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Ansel, Home Hemodialysis Registered Nurse at DaVita, is a DaVita Global Nurse from the Philippines and was recruited while working as an international dialysis nurse in Abu Dhabi. He wanted to be a part of DaVita’s culture, benefits, professional and personal growth. When Ansel became a DaVita teammate, he experienced this and so much more.

About DaVita Inc.
DaVita (NYSE: DVA) is a health care provider focused on transforming care delivery to improve quality of life for patients globally. As a comprehensive kidney care provider, DaVita has been a leader in clinical quality and innovation for 25 years. DaVita cares for patients at every stage and setting along their kidney health journey—from slowing the progression of kidney disease to helping to support transplantation, from acute hospital care to dialysis at home. As of December 31, 2024, DaVita served approximately 281,100 patients at 3,166 outpatient dialysis centers, of which 2,657 centers were located in the United States and 509 centers were located in 13 other countries worldwide. DaVita has reduced hospitalizations, improved mortality, helped improve health access and worked collaboratively to propel the kidney care community to adopt a higher quality standard of care for all patients, everywhere. To learn more, visit DaVita.com/Newsroom.

Employers invest in human capital for both their internal and external communities. At Milken Institute Health, we view the workplace as its own community, in which organizational leadership is uniquely positioned to introduce, model, communicate, and normalize a “whole-person” approach to health that prioritizes physical, mental, and financial well-being equally. Investments in whole-person health can come in the form of expanded health benefits, changes to internal policies and programs, shifts in workplace culture to allow people to bring their “whole selves” to work, and increased levels of opportunity that recognize the many roles and responsibilities employees take on, such as caregiving.

Sabrina Spitaletta, senior director, Public Health at the Milken Institute, and Alexandra Guenther, chief information officer, Leidos, sat down to discuss ways leadership within organizations can lead with a whole-person health approach in mind.

Sabrina Spitaletta: Employers are defining “whole-person health” in various ways. From your perspective as an employer, how do you envision a whole-person health approach in the workplace and in community investments from the employer?

Alexandra Guenther: Throughout my career as both an individual contributor and now a manager, I am excited to see companies transition to support “whole-person health” initiatives. Whole-person health means that, as an employer, Leidos takes into account all aspects of an employee’s needs, regardless of their physical location around the globe. The support that Leidos provides to each employee through Leidos Life options, as highlighted previously in this series by Health & Civil President Liz Porter, includes physical, mental, financial, and social support. In addition, as chief information officer, I seek opportunities to leverage digital capabilities that elevate employees’ experiences by accommodating their whole-person health needs. The value of this approach is a win-win for employees and employers, as it removes physical barriers to work, enhances collaboration, facilitates inclusivity, and enables employee effectiveness. The value is compounded when leaders are managing teams distributed around the globe. In other cases, the physical location of employees can be an integral part of management—not just due to logistics but also due to well-being. Providing whole-person health support ensures employees are able to contribute their best work and enables employers to have access to excellent talent—wherever that talent may be.

What are the risks if employers do not adopt or move toward a whole-person health approach?

At best, employers are facing a sub-optimized workforce when they do not embrace a whole-person health approach. At worst, employers are setting themselves up to disappoint or isolate a sizable portion of the workforce, preventing the desire to work at said company. In the information technology sector, during a global talent shortage, employers are motivated to give themselves—and their workforce—every opportunity to succeed; the whole-person health approach does just that.

The IT sector is expected to face a shortfall of 85 million jobs by 2030 according to a study by Korn Ferry. These are not AI-driven jobs; these are human-skilled positions. It requires creativity and compassion to solve this kind of shortage, including seeking opportunistic ways to connect human capacity with open positions. Looking beyond upskilling and reskilling, a whole-person health approach allows employers to see employees as more than just the skills they bring. Instead, a whole-person health approach extends an employer’s view of the person and their skills to include a broader set of capabilities. This presents opportunities to connect unique missions and problems with individuals who feel connected and motivated to solve them. In many remote or isolated workplaces, for example, we are selecting motivated, talented individuals who have a personal passion for the mission. Without being open-minded and looking at a whole-person health approach, employers risk missing significant opportunities to connect individuals with career-advancing positions.

What steps are employers uniquely positioned to take to normalize and achieve a whole-person health approach?

Employers have opportunities to normalize whole-person health approaches with the sheer volume of employee interactions they have on a recurring basis. From the recruiting process to onboarding, to daily responsibilities, to offboarding, employers can demonstrate their commitment to whole-person health. As chief information officer, I look at each interaction with an employee from a qualitative and quantitative perspective to constantly improve our ability to not only react to employees’ whole-person health needs but also to anticipate them. If a technology-enabled digital assistant bot can see there is a planned out-of-office scheduled on an employee’s calendar, it can prompt the employee to ask the bot to generate a request for leave or put up an out-of-office message. Reducing the friction and administrative toil between the employee and its technology and corporate processes relieves the mental load and time for the employee. Seeing each employee’s interaction with technology through the lens of a whole-person health approach is not just about “increasing productivity” but about making the employee’s experience more enjoyable, seamless, and effective—therefore leading to increased productivity.

A few years ago, there was a phenomenon occurring around the globe called “quiet quitting.” Disenfranchised workers weren’t actively leaving their jobs, but their productivity and engagement were plummeting. There is a new trend occurring called “quiet hiring,” which refers to an employer’s ability to subtly re-engage with employees to increase their connectedness to their work and their output. At Leidos, we prefer to think of this as “ethical quiet hiring,” as we are intentional about training and compensating employees for increased responsibilities. These types of gains are a direct correlation with the whole-person health approach. Empathy and support from an employer create connectedness and contentment in the employee, translating into benefits for both parties.

In your opinion, which organizational leadership roles or positions need to be involved for this integrated approach to be adopted across the organization and in the surrounding community?

The most senior leaders are responsible for setting cultural norms, although it’s a shared responsibility for embodying the culture each and every day. All levels of management, as well as the employees, can continuously normalize a more integrated whole-person health approach in their regular interactions and discussions. Starting with a top-down focus and supportive policies and practices, employees, including management, have the opportunity to show empathy for other humans and create a clear path to foster the growth of whole-person health initiatives. A “humans helping humans” mindset is free of charge, and it can reap great benefits, as engaged employees are better performers and more likely to produce better results. A recent 2024 Gallup poll study found that “Highly engaged teams outperform the rest in business outcomes critical to the success of your organization. Engaged employees have higher well-being, better retention, lower absenteeism, and higher productivity.”

How do employers build a sustainable whole-person health approach that anticipates the ebb and flow of the external environment, whether those are shifts in the economic, social, or political landscape?

As an employer, one word I use with my team is “empowerment.” The word means that individuals are more than just set up for success; they have everything they need within their spheres of influence and control to implement success. This is key to building a sustainable whole-person health approach that can outlast the ebbs and flows of the external landscape. Empowering employees—and communicating that to them—allows them to see and navigate their pathway to success, regardless of some minor shifts in the external environments around them. Employers should stay connected with employees to monitor these shifts in case they require a reset by management or an intervention.

Click here to learn more about whole-person health and the Milken Institute Employer Action Exchange.

First time in Scotland for family-owned spirits company’s Shake Your Future initiative

GLASGOW, Scotland, February 28, 2025 /3BL/ – Family-owned spirits company, Bacardi is changing the lives of young adults in Glasgow who are taking part in its free bartender training program, Shake Your Future.

The 12 Shake Your Future students, who are all from the local area, are taking part in the 12-week course which culminates when they face their toughest test, taking over the bar service at the annual Glasgow Bartenders Ball at Saint Luke’s on Bain Street, Glasgow.

The Shake Your Future program gives the skills necessary for not just a job but a life-long career in hospitality. The program is being run by the team from Bacardi together with some of the most respected and talented members of the Scottish bar industry, who are giving expert advice on everything from how to make the perfect BACARDÍ Mojito to delivering first-class service in a busy bar.

I want to inspire these young people to join the industry that I love but I want them to walk into their first bar with their eyes open. A life in the hospitality industry is not a walk in the park, it’s hard work but it is rewarding work. I would not be where I am today without the support and inspiration of others along the way. By supporting Bacardi and its Shake Your Future initiative I can do the same for these students as they set out on their own personal journeys into the world of mixology.”

Liam Grogan, Head Bartender of The Absent Ear on Brunswick Street, Glasgow

The Bacardi Group has a long history in Glasgow. As well as working closely with many bars and restaurants throughout the city, Bacardi-owned John Dewar & Sons has its Scotch whisky headquarters on London Road.

Shake Your Future not only gives people in our local communities a fresh start in hospitality, it also helps our friends in the bar community find the skilled bartenders they need. We are committed to supporting both communities in every way we can and Shake Your Future is an important part of that ongoing commitment. These students now have a confidence and a passion for life behind the bar that I’m sure will give them a great future in the industry.”

Harry Olorunda, Glasgow Prestige Account Manager for Bacardi

Since its launch in Paris in 2018, Shake Your Future has been repeated in countries across Europe, as well as South Africa and India, and has helped find employment for hundreds of Shake Your Future graduates who are now enjoying a new life behind the bar.

Bacardi invests in Good Spirited initiatives that set goals for a brighter future for all, focusing on doing the right thing by its consumers, employees, business partners, the communities where it operates, and the environment. Find out more at www.bacardilimited.com/good-spirited.

Drink responsibly.

Media enquiries:

For more information, please contact bacardi@mercieca.co.uk / + 44 (0)20 7485 0100

About Bacardi Limited 
Bacardi Limited, the world’s largest privately held international spirits company, produces, markets, and distributes spirits and wines. The Bacardi Limited portfolio comprises more than 200 brands and labels, including BACARDÍ® rum, PATRÓN® tequila, GREY GOOSE® vodka, DEWAR’S® Blended Scotch whisky, BOMBAY SAPPHIRE® gin, MARTINI® vermouth and sparkling wines, CAZADORES® 100% blue agave tequila, and other leading and emerging brands including WILLIAM LAWSON’S® Scotch whisky, D’USSÉ® Cognac, ANGEL’S ENVY® American straight whiskey, and ST-GERMAIN® elderflower liqueur. Founded more than 163 years ago in Santiago de Cuba, family-owned Bacardi Limited currently employs more than 8,000, operates production facilities in 11 countries and territories, and sells its brands in more than 160 markets. Bacardi Limited refers to the Bacardi group of companies, including Bacardi International Limited. Visit http://www.bacardilimited.com or follow us on LinkedIn and Instagram.