Mind Your Business

For a sense of how mental wellbeing has become increasingly important in the corporate world, look no further than the expansion of MindFi, a homegrown startup that began with five employees. Their numbers have since swelled to 30, shares its co‑founder, Mr Bjorn Lee. There has also been steady interest in the MindFi app, which was launched in 2021 to provide access to virtual counselling and coaching, self-care content and exercises, and personal well-being tracking. “Before the pandemic, companies had little budget for their employees’ mental health, and mental health wasn’t openly discussed,” he recalls. But three years of lockdowns and social distancing mandates took their toll, and both individuals and organisations started looking for tools to safeguard their mental health.

Enter MindFi — the name stands for “mind fitness” and is also a play on the ubiquity of Wi-Fi. This ideal is something that Mr Lee hopes to bring to the community. “MindFi is targeted at businesses and organisations because the workplace really is the frontline of stress and I hope we can tackle that through our app,” shares Mr Lee, 42.

A GROWING FOOTPRINT 

On this front, MindFi has secured corporate clients including Deutsche Bank, KPMG and Funding Societies, supporting some 100,000 employees across 35 countries in Asia Pacific. Its users are spread across countries in the Asia-Pacific region, including Singapore, Hong Kong and Australia, with services offered in 16 languages. In addition to personalised programmes, users can access masterclasses on various wellbeing topics, such as ‘Happiness Starts With Good Mental Health’ and ‘Mental Health First Aid For Leaders’. Human resource professionals can also use the app’s analytics to gain actionable insights and refine the delivery of their wellbeing programmes. 

Mr Lee, who has faced his own mental health struggles, is proud of the impact MindFi is making. “I was heartened to hear from a senior vice-president at a top tech company who told me the app helped him manage stress, especially during meetings,” he shares. “He was most appreciative of our haptic breathing feature, where you breathe  [in sync with your] phone’s vibrations. He regularly uses this feature during meetings to regulate his blood pressure.” 

These anecdotes underscore what Mr Lee hopes to achieve through MindFi. “I want to reconcile the ambition of business with calmness and wellbeing,” he emphasises. “It can be done.”

THE NEXT LAP

If you had asked Mr Lee more than a decade ago whether an alignment of corporate and wellness goals was possible, his response would have been different. Back then, he founded an education technology startup based in Silicon Valley, but the experience was vastly different. “I was working 80- to 100‑hour weeks for almost a year, with poor sleep and no exercise,” Mr Lee shares. 

“The stress eventually got to me and I started feeling chest pains.” Initially fearing a heart attack, he consulted a doctor, who identified his symptoms as the tell-tale signs of stress. “He advised me to seek psychological help at the Institute of Mental Health, but (due to the stigma), I asked for other options,” Mr Lee reveals.

The doctor then introduced Mr Lee to meditation. “Funnily enough, my father was an ardent practitioner of meditation, although his practice was deeply linked to religion, which didn’t appeal to me. But my doctor told me to give it a try.” Six months later, Mr Lee went on a silent retreat in India to learn traditional meditation. He continues to meditate daily for 10 to 30 minutes each time.

ADAPTING FOR TODAY

Mr Lee understands that not everyone can commit to long meditation sessions as attention spans are short and time is limited. Recognising this, some MindFi meditation sessions are just a minute long. “We want to get people into the habit of meditating or being mindful, which is why we start with short sessions.”

One of MindFi’s strengths lies in its use of cutting-edge technology. The app boasts an AI algorithm that tailors recommendations to each user’s unique profile, taking into account factors like activity level, sleep, mood and heart rate. Mr Lee credits his co-founders — Chief Growth Officer Mr Leon Leong (Computing ’06), Chief Technology Officer Mr Gangeshwar Krishnamurthy, a former research engineer at A*STAR, and Chief Wellbeing Officer Ms Anita Sadasivan — for these innovations. Through their collective efforts, the four of them are amassing a library of mental health profiles that can train AI models for more accurate and personalised recommendations. 

Investors have taken note. Last year, MindFi announced a successful $2 million seed funding round, attracting backers such as Y Combinator, iGlobe, M Venture Partners and Global Founders Capital. Angel investors include Carousell co-founder Mr Marcus Tan (Business ’11), Carro executive Mr Kenji Narushima and Spin co‑founder Mr Derrick Ko.

While encouraged by MindFi’s growth, Mr Lee wants to proceed cautiously. For example, he continues to prioritise data privacy and security for the app’s users. He is also keen to provide quality care instead of merely chasing user growth. “As a company, we want to stay focused on improving lives,” he explains. “And that extends to our employees’ lives as well.” Perhaps, as they say, that’s just good business. 

TEXT BY ROY SIM. MAIN PHOTO BY KELVIN CHIA