What is a Corporate Wellness Program?
Creating a culture of wellness for employees
Corporate wellness programs have been on the rise over the last few years, and there is evidence that they are here to stay. Since covid it has become increasingly clear that wellness in the workplace is no longer a luxury, but a necessity. So, what are these programs that target the health and wellbeing of corporate employees?
Corporate wellness programs aim to provide employees with tools, incentives, and strategies for achieving optimum health. In the past, the reasons for offering these programs were two-fold: “to encourage employees to lead a healthy lifestyle fortified by proactive health-driven choices and to help improve a company’s bottom line by lowering the impact of medical premiums and absenteeism.” While lowering health insurance costs for employers is still a benefit, wellness in the workplace is necessary for other reasons. Obesity is at an all time high, 1 in 5 working adults live with mental disorders, and over 75% of healthcare spending is on preventable diseases such as high cholesterol, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and high blood pressure. Such statistics amplify the need for health programs in the workplace. However, previous initiatives are falling short and failing employees. Simple nutrition and exercise tips are no longer enough. According to the NYSE, “It’s not just about medical health anymore.” A broader approach to wellbeing beyond medical wellness is necessary.
What is Nest Health Connections?
This is where Nest Health Connections comes in. Nest Health Connections is a corporate wellness company that takes a holistic and customized approach when creating programs. They aim to create a culture of wellness among employees.
The company was founded by Kristin Markey in 2017. Kristin worked in corporate America for over 20 years. She specialized in sales, marketing, and strategy and held executive positions for several large fitness brands including Bowflex, Schwinn, Nautilus, Universal, Stair Master and Stages Cycling. After 12 years of working in the corporate fitness industry she became disheartened by the narrowing view of wellness. She was fit by traditional standards, ate all the recommended foods, and was "healthy" by societal terms. Yet something was missing. Her high stress levels kept her from optimal health despite her near perfect diet and movement routines. Feeling frustrated and overwhelmed, Kristin began exploring holistic practices and alternative methods to health. Meditation became a daily part of her life, and she quickly learned the benefit the practice had on her stress levels. Her curiosity for these practices grew even stronger. The more she learned, the more she disagreed with the corporate fitness model and the idea that there was only one path to health.
With an appetite for more knowledge, Kristin started to observe corporate wellness from a new perspective. As she researched wellness programs for corporate companies she found that most of them, like the companies she had worked for, viewed wellness as solely diet and fitness. Moreover, many programs were app-based and lacked any type of personalization or customization. Inspiration took root. Kristin had always been passionate about wellness, but now she was on a mission to expand people's idea of wellness.
For Kristin, health and wellbeing is more than just exercise and nutrition. It's about taking the time to connect with people, their needs and concerns, and offering a variety of solutions and remedies. When it comes to health, it's not one size fits all. Inspired by her experience with alternative and holistic practices, Kristin began to offer corporate wellness programs in a unique and customized way.
At first, Kristin had one client, but that didn't deter her. She emphasized the importance of small steps, going beyond conventional practices, and created a culture of wellness and community unique to the company. Her customized wellness programs recognized the importance of integrating workplaces and local wellness providers. Employees were introduced and connected to these providers. They also received regular educational talks on a variety of wellness topics and were invited and encouraged to participate in health challenges (all coordinated by Kristin). It wasn't long before the word of Kristin's unique approach to corporate wellness began to spread. Nest Health Connections now provides wellness programming for several corporations and over 10,000 employees.
As mentioned previously, in the past, the majority of health programs focused on helping employers reduce their health care costs. Content was mostly digital, impersonal, generic, and centered on fitness and diet. What Kristin has created with Nest Health Connections goes above and beyond previous notions of what health and wellness means. It's not just about following wellness trends. It's about getting personal. By working directly with the senior leaders and employees, Kristin promotes engagement and interaction. Building these relationships is what sets Nest Health Connections apart from other competitors. The wellness programs managed by Nest directly impact the wellbeing of employees. Using analytics, statistics, and surveys Nest Health Connections provides customized care for the employees that deliver real results. In a world that is delivering generic and outdated wellness content, Kristin and her company bring life back into wellness and redefines wellbeing and happiness. Nest Health Connections brings heart to a space that lacks a pulse.
According to another article on corporate wellness, this integration piece that Nest provides matters. “Integrated corporate wellbeing programs bring all elements of care together in one place.” In order for a corporate wellness program to really make an impact, it must include this integration piece. Nest Health Connections is a market leader with their integrated, holistic, and open minded approach to corporate wellness.
The Founder & the Future of Nest Health Connections
Kristin continues to bring her out-of-the box thinking to her clients today. Over the last five years she's orchestrated volunteer projects, created community gardens, organized bike to work days, and plans interactive specialized wellness events and offerings for each company. While her creative methods are unmatched in the field, it is truly her passion for wellness that is contagious.
Kristin has been recognized in the community for her work in corporate wellness. She has been featured in several wellness podcasts, and has been a motivational speaker for a number of corporate engagements.
In 2021 Kristin received the Workplace Wellness Spotlight from the Global Wellness Summit. She spoke to hundreds on how she pivoted her business during covid and inspired many with her approach to change and re-direction.
While she is continually recognized for her contagious upbeat energy in the community, Kristin’s success goes beyond honors and rewards. Not only did she stay in business during Covid closures, she tripled her business over the last two years, and has doubled her revenue growth in the last year. She is incredibly proud of how Nest Health Connections has continued to grow and expand during such a difficult economic time.
Even though Kristin is thrilled with the blossoming of Nest Health Connections, and honored by the recognitions she has received, she is most proud of the impact Nest Health Connections has made. She receives personal testimonials regularly from clients whose health dramatically improved after Nest Health Connections started working with their company. The wellness programs that Kristin has launched has directly affected the well-being of employees. Using analytics, statistics, and surveys Nest Health connections provided customized care for the employees, bringing down diabetes rates, improving detection and resolution of illness, and increasing the quality of life. The work, though hard to measure, is deeply satisfying for Kristin. Knowing that Nest Health Connections is positively impacting the wellbeing of her clients is her pride and joy.
Today, Nest Health Connections is serving and impacting about 10,000 employees around the world. Their vision is to expand their reach to 100,000 employees. They believe in the power of wellness and hope to create a technology platform that enhances programming, caters to accessibility, and extends their reach without losing the personalized aspect of the mission. Their dream is inspire other well care providers and program coordinators, and remain a market leader in the world of customized corporate wellness.
They also hope to explore the market of products. Similar to the corporate wellness industry, wellness products remain generic and unspecific to the needs of individuals. Using the analytics, statistics, and other data collected from their clients, Nest Health connections intends to break into the world of wellness products. The would love to create products that are customized and tailored to the demands of those that they serve in the industry. For example, deodorants, balms, hats, room sprays and more that specifically serve the corporations they work with whether they are seated at on office, driving trucks, or in the field of manual labor.
Lastly, Nest Health Connections plans to expand their presence online as a wellness resource for everyone. They have increased their social media following by 20% in the last two months, and recently started a podcast open to the public that they hope will become a valuable wellness resource for many. Tips for living a healthy and happy life should be available to everyone. Customized corporate wellness programs will always be Nest's passion, but making sure wellbeing tips and tools are available to everyone is also important to Nest Health Connections' future plans.
Article by Bridget Lavin
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