How Unmind is creating a better night sleep for improved work performance

Sleep is a universally understood cornerstone of wellbeing, yet over a third of the workforce gets less than 7 hours of sleep a night. On average, businesses in the US alone lose an equivalent of 1.23M working days due to insufficient sleep every year. Lack of sleep has severe implications for mental health and wellbeing, leading to increased burnout and reduced productivity.

Recognizing the critical link between sleep and workplace productivity, Unmind has developed sleep tools to tackle this problem head-on. By improving sleep quality, employers can create a healthier and more productive workforce.

Our research team is constantly working to ensure that Unmind is driven by evidence and the latest research to deliver support that works digitally and at scale.

Our sleep research aimed to understand the efficacy of Unmind’s sleep tools for tackling poor sleep and its impact on wellbeing and performance, including stress and anxiety. This not only impacts  individual wellbeing but also translates to significant losses in productivity at the organizational level.

Now just like any good TV show, we started with a pilot. In this initial, small-scale study, our aim was to establish the feasibility of our tools for regular use and their impact on wellbeing. 

In our pilot study, participants with sleep difficulties used Unmind’s sleep tools used Unmind’s sleep tools for 2-3 times a week and reported:

• Better performance: 16.5% uplift in productivity, equating to $13,200 optimized spend per employee per year. ‍
• More shut-eye: 3.5 hours of extra sleep a week, on average. That’s 182 hours of sleep a year, or almost 23 nights of 8-hour bliss.‍
• Better sleep quality: Participants reporting good quality sleep increased from 6% to 46%
• ‍Better mental health: Reduced levels of depression and anxiety compared to controls.

For more on our research: Feasibility and preliminary efficacy of app-based audio tools to improve sleep health 

Understanding the profound impact of sleep on employee wellbeing and performance, Unmind has developed a range of innovative tools designed to enhance sleep quality. Our sleep tools are crafted to address various aspects of sleep, making it easier for employees to get the rest they need and show up to work ready to do their best.

Our offerings include a variety of resources that cater to different preferences and needs. From soothing soundscapes to educational courses, each tool is grounded in scientific research and aims to promote better sleep habits.

• How to sleep well: Simple science to optimize sleep
• Snowfall in New England - Sleep Sound

In our trial, the proportion of people struggling with sleep decreased from 50% to 15% and promoted business performance sustainably through building healthier sleeping habits organization-wide. 

To innovate our science-backed sleep tools, Unmind’s in-house Science team has been conducting research in collaboration with the University of Sussex to test the effects of sleep tools in scientific trials and with client populations.

Thanks to the positive findings from our pilot study, we’re now delivering a more definitive study, referred to as an RCT (randomized controlled trial), to scale up and compound the impact of our tools in our previous findings for workplace productivity to replicate and develop our previous findings.

As part of a three-year research program, we’ll explore these key questions through a large RCT and a lab-based study investigating: 

• What are the ‘active ingredients’ in digital tools that improve sleep?
• What can we learn about sleep interventions by using wearables to track sleep?
• What are users' experiences, and what can we learn from them?

By investing in the future of digital mental health research, we aim to drive meaningful change for employees struggling with sleep, whilst helping organizations globally level up their business performance.

Stay tuned for more updates as we continue to improve sleep health for all.