In response to the increased awareness of the need for well-being programs to address mental health issues, companies have responded with a variety of programs.
However, designing programs that are able to deliver the needed results is an inexact science. But that doesn’t have to be the case.
“When determining how to gather data and where AI fits in, the goal is to identify where action needs to be taken,” explains Serena Huang, PhD, who spent more than a decade leading measurement and analytics strategy at brands like GE, Kraft Heinz, and PayPal. She is also the founder of Data with Serena.
“I suggest that companies place their efforts on the group of employees who are operating at a reduced capacity,” said Huang. “They appear to be fine from the outside, but if you pay attention, it’s not that hard to figure out.”
Human behavior has the advantage of being alterable and is something a company can control, as opposed to many other risks companies face that they are unable to control, Huang notes.
Just as there are warning signs before a machine breaks down, most supervisors notice behavior patterns and can conclude that someone is not performing at their best.
The difficult part is to move past observation to create a data set that can then be turned into actionable results.
An example Huang has found at many companies is fatigue. “Fatigue occurs from factors that humans can control, such as shift schedules,” Huang says.
AI can be a tool to review schedules and link to behavior. “So if I knew that Mary has been on three-night shifts, and all of our employees, on average, after three-night shifts are much more likely to make a mistake, and they work on machinery that can be dangerous, then I'm going to do something about that.”
AI as a Prediction Tool
It’s the ability to take action based on data that delivers the most value. Huang uses the example of sleep, which is a key component of well-being.
“The risk from someone who's working on a jet engine doing quality control or for someone putting together a medical device, is huge if that person is not sleeping well,” she explains. “And when you have a group of employees who are not sleeping well, you have a huge issue.”
Measuring sleep and other indicators that determine well-being can be achieved through the use of wearable and other technologies. AI-powered wearables can track vital signs and behavioral patterns to detect early warning signs of stress, fatigue, and burnout before they compromise workplace safety, according to research.
These systems enable timely interventions by flagging concerning changes in worker wellbeing that might otherwise go unnoticed until an incident occurs, Huang notes.
AI's Extensive Capabilities
When it comes to mental health, inclusion is a large determinant of engaged employees. Consequently, high engagement creates a safer environment, both psychologically and physically.
A 2022 article, “Workplace AI wants to help you belong,” from Stanford, found that hundreds of firms are using AI to improve inclusion and belonging in the workplace. Data analytics collect real-time information on engagement, sentiment, inclusion, and employee connections.
Some tools also leverage sentiment analysis, network mapping, and internal reviews to provide a more comprehensive understanding of employee experiences.
The use of this technology to offer meaningful data when it comes to well-being is what drove Huang to publish a book in 2025, The Inclusion Equation: Leveraging Data & AI for Organizational Diversity and Well-Being.
“Having spent more than a decade navigating the complexities of large global organizations, I’ve seen firsthand the power of data and AI in driving meaningful change,” she writes in the introduction.
The need to apply this data to well-being came from an experience she described in the introduction, excerpted below.
The phone rang close to midnight—an unknown number I almost ignored. But something made me answer. “Hi Serena, it’s Sara...,” The voice on the other end was shaky, laced with confusion and fear. “Hello...Sara? Are you okay?” “I...I woke up in the ER. I don’t know what happened....” My heart sank as she apologized profusely about a work deadline she might miss, her biggest concern mere hours after a medical crisis.
Sara didn’t report to me directly and was working on a project of mine as a cross-functional stretch assignment.
In that moment, a thousand worries flooded my mind. Had I been so demanding as a leader that she felt compelled to call about work deliverables from a hospital bed? Why didn’t I notice the signs that she was struggling on weekly project team calls? I assured her that her health was the priority—not the project, not the deadlines. Anything else could wait.
There was a long pause before Sara’s voice cracked again. “Can I...can I ask you something?” I could hear her trepidation. “Anything, Sara,” I reassured her. “The doctor said I had a panic attack...,”she said, her voice barely above a whisper. “I didn’t even know what they were. They said I’ve been having them for a while. What should I do?”
My stomach tightened. This wasn’t just a personal struggle; it was a symptom of a broken system. Sara, a talented employee, was suffering in silence, afraid to seek help.
Building Trust
So, how do you move from that type of phone call to introducing wearables in the workplace that can collect data to improve well-being programs? “I wish we could talk about mental health the same way we talk about 401k's,” says Huang. “What if on the first day of orientation at the company, there is a discussion on mental health?”
Huang would even like to see a mental health week, similar to the current safety week most companies have. Some companies are doing this, she said. The feedback she has heard is that people wish they had revealed the struggle they were going through and had asked for help.
Creating a process for employees to share their struggles before they reach the point where it becomes a safety concern is something that safety professionals are working on. "What I found in research is that our mental health and our physical health are connected, and I think this is the part that people don't tend to realize," says Huang.
Using AI and data analytics will make that connection much easier to make, and become the basis for strategies to improve well-being.
