Former C Space Execs Launch Employee Wellbeing Firm

Former C Space execs Felix Koch and Phil Burgess have launched an employee wellbeing business called WITHIN, in partnership with Nicky Forsythe, the CEO and founder of social enterprise, Talk for Health. The new firm will aim to improve employee mental health by building connections at work.

Burgess and Koch previously worked for Omnicom-owned online community C Space for a decade, where Burgess was latterly Chief People and Operations Officer for the Americas, and Koch was Regional CEO, EMEA & APAC. Burgess returned to the UK last summer, and Koch left his most recent C Space position at the end of last year.

While at C Space, in response to challenges caused by the pandemic, Koch and Burgess worked with Talk For Health to offer a mental health and connection programme to C Space employees. Their new firm offers a programme developed by Talk for Health and commissioned by the NHS, to help participants report positive changes in wellbeing, reduce depressive symptoms, and improve a sense of connection and belonging. The company launch comes just months after the MRS/Opinium 2022 Mental Wellbeing in Research Survey revealed that while 76% of MR sector professionals approve of their employer's actions to improve staff wellbeing, 87% of researchers have experienced poor mental health over the past year, up from 83% in 2020.

Koch explains: 'We partner with forward-thinking leaders who understand that investing in the wellbeing of their people is key to business success. Too many workplace mental health initiatives are reactive, too focused on 'fixing the individual' or just building awareness. We believe in taking a more proactive approach. By leveraging the power within the group we empower people to support themselves and each other through meaningful human interaction, not through apps or AI chatbots.'

Web site: www.within.business .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.