Niina Majaniemi

In, 2023 Niina Majaniemi's life changed. Niina fell into a deep hole when she traumatically lost her younger brother — her closest friend, a father of three — in a traumatic way to suicide. And yet, just one week later, she was expected to return to work in a high speed tech industry. Luckily, she had an emotionally intelligent manager but that is not always the case.

This is the taboo we don’t talk about: grief at work, even though we ALL face it. Companies often assume employees can perform at full capacity after unimaginable loss, while in reality our brains are in chaos, our cognitive functions diminished. The result? Billions in lost productivity and, even worse, the loss of the best talent who feel unseen and unsupported.

As both someone who has lived through personal trauma and is a certified Work Wellbeing Expert, MBA, and partner for Finland’s Centre for Occupational Safety, Niina knows firsthand how workplaces fail or succeed in supporting grief — and the impact this has on people and organizations. Grief must be recognized as a business‑critical issue. If organizations invest in structured, compassionate support, they don’t just help people heal — they unlock resilience, loyalty, and sustainable success. It’s time to break the taboo of grief at work.

This is a speech that not only touches your hearts but that also gives important concrete information and tools for companies on how to support a grieving employee or colleague.

Event Types where this fits well:

• HR & Leadership Conferences – where decision-makers learn about employee wellbeing, retention, and organizational culture.
• Occupational Safety & Health Events – grief support ties directly to psychological safety and resilience.
• Corporate Wellbeing Summits – focused on mental health, employee engagement, and sustainable performance.
• Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Forums – grief intersects with inclusion, empathy, and belonging at work.
• Tech & Startup Events – fast-paced industries often overlook wellbeing; your story challenges that culture.
• Healthcare & Social Services Conferences – professionals who deal with trauma daily benefit from organizational models of support.
• Academic & MBA Alumni Events – where future leaders are trained to integrate emotional intelligence into management.

Groups of Workers that should be interested about this:

• HR professionals & People Managers – they design policies and need tools to support grieving employees.
• Executives & Senior Leaders – they set the tone for organizational culture and resilience.
• Team Leaders & Project Managers – often the first line of support when employees face loss.
• Knowledge Workers in Tech & SaaS – high-pressure environments where grief is often ignored.
• Healthcare & Social Care Workers – exposed to loss and trauma, but often unsupported themselves.
• Educators & Public Sector Employees – where wellbeing policies are critical but underdeveloped.

Key Takeaway:

If companies treat grief as a human and business reality — not a taboo — they will unlock resilience, loyalty, and sustainable success.