Jessie Melson, NCIDQ
Jessie Melson, NCIDQ, is an interior designer specializing in hospitality design and hotel renovations in Monroe, Louisiana. Inspired by design and architecture from a young age, she developed a passion for construction and the transformation of spaces. Jessie enjoys seeing projects evolve from an idea into a finished environment, whether bringing a new structure out of the ground or revitalizing an outdated property. For her, the most rewarding part of the profession is turning a vision into a tangible result that people can experience and enjoy.
With more than eight years of experience in the design and construction field, Jessie has built a diverse background that includes residential, commercial, and hospitality design. She currently serves as a Preconstruction and Interior Design Manager at River Ridge Renovations, where she focuses on hotel renovation projects. Her work involves extensive pre-construction planning, coordinating construction documents and specifications, collaborating with project partners, and ensuring designs meet brand standards. Because her company operates as a general contractor, she is involved throughout the entire process, helping guide projects from early planning stages through completion.
Jessie earned a Bachelor of Science in Architecture and a Master of Business Administration from Louisiana Tech University. Known for her disciplined and organized approach, she attributes much of her professional success to strong planning, determination, and the commitment to continue advancing her expertise while working full time. She values loyalty, mutual respect, and maintaining a healthy work–life balance, and she encourages the next generation of women entering the industry to stand confidently in their abilities and persevere in a field that has traditionally been male-dominated.
• Interior Design
• Licensed Interior Designer
• Louisiana Tech University Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.), Business
• Louisiana Tech University Bachelor of Science (B.S.), Architecture
• United Way
• United Way office renovation
• Community events
What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to discipline. It took a lot - I went back to school after my bachelor's and was working full-time, and I've kind of done that a lot over the last few years. I also got licensed when I was working full-time. So it's all about how you discipline your life and how you plan it out and organize it. I'm very organized and goal-driven. I'm always kind of future-focused, I'd say. I'm always looking at how can I get to the next step, or next place, or whatever it may be.
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The biggest thing I've learned, especially from some of my older colleagues, is that work isn't everything, so it's about having that balance and finding a job that you genuinely like going to and enjoy the people that you work with and the things that you're doing. You have to find a really good work balance - I definitely learned that when I changed jobs. Having a career and everything is great, but there's definitely more to life than that. Some of my other jobs weren't the greatest balance, so I think it's important to find somebody that understands how you work and how they work.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
One, just don't give up, and don't let other people in the industry bring you down. Our industry is very competitive, and I have seen it from other men and other women. When you tend to be a very driven person, that can intimidate some people. I wish more women, especially in our industry, would just stand up for themselves, stand their ground. You're just as educated as anybody else, and you're just as capable. Especially in construction in general, it's very, very much a male-led industry, and I've definitely seen the challenges in that and overcoming those obstacles.
What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The hospitality industry is very competitive, and it can be hard sometimes working with other people throughout the industry because everybody is so competitive. Even within a small town, we have other people that do the same thing here, so competition is kind of hard. The economy and the world we're in also makes things challenging to just stay on budgets with tariffs and logistics - we never really know what's going on, so we're always having to adjust and plan for those economic situations. On the opportunities side, the hospitality industry in general is just a huge market. We do hotel renovations only, and hotels always have to be renovated, so there's always business out there, there's always somebody that needs help with something, whether it's just renovating a lobby or a 350-room hotel. We can do small projects, big projects, and what's good about our company is we kind of have control over everything since we're a general contractor, versus other companies that are just designers.
What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
I definitely think loyalty is important - having some loyalty in the workplace is nice, where your people, your boss, they're loyal to you, you're loyal to them, and everybody's honest. I think that goes a long way. Respect would be the biggest thing I find. In my life in general, I feel like I give respect to other people, so I want respect back, and I think that's fair. Work-life balance is also very important to me.