EAP built for startups and founders
Give your founders and early team fast, no-waitlist access to qualified Australian psychologists. Pay only for what your people use, so it fits a startup budget.
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Trusted by teams across Australian workplaces
Startup life takes a real toll on the people running the show
of Australian founders rate their mental health as poor or fair
say their mental health is worse after launching their business
average return for every $1 spent on a mentally healthy workplace
Why early-stage teams need real support
In a startup the wellbeing of a few people decides whether the whole thing makes it. Long hours, money stress and constant uncertainty wear founders and early hires down fast, and there is rarely an HR safety net to catch them. Putting proper support in place early protects the people you depend on most.
of founders say their mental health is worse after launching their business, and 39% rate it as poor or fair.
of small business owners in Beyond Blue's coaching program showed clinically significant improvement in anxiety and depression symptoms, proof that the right support works.
of people with a mental health condition say their workplace caused or made it worse, so the culture you build early really matters.
Support your founders and team can actually reach
When you are running on fumes, the last thing anyone needs is a six-week wait for an appointment. Your people connect with a qualified Australian psychologist or counsellor by video, phone or message, any hour of the day, usually within a day or two.
There is no GP referral, no waitlist and nothing for you to administer. Founders pulling late nights, a stressed first hire, someone going through a rough patch at home, all of them can reach real help the moment they need it.
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No overheads, no lock-in, only pay for what is used
You do not have the budget or the headcount for a heavy corporate EAP, and you should not have to pretend otherwise. Talked is pay-as-you-go, so you only ever pay for the support your team actually uses, with no per-seat fees and no annual contract to commit to before you know if you need it.
As you hire and grow, the support scales with you. There is nothing to rip out or renegotiate when you go from five people to fifty.
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Look after your people without building an HR function
Most startups do not have a people-and-culture team yet, so when someone is struggling it usually lands on a founder who is already stretched. Talked handles the clinical side and gives you the basics to support your team well.
- A 24/7 confidential support line your team can call in a crisis
- Private, de-identified reporting so you can see uptake without seeing personal details
- Practical guidance for founders and first-time managers on supporting a stressed team
Startup EAP, common questions
Yes, and arguably it matters more when you are small. In a startup the wellbeing of a few key people decides whether you ship, raise and survive, so losing a founder or early hire to burnout is far more damaging than it would be in a big company. Talked gives you genuine clinical support without the overhead of a corporate program, and the research backs the return, with an average of 2.30 dollars back for every 1 dollar spent on a mentally healthy workplace.
That is exactly why we built it pay-as-you-go. There are no per-seat fees and no annual lock-in, so you are not paying for support nobody is using. You only pay when a team member actually sees a counsellor or psychologist, which keeps it affordable when cash is tight and lets the cost grow only as your team does.
It covers everyone you include, founders very much included. Founder mental health is the whole reason this matters for early-stage companies, and the data is stark, with 39 percent of Australian founders rating their mental health as poor or fair. You and your co-founders get the same fast, confidential access as the rest of the team.
Whatever your people share with their counsellor stays between them and the clinician. As the company you only ever see anonymous, aggregate reporting on how the service is used, never names, sessions or any personal detail. In a small team where everyone knows everyone, that privacy is exactly what makes people comfortable enough to reach out.
Almost none, which is the point. Setup takes minutes, your team gets a simple link or code, and they book and connect on their own without you in the loop. We handle the clinical side and the 24/7 support line, so no founder has to play counsellor or manage appointments on top of everything else.
You get clear, de-identified reporting on how much your team is using the service and the wellbeing trends across the group, with no personal details attached. It is enough to see that the support is landing and to make the case to your board or investors that you are looking after the people the company runs on. The right support makes a measurable difference, with 76 percent of small business owners in Beyond Blue's coaching program showing clinically significant improvement in anxiety and depression symptoms.
How Talked supports your people
References
- Warp+Weft, Minds of Makers: The Founder Mental Health Report 2025, reported by Startup Daily
- PwC and Beyond Blue, Creating a mentally healthy workplace: Return on investment analysis (2014), via Thrive at Work
- Beyond Blue, NewAccess for Small Business Owners (NASBO)
- SuperFriend, Indicators of a Thriving Workplace report 2023
Figures reflect publicly reported Australian data and are indicative. Talked is not affiliated with the organisations listed.
Look after the people building your company
Talked acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the lands on which we operate and pays respect to Elders past, present, and emerging.
We welcome and respect people of all backgrounds, genders, sexualities, abilities, and cultures.
If you are in crisis or experiencing suicidal or homicidal thoughts, please contact 000 or access these resources for emergency assistance.
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