Sector: Social/Digital Website: https://mindfit.bg/
Brief description of the organisation/initiative
MindFit is an online platform that gives employees from different companies access to a curated network of specialists in the field of psychology and psychotherapy. The platform is based on a monthly subscription, which is covered by the employer and allows employees to consult with a professional of their choice. MindFit aims to make psychotherapy accessible and widely used, thus improving the mental state of as many people as possible in Bulgaria. Meanwhile, this also improves productivity, reduces stress, burnout, and turnover in client companies.
Challenge overview
Covid-19 proved to be extremely harmful to mental health, with studies showing a 25% increase in the prevalence of anxiety and depression among employees, according to a scientific brief released by the World Health Organisation (WHO). Concerns about potential increases in mental health conditions had already prompted 90% of countries surveyed to include mental health and psychosocial support in their COVID-19 response plans, but major gaps and concerns remain. MindFit can be very beneficial both for employees and employers when encountering these major gaps. MindFit provides psychotherapy available to employees in the form of a social benefit with complete confidentiality and selected, qualified, independent psychotherapists, with online and offline therapeutic sessions.
Establishment of the organisation/initiative/enterprise
Victoria Victorova saw a niche that could benefit from her experience in entrepreneurship and her passion for psychotherapy. She was looking to expand her knowledge and network. A friend recommended ABLE Activator, an intensive seven-week course in entrepreneurship for university students and young professionals. The program connected Victoria with her dream team—five other young professionals eager to chart their own course in life and make a difference in their communities.
Extensive interviews with employers and staff as well as data from trade organisations revealed that nearly half of sick leaves in the country were due to stress and burnout, and almost a third of employees quit because of unmanaged stress. Тo offer an affordable service benefiting both employers and employees, Victoria and her team came up with MindFit and began promoting work-life balance.
Management structure and governance
The start-up has been developed by a diverse and competent team: Victoria Victorova as the main project coordinator, Veronika Yoncheva as a marketing specialist, and Anna Mihaylova as a customer care specialist. The platform has been developed by Vladimir Vassilev as a software engineer, Nora Predeva as a web designer, and Aleksandrina Ikonomova as a business developer.
Principles of work, objectives and activities
The philosophy behind MindFit is simple: Taking care of your people, their way! This is the ground that the platform has been established on. MindFit is a platform that connects enterprise employees with a network of select mental health professionals in order to help them release stress and anxiety. It’s a monthly subscription-based employee benefit that makes psychotherapy easily accessible at a reasonable price.
Employers benefit from productivity boost at a reasonable cost. MindFit works on a subscription basis. In order to be able to take advantage of the services of specialists, the employer should sign a contract with MindFit Bulgaria Ltd. and assist employees in creating their profile. Depending on the plan chosen by the employer, one can take advantage of the appropriate number of sessions per month through the MindFit platform.
For companies this means increased productivity and efficiency of the team, аttractiveness in searching for new staff, competitiveness, and reduced turnover.
Therapists who wish to become part of MindFit’s network can reach a large number of potential clients, receive a monthly payment for the sessions held, communicate with a special community of carefully selected specialists in psychology and psychotherapy and earn an additional positioning through exclusive content created by themselves on the blog of MindFit.
Target groups
MindFit is developed for companies and their employees and for therapists who wish to expand their network of clients by signing on the MindFit platform.
Innovation
The innovation behind MindFit can be found in its business model and tailor-made product for companies. MindFit is a new generation of employee benefits that give access to a curated network of psychologists and psychotherapists. MindFit’s network of psychologists and psychotherapists contains over 30 carefully selected specialists.
MindFit is based on a subscription model that includes a flexible subscription plan according to the needs of the particular company, access to exclusive blog content, opportunity to conduct additional thematic training or workshops by specialists in the MindFit network and easily save a session through the MindFit platform. Additionally, MindFit provides companies opportunities for organisational consulting at team level, choice between online and offline sessions, access to the full list of psychotherapists who conduct sessions in 5 languages, incl. Bulgarian, English, German, Russian and French, and the tools needed to choose the most appropriate specialist according to language, specialisation, location, platform, and experience.
Key partners
Some of the key clients and partners of MindFit are Mentormate Bulgaria, a leading company that works on various world-class projects in the field of healthcare, education, finance and agriculture, SnapShot Games, a Bulgarian video game developer, America for Bulgaria Foundation, Shkolo, offering software solutions to reduce bureaucracy in Bulgarian schools, ABLE, and Donkin & Partners Law firm.
Impact and Evaluation
MindFit has a successful business model as it aims to support and empower employees in companies as well as to give space and chance to expand the practice of therapists who wish to join the network. MindFit can be very beneficial for both small sized and big sized companies and also for freelance therapists who wish to practice their profession.
MindFit was the winning business idea in the fall 2020 edition of ABLE Activator and went on to win a frw more awards in the months to follow.
Recommendations
MindFit’s business model is based on a monthly subscription, where companies are charged on a recurring basis for the service received. The best practice can be transferred in other regions and countries, which are lagging behind in corporate promotion of social benefits such as psychological therapy. Another best practice is hand-picking the specialists, since thry are the key advantage of such a business.
Lessons Learned
MindFit is an innovative platform for mental wellbeing, a new generation social benefit that gives employees access to a selected and independent network of psychologists and psychotherapists. The main lesson that can be learned from establishing entrepreneurial practice is that an opportunity must be seized and hard work is paid off where there is devotion and commitment. A key for the success of the platform is the dream team behind it.
References
MindFit website.
MindFit LinkedIn Profile.
America for Bulgaria Foundation. (2021) MindFit, Like a Gym for the Mind (Minus all the Equipment), 1 Feb, America for Bulgaria Foundation.
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Commission. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.