ARE C-SUITES THE
NEW ATHLETES?
The most forward-thinking companies today are treating their top-level executives as professional sportspeople—and recovery is the new KPI to unlock better business.
On the Pacific West Coast of San Diego, in a heritage hotel that overlooks the ocean, a small group of executives on an offsite enjoyed an afternoon swim. The sun shimmered across the waves as these wetsuit-clad colleagues floated among seals and sealions—dropping the boardroom formalities to bond. The trip’s entire agenda was to foster off-duty connection, not creative strategies. Studio Beyond was in attendance. “The agenda was kept light to give space for conversation and reflection,” says Beyond’s co-founder Ben Gallagher. The trip’s overall MO was building inter-personal trust.
In an increasingly online world, when many relationships both in and out of the workplace are conducted via the Internet, tangible human connection has never been more important. Screentime is forging an epidemic of loneliness across all age demographics and it’s affecting family time at home, according to an essay co-authored by Professor Robert Waldinger, director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development. Those feelings of isolation can be even more acute for those in leadership roles. They’re constantly switched on and stressed out. “It’s becoming quite obvious that senior leaders are really, really struggling,” says Matt Symonds, founder of Modern Stream, a consultancy firm that works directly with executives, focusing primarily on supporting the health and happiness of each individual.
"More than ever, personal health metrics are as measurable as shareholder profits"
Source:
@serifa
Waldinger’s research has found that the most profound metric of a healthy life “wasn’t blood pressure… or cholesterol levels… but the quality of their connections with other people,” reported the essay, which was published this October. This aligns with a tangible shift happening in the modern go-hard-or-go-home culture at C-suite level, where the most forward-thinking businesses are prioritizing employee’s happiness, and health. It’s especially relevant when, culturally, we now spend more time at work than we do out of it.
C-suites who are required by role to work hard are now being encouraged to recover even harder. Far from being passive recovery, this era is all about active recovery. CEOs are the new athletes, and intentional downtime is now a fundamental building block of performance. Forward-thinking companies are leaning in, treating leaders as holistic individuals—they understand that creating space for recovery is an unlock to being better in business. Need proof? All participants on this San Diego retreat were given, as company policy upon hiring, an Oura ring. Recovery is a new KPI.
The rise of wearables like Oura, Whoop, Garmin and the just-launched Lumia Smart Earring mean that, more than ever, personal health metrics are as measurable as shareholder profits. “The burnout rate in senior positions is very high, and you can link personal data points to business performance,” says Symonds, a former professional rugby player. “It’s harder for CEOs than it is elite athletes because their workload is relentless. The travel, the responsibility, the pressure of shareholder value… they are functioning in low-level stress with high cortisol spikes all the time. Athletes have huge teams around them; they have recovery days, lighter training days and they have off-seasons. Business leaders typically get none of those things.”
Oura, the wearables company which raised $900 million in funding in October 2025, was arguably a pioneer of this new leadership culture. Its rings—which primarily track sleep but also offer insights as to daily stress levels, restfulness and, yes, recovery—fast became the accessory of choice for type A executives who were interested in hacking their everyday. Oura calls this demographic its ‘business athletes.’ High-flyers were suddenly faced with the realities of those late-night client dinners where the booze is free-flowing, followed by early-morning alarms and long days in the office; all have a tangible impact on one’s ‘readiness’ score. And if you can track it, you can manage it, and you can improve it.
Symonds’ company works behind-the-scenes with business leaders to foster this mindful approach. The personalised framework of support, referred to as ‘performance coaches’, include nutritionists to personal trainers and psychologists. For companies to get the most out of the investments in their prime assets—their leaders—they need to service what’s under the hood.
“Focusing on wellbeing is becoming a key point of differentiation in terms of retaining and attracting top talent.”
Being fatigued, whether mental or physical, has a detrimental impact on one’s ability to make decisions. And for business leaders, especially those leading million and billion-dollar companies, every day is filled with countless decisions. Clarity coomes from a state of calm, not cortisol.
A new era of office buildings are designing into this mentality, too. Valentyns in Cologne offers rentable workspaces, with members gaining access to its recovery floor—its concept is “work well, live well.” Meanwhile, WSA in Manhattan’s financial district houses creative businesses, from fashion brands to renowned C-suite recruitment agencies; staff are given access to its gym, spa and recovery floor, where, should one be inclined, executives are able to switch-off with some compression boot therapy at lunchtime. Enabling a work-life balance by giving easy access to workout and recovery spaces create a more harmonious equilibrium.
This more holistic approach to workplace dynamics naturally places focus on workplace relationships from the top down. Leaders thrive when they feel valued by their employer; employees thrive when they feel valued by their boss. In San Diego, in the Pacific ocean, colleagues built a sense of trust that cannot be fostered in a meeting room—boardrooms are loaded with hierarchy, anxiety, office politics and performance.
The smart companies of tomorrow will recognise that it’s not about giving your leadership a swim session with sea lions one haphazard Tuesday afternoon. It’s about creating safe spaces where individuals are able to settle their nervous system and drop heightened office personas; it’s about safe spaces where your workforce can connect, spend time and get to know each other without the pressure of a meeting room, a powerpoint or a back-to-back iCal. “Focusing on wellbeing is becoming a key point of differentiation in terms of retaining and attracting top talent,” says Symonds. “It gives companies a competitive edge. Investment banks, hedge funds, law firms… they are all fighting against their competitors for work, for revenue, and to give their clients the best service possible.”
This culture is applicable well beyond the C-suites, though. On Running’s headquarters in Switzerland is a prime example of putting employee wellbeing at the core, regardless of hierarchical level. Staff are encouraged to go running during the day or participate in on-site pilates classes; there’s a myriad of washing machines and tumble dryers to enable them to wash their kit at work, and there’s a bank of sports shoes in every size to borrow, should anyone forgets their own. Empowering staff to work out boosts endorphins, creates a better work-life balance, encourages relational bonding and lightens the logistical load of life.
The way to futureproof your business today? Create space for your staff to build authentic and holistic human relationships—with themselves, with the company, and, crucially, with each other.
By Grace Cook, Nicola Strange and Ben Gallagher.
image credits: instagram.com/serifa