Trends: Mental Health as an Employee Benefit

The needs and priorities of employees are changing as the times we live in change, with factors such as the coronavirus pandemic, the arrival of new generations in the workplace, like Generation Z, and many others equally relevant, contributing to the increased attention paid to mental health.

Psychotherapy is one of those topics that is still often viewed with skepticism, so it is somewhat unusual to associate it with the work environment, but many examples prove the opposite. The BBC has reported on British and American companies that are increasingly bringing psychotherapists into their workplace benefits packages, and some have even introduced access to digital tools for maintaining employees’ mental health. Employees of such companies can discreetly schedule their appointments with licensed professionals during work hours. The American airline Delta Airlines is one example of how it looks when a company offers psychotherapy to its employees. In February 2022, as stated on its official website, they increased access to mental health treatments from seven to twelve free counseling sessions per year per employee and their household members.

Psychotherapy is not business consulting

With the increasing demand for psychotherapists, the demand for other forms of mental health care and professional counseling has also begun to grow. One of these is business consulting (business coaching), which psychotherapist and business coach Jasmina Sočković claims is neither psychotherapy nor vice versa. According to her, psychotherapy and business coaching do not necessarily have to be related to each other as they are different processes, although a quality business coach and a quality psychotherapist share a range of competencies. People may be confused by the fact that many psychologists or psychotherapists work for organizations as business coaches or that many business coaches who are fundamentally trained in something entirely different pursue further education to become counseling therapists and can engage in psychotherapeutic activities. When it comes to legal regulations, psychotherapy and business consulting are separated because, as Sočković states, psychotherapy is regulated by the Law on Psychotherapy Activities, while psychological activities are regulated by the Law on Psychological Activities. Business consulting is not regulated by law, but it is still striving to professionalize as much as possible.

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Jasmina Sočković,
psychotherapist and business coach:

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– A quality psychotherapist and business coach certainly share the fact that they continuously improve in their field and genuinely love and want to work with people – emphasized Sočković.

When it comes to business consulting, Sočković has collaborated, and still collaborates, with a number of organizations over nearly fifteen years of experience. There are always individuals who individually and directly seek business coaching services, but most often it involves a so-called tripartite agreement (coachee – organization/sponsor – coach), where the organization orders business coaching for its employees and managers. The first point of contact with the business consultant is the human resources department.

– Many companies offer their leaders and employees the opportunity to meet two or even three potential business coaches in an introductory conversation. After the employee chooses who suits them best, goal setting follows, usually involving the person who is directly superior to the coachee – added the psychotherapist and business consultant.

Growing Demand

According to her, this interesting service is increasingly sought after both in Croatia and worldwide as it is one of the most effective ways to develop within organizations, whether for managers or specialists. Although individual work is at the forefront of interest, there is also group, that is, team coaching.

– In Croatia, a network of quality business coaches has been developing strongly over the last twenty years. Demand surged during the pandemic, not only for business coaching but also for all forms of psychological well-being programs that organizations want to provide greater support for their employees’ mental health – Sočković responded to a question about the prevalence of business consulting in Croatia.

The choice between psychotherapy or business coaching is up to the company itself and depends on its goals and work environment. Sočković distinguishes between the two by stating that business consulting is a process designed to work within organizations and is therefore the most effective approach that simultaneously benefits the advisor and the organization, with goals usually related to business themes or personal competencies relevant in a business context. Psychotherapy, on the other hand, is a much deeper and more intimate process that occurs exclusively in a private context, between the psychotherapist and the client, regardless of whether the client pays for it themselves or the organization does. There are many reasons for clients to seek help, but according to our interlocutor’s experience, they are most often related to changes at work, significant changes in the work environment, strengthening leadership competencies, and so on.

In addition to business coaching and business consulting, there is also something called NLP coaching – an abbreviation for neuro-linguistic programming. Personal growth and development educator and NLP trainer Andreja Marčec educates, informs, and helps clients learn to manage their money, time, and habits more wisely during individual coaching sessions and educational workshops. She emphasizes that NLP is full of tools and techniques that are applied in coaching, which she defines as a craft, a research conversation between the client and the advisor, or coach.

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Andreja Marčec, educator of personal growth and development and NLP trainer:

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– If someone declares themselves as an NLP coach, it means they use NLP tools in their work. An NLP coach can work in any area of life, from parenting, relationships, spirituality, finances, career, health to leisure, while a business coach works with people on their businesses – explained Marčec, adding that each coach decides for themselves whether to work individually or with groups and what their niche will be.

Be Careful Who You Collaborate With!

When it comes to the benefits of personal growth and development education, Marčec, who is also an expert in this field, claims that it is multifaceted because when a person starts working on one area of their life, it automatically pulls along other areas. Personal growth strengthens self-confidence, self-esteem, and sense of self-worth, making it easier for individuals to cope with difficult people, emotions, situations, and thoughts.

– Since the profession of coaching in its current form is not yet defined by law, I notice that people without any education are calling themselves coaches. Therefore, it is important to warn the public to be careful about who they collaborate with – noted Marčec.

The role of a coach, according to the interlocutor, is to help you explore your potential, discover subconscious beliefs that limit you, and provide you with correct feedback, which you can take into account but do not have to. The goal of feedback is for the person to progress. A coach has undergone training and is trained not to give advice, criticism, or praise, but rather feedback.

How important it is for an entrepreneur and employer to take care of their employees’ mental health is a question that everyone will likely view differently. Marčec believes it is extremely important to take care of this because our physical health depends on a healthy mindset. She also praises all entrepreneurs and employers who enable their employees to take care of their mental health, but whether they will see it as an opportunity and take what is offered for free, the responsibility for that, claims Marčec, is solely theirs.