Beyond November: What Will Your Organisation Do for Men Now?

Why the real work to support men in the workplace starts after Movember ends.

November felt different this year. Across organisations, there was more noise, more energy and more honesty surrounding International Men’s Day, Movember and men’s mental and physical health.

Movember has grown beyond moustaches - it has become a cultural moment that: raises awareness of prostate and testicular cancer, drives action around men’s mental health, encourages men to get checked and talk more openly and brings communities and workplaces together

Your organisation may have run campaigns, hosted events, shared stories or championed male role models. And that matters.

But what happens next? This is the bit where I think companies halt.

We see companies doing brilliant things around International Men’s Day and Movember; Talks about mental health, workshops around work / life balance or in office health check provision. But as soon as the 1st December hits, all that great intention, all that awareness, often falls into silence.

The Reality: Men Are Still Struggling Behind the Scenes

Despite the progress, the statistics tell a sobering story:

• Men make up around 75% of deaths by suicide in the UK.

• Men are significantly less likely to seek help or speak about mental health.

• Over 40% of men report that they “no longer know where they fit” in modern workplace culture.

• 1 in 3 men say they stay silent at work because they fear saying the wrong thing.

• More than half report feeling more isolated at work than they did five years ago.

These numbers reflect what we hear daily in coaching conversations with men’s life coaches and confidence coaching practitioners, who regularly hear men describe growing up with a blueprint where strength equals silence.

Even with cultural shifts, this conditioning still shapes how many men show up at work, lead, communicate and cope.

And the result? Many men are overloaded, unsure where they belong and silently struggling.

Men Aren’t Sure Where They Fit at Work Anymore

As workplaces evolve (rightly) to become more inclusive, many men feel lost in the transition. They worry about saying the wrong thing, perhaps looking out of touch, appearing weak, asking for help and not knowing the “new rules”.

This uncertainty often leads to withdrawal, not because they don’t care, but because they don’t know how to engage safely.

And this is where organisations need to do deeper work. Not another campaign or one off event, but a measurable strategy supported by career coaches, business coaches and leaders who understand confidence coaching in the workplace.

Beyond Awareness: What Men Actually Need from Their Workplace

Through our coaching work in organisations, we’ve learnt that the majority of men keep their feelings to themselves. In fact, the men we work with admit they only speak openly when they trust the culture and they believe honesty won’t backfire. 

We’ve observed a massive shift in uptake in male engagement when male leaders role model openness – candidly talking at both a private and public level about their highs and lows both inside and outside of work. 

To caveat, this isn’t about employees coming to work and telling each other every single detail of their lives. It’s about setting the conditions for talent – all talent – to feel they can voice their worries, challenges – their stuff - and know it’s going to be held and received rather than dismissed or scoffed at. 

This isn’t just a male issue. We all - male, female, nonbinary – have ‘stuff’; be that high pressure, anxiety, internal conflict, low self esteem or major life changes that turn our worlds upside down. The glaring difference is that a large cross section of every organisation is made up of midlife men, many of whom are carrying silent pressure, outdated beliefs and identity confusion that is affecting their wellbeing and performance. And it ensures they don’t tell anyone about that ‘stuff’.

What if we could create working environments that normalise being open, that proactively display honesty and place a priority on wellbeing and prevention rather than burnout and intervention.

Action Plan for Supporting Men All Year Round

We’ve put together a generalised clear, actionable framework HR and L&D leaders can implement immediately. Not one size fits all, so it’ll need tweaked based on the insights you have about your workplace, but here’s our tuppence worth:

1.Inspire Them

Create visible examples of healthy masculinity, resilience and vulnerability.

• Host fireside chats with respected male leaders who are open about pressure and growth.

• Invite guest speakers from sport, the military or high-performance fields to talk honestly about the highs and lows.

• Share internal stories of men navigating stress, identity change, setbacks and success.

When men see other men open up, the culture changes.

2. Ask Them

Do not assume you know what men need — ask them. Then listen.

Create an anonymous survey or listening exercise that explores:

• mental wellbeing

• workload and pressure

• emotional literacy and confidence

• where they feel disconnected

• the support they wish existed

This step alone transforms organisational insight.

3. Build Something Meaningful in Response

Use what you learn to create targeted, relevant, long-term support.

This could include:

• Offering workplace wellbeing workshops that address stress, burnout and emotional resilience.

• Running corporate wellbeing events that support male specific themes.

• Partnering with an executive coach or life coach to build tailored programmes.

• Creating men’s discussion groups or informal confidential check-in spaces.

• Embedding regular wellbeing conversations into team rhythms, instead of waiting for November.

Culture change is not a campaign, it’s a commitment.

FINAL NOTE

November raises awareness, but your organisation must take it from here.

If you’re ready to build meaningful, year-round support for the men in your organisation, now is the moment to begin.