GardaWorld: How the Wellbeing Pulse Survey from Great Place To Work® Middle East provided a real-time read into employee sentiment during uncertain times
When operating in a high-pressure and uncertain regional context, GardaWorld partnered with Great Place To Work® to strengthen its listening approach. By combining the Trust Index™ and Wellbeing Pulse Survey, the organization gained real-time insight into employee needs and delivered targeted, visible support when it mattered most.
Meet GardaWorld
Employees
51
Industry
Other
HQ Location
UAE
GardaWorld is a global security and risk management company operating across multiple regions, often in complex and high-threat environments. Supporting teams in these conditions requires a strong focus on employee wellbeing, clear communication, and robust crisis management capabilities. GardaWorld has been Great Place To Work® Certified™ since 2025.
Key Outcomes
Trust Index data helped GardaWprld create more focused action plans for management that connect the employee experience to business results.
The Wellbeing Pulse Survey enabled GardaWorld to better understand employee needs and deliver timely, targeted support during a high-pressure period.
The Wellbeing Pulse Survey provided a real-time read on how employees were experiencing uncertainty, allowing leadership to respond quickly with relevant communication and support.
Frequent check-ins and transparent communication, supported by employee feedback, reinforced leadership accountability and strengthened trust across teams.
Why we partnered with Great Place To Work®
Two years ago, GardaWorld recognized that while operating across a multi-regional footprint of teams working in austere environments, annual surveys alone were not capturing enough of the day-to-day reality of employee experience. As part of their partnership with Great Place To Work®, they leveraged the Trust Index™ Survey to strengthen their listening approach, enabling them to better gauge employee feedback and uncover key sentiments and needs that could be addressed.
The Wellbeing Pulse Survey
Set against a regional context described by high pressure, uncertainty, and crisis, GardaWorld extended its listening tools to include the Wellbeing Pulse Survey from Great Place To Work® Middle East.
This survey served as a timely listening mechanism, providing a real-time read on how employees were experiencing a specific high-pressure period. It enabled the organization to go beyond general sentiment and understand the drivers of stress, communication needs, and required support.
“Certification gave us a validated baseline, showing us confirmation that the culture we believed we had was in fact the culture that people were experiencing in the office. The second cycle for us was about going deeper and becoming more precise on what we were looking at.”
Janine Miller, Director of Corporate Strategy & Communications, GardaWorld Security – Critical Infrastructure & Government Services Division”
Challenge
Supporting Multiregional Teams During Times of Uncertainty
In response to a regional climate marked by high pressure and unpredictability, GardaWorld was committed to navigating the situation with an effective and structured crisis management approach. While the organization already operated across complex and high threat environments, this period presented a unique challenge as it was closer to home for employees, impacting not only their professional responsibilities but also their personal lives, families, and overall sense of stability. Ensuring that teams felt supported required more than existing frameworks alone. It required a deeper and more immediate understanding of what employees were experiencing in real time. This made it critical for GardaWorld to strengthen how it listened, moving beyond assumptions and ensuring that any response was grounded in the actual needs and realities of their people.
Solution
Using the Wellbeing Pulse Survey to Ensure Teams Are Best Supported
The Wellbeing Pulse Survey was introduced as a dedicated listening tool within GardaWorld’s broader crisis management and welfare framework. The organization was able to quickly integrate the Pulse Survey into its existing structure. Importantly, GardaWorld did not build a response from scratch, it intensified and refined existing practices using real-time data.
“We weren’t improvising response. We were intensifying something that was already embedded.” Janine Miller Director, Corporate Strategy & Communications– Critical Infrastructure & Government Services Division
The survey allowed GardaWorld to:
- Understand specific stress drivers
- Identify communication gaps
- Tailor support initiatives
- Validate or adjust existing welfare plans
“You don’t know what people want until you ask them.”
Madeline Routledge Senior Director, Human Resources- Critical Infrastructure & Government Services Division
Outcome
A Well-Supported Workforce
Using feedback gathered from the Wellbeing Pulse Survey, GardaWorld teams were able to organize effectively and implement actions that employees could see in real time.
The survey complemented existing initiatives such as:
- Crisis management response structures
- Daily leadership check-ins
- Tabletop exercises simulating emergency scenarios
- Welfare frameworks supported by mental health consultants
By combining structured frameworks with real-time insights, GardaWorld was able to understand the lived experience of employees rather than assume it.
This led to tangible outcomes, including:
- Targeted support actions such as temporary relocation for employees and their families
- Dedicated communication channels (Teams groups, regular updates)
- Increased psychological safety through open dialogue
“People could see the coordination… the decision-making, the communications… they saw it working in real time.” Madeline Routledge Senior Director, Human Resources- Critical Infrastructure & Government Services Division
Ultimately, the approach ensured that employees had:
- The right information
- Accessible support structures
- Relevant resources
- The ability to manage pressure sustainably
Advice to Other Organizations
GardaWorld’s experience highlights the importance of actively listening without making assumptions. Creating clear channels for feedback and consistently overcommunicating, especially during uncertainty, helps build trust and alignment. At the same time, wellbeing must already be embedded into the organization, with leadership at all levels visibly taking responsibility to support their teams in a meaningful and consistent way.
Looking Ahead
For GardaWorld, success in the future will mean continuing to build on this foundation, embedding these practices into organizational memory and continuously improving their ability to understand and respond to employee needs.
The Wellbeing Pulse Survey served as a critical part of that journey, enabling the organization to remain agile, responsive, and deeply connected to its people.
Products and features used
Trust Index™ Survey
Our rigorously developed employee survey is the global standard for quantifying the ROI of workplace culture, leadership impact, and measuring the employee experience.
Great Place To Work® Certification™
Certification gives employers a recruiting advantage by providing a globally recognized and research-backed verification of great employee experience.
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