Ryan Cos. CEO wants to destigmatize mental health struggles, change workplace culture

When Brian Murray was in his 40s and working as an executive at a major health care company, his health started to change in debilitating ways. He couldn’t concentrate. He rarely left the house, not even to partake in one of his passions: golf.

Murray, who once considered devoting his life to the priesthood, sought professional help. His doctors told him he was clinically depressed, so in 2005 quit his job to focus on getting well again.

After three years of learning to live with his depression, he rejoined the workforce in 2009 as Ryan’s chief financial officer.

He shared his mental health journey with his inner circle, but it wasn’t until a few years later that he shared his story more publicly — and spontaneously — during a speech.

It was liberating.

After becoming CEO in 2018, he doubled down on his commitment to eliminating the stigma by being vulnerable and receptive to employee feedback about how to create a safer workplace for others dealing with mental health issues.

In 2018, the company launched Support Without Stigma, an employee resource group that aims to educate team members about mental health and create a safe space to talk about it.

The company eliminated co-pays for counseling, lifted the cap on counseling visits, includes physical and mental health safety training and actively participates in an annual mental health summit for the construction industry. The company also switched to an Employee Assistance Program that offers better mental health support.

That commitment wasn’t just to its corporate workers. The company has made Narcan, which can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose, available on its job sites and provides overdose response training.

This conversation with Murray was edited for clarity and length.

Q: When did you know you were suffering from depression?

A: It happened in 2005 when I resigned from UnitedHealth Group. I was a senior executive. A combination of stress and anxiety built up. I knew the term [depression] but didn’t know of any of the symptoms. I basically became paralyzed and couldn’t function. I called my boss and said I couldn’t do it anymore.

Q: When did you decide to do something about it?

A: Only after I saw a doctor and took the depression test. I scored high or second to high on every single one of those questions. Some people think you just need to stop thinking that way; that’s just not the case.

Q: After years of dealing with this privately, what inspired you to finally share your story with your company?

A: After 2009, when I joined Ryan, when I got over the hump, I had shared enough with my inner circle. But the first time I publicly talked about this was in 2015 or 2016. I could tell this just wasn’t about me. I was creating a space where I could talk about this and make it real. It just accelerated from there.

Q: You said that initially you told your story somewhat spontaneously during a speaking engagement. What inspired you to open up?

A: It’s about ending the stigma; we need to end the stigma. People who have cancer get help. It’s common, it’s everywhere. From there, it’s become easier.

Q: Have you gotten any pushback or negative feedback from other executives or employees?

A: None whatsoever. It has been nothing but continued support. If I had done this 15 years ago, it might have been different.

Q: You have lots of strategies for staying healthy, including a half hour of exercise every day, meditation and visits with a counselor. Is there one thing that’s not optional?

A: Exercise is not optional. I do that every day, and I have to do that in the morning. I’m 15 years in, and in a good place, but I will never get rid of it [depression], so it’s always in the back of my mind.

Q: Did you model your efforts on what other companies or leaders were doing?

A: There wasn’t a roadmap, but there were some things in our industry that helped. The industry is finally waking up.

Q: Are you the only one talking about this at Ryan?

A: We have team members that meet once or twice a year in May or September share their personal stories about what challenges they’ve had or overcome.

Q: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the construction industry has one of the highest suicide rates among all professions, and that the suicide rate among male construction workers is 75% higher than men in the general population, and keeps rising. Are you doing anything specifically to help workers on job sites and in the field?

A: I went to a conference and learned about Narcan, which we put in every one of our job trailers and offices because of risk of opioid addiction. We do safety training and CPR training, but we also do QPR [question, persuade and refer] training. We put “988″ [the suicide and crisis hotline] on all their helmets. We teach them about mental health.

Q: You can track the number of people who participate in your employee resource group, but is there any way to measure how the company culture has changed on this topic? What does success on this front look like to you?

A: We can do better and do a better job of measuring this. We’re in the early stages of that. I tell people, “I hope you never have to understand what I know about depression.”

Q: What’s your advice for other leaders?

A: Personally, I think leaders have a big opportunity to create a space in your company where this can be shared. The key themes are: end the stigma and create a space for people to know there is help out there. If a leader gets in front of a company and is vulnerable, people will gravitate to that. The domino effect of that is huge.

Q: You’ve talked about how important support from family and colleagues has been, but you’ve also talked about others who have inspired you personally and professionally, including a Brené Brown podcast and Hubert Joly’s book, “The Heart of Business.” What did they teach you about how to tackle this issue?

A: I introduced Ryan’s senior leadership team to “The Heart of Business,” focusing on Joly’s belief that “developing human connections” unleashes human magic among team members. Joly builds upon Brown’s belief that “vulnerability is at the heart of social connection, and social connection is at the heart of business.” I believe strongly that vulnerability and authenticity are essential to build strong teams, and he uses personal vulnerability to eliminate the stigma around mental health.

Q: And “Ted Lasso”?

A: The best TV series ever! My wife and I are huge soccer fans and could not wait for the release of each episode. Lasso embodies what it means to be a vulnerable leader. It is his vulnerability as head coach that transforms AFC Richmond from just a collection of talented individuals into a world-class championship team. And I have never laughed so much, watching every “Ted Lasso” episode.