Stock Prices Depend on Employee Happiness!? “Companies with Happy Employees See +20% in Share Value”

~Qualitative Drives Quantitative Outcomes~

Visualizing employee happiness and using it as a management indicator may soon become the norm!
Table of Contents

Visualizing employee happiness and using it as a management indicator may soon become the norm!
Why internal passion matters

Employee happiness linked to stock performance
People and organizational branding

Building organizations that also boost stock value
In today’s era of accelerating labor shortages driven by declining birthrates and an aging population, I believe that internal energy and passion are critical from a PR perspective.

Often overlooked, “internal communication” deserves attention. Strengthening employee engagement can become the key to sustainable corporate growth. While outward promotion is important, energizing each individual employee forms the foundation of organizational vitality.

By revisiting the importance of raising “internal enthusiasm,” I hope this serves as an opportunity for reflection.
Why Internal Passion Matters

As job mobility increases, improving employee engagement (a sense of attachment and willingness to contribute to the company) has become a major challenge for businesses.

Organizations with high internal passion can expect the following outcomes:
Enhanced unity and motivation

When company vision and goals are shared, employees better understand how their work contributes to the whole and act proactively.

Strengthened internal branding
When employees deeply understand their company’s strengths and feel pride, this translates into stronger external brand perception.

Improved productivity and innovation
Active communication across departments encourages new ideas and collaborations.
Recently, I came across a very interesting dataset.

This data, from a large-scale study by Indeed × Oxford University, demonstrates the quantitative impact of wellbeing management. It shows that employee wellbeing is not just a welfare initiative but a strategic indicator that drives stock prices, business performance, recruitment power, and retention rates.
Quantitative effects of wellbeing management =

Investments in employee happiness, health, and work environment, and their measurable impact on organizational productivity and performance.

Employee Happiness Linked to Stock Performance
The study included:

Analysis of over 15 million employee surveys (2019–2024)
Companies ranking in the top 100 for employee happiness (“Work Wellbeing Score”) outperformed the S&P500 by an average of 20%

Happiness measured across four dimensions: Happiness, Purpose, Satisfaction, and Stress
The strongest factor was Belonging, followed by Inclusion and Feeling Energized

Companies with higher pre-pandemic wellbeing showed higher ROA, profit margins, and market capitalization afterward
Examples of top-performing companies: NIKE, Disney, IBM, Accenture, Delta Air Lines, and H&R Block (+220% stock return over 3.5 years).

The Role of PR: Internal Heat Fuels External Perception
PR is often associated with external communication, but there is a clear principle: internal energy inevitably radiates outward.

High organizational passion fuels decision-making, speeds up execution, and facilitates bottom-up issue solving—creating a cycle of positive reinforcement. Communicating this internal energy externally is also a vital role of PR.
People and Organizational Branding

Numbers and results alone cannot convey an organization’s “authentic commitment.” Passion and sincerity build trust in the brand and attract loyal fans.

Especially today, with the rise of social media and self-publishing channels, organizational passion strongly influences public perception—even political outcomes.

An organization with strong internal energy also communicates more consistently, helping external audiences understand and resonate with its message.

This “temperature” directly impacts hiring, sales, and investor relations. Stories of shared passion and employee enthusiasm are often more powerful than any strategy or metric, attracting supporters and future partners who shape the company’s destiny.

PR, by amplifying this energy, functions as a true management capability.
Building Organizations that Drive Stock Value

This perspective aligns with insights from the Public Relations Society, which stated that the proximity of PR to management directly impacts its effectiveness as a management function.

Surprisingly, while this data feels unconventional, it reveals an essential truth:
Many companies still focus solely on sales, profits, and numbers.

Yet, the real asset of any company is its people.
Employees are the company’s greatest asset.