What if there was an app to improve workplace culture? Can technology help us build more psychological safety at work? Introducing the ‘Call it!’ app!

This month we’re focusing on the topic of psychological safety. Psychological safety plays a key role in creating a healthy workplace culture, where employees at all levels feel empowered to express themselves.

Building psychological safety allows everyone to feel confident in communicating their concerns, taking risks, and asking questions; and, crucially, being able to do so without the fear of consequences.

It can be difficult to build a culture of psychological safety: there isn’t a specific set of rules to put in place to foster it, however there are steps you can take to create safer and more supportive working environments.

We’ve been talking with Delyth Thomas from Call it!, an app designed to measure workplace culture. The app helps to track employees’ concerns around health and safety, working conditions, unacceptable behaviours, and instances of bullying, harassment and discrimination.

Tell us a bit about the ‘Call it!’ app

Safe In Our World: Why did you start developing it? What issues are you seeking to address?

Delyth: Call it! is a workplace culture app that raises industry standards by committing to safer, fairer working environments. It’s a data collection and signposting tool which compliments and amplifies a company’s existing policies and procedures – and it is 100% anonymous in-app!

Speaking out has always been risky – there are often repercussions. This could be friction between colleagues, damaging career prospects, or in a worst-case scenario, losing your job.

This is especially true for freelancers. Most freelancers will have experienced or witnessed poor behaviour. It was when I saw a tweet from a young actor with whom I’d worked, saying they didn’t feel safe speaking up about an issue that I decided to ‘do’ something.

Together with co-founders Jules Hussey and Kate Wilson, we came up with the idea of Call it! The idea was to create an anonymous app which could empower everyone in the workplace to contribute towards creating a good working environment. It’s a not-for-profit company and totally independent.

How does the ‘Call it!’ app work?

Safe In Our World: Talk us through it. How does someone get started with the ‘Call it!’ app?

Delyth: Firstly, download Call it! to a smartphone and try the in-app demo. Then scan in the unique project QR code that management or leadership will have generated for a specific project. Users can have multiple QR codes if they are working across several projects.

The user can then anonymously log:

• How they were treated at work that day via a “traffic light system” (green, amber and red buttons)
• If they had any concerns about Health and Safety, safeguarding, or working conditions
• If they experienced bullying and harassment and if it involved any of the legally protected characteristics

The final page of the app points the user to further resources and actions:

1. Tell your employer

The app signposts to two different email addresses of representatives within their organisation, giving easy access to the right person with whom to start a confidential conversation. Having two options is important as individuals might be reluctant to speak out if their only option for reporting doesn’t feel safe (or is part of the problem).

2. Read relevant policies and procedures

The user will be able to easily access policies and procedures via the app. This removes any barriers of not knowing where to find company policy, so that should they want to make a formal report, they will know how to do it and what to expect.

3. Find external help and advice

The app can also link users to the Call it! website which hosts information about third-party resources and organisations, providing confidential support for mental health and wellbeing.

How can this data help to foster greater psychological safety?

Safe In Our World: We’re keen to learn more about the impact this could have in building safer workplaces. How will ‘Call it!’ create more psychological safety in creative industries?

Delyth: Answering the question ‘How was I treated at work today?’ can be hugely cathartic.

It’s easy to get stuck ruminating over a bad day. This might lead to a person taking the issue home with them, which can have an impact on rest and recovery. Hitting the red button can help draw a line under the stress of the day.

Recognising what a good or bad day actually looks like can help start conversations before it gets to breaking point. It helps to create a culture in which everyone can thrive. It also allows the user to reflect on how they, in turn, treated people that day.

The app gives bystanders a safe way to let the management know if they’ve witnessed poor behaviours. It’s important to log these incidents, even if you’re not the recipient of poor behaviour, because it can still negatively affect working conditions. It’s also a safe way to show up for colleagues and friends.

No one wants to work in an environment that’s psychologically unsafe. By regularly answering the questions in the Call it! app, employees can feel reassured that their feedback and data is going to get through to leadership, influencing decision-making which seeks to improve the workplace for everyone.

Where does the data from  ‘Call it!’ go?

Safe In Our World: So companies are gathering information from their teams: what should they then do with this data? How should it be used?

Delyth: The information the app gathers is like taking a daily temperature check across the workforce. The leadership team (whether that’s HR, line manager, etc.) has access to a dashboard which shows all the responses. This will help leadership to identify any trends in behaviour and intervene before crisis point.

They might do this by reiterating the standard of behaviour expected in the workplace, signposting to relevant training courses, or encouraging workers to have a confidential conversion.

Where is the ‘Call it!’ app being used?

Safe In Our World: Can you tell us more about how ‘Call it!’ is already being used and the positive impact it’s having on creative industries?

Delyth: The Call it! app was designed for any workplace, but it made sense to start with our own industry (Film and TV). It was first trialled on RALPH AND KATIE, an off-spin of THE A WORD made by ITV Studios for BBC One in 2022.

RALPH AND KATIE starred two actors with Down Syndrome, the first British production with two disabled leads. On-set behaviour and workplace culture were monitored by the app, enabling the producers to create as fair and equitable a production as possible.

And they were successful: RALPH AND KATIE won the inaugural Best Inclusive Practice Award at the RTS North West Awards in 2023, the judges crediting the production as “one of the most inclusive pieces of content that we’ve seen on screen for a long, long time”, and praising an inclusive workplace that “celebrated diversity and supported a range of different accessibility needs”.

The success of the RALPH AND KATIE’s use of the App catalysed a longstanding, continuing partnership between Call it! and ITV Studios and their affiliate labels.

What’s next for the ‘Call it!’ app?

Safe In Our World: What is your goal for the future of the creative industries with the ‘Call it!’ app – what comes next?

Delyth: In an ideal world this tool would be adopted in every workplace! We’re all human, and Call it! is a tool for humans.

Where trust is at a low point this app can be a tool that helps rebuild bridges, leading to safer conversations, and ultimately, a fairer and safer workplace for everyone.

Sign up via the Call it! Website or reach out to Delyth or Kate for a discount code.

To find links to download the app, scan this QR code: