As we enter another year of the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s more important than ever to feel supported by those around you—including your coworkers. At One Drop we care deeply about employee support. Whether it’s through open communication about burnout and mental health or encouragement to pursue passion projects, employers like One Drop can play a key role in helping you stay motivated and maintain some semblance of normalcy in a world that’s constantly changing. Recently, One Drop was honored in the 2022 Best Places to Work Awards by Built In, earning a place on the Best Midsize Companies to Work For in Austin list. We’ve also been named one of 100 Best Places to Work in New York City two years in a row by Crain’s New York Business.

So, how does One Drop support employees during these difficult times?

We Take Mental Health Seriously

At One Drop, we maintain a proactive, rather than reactive, approach to health—not just in our precision health solutions, but also in the way we address burnout and mental health among our own teams. Company leaders encourage employees to consolidate meetings, take advantage of unlimited vacation days, and engage in group self-care practices, such as weekly remote yoga and meditation sessions led by One Drop health coaches.

“We spend a lot of time teaching One Drop members about self-care, and we’re careful about prioritizing this among ourselves as well through these weekly meditation and yoga sessions,” says Jamillah Hoy-Rosas, MPH, RDN, CDCES, and VP of clinical operations and program design at One Drop. “I’ve also instituted bi-monthly self-care check-ins at our team meetings and include them as part of the expectations for the day. As we often say, you cannot pour from an empty cup, so our health coaches work to replenish themselves through self-care and gratitude practices regularly. We celebrate and hold each other accountable for incorporating self-care and healthy habits in our work and personal lives.”

As the pandemic continues, One Drop is also helping to alleviate employees’ stress by continuing the option of working remotely. “With the uncertainty that comes with the pandemic in terms of safety, health, and childcare, we want to give our employees the flexibility to work wherever is best and most comfortable for them and their families,” says Selena Castaneda, human resources operations manager at One Drop.

Managers at One Drop are also keen on understanding where employee burnout is coming from when it does happen. “When I notice team members experiencing burnout, I first try to understand what’s causing it—strenuous work, a project that’s not that interesting to them, frustration from unsuccessfully tackling a hard problem for a long time,” shares Ydo Wexler, director of data science at One Drop. “If it’s strenuous work, I can talk to them about taking time off. If it’s a matter of lack of interest in a project, we can talk about switching projects or finding ways to help them feel more enthusiastic about that work.”

Whatever the solution may be, One Drop’s leaders are here to support employees every step of the way.

We Encourage Personal and Professional Development

Supporting employees’ professional development and personal interests is a key ingredient in the One Drop approach to employee support.

One Drop’s benefits include an annual professional development stipend, meaning employees have the opportunity to expand their skills in everything from video editing and recipe creation to data analysis and copywriting. “Employees are using their professional development to attend workshops, make more informed decisions, and further develop their current skills,” shares Castaneda. “We’ve seen teams collectively take a course and meet weekly for a discussion on what they’ve learned.” 

Outside of the annual stipend, One Drop managers also try to balance employees’ professional skills with their personal interests when it comes to assigning tasks and responsibilities to ensure that team members feel both challenged and engaged by their work.

On the clinical operations team, for example, Hoy-Rosas matches health coaches to organizational and department needs based not just on what they can do but also on what they want to do.

“Coaches who love to cook assist with recipe development and cooking demos. Coaches who are great at social media do Instagram and Facebook Live events. Those who love writing and public speaking get to use their skills and talents in member-facing content production and podcasts. Those who love research do literature reviews and create research abstracts,” explains Hoy-Rosas. “There’s a match for every skill set.”

We Prioritize Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

One Drop celebrates people from underrepresented communities in a number of ways, from contributions to organizations that advance anti-racism and health equity work to internal employee resource groups that encourage a sense of community and mentorship among LGBTQIA+ employees and employees of color. (Learn more about DEI initiatives at One Drop here.)

Additionally, nearly three-quarters of One Drop employees and more than half of leadership self-identify as non-White, female, or both.

“As an organization, we believe representation matters—that it’s a driving force in enabling cultural competency,” says Miraque Hicks, SVP of people ops and talent at One Drop. “We serve a diverse population; thus, we benefit from having a similar diversity level within our teams. Our teammates’ unique ideas and perspectives propel conversation and innovation, enabling us to build effective solutions that help One Drop members achieve better health. Diversity breeds higher-quality products and services and makes our organization stronger.”

Ultimately, it’s a win-win-win scenario when employees are well-supported; from the people of One Drop, to the One Drop company, and One Drop customers, everyone benefits. 

Interested in joining our team? One Drop is actively hiring—check out our open positions at onedrop.today/pages/careers.