Five years ago, after a painful yet all-too-common experience in the workplace, I decided to create the solution I wished had existed for me.
A few of us believed that another model was possible — a world of work where performance would not come at the expense of humanity, where respect would not be optional, and where inclusion would mean more than just words.
Rezalliance was founded on 10.10.2020, built on the trust and commitment of professionals determined to unite their expertise — in law, mental health, and coaching — to protect the most precious asset in any workplace: people, in all their diversity.
Five Intense Years
Five years of projects, partnerships, faces, and stories.
Five years of challenges and breakthroughs.
Of listening, acting, and constant recalibration.
Five years of confronting, training, and transforming.
As I reflect, I’ve distilled 10 key lessons — not absolute truths, but guiding insights shaped by lived experience.
P.s: For deeper insights on each subject, you’ll find links to some of published columns in Le Temps.
1. Listening is the starting point of all transformation
Listening goes beyond hearing victims or witnesses of workplace harassment — it means understanding the needs of organizations, teams, and even those resistant to change. Only by grasping their fears and constraints can we build solutions that move everyone forward.
🗞️ Toward a Human Approach to People Management – Le Temps
🌐 In 2022, the Rez-Care platform was launched — offering a reporting tool, a hotline, and comprehensive support for individuals and organizations seeking constructive ways forward.
2. Inclusion can’t be decreed — it must be embodied
Policies and internal guidelines set the tone, but real transformation happens through actions.
It starts with leaders who lead by example.
🗞️ When CEOs private lives become public affairs
3. Training is an introspective journey
With nearly 1,000 people trained in the past three years, I’ve seen how our “Emergences” workshops shake things up — they challenge, awaken, and transform.
Change begins with personal awareness before it becomes collective.
💡 Discover the “Emergences” training programs
📹 Watch client feedback videos
4. Setting boundaries protects your energy
Saying no is a form of self-respect.
No to projects misaligned with your values.
No to requests that drain more than they nourish.
I live by a simple rule: no more than two follow-ups. Silence is an answer too.
5. Change disturbs — even when everyone claims to want it
Change doesn’t come from slogans or good intentions, but from commitment.
Many preach it. Few practice it.
🗞️ Inclusion at Work: Sincere Commitment or Convenient Strategy? – Le Temps
6. “When someone shows you who they are, believe them.” – Maya Angelou
Trust and authenticity matter more than promises.
Collaboration depends on trust — and when it’s broken, walking away is sometimes the bravest choice.
Some people are only meant to share part of the journey. And that’s okay.
7. The vision sets the course — the collective moves the train
Creating fairer, healthier workplaces takes collective energy, not solitary effort.
The International Day Against Harassment and for Inclusion in the World of Work exists because a group of determined individuals came together — but sustaining it requires committed partners too.
📍 Join us at FER Genève on May 21, 2026, for the 5th edition.
8. Courage is acting with heart, even in the face of fear
Change always begins with one courageous voice—one that dares to say YES to deep transformation, while others settle for symbolic or image-driven gestures.
🗞️ Employer Branding Put to the Test of Silence – Le Temps
9. Acting without measuring impact is walking blind
Numbers don’t tell the full story — but they reveal the truth we need to face.
99% of respondents recommend the “Emergences” workshops. A point of pride — and a call to keep improving.
🔖 See participants’ testimonials
10. Rejection isn’t failure — it’s an invitation to reinvent yourself
In our personal and professional paths, rejection often feels like failure. Yet it’s also an opportunity to rediscover our potential. Sometimes life redirects us—not to stop us, but to push us forward.
📰 When Rejection Becomes an Invitation to Reinvent Yourself – Rezalliance
🧡 These lessons are the fruit of encounters, collaborations, and conversations.
Some of you will recognize yourselves here — your questions, insights, and even disagreements have shaped this path as much as our successes.
To our first 60 members who said YES in 2020.
To our clients, who turned our vision into real impact.
To our partners, who share our belief in justice and inclusion.
And to everyone who has walked with us, near or far — thank you.
You’ve helped Rezalliance grow, adjust, and refine its mission.
What’s next?
These first five years have been a living laboratory of transformation—of others, but also our own. Like a butterfly, our organization has gone through several metamorphoses, and the next five years will focus on transmission.
We’ll share what we’ve built, tested, and proven in the field—our methods, tools, and insights—with those ready to take action within their own organizations.
Among these tools, the Workplace Harassment Baroscope plays a key role. It helps organizations assess their relational climate and prevent harmful behaviors over the long term.
Our new Corporate Harassment Liaison (RHE) Training will further spread the Rezalliance approach — expanding our impact to create truly human-centered workplaces.
✨ The best is yet to come.
— Joëlle Payom,
Founder of Rezalliance & Rez-care.com
Discover our solutions for healthy and equitable workplaces ⤵️
📋 Experiencing harassment at work? Take our online self-assessment.
🛟 Need personal support? Our experts are here for you.
⚙️ For organizations: Discover our custom solutions.
📡 Learn more about our public awareness work through International Day Against Harassment and for Inclusion in the World of Workhttps://24may.org/en/.