The Team Behind Qonscious
Fueled by Mission. Guided by HR, Clinical, and AI Expertise.
Where Personal Tragedy Meets Professional Expertise
Qonscious was born from a devastating loss and a lifetime of professional insight. Our Founder and CEO, Dr. Jarik Conrad, lost all of his family members to chronic health issues—preventable diseases that affect millions of families every year. This profound personal tragedy crystallized what he had witnessed throughout his career: people don’t fail at health because they lack information; they fail because programs don’t address the emotional and behavioral barriers that derail change.
With decades of experience in HR, wellness, and organizational behavior, Dr. Conrad assembled a team of world-class experts in human resources, clinical health, and artificial intelligence to build something different—a Behavioral Operating System that works.
Personal Mission
“Lost multiple family members to diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and Alzheimer’s—all preventable chronic conditions. This isn’t just a business opportunity. It’s a calling to make wellness transformation accessible beyond wealthy demographics.”
Dr. Jarik Conrad, Founder & CEO
Advisory Board
Jody brings deep expertise in HR technology marketing and strategic positioning. Her experience scaling SaaS platforms in the HR tech space provides invaluable guidance as Qonscious positions itself to self-insured employers and benefits decision-makers. Her insights ensure we effectively reach the populations who need our solution most.
Dr. Hood brings critical clinical perspective and deep understanding of healthcare disparities in underserved communities. His leadership of the National Medical Association ensures Qonscious builds culturally sensitive solutions that address health equity. His medical expertise combined with advocacy experience guides our clinical approach and QBOS Community engagement.
Brian's dual expertise in product development and AI technology ensures Qonscious builds sustainable, scalable solutions. His experience founding BigBear.ai and taking AI products from concept to market leadership informs our product roadmap and technical architecture. His guidance helps us build world-class AI-powered health coaching that works.
Rich brings exceptional depth in both HR leadership and healthcare operations. His current role at Hazelden Betty Ford provides expertise in behavior change and addiction treatment, while his previous experience at Pfizer and Kaiser Permanente gives him unique insight into both pharmaceutical innovation and integrated healthcare delivery. This combination helps Qonscious meet the needs of self-insured employers seeking meaningful health outcomes while understanding clinical best practices.
Derrick provides multifaceted strategic guidance spanning venture strategy, enterprise sales, and startup mentorship. His long-time senior executive experience in sales and marketing at CSX gives him deep expertise in B2B sales to large enterprises. Combined with his venture capital experience at Grand Central Ventures and volunteer work with SCORE mentoring entrepreneurs, Derrick helps Qonscious navigate fundraising, go-to-market strategy, and sustainable growth while building strong enterprise relationships.
Why This Team Matters
Most health tech companies are built by technologists who’ve never experienced the human side of behavior change, or by wellness experts who don’t understand how to scale technology. Qonscious is different.
Our team uniquely combines:
- Deep HR expertise from impacting 50+ million workers at global scale
- Clinical validation through Mayo Clinic research and TCOYD partnerships
- Medical leadership from the National Medical Association addressing health equity
- World-class AI capabilities from Harvard's computer science department
- Healthcare operations insight from Pfizer, Kaiser Permanente, and Hazelden Betty Ford
- Enterprise sales expertise from Fortune 500 companies like CSX
- Strategic guidance from leaders in healthcare, HR, AI, and venture capital
- Personal mission driven by real loss and commitment to preventing preventable disease
Transform Lives, Prevent Tragedy
Every person on our team is united by a single mission: to prevent other families from losing loved ones to preventable chronic diseases. We’re not building another wellness app or diet tracker. We’re building the Behavioral Operating System that finally addresses why people fail at health—and gives them the tools to succeed.
We believe everyone deserves access to the behavioral tools, emotional intelligence training, and personalized coaching that make lasting health transformation possible. That’s why we’re building Qonscious.
Join Us in This Mission
Whether you’re an employer seeking better health outcomes for your workforce, an individual struggling with chronic disease, or an investor who wants to back a company solving one of humanity’s biggest challenges—we invite you to join us.
This isn’t just business. This is personal. And we’re just getting started.