EMPLOYEES are experiencing significantly more stress, anxiety and depression in their jobs – and the trend has accelerated since the pandemic began.

That is the finding of a Bournemouth-based company dedicated to using artificial intelligence and data to help mental health.

Well Good says the problem affects productivity, culture and profits as well as the wellbeing of the staff involved.

The company, which worked with the mental health charity Mind to develop its approach, has launched its first digital product and is signing up a range of companies for a pilot programme.

Adam McNichol and Dan Willis founded Well Good in 2019 after experiencing mental health issues themselves in senior roles at advertising, digital and creative agencies. They said they wondered why many companies were not looking at how their culture and policies affected their teams.

With the support of mental health academics, clinical practitioners, and charities, the company has created a framework that seeks to improve company performance by applying artificial intelligence to employee data, business culture and operations,

Well Good’s chief psychology officer, Professor Kavita Vedhara, led a study of 3,097 people which found stress, anxiety and depression were all significantly higher compared with previous published norms. Sixty-four per cent reported symptoms of depression and 57 per cent reported anxiety.

Prof Vedhara said: “The emotional toll early on in the pandemic appears to have been significant in the UK. This is perhaps not surprising as people were required to rapidly and unexpectedly respond to a range of challenges. What is crucial now is to examine if these very high levels of distress are persisting over time.”

Dan Willis said: “Our goal is to enable businesses to create the future of work – open workplaces that are unburdened by health, performance and financial concerns that are increasingly associated with poor workplace culture.

“It’s not surprising to see that world-class businesses who are dialled into their employees’ mental wellbeing are early adopters of a preventative strategy.”

The new Well Good platform is being unveiled as part of the brand’s new Be Well Good campaign, which spotlights the spirit and drive to create a more sustainable workplace for employees to thrive in.