Meet Your CEO: Jordan Taradash

Challenger. Ambitious. Problem Solver. Deep Thinker. Caring leader. There are so many words one can use to describe PeopleOne Health CEO Jordan Taradash. At the ripe young age of 40, Jordan combines his passion for wellness with a purpose for changing population health outcomes and changing lives. His vision for a healthier society and drive to bring a solution to a complicated healthcare problem helps fuel PeopleOne Health’s success, leading to a company that has doubled in growth in two short years. 

Jordan comes by his career honestly. As the son of a health and physical education teacher and an entrepreneur, perhaps he was genetically predisposed to co-found a health and wellness organization.  It wasn’t always this way, and the road to PeopleOne was curvy and sometimes unexpected. Originally graduating from Penn State with a degree in finance, Jordan started his career selling homes for a real estate company. But selling homes was not his passion, and he began volunteering with the American Diabetes Association. The consummate learner, he went back to graduate school at The University of Pittsburgh to study epidemiology, where he dove into the roots of chronic diseases and options for prevention and outcome changes. While completing his thesis, he became a lifestyle prevention and intervention coach for Type 2 diabetes and had his aha moment. Lifestyle prevention programs could be introduced into the corporate world and ultimately generate a ripple effect in communities. Boom. A preventive wellness solution with tangible and trackable results. 

“When I was studying chronic diseases at Pitt, I recognized there was a space and a solution in taking the science of public health and diabetes prevention into workplaces,” said Jordan. “I had a burning desire to figure out the right mixture of human behavior and technology to support population health intervention.” 

Jordan’s first foray into entrepreneurship came with Innovative Wellness Solutions(IWS), a company he launched in 2012. In a twist of fate, he had previously connected with fellow entrepreneur and wellness advocate Chris Downie on LinkedIn. Chris was the founder of SparkPeople, a technology platform designed to offer coaching, healthy living tips, recipes and meditation support. Before long, Chris and Jordan reconnected and became friends and leaders in the IWS mission. By 2017, the two cross-country minds raised investor funding and brought on clients, recognizing that by partnering, they could connect with like-minded benefit consultants who supported corporate wellness. Before they knew it, the pair had 400 clients. In 2018, they officially merged and aligned on passion, mission and trust. Spark360 (since renamed PeopleOne Health) was born in 2019. 

“As we watched Spark360 grow, we knew we needed a connection to the clinical world to truly attack disease prevention and population health,” Jordan shared. “When we met Val (Mignogna, chief operating officer) and Zane (Dr. Gates, co-founder), we walked away knowing immediately that they were the missing pieces. A mere two weeks later we were talking about an official partnership.”

Once the team added Co-Founder and Managing Partner Pat Reilly, the confluence of four like-minded leaders evolved into an authentic mission. Like four Marvel superheroes, this team was on a mission to build a better system. That meant not just merely treating people when they are sick. It meant creating a preventive medicine system that results in better care, less cost and a higher quality experience for the member and the clinician. It’s a win-win!

“We have a model that decreases cost and increases care for companies and their employees,” he stated. “It sounds too good to be true, but the data shows it works. It’s not just a solution, it is the right thing to do to conquer a truly moral dilemma. We are working together to address the seriousness of healthcare, a personal and meaningful issue for millions of Americans.”

As PeopleOne Health reaches 100% growth this year, opens more offices in Pennsylvania,  Ohio, and Florida, and brings on new healthcare partners and business clients, the proof of success will only expand. The story is just beginning, and the ingredients for a solution are built into the company model. It is quite likely that PeopleOne Health could be a great unifying option for America’s mind-boggling healthcare challenge. 

“I call myself 'chief, surrounded by people smarter than me' officer,” Jordan shared. “What we are doing here is a direct assemblage of energy and passion and all the people that work together to bring this solution to life. It’s what makes our mission so special. This is bigger than any of us, and it’s a financial and moral imperative that we succeed. We have to succeed.” 

Jordan lives in the Pittsburgh area with his wife Sarah and their two children. He says he makes time every day to meditate, walk and practice yoga, priorities to help him stay grounded and connected to his purpose. 

Learn more: https://peopleonehealth.com/