Podcast: Building evidence‑based wellbeing strategies - lessons from the CIA's first Chief Wellbeing Officer

In this episode of Work in Progress, Dr Sanjay Popat speaks with Dr Jennifer Posa, the CIA's first Chief Wellbeing Officer and former senior leader at Johnson & Johnson and Mayo Clinic. Drawing on her experience leading wellbeing in some of the world's most demanding organisations, Jennifer shares insights into what wellbeing really means, why organisations should invest in it, how data and evidence can drive effective wellbeing strategies, and the critical role organisational psychology plays in creating healthier, more sustainable workplaces.

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This episode was recorded on 23rd June  2026. A transcript of the episode is available. If you would like to get in touch regarding the episode or podcast, email research.lubs@leeds.ac.uk. Visit the podcast webpage for further information.  

About the speakers: 

Dr Sanjay Popat is a chartered organisational psychologist and Postdoctoral Research Fellow specialising in occupational stress, well-being and mental health. His work focuses on how these phenomena occur over time and how time might influence whether we adapt to stressors or reach a breaking point. 

Dr Jennifer Posa is an organisational psychologist and the founder of 3P Productions, a transformational change advisory practice. Dr Posa served as the first Chief Wellbeing Officer at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) where she designed and executed the first Congressionally mandated workforce well-being program in the Intelligence Community. Prior to joining the CIA, Dr Posa held multiple leadership positions with Johnson & Johnson, including Global Head of Employee Mental Wellbeing & Workplace Effectiveness, responsible for the mental health and well-being of 140,000 employees across 77 countries. Earlier in her career, Dr Posa spent 17 years at Mayo Clinic in various business and strategy development roles focused on developing corporate cultures of health. A well-known thought leader in the areas of workplace culture, organisational support, and psychological wellbeing, Dr Posa has been a catalyst for transformation while leading and advancing research agendas, measurement frameworks, and service models to meet some of today’s greatest challenges in some of the most demanding environments.