LifeSpeak eases the mental struggle behind employees’ brave faces

Neglecting mental health issues can be costly for business– not just financially, but in retaining and hiring top talent. Last year, a Deloitte study found that poor mental health costs UK employers up to £45 billion each year. The study was built upon a Stevenson/Farmer report that attributed 50% of the massive loss to ‘presenteeism.’ Instead of being absent, employees are working, whether in the office or remotely, but are significantly less productive because of mental health issues.

A recent Lime Global survey found that 40% of employees in the UK would look for a new job if their employer did not support their mental wellbeing. The survey, commissioned by the UK healthcare insurance top-up provider, also revealed that 81% of respondents—and a whopping 99% of men aged 16-24—want their employer to support their mental wellbeing. It highlighted that employees felt pressured to put on a brave face—called ‘pleasanteeism’—which added to their stress, negatively impacting their wellbeing and resilience.

Good intentions but growing concerns

C-suite executives are starting to listen and prioritise mental health. Many now understand that providing a range of effective tools to support employees’ mental health is essential in retaining and recruiting top employees and differentiating their offerings to clients. Providing this support can give a high return as well. The Deloitte study showed that employers who invest in mental health solutions gained an average return of £5 for every £1 spent.

Source: LifeSpeak

However, employers and employees tend to view the current quality of their mental health support differently. For example, a survey from Aetna revealed that 70% of employers believe they provide good access to health and wellness benefits, yet only 23% of employees agree with that assessment.

In response to the growing demand for effective and fast to implement programmes, leading digital mental health and wellness education platform provider LifeSpeak continues to expand its UK-based team and to work with employers and wellness organisations across the country. Some of its recently announced partners include healthcare top up provider Lime Global and wellness data and education provider T-Cup Studios.

“We are finally getting to a place, in business and in life, where talking about mental health and wellbeing is no longer taboo, and people are becoming less hesitant to seek the support they need,” said Michael Held, LifeSpeak founder and CEO. “At the same time, we are seeing senior executives increasingly realise the importance and value of their organisations providing preventive mental health education solutions to their employees as a way to meet employee needs better and to reduce the need for more costly and complex solutions with lower average usage.”

LifeSpeak offers a cloud-based platform that enables organisations to quickly provide employees with expert mental health and wellness support. The formula comprises a mix of expert-led content, proprietary technology, and customised services.

The platform features thousands of carefully curated micro-learning videos, podcasts, tip sheets, and other assets from more than 300 of the world’s leading doctors, psychologists, mental health advocates, counsellors, and other experts. The content is aimed at a wide range of issues, including mental health, addiction, diversity and inclusion, stress management, relationships, financial health, parenting, caregiving, leadership skills, and more.

“What I love about LifeSpeak is the fact that their content is expert-led yet completely accessible,” Lime Global CEO Shaun Williams said when announcing their collaboration. “After an incredibly challenging year for so many people, we look forward to working with LifeSpeak to support existing and potential customers across the UK with relevant, trusted, health and wellbeing content that will help them build the resilience they need to succeed.”

Built on the breadth and depth of expert-led content in various fields, the service is available anytime and anywhere and is highly customisable to an organisation’s specific needs. It is entirely confidential for the end-user and can connect people to mental health experts to answer fundamental questions via Ask the Expert sessions. Recent Ask the Expert sessions covered topics such as managing anxiety in a post-lockdown workplace and creating accountability for a diverse and inclusive workplace.

The platform connects wellbeing programmes and addresses emerging issues such as self-care during the pandemic. It can act as the “front door” for someone’s wellness journey by being deployed as a standalone solution or integrated with other software and programmes, like an organisation’s intranet or an EAP (employee assistance programme) platform for example.

Since LifeSpeak’s inception 17 years ago, the company has cultivated impressive usage (70%) and renewal (95%+) rates by providing its clients with careful curation and ongoing guidance. Its account management team adapts the platform’s library to meet each organisation’s unique needs and develops custom initiatives to promote and drive usage. Its proprietary SaaS model facilitates mass customisation and rapid deployment to clients across any industry and sector.

With mental health concerns at the forefront of an organisation’s productivity, access to the right support and expert help is essential. Nothing is more critical to the success of your business than the people behind it – your employees, your customers, and the people who support them. Find out more about how your organisation can take care of the people who take care of your business by clicking here.