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Sage is a brand new platform that raises the bar for mental health education in the workplace. Designed to fit seamlessly into any learning management system, Sage uses interactive, digestible content that can be used in many ways to support your company’s learning and development strategy.
Kerry Symon is the Clinical Sales Director at Spring Health, a licensed psychologist, and leader of several courses at Sage.
We sat down to talk with Kerry about her experience filming the courses for Sage, what she likes about it, and why she thinks Sage is a differentiator in the mental health and professional development industry.
Spring Health: As a clinician, what do you think about Sage overall?
Kerry: I think it’s fantastic. We took a really intentional approach to this. One of the things we get feedback on is around the relatable language.
Language is important. How you say something and the meaning behind it matters, and we worked very carefully on that. We have people coming into this system from many different cultures and different types of industries with different learning styles. And you want it to be universal—I think we do a very good job with that.
One of the ways we make Sage relatable is by using Spring Health clinicians. These are not actors. They’re licensed providers who have performed all these trainings. They have breadth, depth, and experience behind them.
With the interactive ways we tell stories and how we segment types of employees, we’re using a holistic approach to tackle all of these different things together, and that makes us a differentiator in the industry.
Spring Health: Give us the insider scoop—what was your experience filming the courses?
Kerry: It was fun! I’ve done five courses so far, and it’s a very different experience from speaking with someone in person.
I’ve never done anything on camera before. I’m not an actor, so I didn’t act. But talking into the camera, I imagined I was looking at my client and really connecting to people on the other side of the camera. It was very moving.
It’s so necessary to have different avenues to get people to connect with their well-being. So many people aren’t ready to meet with a coach or are unwilling to start therapy. But maybe they’re ready to watch a 5-minute video about how to avoid burnout, and that’s a pathway for them. Anything I can do as a provider to encourage a path to well-being, I’m open to doing.
Spring Health: As the Director of Clinical Sales, you must hear a lot about what customers are looking for to help support mental health at work. How does Sage fit that need?
Kerry: This was a huge ask. We do a yearly needs assessment. So many companies are just so busy, but they want a way to get this information in front of their employees.
They want to provide something employees can look at and digest quickly, with a take away they feel good about or a new approach they can try. They want a way in for their people, and Sage is that type of element.
Organizations also need something that will keep their employees’ attention by switching to different types of learning in a short time span because, let’s face it—we stand the risk of losing people. So I think we’ll receive feedback that Sage is easy to learn with truly digestible content because it doesn’t get boring and it’s not too long.
This is all based on evidence. We have an internal learning and development expert who has made sure that video length is considered when presenting course information.
Spring Health: If you were to describe Sage to someone, what would you say to help people understand what the course experience is like?
Kerry: Put very simply, Sage is a series of trainings. You can easily log in and choose from different types of courses like How to Manage Stress, for example. It takes 10 minutes to complete.
We take a psychoeducational approach in the beginning. You’ll get an introduction from someone like me and quickly understand why you’re there and what you will learn. Every minute or two, you’ll get mini-assessments. These moments of reflection allow you to identify where you’re at or where your team is if you’re a manager.
Ideally, you’ll walk away with tools and awareness of where you are in your journey, allowing you to take the right action moving forward.
Spring Health: How does Sage reach employees at different levels in the company?
Kerry: It’s essential to gear certain training toward different types of employees. Each position presents unique challenges.
For example, managers have a lot on their shoulders, and one of their jobs is to keep tabs on how their employees are doing. So one of our trainings is Recognize and Respond. It helps them identify when someone on their team is struggling with their well-being and then equips them with the language they need to talk to them.
And then, for employees, we have training on how to decrease stress or connect with coworkers. For HR professionals—who experience very high rates of burnout—we offer training on preventing burnout.
People will feel burnout and stress at work—it comes with the territory. It’s all about how you manage it, and Sage helps build that muscle by improving emotional literacy, preventing burnout, and responding to stress. This will directly support your team members’ personal and professional development.
Spring Health: Is there anything else organizations should know about Sage?
Kerry: Don’t underestimate the power of a short, interactive video. You want to reach all your employees, but not all want to do the same thing. Yet, everyone is human, and everyone has a struggle. You want a holistic, digestible, multi-pronged approach to well-being.
Here's another highly effective way to support your leaders, including the critical guidance they need to have difficult conversations with employees.
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