Her Story
About Jessica
Jessica Lugo is an operations and facilities management professional with over 10 years of dedicated experience in the nonprofit sector. Her career has been centered on serving underserved and historically marginalized communities, particularly in environments where access to resources is limited. She is known for her ability to bridge direct service experience with operational leadership, creating systems that improve efficiency while strengthening support for frontline staff and the communities they serve. She began her career in direct mental health services, spending five years providing hands-on care in high-intensity environments, including crisis intervention work such as 5150 holds. This foundational experience shaped her deep understanding of the challenges faced by direct service providers and continues to inform her operational philosophy today. She brings this perspective into her current role at Waymakers, where she supports approximately 380 employees across multiple programs, including mental health services, human trafficking intervention, victim support services, and other essential community-based initiatives spanning 11 locations. For the past five years at Waymakers, Jessica has served in a multifaceted Business Manager capacity, overseeing IT operations, vendor management, contracts, procurement, and day-to-day organizational support. Her work is dynamic and highly responsive, often stepping into whatever area is needed—from resolving technical issues and managing security systems to supporting contract negotiations and assisting with client-facing de-escalation efforts. She has driven strategic operational improvements across the organization, including modernizing IT service workflows, implementing standardized processes and procedures, and significantly improving response times for direct service staff. She is currently leveraging the same operational excellence framework to optimize procurement processes, enhance organizational efficiency, and reduce administrative barriers, ensuring resources and support reach staff more effectively. Her work is grounded in a strong commitment to Waymakers’ mission and a sustained passion for strengthening community impact through operational excellence.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Jessica
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to my passion for the mission and my ability to think outside the box. I really consider all options and approach challenges from multiple angles. I've found that my biggest strength is my ability to think about a lot of different ways we can approach something. Trial and error is something I take seriously, but I'm strategic about it. I test new approaches within a small sample first so that I don't negatively impact people during our trial runs. This creative problem-solving mindset, combined with my deep commitment to Waymakers' mission, has allowed me to transform operations and create meaningful improvements that help both our staff and the communities we serve.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
Transparency isn't about having all the answers. It's about providing clarity where possible, communicating openly about challenges, and ensuring people understand the reasoning behind decisions that affect their work. When teams have context, they can contribute more effectively and move forward with greater confidence
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Going into the nonprofit world, you should have the heart for it. This is not easy work. There are going to be days that are really, really challenging, days that really challenge why we're here and why we're doing the work that we do. Being able to find a job that you love and that you align with their mission, I think is really where your motivation comes from in doing good work. I've been at one location for almost 10 years now, and that longevity has really come from the core of loving our mission. Everything that we do really speaks to my ability to give back to the community. So if someone is coming into the nonprofit world, I really just have to emphasize to find a mission that your heart really aligns with.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The hardest challenge we're facing right now is budget cuts. When politics get involved and start making cuts to the services that serve our community, it starts impacting nonprofits significantly. Some pretty big contracts have been cut, and we're currently in the middle of an unfortunate closure of our youth program. It really comes down to finding creative ways to still accomplish these big goals when financial support is being very, very, very limited. This makes innovation, collaboration, and resourcefulness more important than ever in the nonprofit sector.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
What continues to motivate me is the opportunity to contribute to meaningful change while supporting dedicated professionals who work tirelessly on behalf of others. I believe leadership is not defined solely by titles or accomplishments, but by a willingness to solve problems, support teams, and create systems that allow people to do their best work.
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