Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Amy Ouzoonian. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Amy, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Was there a defining moment in your professional career? A moment that changed the trajectory of your career?
I decided that I had to launch MoodConnect in May of 2021 because I was seeing how much my colleagues were getting burned out. Many employees were quitting their jobs to explore a healthier way of life. I wondered why business owners couldn’t have a healthier workspace instead?
To create a healthier workspace managers would need to know how employees are responding to any health initiatives that they are trying. Managers would need to know the mood of their employees. I realized that AI could be a really wonderful tool to measure how a team is relating with each other based on their conversations.
I had a background in yoga and meditation and so, I had a great passion for health and wellness long before I was passionate about bringing it into the workplace. I knew that burnout and stress in the workplace were causing lots of companies to struggle with productivity. So, I decided that I had to completely devote my life to building MoodConnect and bring more health and wellness into the world.
Amy, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
At the core of myself and who I am, I have always wanted to help people. I became a yoga and meditation teacher in 2008 with that purpose in mind. So, when I started to learn about AI (Artificial Intelligence) I saw it as a way to help people even more. I also saw the potential in capturing and utilizing our own data to allow ourselves to have more agency in our own lives. I could see how we could use AI to help us to understand ourselves better and deliver better solutions to ourselves when we need mental, physical or financial resources and solutions.
I moved to Phoenix, AZ from NYC in 2011 and since then I have always strived to build and support communities that foster growth, art, and healing. I have also spent some time working in the corporate world as a marketing manager for 20+ years.
Creating healthier workspaces was a mission of mine before I started MoodConnect. I have been a yoga and meditation teacher for as long as I’ve been in the corporate world because I used those wellness tools to work through my own mental and physical challenges. I have since then wanted to share these resources, and others like them, with employees in spaces where you might not ever see them: like at fastfood restaurants. Wherever there are people working together, either at school, work, a non-profit, any place where people are MoodConnect can benefit those individuals and communities.
MoodConnect’s mission is to create healthier workspaces and communities through helping people to care more for themselves and each other. There is so much helpful information and helpful, healing resources. Often times, it’s a matter of making these resources available and accessible.
Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?
My strategy for growing clientele has largely been based on grassroots and networking, however, we have seen many sign ups and have onboarded many Microsoft Teams clients because we are featured in their app store.
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
Yes. The Lean Startup by Eric Ries is one book that comes to mind. Also Thrive by Arianna Huffington is another book that I’ve really appreciated. Both of those books have inspired me in different ways to be a healthier businessperson.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://moodconnect.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/moodconnect
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/moodconnect
- Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/company/moodconnect
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/moodconnect
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/moodconnect
- Other: https://moodconnectapp.com – our platform integrated with Discord, Slack, and MS Teams.
Image Credits
photos by Shawn Hosking in Amy Ouzoonian’s home office.