Hartford Business Journal

16 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | OCTOBER 6, 2025 About 100 employees and tenants have registered to use the court, which Nassau installed this summer alongside a putting green as part of a $50,000 investment in courtyard upgrades that also added outdoor furnishings and fire pits. That invest- ment was part of a larger project to fix courtyard drainage issues. Cheliotis admits he was humbled in the summer pickleball tournament. "I didn't realize how good some people were at pickleball and how bad I am," he joked. The company is offering after-work pickleball lessons throughout September. "I have not seen it this good else- where," said Ramprasad Narasimhan, an IT program manager who was among six Nassau staff at a pickleball lesson on a recent Tuesday afternoon. "I have worked at a couple of other places in downtown Hartford. This is by far the best offering we have got from an employee perspective. I am absolutely blown away by the gym, the pickleball and a couple of other things. So, I'm definitely grateful." Clear benefits Corporate wellness programs are now widespread. A 2019 Kaiser Family Foundation survey found 84% of large employers that offer health benefits also provide a workplace wellness program. But there is debate about their effectiveness. For years, conventional wisdom and early studies suggested such programs paid off through higher productivity, fewer sick days and lower healthcare costs. More recent research, however, has found that changing long-term fitness and health patterns is difficult, and that the medical and financial benefits of wellness efforts may have been overstated. Studies involving researchers from the University of Illinois, University of Chicago and Harvard University concluded wellness programs may be a good perk — especially for employees already inclined toward fitness — but are unlikely to signifi- cantly affect health outcomes, medical spending or productivity. Participation is also often limited, with only 20% to 40% of workers taking part, according to Workhuman. Against that backdrop, employers are reframing their approach: a 2025 survey by the International Founda- tion of Employee Benefit Plans found 62% of organizations cited improving worker health and well-being as their primary goal, while just 28% pointed to controlling costs. For Cheliotis, Nassau's investments are less about tracking blood pres- sure or body mass and more about providing amenities and benefits that matter. With many corporate return-to-office policies still facing pushback, Cheliotis said on-site fitness and recreation help make the workplace more appealing. Cheliotis said he sees the payoff in staff using the facilities and sharing success stories, such as cutting out alcohol or improving their nutri- tion. He credits the offerings with achieving an annualized employee attrition rate of 10%, well below the industry standard. "It's an opportunity to show employees you value them and their health and well-being," Cheliotis said. "You have to make the dollars and cents work based on the size of your company, but for us to spend a few hundred thousand dollars on a fitness facility that we know we are going to have over the long term is a no-brainer, and I would recommend all companies do it." The benefits extend beyond Nassau's workforce. Cheliotis said the fitness center and a quality cafe- teria were key factors in convincing international life insurer Talcott Financial Group to relocate more than 300 employees from Windsor to four floors of the Boat Building in 2023. Even as Hartford's downtown office market struggles, he noted, Nassau's 345,687-square-foot headquarters building is now nearly fully occupied. "Probably all of the tenants who have come in over the past few years, that's why, that was the difference between other buildings and ours, the focus on wellness, the focus on amenities, the investments we have put in those areas," Cheliotis said. "If you want to measure results, we are fully leased." Nassau Financial Group employees Ana Pope (left) and Kristen Culbertson (right) take part in a barre workout during a midday break at the company's fitness center. The exercise combines ballet, Pilates and yoga. HBJ Photo | Michael Puffer Healthy Returns Continued from page 15

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