight forward approach that creates better work while engaging, educating and supporting employees.
I know what is required to help organizations prevent people falling into the river.
What sets me apart
When you choose to work with me, you’re not just hiring a consultant—you’re gaining a business partner who truly understands the complexities of workplace mental health, operational and commercial drivers, and can deliver practical, effective solutions to foster a positive and productive work environment. As a workplace mental health consultant, I offer a distinctive combination of experience and skills that empower both organisations and individuals to thrive.
What makes me effective helping businesses like yours:
Personal Insight
Having experienced firsthand how workplace factors can impact mental health, I have a deep understanding of the challenges employees and employers face.
Comprehensive Expertise
My extensive background in managing people and processes enables me to quickly pinpoint the root causes of poor mental health within a workplace and offer a range of systematic solutions.
Versatile Solutions
I provide support across all aspects of workplace mental health strategies, such as concept development, hazard identification, risk assessment, policy creation, and leadership development and employee wellness sessions.
Engaging Communication
I’m an engaging presenter who educates while entertaining, ensuring that important messages resonate and remain with audiences at all levels.
Scalable Approach
My services have been successfully utilised by businesses of all sizes across various industry sectors, from small startups to large corporations and government departments..