Episode
How play helps restore psychological safety
- Podcast
- HR Leader Podcast Network
- Published
- Apr 15, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 1883
- Processing state
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Summary
Workplaces across the board can, at times, trigger fear responses from workers. Here, we reflect on how incorporating play into not only the processes but also the mindset of the workforce can both bolster and maintain optimal levels of psychological safety for staff. In today's episode of The HR Leader Podcast, host Jerome Doraisamy speaks with Culture Hero founder Dara Simkin about how and why play in the workplace means something entirely different from having a ping-pong table on the floor, why the incorporation of play is so essential in the current climate, how high-stakes workplaces can trigger fear responses, and the consequences of this. Simkin also delves into the compounding effects of stress both inside and outside work, the impact of constantly feeling exhausted, how play can help, the problems to be overcome, how HR can better push for the incorporation of play, how HR can support team leaders in driving change, and the need to remain human in a shifting landscape.