Title: Chairman
Company: 1) Reality Based Group; 2) Thrive 360
Location: Austin, Texas, United States
Joe Woskow, chairman of Reality Based Group and Thrive 360, has been recognized by Marquis Who’s Who Top Executives for dedication, achievements, and leadership in business and sales strategy.
Though he describes himself as an “average Joe,” Mr. Woskow embraced entrepreneurship from a young age. In first grade, he became known among his schoolmates for selling cinnamon- and wintergreen-flavored toothpicks that were considered higher quality than those sold in stores. After graduating from high school and completing coursework at The University of Texas at Austin, Mr. Woskow took a job as the property manager of an apartment complex. Though this was his first professional venture, it proved extremely successful, with tenant and guest satisfaction rated higher than before his tenure.
Encouraged by his early accomplishments and eager to help businesses struggling during a recession, Mr. Woskow founded Reality Based Group in 1992. He built the organization around the concept of mystery shopping, offering clients a more thorough, high-quality approach with greater access to actionable insights and analytics. One prime example of this is hidden video mystery shopping, an innovation that Mr. Woskow introduced in 1993. Inspired by the use of game film in professional sports, he named this practice “GameFilm.” Video mystery shopping became one of Reality Based Group’s greatest additions to the industry and remains a core part of its business, offering concrete data that is more reliable than the simple written reports created by traditional mystery shoppers. The company conducts hundreds of thousands of video mystery shops each year, providing clients with deep analysis, reports and statistics to inform their decisions and improve their business.
Mr. Woskow served as the chief executive officer of Reality Based Group from 1992 to 2013. He also became the company’s chairman in 1993 and remains in that role today. Though he’s less involved in day-to-day operations, Mr. Woskow continues to provide high-level guidance to Reality Based Group’s executive leadership team. More than three decades since creating the company, he is still dedicated to supporting its long-term success in whatever ways he can.
In addition to his work with Reality Based Group, Mr. Woskow launched and became the chairman for Thrive360 in 2019. Thrive360 is a workplace mental health company that aims to improve the well-being of employees through accessible and nonjudgmental app-based insights that can offer a more personalized approach than other programs. The company boasts higher average engagement and return on investment than similar wellness programs, which in turn aids in lowering overall health care costs for partnered organizations. Case studies have demonstrated Thrive360’s ability to lower reported rates of anxiety and depression among employees, as well as reducing turnover for companies that use the service. A firm believer in the importance of mental health, Mr. Woskow is proud of what Thrive360 has accomplished so far. He hopes to help the company find business partners with deeper financial and operational expertise who can help scale the platform globally.
Well-regarded for his contributions to the business world, Mr. Woskow has been the subject of multiple accolades. He won a Lifetime Achievement Award from Vistage International Inc. in 2022 and was a nominee for Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2024 and 2025. Reality Based Group was featured in the Austin Business Journal as the Best Company for Customer Experience and Innovation.
Outside of his professional life, Mr. Woskow is a loving and proud single father to two daughters. He considers his ability to balance fatherhood with his business success to be his greatest achievement. Mr. Woskow’s oldest daughter is studying pre-med at the University of California, Berkeley with the goal of becoming an orthopedic surgeon, while his youngest daughter is pursuing a business degree at the University of Miami. Now in his 60s, Mr. Woskow has begun to shift his focus away from entrepreneurship and toward philanthropy. He also looks forward to engaging in more mentorship, particularly hoping to teach those who may not otherwise have the support or resources to pursue a career in business.
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