After Rachel Ledbetter earned her clinical psychology degree, reality hit: completing the required clinical supervision hours in a rural area with few providers was going to be nearly impossible.

The challenge: After two years of four hour round trip visits to her supervisor, she knew there had to be a better option.

The solution: Ledbetter's experience isn't unique. For her, the "better way" was building Motivo — a virtual company helping associate-level clinicians and organizations easily access clinical supervision when and where they need it.

Motivo reports that over half of mental health master's graduates never get licensed, often because of barriers like the ones she faced.

• 21.1% say the cost of getting a license holds them back.
• 13.3% say a complicated licensing process gets in the way.

To ensure Motivo could operate across state lines, Ledbetter partnered with Justworks — a Professional Employer Organization that streamlines payroll, benefits and HR into one platform — taking away the administrative burden and letting her focus on expanding the number of licensed mental health practitioners.

"We decided to move forward with Justworks because we needed a partner that could handle the complexities of a fully-remote, multi-state workforce," says Ledbetter.

Justworks helps startups simplify their HR, payroll and benefits systems, giving founders the time and space to fully focus on their mission.

Emily Jakeman, Director of People at Motivo, shared that Justworks has been an invaluable resource to her role, allowing her to confidently direct employees to their services whenever HR support is needed.

Justworks helped Motivo:

• Expand their team across states.
• Handle the complexities of state-by-state employment laws, tax registration and compliance.
• Automate onboarding, payroll and benefits.
• Strengthen compliance and risk management.

An expert take: "Justworks gives us the operational lift we need so we can focus on our mission," says Ledbetter. "Never have we felt like the support provided by Justworks is a barrier – they always make the process to answer questions or find resolution seamless."

The impact: Partnering with Justworks right out of the gate has helped Motivo thrive. Since beginning in 2018, Motivo has expanded to:

• 120+ employers.
• 1,200+ clinical supervisors.
• HIPAA-compliant video supervision in all 50 states.

How it's done: Motivo's online platform works by connecting associate-level clinicians with their network of vetted supervisors. "We handle the entire process — from intelligent supervisor matching and onboarding to licensure tracking and compliance documentation," says Ledbetter.

The proof: Customers say Motivo has made securing supervision less difficult and significantly eased clinician burnout. This leads to increased clinician retention rates at Motivo's partnering organizations.

Why it's important: There is a nationwide shortage of mental health providers in the U.S. Barriers to licensure for graduates only exacerbates the gap.

• 49% Of Americans live in a mental health shortage area.
• More than 1 in 5 U.S. adults have a mental illness.

Not only is Motivo improving the percentage of licensed mental health providers, it's also improving retention rates for Motivo's behavioral health partner organizations, adding up to higher quality and more accessible mental health care in the U.S.

The bottom line: Justworks removes the administrative friction of managing a remote, multi-state workforce, which empowers Motivo to do what it does best — breaking down the systemic barriers to licensure and growing the nation's mental health workforce.

Learn more.