The future of leadership lies in responding to struggles with humanity, not silence: Neerja Birla

In 2016, mental health concerns were still taboo in India when Neerja Birla, founder and chairperson of the Aditya Birla Education Trust (ABET), founded Mpower. The initiative aims to spread awareness, reduce social stigma, and offer high-quality, holistic mental health care and clinical services. A decade later, the country has come a long way in mental health awareness. While it is encouraging to see mental well-being discussions entering corporate boardrooms, Neerja Birla tells Fortune India that only those organisations that embed psychological safety, empathy, and prevention into the way they lead will see better results in building resilient people and businesses.

Edited excerpts:

Q: How has the conversation around mental health in Indian boardrooms evolved over the last decade? Are CEOs now treating it as a business imperative rather than merely an HR initiative?

When we launched Mpower a decade ago, conversations around mental health in boardrooms were rare. Today, CEOs increasingly initiate these discussions themselves. Earlier, mental health was often viewed as an individual concern or an HR-led well-being initiative. Today, there is a far greater recognition among business leaders that employee well-being is intrinsically linked to organisational resilience, leadership effectiveness and long-term business performance.

Through Mpower's work with organisations across sectors, we have seen leadership become far more willing to initiate conversations around mental health, invest in employee support systems and create more open, empathetic workplaces. The willingness to acknowledge mental well-being as a leadership priority is a significant shift from where we were a decade ago.

Having said that, there is still a long way to go. The next phase of progress lies in moving from awareness to sustained action. Mental well-being should not be viewed as a response to a crisis but as an integral part of organisational culture and leadership. The organisations that embed psychological safety, empathy and prevention into the way they lead will be better equipped to build resilient people and resilient businesses.

Q: What evidence have you seen that investing in employee well-being delivers measurable business returns?

The evidence doesn't have to be complicated to be convincing. Our research found that wherever organisations genuinely invested in employee well-being, whether through open conversations around mental health or flexible work arrangements, employees responded positively. Satisfaction with these initiatives exceeded 90%, reminding us that people value workplaces where they feel supported and understood. Equally important is what happens when that support is absent.

Today, only one in 10 employees in India has access to a proper mental health programme at work, yet nearly half our workforce is quietly carrying the weight of poor mental health. Close to eight in 10 had to step away from work for almost two weeks last year, just to cope.

That is not absence born of laziness; it is absence born of exhaustion. So the return on investing in well-being is not abstract. It shows up in people who stay, who trust their organisation, and who bring their full selves to work rather than a tired, guarded version of themselves. That, to me, is the truest measure of return.

Q: How do organisations quantify the ROI of mental wellness programmes? What metrics should business leaders be tracking?

The conversation around ROI needs to evolve. Mental well-being is often viewed as an intervention to improve productivity, but in reality, it is the foundation upon which sustainable performance is built. When people are emotionally well, they think more clearly, collaborate more effectively, innovate with greater confidence and lead with empathy. These are qualities that define successful organisations, yet they are difficult to capture through a single metric.

Business leaders should certainly monitor indicators such as employee engagement, retention, absenteeism and utilisation of well-being resources. But equally important are the less tangible indicators, whether employees feel psychologically safe, whether managers are creating environments of trust, and whether people feel comfortable seeking support without fear of judgement. These are often the earliest signs of a healthy organisational culture.

Ultimately, the greatest return on investing in mental well-being is not just a healthier workforce; it is a more resilient organisation. In an increasingly uncertain world, resilience, empathy and trust are becoming as valuable as strategy and technology. Organisations that recognise this today will be the ones that lead tomorrow.

Q: While on paper most employers and organisations acknowledge the importance of providing an emotionally safe workplace, the execution gap remains wide across sectors in India. What do you think should be done?

The challenge today is no longer awareness; it is execution with consistency. Most organisations genuinely recognise the importance of mental well-being, but meaningful change cannot happen through isolated initiatives or annual campaigns. It requires mental well-being to be woven into the everyday experience of work.

Execution begins with leadership ownership. Policies alone cannot create emotionally healthy workplaces if managers are not equipped to recognise distress, have compassionate conversations or support employees through difficult periods. Similarly, well-being cannot be measured by the number of programmes conducted, but by whether employees genuinely feel safe asking for help without fearing judgement or career consequences.

Every organisation will have a different starting point, but the direction should remain the same, moving from reactive support to preventive care. Just as organisations invest in developing technical capability, they must invest in building emotional capability. That is how mental well-being becomes sustainable rather than seasonal.

Q: Why is prioritising mental health key in India's economic journey ahead with 2047 in focus? How should leadership training evolve?

As India looks towards 2047, our aspirations extend beyond becoming a larger economy; they are about becoming a stronger, more inclusive and future-ready nation. That journey cannot be carried by economic growth alone. It must also be carried by the emotional wel-lbeing of our people, because it is mental health that shapes how we learn, love, lead and hope. Leadership must grow into this responsibility as well. Our research found something quite telling: when leadership feels distant or communication is unclear, it is the people beneath that leadership who quietly absorb the stress, the exhaustion, the sense of not being seen. So training cannot stop at strategy and performance anymore. In Mpower’s study, simple programmes like mental-health-first-aid training earned some of the warmest responses from employees, with 91% satisfaction wherever it was offered. Yet, fewer than half of organisations currently provide it. That gap is where the next chapter of leadership development must begin: teaching leaders not just to manage outcomes, but to notice when someone is struggling, and to respond with humanity rather than silence.

As India looks towards 2047, our aspirations extend beyond becoming a larger economy; they are about becoming a stronger, more inclusive and future-ready nation. As home to one of the world's largest youth populations, India's greatest strength lies in its human capital.

To realise our vision of becoming a developed nation by 2047, we must nurture not only the skills and capabilities of our young people, but also their emotional resilience and mental well-being. That journey cannot be carried by economic growth alone. It must also be carried by the emotional well-being of our people, because it is mental health that shapes how we learn, lead and contribute to society.

Q: According to Mpower’s own study, women employees showed significantly higher mental health risk levels than their male counterparts. What are the reasons? What steps can companies take to address this?

The findings around women are both important and deeply reflective of the realities many continue to experience. Our study found that women reported significantly higher mental health risk than men, but this is not because women are less resilient. It is because they continue to navigate multiple expectations simultaneously, excelling professionally while often carrying a disproportionate share of caregiving and household responsibilities, all while confronting unconscious biases that still exist in many workplaces.

Nearly 80% of women in our study reported experiencing workplace stereotypes around marriage, motherhood and career progression. These biases continue to affect confidence, opportunities and long-term emotional well-being.

At Mpower, we consistently see women carrying the invisible emotional load of multiple roles. Addressing this requires organisations to move beyond standalone well-being initiatives and build truly inclusive workplaces. This means fostering psychologically safe environments, enabling flexible work, strengthening caregiver support, ensuring access to mental health services, and creating equitable growth opportunities. Just as importantly, organisations must challenge unconscious bias and cultivate leadership that values performance over outdated assumptions.

Investing in women's well-being is ultimately an investment in stronger organisations, healthier communities and a more resilient workforce.