Managers and team leaders have faced unrest in the workplace on a daily basis over the past year. Think of friction within teams, greater emotional strain or meetings that get bogged down in operational worries. Firefighting became the default mode all too often. The problem was frequently pushed towards HR. As if stress is something you organise ‘on the side’. HR departments are themselves often already overloaded and understaffed, so many organisations are still figuring out where this theme belongs.
More than workload alone
It is important to realise that stress in the workplace cannot be explained solely by workload, targets or personal problems. Society is under structural tension because uncertainty, anxiety and performance pressure are piling up. Economic instability, geopolitical threat, digitalisation, constant availability and social comparison are no longer abstract concepts. They are the daily reality of employees, managers and executives alike.
Many people want more perspective. Not only career prospects, but security of existence, calm and control. That inevitably filters through into organisations. Over the past year, we saw this reflected in virtually all studies into work stress and mental health. And we heard it back in the news more and more often: stress-related complaints are increasing, burnout is shifting to younger age groups and drop-out is lasting longer.
One in six employees
In 2025, one in six employees dropped out due to stress or burnout complaints. And that number is rising. Moreover, it increasingly involves young, highly educated professionals. People with ambition, commitment and talent – precisely the group organisations rely on for the future. In addition, stress-related drop-out is rarely an isolated incident. When one employee drops out, numbers two and three often follow quickly. Not because stress is ‘contagious’, but because the system in which people work is under structural tension.
The financial reality
A sick employee costs a company an average of €400 to €600 per day. In the case of long-term absence, the costs can rise to €80,000 to €100,000 per employee per year. Those are the visible costs, such as continued pay, replacement and loss of production. The invisible costs can also be considerable. Think, among other things, of loss of knowledge, declining team morale and increased workload for colleagues. On top of that, an employee’s return after stress-related absence is anything but self-evident. That is precisely why investing in prevention is low-threshold compared to the cost of drop-out.
Prevent underestimation
One of the biggest misconceptions about stress is that it is something soft. Something for coaching or mindfulness at the edges of the organisation. But stress is a biological, psychological and organisational phenomenon. It influences thinking, behaviour, decision-making and collaboration. Prolonged stress narrows perspective, increases reactivity and reduces the ability to look ahead – precisely what organisations need in complex times.
That is why it is important not only to react to incidents, but above all to look at the underlying causes. Too often, companies only respond when someone drops out, instead of when the system gives off signals. And those signals are always there, long before someone calls in sick.
2025 as a turning point
We discuss this with Diana de Koning, CEO of Academie voor Stressmanagement. “I have been sounding this alarm for quite some time. Not out of doom-mongering, but out of urgency. If we change nothing, I see stress growing into the number one national disease by 2030.”
Nevertheless, she sees positive signals: “In 2025, organisations showed that things can be done differently, that prevention is not a cost item but a strategic investment. And that mental resilience, calm and focus are not a luxury, but preconditions for healthy leadership and sustainable performance.”
It starts with insight
The first step is always insight. Not based on assumptions or gut feeling, but on data. Understanding where stress arises, how it manifests itself and which patterns repeat themselves within teams and organisations. “Instruments we have developed, such as the Stress Master Questionnaire (SMQ), make stress measurable and open to discussion – without judgement, without stigma. They provide an objective starting point for conversation and policy, and help organisations to steer in a targeted way instead of acting reactively.”
From measuring to moving
Insight alone is not enough. It calls for guidance that goes beyond isolated interventions. An effective approach to stress focuses on three levels: mindset, behaviour and environment. How people think. How they act under pressure. And how the organisation is set up.
The methods used by Centrum voor Stressmanagement and Academie voor Stressmanagement are scientifically grounded and practically applicable. Not to eliminate stress – that is impossible – but to make stress work for organisations instead of against them.
Calm and focus
as a strategic choice Looking back on 2025, one conclusion is inescapable: organisations that continue to see stress as a side issue pay an ever-higher price for it. Organisations that dare to invest in insight, prevention and guidance build resilience, job satisfaction and sustainable performance.
Calm and focus in the workplace do not arise on their own. They are the result of conscious choices.
The question is not whether stress affects your organisation. The question is: what will you do with that insight?
More than workload alone
It is important to realise that stress in the workplace cannot be explained solely by workload, targets or personal problems. Society is under structural tension because uncertainty, anxiety and performance pressure are piling up. Economic instability, geopolitical threat, digitalisation, constant availability and social comparison are no longer abstract concepts. They are the daily reality of employees, managers and executives alike.
Many people want more perspective. Not only career prospects, but security of existence, calm and control. That inevitably filters through into organisations. Over the past year, we saw this reflected in virtually all studies into work stress and mental health. And we heard it back in the news more and more often: stress-related complaints are increasing, burnout is shifting to younger age groups and drop-out is lasting longer.
One in six employees
In 2025, one in six employees dropped out due to stress or burnout complaints. And that number is rising. Moreover, it increasingly involves young, highly educated professionals. People with ambition, commitment and talent – precisely the group organisations rely on for the future. In addition, stress-related drop-out is rarely an isolated incident. When one employee drops out, numbers two and three often follow quickly. Not because stress is ‘contagious’, but because the system in which people work is under structural tension.
The financial reality
A sick employee costs a company an average of €400 to €600 per day. In the case of long-term absence, the costs can rise to €80,000 to €100,000 per employee per year. Those are the visible costs, such as continued pay, replacement and loss of production. The invisible costs can also be considerable. Think, among other things, of loss of knowledge, declining team morale and increased workload for colleagues. On top of that, an employee’s return after stress-related absence is anything but self-evident. That is precisely why investing in prevention is low-threshold compared to the cost of drop-out.
Prevent underestimation
One of the biggest misconceptions about stress is that it is something soft. Something for coaching or mindfulness at the edges of the organisation. But stress is a biological, psychological and organisational phenomenon. It influences thinking, behaviour, decision-making and collaboration. Prolonged stress narrows perspective, increases reactivity and reduces the ability to look ahead – precisely what organisations need in complex times.
That is why it is important not only to react to incidents, but above all to look at the underlying causes. Too often, companies only respond when someone drops out, instead of when the system gives off signals. And those signals are always there, long before someone calls in sick.
2025 as a turning point
We discuss this with Diana de Koning, CEO of Academie voor Stressmanagement. “I have been sounding this alarm for quite some time. Not out of doom-mongering, but out of urgency. If we change nothing, I see stress growing into the number one national disease by 2030.”
Nevertheless, she sees positive signals: “In 2025, organisations showed that things can be done differently, that prevention is not a cost item but a strategic investment. And that mental resilience, calm and focus are not a luxury, but preconditions for healthy leadership and sustainable performance.”
It starts with insight
The first step is always insight. Not based on assumptions or gut feeling, but on data. Understanding where stress arises, how it manifests itself and which patterns repeat themselves within teams and organisations. “Instruments we have developed, such as the Stress Master Questionnaire (SMQ), make stress measurable and open to discussion – without judgement, without stigma. They provide an objective starting point for conversation and policy, and help organisations to steer in a targeted way instead of acting reactively.”
From measuring to moving
Insight alone is not enough. It calls for guidance that goes beyond isolated interventions. An effective approach to stress focuses on three levels: mindset, behaviour and environment. How people think. How they act under pressure. And how the organisation is set up.
The methods used by Centrum voor Stressmanagement and Academie voor Stressmanagement are scientifically grounded and practically applicable. Not to eliminate stress – that is impossible – but to make stress work for organisations instead of against them.
Calm and focus
as a strategic choice Looking back on 2025, one conclusion is inescapable: organisations that continue to see stress as a side issue pay an ever-higher price for it. Organisations that dare to invest in insight, prevention and guidance build resilience, job satisfaction and sustainable performance.
Calm and focus in the workplace do not arise on their own. They are the result of conscious choices.
The question is not whether stress affects your organisation. The question is: what will you do with that insight?