Heather Kolakowski is a lecturer in food and beverage management at Cornell’s Nolan School of Hotel Administration and Associate Director of the Cornell Institute for Healthy Futures. She teaches several food and beverage courses, including “Restaurant Management” and “Nonprofit Social Enterprise and Food Justice.” Ms. Kolakowski is also the faculty advisor for Hotel Ezra Cornell (HEC), the student-run hospitality showcase conference that allows students the opportunity to put theory into practice each spring while taking on leadership responsibilities. She is the recipient of the 2017 Kaplan Family Distinguished Faculty Fellowship for her dedication to service learning.
Almost done! Check your email to get your password.
The Culture of Wellbeing
A Holistic Approach to Thinking About Organizational Wellness
Friday, March 28, 2025, 1pm EDT
Event Overview
Company culture helps bring employees together with shared goals, and focusing on wellness can help amplify that resilience when faced with organizational challenges. Nurturing a culture of wellbeing within your organization starts with understanding the needs and key drivers of your team.
Join this discussion with an academic scholar, a consultant, and a practitioner in which they identify ways to bring joy to the job for your employees and to take a holistic approach to thinking about wellness — including physical, mental, and social. How can you create a workplace culture that supports and empowers your team?
Part educational and part inspirational, our panel will offer strategies to positively impact your work environment and build wellness into the fabric of your organization. This session will provide ideas and practices you can adopt in your professional arenas and, hopefully, spark additional initiatives, endeavors, and innovations.
This event is sponsored by the Cornell Institute for Healthy Futures (CIHF) — the first academic center in the U.S. to combine hospitality, environmental design, and health policy and management.
Join this discussion with an academic scholar, a consultant, and a practitioner in which they identify ways to bring joy to the job for your employees and to take a holistic approach to thinking about wellness — including physical, mental, and social. How can you create a workplace culture that supports and empowers your team?
Part educational and part inspirational, our panel will offer strategies to positively impact your work environment and build wellness into the fabric of your organization. This session will provide ideas and practices you can adopt in your professional arenas and, hopefully, spark additional initiatives, endeavors, and innovations.
This event is sponsored by the Cornell Institute for Healthy Futures (CIHF) — the first academic center in the U.S. to combine hospitality, environmental design, and health policy and management.
What You'll Learn
- How culture can improve your organization’s financial performance
- Ways to set a foundation for wellness within your organization by understanding the importance of psychological safety and vulnerability in the workplace
- A look at the elements most essential for any organization to build a culture of emotional wellbeing
- Current initiatives boosting employee physical, emotional, mental, and financial wellbeing
- An opportunity to reflect upon the culture you help create in your work environment and how you can improve upon it
Speakers
Heather Kolakowski
Lecturer, Food and Beverage Management
Cornell Nolan School of Hotel Administration
Lecturer in Food and Beverage Management, Cornell's Nolan School of Hotel Administration; Associate Director, Cornell Institute for Healthy Futures
Ian Shea is the Founder & CEO of I M Human. I M Human is an Organizational Wellbeing Strategic Advisory Firm partnering with organizations to design, develop or enhance World Class Wellbeing Strategic Initiatives. Sample partners include HSBC, LinkedIn, NYPD, The American Psychiatric Association and O’Melveny & Myers (recipient of the #1 Wellbeing Program in the Legal Industry).
Prior to I M Human, Ian founded Maestro Market, a marketplace for experts. Before that, he ran ReplayTV, a successful brand of DVR systems which he sold to DirecTV. He began his career on Wall Street in the Investment Banking divisions of Prudential Securities and Patricof & Co.
Ian earned an MBA from Columbia University & UC Berkeley’s HAAS School of Business and earned a BS in Economics from Cornell University. Ian is the author of the Wellbeing ChroniclesTM, a newsletter covering the mental, emotional and spiritual wellbeing space.
Kristina Workman
Senior Lecturer
Cornell Nolan School of Hotel Administration
Senior Lecturer, Cornell Nolan School of Hotel Administration
Kristina Workman is a senior lecturer of management at the Cornell Peter and Stephanie Nolan School of Hotel Administration. She received her PhD in management and organizations from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, and graduated summa cum laude with a BBA in management and psychology from the Commonwealth Honors College at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
Workman’s research focuses on affirmative interpersonal dynamics, or in other words, how individuals at work do (or do not) relate in ways that foster acknowledgment, respect, and support. In this vein, she conducts research in the areas of prosocial behavior, behavioral ethics, compassion, leadership, and sharing and responding to news at work. Workman is particularly interested in the power of seemingly small, everyday interactions, and how individuals’ actions influence the quality of treatment they receive from interaction partners or third parties. Her research highlights individuals’ agency in determining how particular interpersonal encounters unfold and how their relational context at work develops.
Workman has published research articles in such journals as the Journal of Applied Psychology, Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, and Journal of Management Inquiry.
Tricia Taylor is president of The Breakers Palm Beach, one of America’s most iconic, luxury resorts. She is responsible for the multi-faceted operations at this 140-acre oceanfront property and its off-site businesses while overseeing a team of 2,400 associates. With a focus on employee well-being and satisfaction, Taylor spearheads the organization’s commitment to creating a positive work environment, which is integral to the enduring success of this independent, family-owned enterprise.
A graduate of Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration, Taylor began her career at the renowned Waldorf Astoria in New York before joining The Breakers in 1996. Over the last 29 years, she has advanced through the company to her current position as president, appointed in 2023.
An advocate of continuous learning and professional development, Taylor earned her MBA with honors from Florida Atlantic University and furthered her business education with the University of Pennsylvania as a Wharton Fellow.
Heather Kolakowski
Lecturer, Food and Beverage Management
Cornell Nolan School of Hotel Administration
Lecturer in Food and Beverage Management, Cornell's Nolan School of Hotel Administration; Associate Director, Cornell Institute for Healthy Futures
Heather Kolakowski is a lecturer in food and beverage management at Cornell’s Nolan School of Hotel Administration and Associate Director of the Cornell Institute for Healthy Futures. She teaches several food and beverage courses, including “Restaurant Management” and “Nonprofit Social Enterprise and Food Justice.” Ms. Kolakowski is also the faculty advisor for Hotel Ezra Cornell (HEC), the student-run hospitality showcase conference that allows students the opportunity to put theory into practice each spring while taking on leadership responsibilities. She is the recipient of the 2017 Kaplan Family Distinguished Faculty Fellowship for her dedication to service learning.
Ian Shea
Founder, CEO
I M Human
Ian Shea is the Founder & CEO of I M Human. I M Human is an Organizational Wellbeing Strategic Advisory Firm partnering with organizations to design, develop or enhance World Class Wellbeing Strategic Initiatives. Sample partners include HSBC, LinkedIn, NYPD, The American Psychiatric Association and O’Melveny & Myers (recipient of the #1 Wellbeing Program in the Legal Industry).
Prior to I M Human, Ian founded Maestro Market, a marketplace for experts. Before that, he ran ReplayTV, a successful brand of DVR systems which he sold to DirecTV. He began his career on Wall Street in the Investment Banking divisions of Prudential Securities and Patricof & Co.
Ian earned an MBA from Columbia University & UC Berkeley’s HAAS School of Business and earned a BS in Economics from Cornell University. Ian is the author of the Wellbeing ChroniclesTM, a newsletter covering the mental, emotional and spiritual wellbeing space.
Kristina Workman
Senior Lecturer
Cornell Nolan School of Hotel Administration
Senior Lecturer, Cornell Nolan School of Hotel Administration
Kristina Workman is a senior lecturer of management at the Cornell Peter and Stephanie Nolan School of Hotel Administration. She received her PhD in management and organizations from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, and graduated summa cum laude with a BBA in management and psychology from the Commonwealth Honors College at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
Workman’s research focuses on affirmative interpersonal dynamics, or in other words, how individuals at work do (or do not) relate in ways that foster acknowledgment, respect, and support. In this vein, she conducts research in the areas of prosocial behavior, behavioral ethics, compassion, leadership, and sharing and responding to news at work. Workman is particularly interested in the power of seemingly small, everyday interactions, and how individuals’ actions influence the quality of treatment they receive from interaction partners or third parties. Her research highlights individuals’ agency in determining how particular interpersonal encounters unfold and how their relational context at work develops.
Workman has published research articles in such journals as the Journal of Applied Psychology, Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, and Journal of Management Inquiry.
Tricia Taylor
President
The Breakers Palm Beach
Tricia Taylor is president of The Breakers Palm Beach, one of America’s most iconic, luxury resorts. She is responsible for the multi-faceted operations at this 140-acre oceanfront property and its off-site businesses while overseeing a team of 2,400 associates. With a focus on employee well-being and satisfaction, Taylor spearheads the organization’s commitment to creating a positive work environment, which is integral to the enduring success of this independent, family-owned enterprise.
A graduate of Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration, Taylor began her career at the renowned Waldorf Astoria in New York before joining The Breakers in 1996. Over the last 29 years, she has advanced through the company to her current position as president, appointed in 2023.
An advocate of continuous learning and professional development, Taylor earned her MBA with honors from Florida Atlantic University and furthered her business education with the University of Pennsylvania as a Wharton Fellow.
- View slide #1
- View slide #2
- View slide #3
- View slide #4
Register Now by completing the form below.
Gain access to this free event
Thanks,
You're Registered!
You're Registered!
Join or sign in to tailor your experience and earn CEUs from Cornell.
Create Account