‍Hey Karyn, when did you start with Wishroute?

January of 2021

Tell us a little about yourself. What’s your professional background?

I was born and raised in RI and have been living in Massachusetts since college. I studied business at Northeastern University and loved it so much I went back to school for my MBA at Boston University.  In my professional career I come from a short list of technology companies over the span of the last 20 years. Most recently I worked at HubSpot as their VP of Business Operations where I helped optimize and scale their customer focused systems and processes to support their rapid growth and expanded product offerings.  My leadership roles in technology and operations have been focused on helping companies make the right investments in technology to support their strategic goals and building the teams and processes necessary to maximize the return on those investments.  

How about on a personal note. What are some cool things to know about you? 

I'm a mom of a smart, curious, outspoken 2 year old. I have not had more fun or been more in love in my life. I am passionate about travel and seek out adventure wherever I go!  A hot air balloon ride in Cappadocia Turkey and a wedding in Bangladesh are a few of the most memorable experiences of my life. I'm obsessed with books.  If I have spare time, you'll find me reading. I'm an introvert, so this suits me well! I volunteer at the library as a way to support and connect with my community and help people discover its wonderful resources.  

I'm eco-conscious and while not always easy, I try to minimize my family's impact on the environment. This includes being conscious about the food I put into my body and what I feed my son, mainly sticking to sustainable food sources and limiting our meat intake. (Not only is meat bad for the environment, but I'm also a huge animal lover!) Today, we have a vegetable garden and I'd love to get into composting. I've always been health and eco-conscious, but even more so now with my son. I want to be a good role model for what it means to lead a healthy lifestyle, be a global citizen, and do our small part to help the next generation.

What do you do for Wishroute in your position?

I’m the Director of Operations and focused on building the foundation to support healthy and sustainable growth for Wishroute and designing programs that provide superior experiences for our customers and their users. My responsibility is to ensure we have streamlined processes for every user interaction and underlying business process and optimize for efficiency, scale, and repeatable success. I am always talking about having a playbook for everything - build, refine, repeat!  I’m also focused on how we make things easier for our customers. If we want to have the widespread impact we know we can have for people to lead healthier, productive lives, we need to make the process frictionless (and fun!) for our customers to trust us and see our value from the very beginning.  

Having worked in Operations at tech companies for over 20 years, I’m eager and excited to apply my learnings of what’s worked and what hasn’t to help Wishroute from the very beginning get started on the right foot. One of the other areas I’m really passionate about (and our founder Jess) is building a diverse team and cultivating an inclusive culture at Wishroute. I’m really excited to drive an impact here as we grow as a company.  

‍What made you choose to work for Wishroute?

I’m passionate about wellness and the positive, powerful impact prioritizing your health can have on your life. Wishroute increases user engagement and success for wellness apps which normally have an incredibly high drop off rate. I truly believe the human connection we provide in a predominantly digital world changes the game here. 97% of users report that Wishroute has had a positive impact on their health! 

I also chose to work for Wishroute because of the founder, Jess Lynch. I felt her spark from the start and I have not met a leader with more passion, grit, and grace. I knew she was someone I wanted to learn from and that Wishroute is going to be incredibly successful with her at the helm

What do you like most about working for Wishroute? 

Being inspired by our users every day as they set goals for themselves, overcome obstacles, and stay committed to their health. I feel lucky to be a part of their journey and it’s incredibly gratifying to hear their stories and how their lives and overall happiness have improved with Wishroute’s support. 

In addition, I get to work with an incredibly talented team building a business with an important and inspiring mission to help people live healthier lives.  What’s better than that? 

What’s one wellness goal you’ve set for yourself in 2021?

To meditate daily, even if for only a few minutes. When I started meditating a few years ago, I immediately felt the benefits of breathwork and being in the present moment.  I’ve called on this practice in stressful situations at work or at home, when I need to focus during a chaotic day, and when I simply want to be more present with my son and be grateful for every sweet moment. Meditation has helped me live with more intention, reminding me of what’s really important and helping me stay true to my values. It’s a work in progress! Maybe next year, a meditation retreat....

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