Occupational Psychologist * Workplace Burnout Specialist
High performance shouldn’t come at the cost of burnout.
Yet, without the right insight, it often does.
Some of the organisations I’ve helped are:
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
My Approach
Data-driven, systematic and practical
Burnout is not a single event or endpoint, but a continuum of risk that develops over time. My 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.
Based on a comprehensive research study, I developed a framework called AURA to provides a structured way to understand and manage burnout risk.
AURA shows burnout as a continuum of risk, reflecting a series of identifiable stages and maps warning signals across 5 areas where they can show up.
Evaluating stress levels in this way enables early recognition of risks so preventative actions can be taken - before a crisis.
It also provides a common language to discuss stress experiences and pinpoint priority issues.
Used by leaders, teams and individuals from organisations including:
How I Support Organisations and Individuals
I 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, I help organisations turn insight into meaningful, lasting improvement.
My approach is grounded in psychological science, data-led insight and practical action.
My core services and solutions include:
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Employee Stress & Resilience Assessment (AURA)
A validated, data-driven assessment providing insight at individual, team, and organisational level — enabling targeted wellbeing and performance support.
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Workforce Resilience Programme
Organisation-wide programmes combining assessment, reporting, and action planning to drive sustainable wellbeing and performance.
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Sustainable Performance Under Pressure
Practical workshops equipping employees at all levels with skills to manage pressure, sustain energy and perform at their best.
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Personal Resilience & Recovery Coaching
Confidential one-to-one support for employees experiencing high stress or early burnout risk.
What Clients Say
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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
About Me - 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.