🌍 YPP Spotlight: Atlassian’s Global Culture of Care – Balance, connection, and mental fitness.
Atlassian is the Australian-born software company behind tools like Jira, Trello and Confluence, used by teams worldwide to collaborate, plan and innovate. But behind the dashboards and product roadmaps is a company quietly leading the charge in workplace wellbeing, especially for remote and globally distributed teams.
The challenge:
When Atlassian announced it was going “Team Anywhere”, allowing employees to work from almost anywhere in the world, it wasn’t just about location freedom. The real test was this: how do you create a global culture of care and wellness when your people are scattered across 13 time zones, rarely meet in person, and balance work with wildly different lifestyles?
Their solution: intentional care, not just perks
Atlassian’s approach is rooted in the idea that wellbeing isn’t a one-size-fits-all program, it’s a framework of autonomy, support and proactive care. Here’s how they’re doing it:
🧠 1. Wellness Days (and No Explanation Needed)
Every employee can take a Wellness Day, just like sick leave, no questions asked. No need to justify it. No need to be unwell. If you’re feeling mentally depleted, need time for reflection, or just want to hike a mountain and come back refreshed, it’s there for you. And managers are expected to role model this.
🌍 2. Mind health on every continent
From free therapy sessions to on-demand mental fitness coaching, employees in all countries get access to robust support. They’ve partnered with modern platforms like Modern Health, Spring Health and Calm to offer culturally-relevant, app-based resources, whether you’re in Berlin or Brisbane.
🧘🏽♀️ 3. Wellbeing Budget (yes, it includes paddleboards)
Every Atlassian gets an annual wellbeing budget to use how they see fit. That could mean yoga classes, ergonomic chairs, hobby kits, or even paddleboards, whatever supports their personal wellbeing. It’s wellbeing without the red tape.
🧑🏽🤝🧑🏼 4. “Recharge Together” Weeks
Every July, Atlassian runs a global initiative encouraging teams to schedule fewer meetings, lighten loads, and even go offline together. It’s part of a push to normalise cycles of deep work and deep rest, a rhythm many workplaces overlook.
What we love about this global culture of care strategy
- 🌐 They walk the talk: remote-first doesn’t mean disconnected.
- 🎯 The link between mental health and performance is front and centre, not sidelined.
- 💬 Employees are encouraged to speak up, take space, and “own their energy” without guilt.
Takeaway for Leaders
As more organisations shift toward hybrid or global working, Atlassian’s strategy is a reminder: wellbeing can’t just live in a building, it must live in the culture. From calendar blocks for recharging to language that normalises rest, this is a company that doesn’t just enable performance, it protects it.
🔍 What could your organisation learn from Atlassian and build a global culture of care?
- Are Wellness Days a viable addition to your HR strategy?
- Could your remote/hybrid workers benefit from more self-directed support?
- Do your managers model what healthy boundaries look like?
✨ Want more Spotlights like this?
Did you enjoy this spotlight on Atlassian’s global culture of care? If so, keep checking back at yourpeoplepower.org as we continue to highlight the boldest, most human-first organisations shaping the future of work.
📣 Want to feature your organisation in an upcoming Spotlight?
We’d love to hear how you’re supporting employee wellbeing, performance, and culture.
Contact our press team today: [email protected]
Want more like this, take a look at our previous spotlights.