Turn workplace pressure into sustainable performance
Modern work places individuals under sustained pressure which, if not carefully managed, can lead to unhealthy stress which often remains unrecognised until a crisis emerges.
Beyond its impact on individual wellbeing, unmanaged stress creates significant risk to organisational performance, decision-making and reputation.
Grounded in occupational psychology, AURA equips organisations, teams and leaders with the insight, shared language and practical capability to recognise undue stress, optimise person–role fit and shape healthier performance environments.
This enables sustainable performance without burnout.
Used in 20+ countries since 2016
Tested methodology · Validated stress intelligence framework · Applied across individuals, teams and organisations
Hidden barriers that prevent organisations managing stress effectively
Recognition Gap
Early warning signs of undue stress and burnout are often subtle, complex and easily overlooked.
Measurement Gap
Without quantification or benchmarks, stress becomes normalised and invisible within management systems.
Disclosure Barrier
Stigma, insecurity and lack of language can prevent employees from speaking openly about stress.
Systemic Drivers
Whilst experienced individually, stress is often caused by job design, leadership practices, team norms and organisational expectations
AURA addresses these barriers through a systemic ME–WE–US approach that combines insight, capability building and workplace design
Our Approach
Managing the pressure–performance curve
Performance emerges from pressure — but only when intelligently managed
At optimal levels, pressure sharpens focus, learning and growth; when excessive or sustained, it erodes judgment, energy and long-term sustainability.
AURA provides the insight and structure needed to understand and actively manage this curve across individuals, teams and organisations.
ME - WE - US Framework
Sustainable performance depends on coordinated action across three interconnected levels:
ME — individual capability, recovery and person–role fit
WE — team dynamics, psychological safety and leadership practices
US — workplace design, systems and organisational expectations
Why burnout is so often missed
Burnout develops gradually, and early warning signs are often subtle — easy to overlook or rationalise as part of everyday life. With many possible symptoms and no single, obvious pattern, it can be difficult to recognise until someone is already well along the path.
In many workplaces, high stress has also become normalised. Without a shared and safe way to recognise or talk about it, concerns stay unspoken and issues remain unaddressed until they reach a breaking point.
Why it Matters
Quiet disengagement that erodes performance
Leaders running out of capacity
Teams under strain and conflict
Declining judgement, creativity and decision-making
Long-term health consequences
Some of the organisations we’ve helped are:
Our Approach
Data-driven, systematic and practical
Burnout is not a single event or endpoint, but a continuum of risk that develops over time. Our research shows that people typically move through a series of identifiable stages, marked by common patterns and indicators.
Preventing burnout therefore requires earlier awareness and insight to recognise warning signals before they escalate. It also requires acknowledging that the causes of burnout are not only personal, but are shaped by work environments, team dynamics and organisational systems.
For this reason, my approach combines personal insight with anonymised, aggregated reporting at team and group levels — creating safe platforms for practical conversations and focused action.
When stress is made visible, measurable and discussable, it enables earlier intervention, more meaningful dialogue and healthier, more sustainable performance.
The AURA Framework
A common standard for evaluating burnout risk
The AURA framework was developed in 2016 through a 2 year research project and has been psychometrically validated. It has been applied across organisations in over 15 countries worldwide.
AURA provides a structured way to understand burnout as a continuum of risk, reflecting a series of identifiable stages, rather than a single outcome.
Undue stress shows up across 5 domains — impacting how people think, feel, behave and function. Patterns often emerge long before a burnout crisis.
By offering a consistent framework for measuring and calibrating stress impact, AURA enables earlier recognition of risk, more meaningful conversations and targeted preventative action — across individuals, teams and organisations.
Used by leaders, teams and individuals from organisations including:
How We Support Organisations and Individuals
We work with organisations, teams, and leaders who want to take a proactive, evidence-based approach to managing stress, reducing burnout risk, and sustaining performance.
Through validated assessment, targeted programmes, and practical capability-building, we help organisations turn insight into meaningful, lasting improvement.
Our approach is grounded in psychological science, data-led insight and practical action.
Our core services and solutions include:
-
Employee Stress & Resilience Assessment (AURA)
A validated, data-driven assessment providing insight at individual, team, and organisational level — enabling targeted wellbeing and performance support.
-
Workforce Resilience Programme
Organisation-wide programmes combining assessment, reporting, and action planning to drive sustainable wellbeing and performance.
-
Sustainable Performance Under Pressure
Practical workshops equipping employees at all levels with skills to manage pressure, sustain energy and perform at their best.
-
Personal Resilience & Recovery Support
Confidential one-to-one support for employees experiencing high stress or early burnout risk.
What Clients Say
*
What Clients Say *
“We now believe measuring (and managing) resilience is more important than engagement ”
Treesan Boonma, Head of HR, Booking.com
“Superb. I hadn’t realised how stress had been impacting me - and now I have practical tools to help me cope and be at my best”
Kylie Laidlaw, Associate Director, Headhunter
"Our use of AURA was invaluable in assessing our resilience challenges both personally and as a team”
Maria Elkin, CEO, Equal Justice
"The team were able to uncover opportunities to create healthier habits and as a management team, we were able to better understand the pain points and put in place a targeted action plan to address these”
Sarah McLellan, Head of Professional Services
Founded by Rachel Austen
Chartered Occupational Psychologist • Creator of the AURA Framework • Organisational Consultant • Coach • Workplace Burnout Specialist
I’ve got 20 years of experience of working with organisations across over 30 countries.
I’ve spent my career helping people understand themselves better — working with hundreds of leaders, teams and organisations around the world. This has given me deep insight into how workplaces function and what people need to thrive.
My work is grounded in rigorous psychological science and motivated by my own personal experience of burnout.
That is why I care deeply about early detection, practical intervention and meaningful impact.
I believe people can thrive at work without sacrificing their health and organisations can succeed without burning out their people.