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Staying Human Is a Leadership Skill by Claude Silver

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In fast-moving creative and tech environments, speed is often celebrated as strength. Endurance is praised. Pushing through becomes a quiet badge of honor.

But here’s what I’ve learned the hard way: staying human isn’t what slows leaders down – It’s what helps leaders sustain themselves – and their teams.

When work moves fast, emotions don’t disappear. They go underground. And when emotions go unnamed, they don’t go away – they leak. Into tone. Into tension. Into how safe people feel showing up as themselves.

Most leaders I know care deeply. They want people to feel well, valued, and energized. And yet they’re carrying pressure, expectations, and the weight of constant change. That tension – between care and performance – often stays unspoken.

That’s not a failure of values. It’s a lack of skill.

We talk a lot about emotional intelligence. Awareness matters. But awareness alone doesn’t help in moments of stress. What leaders need is emotional fluency – the ability to name what’s happening, regulate themselves, and respond with clarity instead of armor.

What we can name, we can navigate.
What we can’t name tends to run the room.

Staying human at work doesn’t mean oversharing or lowering the bar. It means creating conditions where people can do hard things without losing themselves. It means leaders naming the moment before trying to fix it. Holding hope and honesty at the same time. Treating leadership not as distance or power, but as service and connection.

People don’t burn out because work is challenging. They burn out when it’s challenging and lonely. When they don’t feel seen. When they believe being human is a risk.

Cultures that stay human don’t move slower.
They move with more trust and more resilience.
More room for joy and flourishing—even under pressure.

The goal isn’t to survive work.
It’s to thrive while doing meaningful things with other humans.

Staying human isn’t a personality trait.
It’s a leadership skill.
And it’s one we can all practice.

Madalena Carey, CEO at Happiness Business School, joins the Executive Council

We believe the future of work depends on leaders who understand that learning is not about answers, but about awareness, courage and conscious growth.

Today, we welcome a voice that embodies that belief with clarity and intention. Madalena Carey, CEO at Happiness Business School, joins Happiness Camp 2026 as part of our Executive Council and invited specialists.

Madalena has been shaping a vision that aligns deeply with the movement we are building. One where education is not treated as a transfer of knowledge or a checklist of skills, but as a living process that transforms people, cultures and the way organisations evolve.

At the heart of her work is a simple but powerful idea. Learning should help people reconnect with themselves, question certainty and build cultures that are human at their core.

As she shared with us:

“I co-create people-centred cultures by helping organizations embrace agility, purpose, and real human connection.”

This perspective is not theoretical. It is lived, practiced and deeply embodied in the way Madalena teaches, leads and builds learning spaces.

Who is Madalena?
Madalena leads Happiness Business School, an academy dedicated to human development, leadership and conscious learning. Her work sits at the intersection of education, culture and human sustainability, supporting people and organisations in moments of growth, change and uncertainty.

Her approach is grounded in presence, curiosity and courage. And in challenging one of the most limiting patterns of modern work culture: the illusion that certainty equals safety.

In her conversation with us, Madalena shared reflections that feel both bold and deeply human:
• The part of work culture she would leave behind forever: certainty disguised as security
• The mindset that guides her in moments of doubt: choosing movement over waiting
• The moments she feels most human in her work: learning environments where people feel safe to question, explore and grow

These moments may sound simple. But they point to something essential. Growth does not come from control. It comes from awareness, courage and conscious choice.

What to expect at HC 2026?
Madalena joins a global group of leaders who are redefining how organisations think about learning, leadership and human sustainability. Together, they are shaping conversations about the future of work that are honest, challenging and deeply human.

More global voices will join the Executive Council soon, and we will be sharing them in the coming months.

For now, one thing is clear.

Happiness Camp 2026 just became more curious, more courageous and more intentional.

A reminder that growth rarely lives in certainty.
And one the future of work can no longer afford to ignore.

Welcome, Madalena.
The Reset is in motion.
And you are an essential part of it.

Jen Fisher appointed Director of Impact & Community at Happiness Camp 2026

Global expert in workplace wellbeing to lead the international impact strategy and ambassador programme of Europe’s largest Human Sustainability conference

Happiness Camp, Europe’s leading conference dedicated to human sustainability and the future of work, officially announces its return in 2026 and introduces its new Director of Impact & Community: Jen Fisher.

Internationally recognised as one of the foremost experts in workplace wellbeing, Jen Fisher is a strategic advisor and author of Hope Is the Strategy. In her new role, she will lead Happiness Camp’s global impact strategy, strengthen the event’s international community, and oversee the creation of transformative initiatives such as the Ambassador Programme and the Happiness Camp Awards — distinctions that will celebrate organisations redefining how they care for their people’s wellbeing.

“I’m truly excited to be joining Happiness Camp in this role,” says Jen Fisher. “Workplace wellbeing is no longer a nice-to-have; it’s a critical driver of organisational success and human prosperity. Happiness Camp is now the meeting point for the most innovative minds and visionary companies in this space, and I’m committed to amplifying its impact through strategic partnerships and meaningful community engagement.”

The 2026 edition marks a new chapter in the event’s history. Under the theme “The Reset”, Happiness Camp will bring together between 15,000 and 20,000 professionals from Europe, the United States, Brazil, and beyond on 24 September 2026, in Porto.

For one day, business leaders, HR professionals, culture experts, academics, entrepreneurs, and creators will come together to share ideas, present case studies, and explore new people-centred approaches to the future of work.

“Jen’s appointment represents a defining step in the evolution of Happiness Camp,” says António Pedro Pinto, CEO & Co-Founder of Happiness Camp. “Her expertise and strategic vision, combined with a global network of thought leaders, will elevate both the scale and impact of the event — positioning Portugal as one of the world’s leading stages for the discussion of the future of work and human sustainability.”

Before taking on this role, Jen Fisher served as Deloitte’s first Chief Wellbeing Officer in the United States. She is currently the CEO of The Wellbeing Team, host of the acclaimed WorkWell Podcast, and works with organisations around the world to design wellbeing strategies that unite business performance with human flourishing.

Happiness and Profitability

The most important success factor for a modern workplace is strategy or planning or business processes – it’s happiness!

Happy employees are not simply in a better mood, they also do a much better job. Studies from psychology and neurology have shown that people who experience positive emotions experience a number of benefits at work, including these:

  • They are more productive and work faster and more efficiently
  • They get sick less often and have  much lower absenteeism rates
  • They are more creative and have more and better ideas
  • They stay at the company longer saving huge efforts in recruiting new people
  • They sell more when in sales roles
  • They make the customers happy and more loyal to the company

All of this means that happy companies are more profitable and have higher growth rates and stock prices than the market average.

Why should this be? There are three main reasons why happy companies are more successful.

1: Happy organizations are more innovative

Harvard Professor Teresa M. Amabile’s research into how the work environment influences the motivation, creativity, and performance of individuals and teams shows that happy people are more creative:

If people are in a good mood on a given day, they’re more likely to have creative ideas that day, as well as the next day, even if we take into account their mood that next day.

There seems to be a cognitive process that gets set up when people are feeling good that leads to more flexible, fluent, and original thinking, and there’s actually a carryover, an incubation effect, to the next day.

The Gallup Management Journal agrees, and finds that,

59% of happy employees strongly agreed with the statement that their current job “brings out their most creative ideas,” compared with only 3% of unhappy employees.

So if innovation and creativity matter to your business, you need happy employees.

2: Happy people are more motivated

Every leader wants motivated employees. Every employee wants to be motivated. And yet we often see managers complaining that their employees are impossible to get going, and workers complaining that their managers don’t motivate them and don’t know what makes them tick.

It’s not the job of the manager to motivate employees. That is impossible. It’s a manager’s job to create a happy work environment in which employees are naturally motivated.

Think about it: How difficult must it be to motivate people who are dissatisfied, disappointed, distrustful, disengaged and unhappy at work. It’s an uphill battle all the way.

An article from Harvard Business School put it like this:

Most companies have it all wrong. They don’t have to motivate their employees. They have to stop demotivating them.

Happy employees need no external motivation—they motivate themselves and each other, and this internal motivation is both more efficient and more sustainable than the external motivation (such as rewards) that managers of unhappy employees must resort to.

If you want true motivation in the workplace, you must create a happy workplace. It’s that simple!

3: Happy employees deliver better customer service

A recent Harvard Business Review article entitled “Putting the Service-Profit Chain to Work” concluded that:

When companies put employees… first, their employees are satisfied, their customers are loyal, their profits increase, and their continued success is sustained.[1]

Good, genuine customer service comes only from happy employees. Unhappy employees can try to fake it, but it’ll be just that: Fake service.

The math is a little strange on this one: One happy employee can give ten customers a good experience. Ten unhappy employees can’t give one customer a good experience—what they can do is give 100 customers a bad experience.

So research clearly shows that companies should embrace happiness because it’s good for business. But there is one other, even more fundamental reason: Making people happy is good, making them unhappy is just plain wrong!

There are workplaces out there that run their people down, make them stressed and ill, destroy their sense of worth, are havens for bullies, and allow all kinds of harassment. Though it is rarely intentional, these workplaces still make their people unhappy, and mentally and physically ill.

I have no idea how leaders and managers of these businesses can live with themselves. They may hide behind the old argument that companies should only care about money—or, as Milton Friedman said it, “The business of business is business.” However, I hope I’ve convinced you that this is a false argument because happy businesses make more money.

There is no longer any excuse for tolerating an unhappy work environment, when it’s more profitable to create one that is inspiring, uplifting, healthy and happy—one that is good for people and good for business.

[1]   Source: http://hbr.org/2008/07/putting-the-service-profit-chain-to-work

Matosinhos is sea all year round

Environment, Culture, Sports, Economy, Leisure, Gastronomy, Safety, Tradition

Life doesn’t come with instructions on how to live and be happy, but in Matosinhos it happens in a special way all year round: with unique sunsets seen from white sandy beaches, extraordinary flavours and the best fish in the world, the biggest pilgrimage in Portugal and paths to stroll along the seafront or the riverbank, good waves and good winds, remarkable art and architecture that is admired worldwide, centuries-old traditions, history and stories that have always connected us to the world, and all this side by side with the sea and the local people who make a point of staying here and whom everyone welcomes as “good neighbours of Matosinhos”.

And it is because of all this, and much more, that Matosinhos today offers everyone who lives, invests, works or visits here a transversal and multidimensional quality of life!

We pride ourselves on being welcoming and that’s why we invite everyone to make the most of this area, which is a sea of opportunities all year round. A dynamic and innovative territory from an economic point of view, with a privileged location, a seafront, and a riverfront with unique conditions. A city with a vast network of facilities, spaces and a complete and close global offer in key areas such as health and well-being, education, commerce, culture and public and private services, research, and development. A municipality with urban spaces that invite the use of soft mobility, a seaport that connects us to the world and a public transport network that connects us internally and externally to the entire municipality and the neighbouring municipalities of Greater Porto.

Boosting the current growth dynamic, accompanying, and improving the existing offer in terms of the quality and sustainability of the infrastructures, the quality of the urban space and the activities and experience of the city, is the strategy in progress with our eyes set on a future that is already tomorrow and in which Matosinhos will always be the sea all year round.

by: CMM

How HXM Analytics Revolutionizes Workforce Management and Boosts Company Efficiency

No company can function at maximum efficiency when only half of its employees are motivated. A company is essentially comprised of its people.

But what compels them? What inspires them? What brings them joy? What discourages them from leaving?

Companies consistently require new hires who can enhance performance, which often entails a lengthy process and associated expenses.

What if we could evaluate an employee’s profile right from the beginning, during the selection and recruitment phase?

What if we could forecast and gauge the satisfaction levels of those who are already part of the organization?

What if we could anticipate the likelihood of an employee choosing to leave the organization voluntarily?

Yes, it is possible!

With our insights, you’ll have the ability to attract and retain top-notch professionals, all while reducing costs for the company.

When we emphasize the importance of placing people at the centre of our business, humanizing human resources, and forging a robust connection between the company and its workforce, we’re referring to HXM Analytics – Human Experience Management Analytics.

HOW?

An expert analytics team has created models equipped with algorithms that analyse and correlate this wealth of data, allowing them to forecast multiple metrics, including happiness, engagement, and the probability of employee turnover, among various others. Employees are categorized into Personas, which are linked to their journey within the company, starting from the moment they onboard.

Through the integration of analytical models within the HXM database, one can compute the level of engagement and the likelihood of attrition based on different Personas. If this issue is prevalent among companies, HXM Analytics forms a component of the solution.

With the passage of time, motivations and behaviours may evolve. HXM Analytics is capable of analysing and forecasting these impending changes.

What if you could foresee your employees’ future?

Tomorrow might just become today.

About Milestone

Milestone presents a wide range of consulting services and technological solutions to support our clients’ digital transformation closely and effectively. We Build Relationships. We deliver Results.

Our mission is to create a positive impact for our customers and a better future for our employees through agility, innovation, and technology.  

Our vision is to be recognized as best-in-class by our customers and partners, allowing us to attract the best talent.  

We are experts in technology and knowledgeable about our customers’ businesses.  

Happy Planet, Happy People!

We believe people are part of nature and that they must therefore be part of the solution to tackle climate change and reverse the loss of biodiversity. At ANP|WWF, our mission is to build a future in which people and nature live in harmony.

That’s why, when Lionesa Business Hub challenged us to take part in the Happiness Camp, we didn’t think twice! We celebrate and respect diversity in nature and among the people and communities we work with every day for a healthier and fairer planet.

Happiness can be a difficult concept to explain, as it represents different things in each person’s life. But let’s face it: there is always unanimity when we talk about protected species and ecosystems. If we make our planet a happy place, people will be happy too!

At ANP|WWF we advocate a culture of well-being, respect, and integrity among all people. We are constantly looking for innovative ways to change mentalities, involving our team and all those who support us in our mission, and encouraging everyone to bring their whole selves to work on a daily basis.

Why do we do this? Because everything is interlinked with our nature conservation work: we want to live happily on a healthy planet!

Happy Jobs, Happy Sustainable Food, Happy Planet – is it possible to combine all these concepts into one? We believe so! Our motto for Happiness Camp 2023 will be sustainable food and the benefits it brings to people and the planet.

Will you accept the challenge?

By: ANP | WWF

Credibom gives credit to the happiness of its employees!

in Great Places to Work

Corporate Happiness, what are the goals? Corporate Happiness has the main goal of creating meaningful workplaces. All are leaders in their role, fostering positive cultures that generate talent, impact and purpose.

The professional dimension takes a large part of our daily lives and time. The corporate world has witnessed a paradigm shift in the way we see the role of work in our lives. Nowadays, the new generations want work to be an extension of who they are.

Banco Credibom has invested in the development of several internal initiatives that promote the well-being and happiness of employees in the organization. Credibom’s strategy, aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), aims to develop a work environment and an organization that promotes the daily happiness of its employees. The distinction of the Great Place to Work and Best Workplace 2023 awards demonstrate the positive impact of this continuous process that has been developed.

Through initiatives such as Fruit Time, the celebration of employees’ birthdays, Breakfast with CEO, podcast “Ask the CEO” and, more recently, the reformulation of the layout of Credibom’s offices in Porto Salvo and Porto, the organization has worked to promote the happiness of its employees. In addition, Credibom through the Internal Communication area, recently launched the “Happiness Program”, which aims to promote and measure the company’s corporate happiness, putting people at the center. Gilbert Ranoux, CEO of Banco Credibom, highlights the importance of corporate happiness for the overall success of the organization: “We believe that, by creating work cultures that inspire a common purpose, through simplicity, we will enhance the levels of commitment and well-being of employees. Leadership 2.0 promotes a set of human skills that bring out the best in employees. This common purpose, as a team, is fully aligned with our Raison d´être: to win the preference of customers and partners through the simplicity and joy of working with us.”

Credibom will be present at the Happiness Camp 2023, which will take place at Alfândega do Porto, and will have a space in the Smile Hub to share the good practices that have been developed to promote happiness in the organization: Credibom, Happy days, everyday 

Come and join us at the Happiness Camp 2023!

By: Credibom

How Nutrium Care has been transforming employee well-being!

Time to huddle up, because we’re about to uncover the story of how Nutrium Care came to be.

Picture this: André Santos, an IT student who had overweight issues for many years, goes to a nutritionist and has the worst experience ever. He left with the promise of return in 3 months’ time and a paper saying “chicken breast”, “vegetables”, and “2 liters of water”.

Imagine the outcome: none. But this made André think “What if there was an app with a complete meal plan and recipes? What if he would send me messages motivating me in between appointments?”

So he gathered a team of other IT students and Nutrium was born! A nutrition software that is now a market leader present in over 40 countries and is used by over 250,000 nutritionists.

After years of collaborating with nutritionists, in 2018 Nutrium began providing nutritional support to their own employees, and the results were incredible!

Think remarkable weight loss, higher energy levels, better sleep, and an overall sense of “I’m winning at life”. The team was amazed and decided they had to take these results to other companies!

So Nutrium created Nutrium Care, a wellness program that’s tailor-made for companies. The program allows every employee to achieve their health goals, with the help of expert nutritionists who provide appointments and give real-time motivation and help through a mobile app.

And, to ensure that the results have long-term effects, Nutrium Care includes webinars on hot topics, workshops to teach them how to cook healthy recipes, and newsletters with healthy tips.

In companies like Vodafone, Randstad, AGEAS, and many more, we have been seeing great impact in employee’s health, productivity and motivation. The result? Companies reduce absenteeism and health costs. They get healthier, happier, and more productive staff. It’s a win-win for everyone. Nutrium Care’s mission is simple: to make the world healthier, one company at a time. If you’re curious, you can meet them at the Happiness Camp!

By: Nutrium Care

Unlocking Economic Happiness: The Power of Investment, Talent, and Entrepreneurship

A realm of knowledge, warm hospitality, and innovation, Porto, the Invicta city, stands as a resilient and hopeful urban centre, embracing forthcoming challenges.

The Municipality’s economic strategy aims not only to enhance the city’s economic allure and that of the broader region, but also to foster social cohesion and the well-being of those who live, work, and visit Porto. This is the key to securing Porto’s sustainable development, where the harmony of happiness and economy thrives.

The city of talent

Porto’s been catching the eye of companies near and far, turning into a real hotspot for success and growth. And hey, it’s not just about the spot-on location. Porto’s got top-of-the-line infrastructure, cost-friendly vibes, and an awesome quality of life. Plus, it’s got some seriously top-tier schools, universities, and polytechnics known worldwide. No wonder students and businesses looking for top-notch talent are drawn to this place.

But there’s more to the story. The Porto City Council has a hands-on approach through its TERA initiative, creating an education-focused scene. The initiative’s not just aiming to attract talent by understanding the job scene in the city; it’s also building up a rad environment for learning and innovation. And what about those who pick Porto as their base? The city’s all in to help power up their careers.

Discover the most exciting companies to work in Porto

InvestPorto has created a network of the city’s happiest and most captivating companies, so we can all know who’s getting the job well done!

The Porto Leading Investors are, for now, 39 companies that represent the innovation, competitiveness, and excellence of the city, helping to consolidate Porto as an international talent hub.

You may recognise some of these 39 Porto Leading Investors; they don’t go unnoticed. Between recruitment events, initiatives and projects, as well as local opportunities, the Porto Leading Investors drive the city and the region.

We are all entrepreneurs

ScaleUp Porto is an initiative that aims to project Porto’s entrepreneurial ecosystem as a national and international reference. Porto isn’t just a destination; it’s a journey of transformation led by visionary individuals who are united by a common goal: to make their mark on the world through the power of entrepreneurship.

Being an incubator for startups and a fertile ground where innovation takes root and thrives, Porto’s entrepreneurial ecosystem seeks to nurture the seeds of creativity. The local entrepreneurial spirit is a force to be reckoned with, helping to reshape the city’s business landscape.

Entrepreneurs here are the pioneers, the risk-takers who refuse to be confined by conventional wisdom. It’s this audacious spirit that’s putting Porto on the map as a city where taking risks is just part of the journey. Here in Porto, we are all entrepreneurs.

By: CMP