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Recently, I attended the Joint Congress of ICOH-WOPS & APA-PFAW 2025, an international conference focused on work, well-being, and psychosocial factors at work. Researchers, practitioners, and policy contributors from around the world gathered to discuss one central question:
How can organizations design healthier, safer, and more sustainable workplaces?
As a practitioner based in Malaysia, this experience directly informs how I support organizations through team building, corporate training, and training needs assessment (TNA).
Why This Conference Matters for Organizations
The sessions covered evidence-based topics such as:
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Psychosocial risk and burnout prevention
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Psychological safety and leadership responsibility
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Working time, workload design, and recovery
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Organizational-level interventions, not just individual coping
A key message repeated throughout the conference was clear:
Employee well-being is not only an individual issue.
It is a system and leadership responsibility.
This perspective is central to occupational health psychology, the field that guides my work with companies.
Applying Occupational Health Psychology to Team Building
Many organizations approach team building as a one-off activity.
From an occupational health psychology perspective, effective team building should:
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Strengthen psychological safety and trust
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Improve communication and role clarity
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Support energy management and recovery, not just motivation
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Align individual strengths with organizational demands
This is why my team building programs are designed as purposeful interventions, not games without direction. They are linked to real workplace challenges such as stress, disengagement, and performance sustainability.
Training Needs Assessment Beyond Surveys
At the conference, researchers highlighted the limitations of relying only on self-report surveys. A robust training needs assessment (TNA) should consider:
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Job demands and role expectations
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Leadership practices and team climate
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Psychosocial risks and protective factors
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Signals of burnout, fatigue, or disengagement
In my practice, TNA is not just about “what training people want”, but what the organization actually needs to function in a healthier way.
Supporting Malaysian Organizations
The insights from this international congress reinforce a direction that is increasingly relevant for Malaysia:
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Evidence-based corporate training
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Psychosocially informed team building
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Organizational-level prevention, not crisis management
Organizations that invest in this approach tend to see better engagement, stronger leadership capacity, and more sustainable performance.
Looking for Team Building or Training Needs Assessment in Malaysia?
If your organization is looking for:
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Team building with real psychological value
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Training needs assessment grounded in occupational health psychology
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Corporate wellness and psychosocial risk-informed training
This is the work I focus on.
International knowledge must ultimately serve local workplaces, and my role is to translate occupational health psychology into practical, culturally relevant solutions for Malaysian organizations.
Contact us via WhatsApp 0167154419 (New Mind Academy).
