This virtual event by The Alliance will cover best practices employers can use to better engage their employees in their health care. Workplace wellbeing expert, Dr. Jessica Grossmeier, will discuss her research on best practices around employee participation in health programs, and provide a tool employers can use to gauge their success.
After our keynote, Dr. Melina Kambitsi will host a panel of employers for a question-and-answer session where they will also provide current, real-world examples of successful employee engagement.
| 10:00am – 10:05am CST | Welcome & Opening Remarks |
| Melina Kambitsi Ph.D., The Alliance | |
| 10:05am – 11:05am CST | Keynote & Questions |
| Jessica Grossmeier, Ph.D., MPH | |
| 11:05am – 11:55am CST | Employer Panel & Questions |
| Wendy Whitehead, Director of Rewards & HR Service Delivery, Kwik Trip, Inc. | |
| Jake Nolin Rice, Vice President of Human Resources, Rice Lake Weighing Systems | |
| 11:55am – 12:00pam CST | Closing Remarks |
| Led by Melina Kambitsi, The Alliance |
HRCI and SHRM Credits have been approved.
PhD, MPH
Jessica Grossmeier, PhD, MPH is a workplace well-being thought leader with more than 25 years of experience advancing workplace well-being. Serving the past 20 years as an outcomes researcher and program evaluation consultant, Dr. Grossmeier has executed research studies demonstrating health and financial outcomes for workplace well-being initiatives sponsored by numerous large, national employers. More recently, her research has focused on identifying best practice approaches to workplace well-being initiatives that are associated with superior health and business outcomes. Dr. Grossmeier has published more than 80 articles in peer-reviewed and industry professional journals and presented at more than 100 industry events and webinars. Dr. Grossmeier currently advises employers and those who serve their workplace well-being needs on evidence-based, best practice approaches to workplace well-being initiatives and program evaluation. She also enjoys sharing her expertise by mentoring mid-level career professionals, speaking at industry national conferences, and serving on industry advisory boards.
Senior VP, Business Development and Strategic Marketing The Alliance
Dr. Melina Kambitsi joined The Alliance in 2017 and leads the team responsible for membership growth and retention of the cooperative. Dr. Kambitsi comes to The Alliance from Network Health in Milwaukee and Menasha, Wisconsin. where she was chief sales and strategy officer. In this role, she was responsible for sales and underwriting, strategic planning, product development and risk-based contract analytics. Earlier she was senior vice president of sales at Blue Cross Blue Shield in Honolulu, Hawaii and the vice president of sales, marketing and product development at Blue Cross of Northeastern Pennsylvania.
Dr. Kambitsi received her bachelor’s in international studies and her master’s and doctorate degrees in economic geography at The Ohio State University. She speaks Greek fluently as well as four other languages (Spanish, French, Romanian and Russian).
Director of Rewards & HR Service Delivery Kwik Trip, Inc.
Whitehead joined Kwik Trip in 1999 as HR intern and held various HR, employment, recruiting, and benefits positions before becoming director of rewards & HR service delivery in 2019. In her role, she provides strategic leadership and direction for several HR teams comprising of more than 50 professionals who are responsible for benefits, payroll, HRIS, and HR call center. In addition to her impressive career at Kwik Trip, she is Board Chair for 1st Community Credit Union and has professional affiliations with the La Crosse Society for Human Resource Management (LASHRM), Society for Human Resource Management, International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans, and Wisconsin Early Childhood Association (WECA) Business Advisory Council. Whitehead currently serves on The Alliance Health Policy Committee.
Vice President of Human Resources Rice Lake Weighing Systems
Jake Nolin joined Rice Lake Weighing Systems as Vice President of Human Resources in 2011. In this role, Nolin focuses on providing high-value health care at his company. Prior to his current role, Nolin held human resources leadership positions at Fortune Brands, Newell-Rubbermaid, and GKN. Nolin holds an M.B.A. in Human Resources Management, a master’s degree in Business Law, is certified as a Senior Professional in Human Resources, a Master Trainer for Mission Directed Workteams and a Master Facilitator for Investment in Excellence and Thought Patterns for High Performance. Nolin joined The Alliance Board of Directors in 2020.
