Andrew O’Shea with Wellspring

Intro: [00:00:04] Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX Studios in Atlanta, Georgia. It’s time for Atlanta Business Radio brought to you by onpay built in Atlanta. On Pay is the top rated payroll and HR software anywhere. Get one month free at Onpay. Now here’s your host.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:31] Lee Kantor here, another episode of Atlanta Business Radio, and this is going to be a good one, but before we get started, it’s important to recognize our sponsor onpay. Without them, we couldn’t be sharing these important stories today on Atlanta Business Radio. We have Andrew O’Shea with Wellspring. Welcome, Andrew.

Andrew O’Shea: [00:00:49] Hey. How are you doing, Lee?

Lee Kantor: [00:00:50] I am doing great. I’m so excited to learn what you’re up to. Tell us a little bit about Wellspring. How are you serving, folks?

Andrew O’Shea: [00:00:56] Well, sure. So Wellspring is a health and wellness gift box provider, and we partner with great organizations to engage, help them engage with their own scattered and remote workforces and provide a meaningful dialog around their own health and wellness. So we love being able to send appreciation, gifts and little things to employees on behalf of employers and introduce them to new wellness pathways, whether it’s around their own mental health, physical health, emotional health or spiritual health.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:26] So now, now that a lot of the workforce has gone remote in some manner, how has that impacted your business? I would imagine that it opens up a lot of opportunities in terms of the companies that are trying to serve those folks who they’re not seeing in person as much anymore.

Andrew O’Shea: [00:01:42] That’s exactly right. And what we’re trying to do is create a virtual water cooler, if you will. You know, we’ve taken the office out of the workplace. So what is actually left, whether it’s compensation or certain benefits that we’re receiving, we’ve got to somehow create a virtual culture, if you will, where we can let them feel like they’re a part of something larger than themselves. And that’s really where we found our stride is is helping employers engage with their employees and let them know that they’re loved and cared for right now. We’re all looking for direction from our employers, our managers, oftentimes even in the country. And when we’re not getting clear direction, it can be tough sometimes in this isolated feel of remote work. Employees can start to feel dejected, disengaged or discouraged, and that’s the exact opposite feeling that we’re trying to evoke among these folks. So, you know, at the beginning of the pandemic, this certainly was something that was was very pivotal before the pandemic. But once everyone went home and was working in a remote or scattered capacity, this took on a whole new meaning of how can we actually create meaningful dialogs, connections and engagements between an employer and employee?

Lee Kantor: [00:02:56] Now are there any kind of symptoms or clues that an employer is having that maybe their culture is suffering somewhat? I would imagine for some folks, it’s not. This is kind of something that they had never done before, especially to this extent. And when you’re in person, some of these kind of things that you take for granted that build culture just aren’t there anymore, and there can be some disconnection and maybe they feel like they’re on an island. Some of these folks. So are there signals or signs that maybe there is trouble brewing that people can pay attention to?

Andrew O’Shea: [00:03:31] Well, sure, we have a number of clients who have come our direction, who have been open and honest and saying that they have retention difficulties, or that they are having a harder time and talent acquisition because their competitors are offering other incentives to their employees that maybe they can offer. Where we find the most bang for our buck here is that we are a certified vendor partner with all of the large insurance carriers such as Cigna, Aetna, UnitedHealthcare, Humana and Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, so that we are able to partner and leverage existing wellness funds as attributed as a part of your insurance plan. So this doesn’t necessarily have to come out of the bottom line. It’s a company, and that’s where we really saw the best value. During the pandemic, revenues were down. Furloughs were imminent and layoffs and whatnot, and morale was at an all time low. So to be able to tap into existing wellness funds is provided as you through your insurance carrier. I mean, it puts you in a pretty unique position to be able to offer a gift that you might not have been able to offer before, and we’re able to meet the employee wherever they are. I mean, we all know that there are mental health issues, new anxieties, stressors at home, whether it’s a new employee or, excuse me, a new coworker in my wife or spouse or husband.

Andrew O’Shea: [00:04:45] Or is it the kids in the other room? Or is it a new deadline that is looming? And I don’t have the the tools in front of me to accomplish this. This is something that you can put in front of an employee. Let them know this is just for you. Take a moment for yourself. Hit the pause button. And we don’t hear that enough from our employers because at the end of the day, the productivity is the bottom line. They’re looking for the ROI that they’re seeking. But we all know that if our productivity in the workplace isn’t at one hundred percent, then the whole company is suffering. By putting something like this in front of an employee and letting them know that there are options out there for their own personal wellness and to take care of themselves suddenly absent. Ism is not as high as it was PTO days that are being filed aren’t the same that they were. And maybe it is that their productivity levels and percentages are at a higher rate and that helps with overall function of the company, as well as the cost of trying to onboard new employees to backfill positions of folks who have left for greener pastures.

Lee Kantor: [00:05:50] Now, can you share kind of what it is that Wellspring is providing? Like what are those kits look like?

Andrew O’Shea: [00:05:57] Yeah, absolutely. So we we operate in a customizable fashion, so we have a three tiered offering. It’s almost a good, better, best. We call it curiosity, prosperity and enlightenment and curiosity is an introduction into the wellness arena really fit for putting? Maybe, maybe we’re starting at the starting line at the starting blocks instead of further on down the road, introducing brands and items that they can use that affect their daily habitual habits and routines. Maybe it’s a plant based protein bar or a hydration multiplier, or even adaptogen, mushroom, coffee or B12 caffeine alternatives to help with more mindful sleep. We take these products and we help them customize their own kits for whatever engagement they’re looking to achieve. And we’re able to deliver that directly to their employees doorstep or to their offices to be individually distributed among them. And that’s really where allowing the employer to create this on their own with us, we can help guide that process, but we want to make sure this is about them. It’s much more than about Wellspring. We see ourselves as a vehicle to accomplish their goals and make them the heroes in these situations.

Andrew O’Shea: [00:07:15] Now, if you come in and you are interested in learning more about mental health or about UV skin care, sun protection, or maybe it’s around love and gratitude. We have a number of promotional kits to start from and that that library serves as kind of a base, but we see that over time, maybe it’s a company is looking for their accountants to eat better, or maybe they want their salespeople to sleep better. And we’re able to customize these kits and programs on a frequency that hits their employees in a way that maybe after three months or six months, it is that they start to understand gluten free options or vegan options. What what paleo really means keto Whole30. These things that we might have heard of, but we don’t really have the education in front of us to understand what it is that we’re consuming, and the more educated a consumer is, the better off that they are, especially in an emerging market like health and wellness. So we we really strive to both educate the employee as much as we actually show them the love and support that they need.

Lee Kantor: [00:08:20] Now, if an employer has maybe offices in multiple locations, is there a way to customize the offering so that you spotlight maybe some of the local brand?

Andrew O’Shea: [00:08:33] Absolutely, and we’re based here in Atlanta, Georgia, and we’ve we’ve really embraced the Georgia grown community and trying to give them a level up to help them market some of their goods and services. But whether it’s Thunderbird real food bars out of the outskirts of Austin, Texas, or if it’s a lesser evil popcorn up in the northeast or Seattle chocolate up in Washington state, we try and get a very good breadth of brands that we are utilizing in these kits so that maybe it isn’t something that you’ve ever heard of before. I mean, as much as we like to support local, we like to support local everywhere by introducing thoughtfully curated brands so that maybe it is something that I wouldn’t normally run into on a daily basis. It is a large market that’s health and wellness market, and we want to be as much of a service to our vendors as we are to the actual employees and employers.

Lee Kantor: [00:09:29] Now is there a story you can share? Don’t name the name but explain the challenge that we’re having and how after partnering with you, you were able to help them kind of solve the issue that they were dealing with?

Andrew O’Shea: [00:09:40] Yeah, absolutely. So about a year ago, as we were getting closer to the seasonal holidays, a company was struggling with some of their retention issues and really trying to put their best foot forward. How do we compete with our rivals here? How do we retain good talent, attract new talent if it’s not paying gobs and gobs of larger compensation to our employees? So they started to explore different gift options and ideas that they could give the normal holiday party that they have with switch to virtual. The morale again was very low at that time, so they needed something that was going to have a bang. So they they decided that they were going to send some Apple Watches with customizable, customized bands to all of their employees. And what a great gift to be able to give to your employees. Not everybody can do that sort of thing, but how do we deliver this and how do we have the biggest impact so that all of the employees are feeling the same way at the same time? So they arranged to send this and we kidded those watches for them, along with health and wellness brands and items, so that we could actually have that opened up at their virtual holiday party. And when they did that in unison unison, you saw some camaraderie and some fellowship that maybe you hadn’t seen in 20 20 during a very difficult time. So that was something that we helped them with their employee retention tactics. But we’ve replicated that a number of times since then. I mean, people are always looking to treat their employees as best as they can and if they’re able to give a gift, but also get critical messaging across about open enrollments, virtual health fairs, biometric screening, telemedicine options through our customized insert cards that are a part of these kits. Then suddenly we’re putting a little bit of peanut butter on the medicine. It’s making the whole transaction just a little bit easier. And what we like to call a win win win scenario.

Lee Kantor: [00:11:38] Now, what is the typical rhythm of these kits, is it something that just happens once when they’re on boarded or during a like a gift giving period of time? Is it like, could it be monthly? Is there a rhythm that makes sense or that’s something customizable by each employee or employer?

Andrew O’Shea: [00:11:56] So we offer a number of different use case scenarios. We certainly work with a lot of clients who utilize this as an onboarding tool where we’re able to actually, for a small fee, take their sweat and company swag, if you will, whether it’s a mug or a T-shirt or a tumbler of sorts. And we’re able to pair that with health and wellness items so that we can start that dialog from onboarding all the way to off boarding. Now, beyond that, we we customize these programs based on your needs. One thing that I’ve learned in wellness endeavors that I’ve gone through is that no two employees are the same, and the more individualized we can get this for our folks, the better. So what we do love doing this is a one time purchase for everyone at the same time. We want to keep that conversation in that dialog going so we can do this at either a frequency of once a month for three months, once a month, for six months, really, depending on the information and the education that you’re trying to provide for your employee. As mentioned previously, you know, if you’re if you’re trying to bring mental health to the forefront and mindfulness and teach teach some some good mindfulness practices, we can develop a program that fits your needs. Maybe it is a retreat in a box. Maybe it is b 12 and other caffeine alternatives paired with blue light blocking glasses to understand the stimulation that you receive from white light and to get more in touch with your circadian rhythm. We’re really able to meet your needs wherever you are on that path. So for that reason, we try to steer clear of really stock programs because we really want to create this around you and not make the employer come to us and have a one size fits all model.

Lee Kantor: [00:13:44] So then that’s why the importance of those initial conversations are to really understand the culture that they’re aspiring to have and the the benefits that they want to give to their employees. And together, you kind of coauthor a program that you feel will give them the most bang for their buck.

Andrew O’Shea: [00:14:02] That’s exactly right, and we’ve got a thorough team of engagement advisors here who are who are ready and waiting to assess whether it’s an insurance broker, whether it is the specific carrier who is providing this, or if it’s the HR professional. We understand those pain points, and we want to make this as much of a turnkey solution for all three of these individuals as possible.

Lee Kantor: [00:14:23] So if somebody wanted to learn more, have a more meaningful conversation with you or somebody on your team, is there a website?

Andrew O’Shea: [00:14:29] Absolutely. And we actually just launched a new website that we’re very excited about, and it is located at WWE Dot Try TR y Wellspring. And there you can learn as much as you would like about our products, offerings and services, but also to reach out and contact us directly to set up a consultation with our engagement advisement team.

Lee Kantor: [00:14:52] Well, Andrew, thank you so much for sharing your story today. You’re doing important work and we appreciate you.

Andrew O’Shea: [00:14:57] Well, thank you, Lee. It’s a pleasure and you have a good rest of your day, OK?

Lee Kantor: [00:15:01] All right, this is Lee Kantor. We’ll see, y’all next time on Atlanta Business Radio.