Jem Lugo

About Jem Lugo

I am a passionate and creative individual who thrives on collaboration and knowledge integration to devise new ways to drive business results and tackle workplace challenges. My professional interests lie in helping organizations achieve a competitive advantage by taking a humanity-first approach to their people and culture strategy and talent acquisition process and employee pipeline, as well as using research to develop and implement successful development and engagement initiatives, diversity and inclusion programs, and performance management systems. I aim to help foster positive work environments that encourage the expression and creativity of an employee’s authentic self in a culture where personal and career development are seen as key tenets of organizational success. I am also an artist and lead project manager that specializes in creating immersive and interactive experiences that allow guests to step outside of their reality and into a new crafted world for the duration of their visit. I strive to create experiences that encourage visitors to shed their hesitations and reservations and step into the joy of play, while also championing interactions that promote deeper emotional and social purposes beyond just those for the sake of advertisement or marketing. One of the core tenets of my work is that art and play and the power of artistic communication and enjoyment as a medium should be accessible and inviting and inclusive to all, not locked away behind financial barriers or exclusive restrictions.Areas of Experience and Interests: Talent Acquisition, Human-centric strategy and design, Project Management, Workplace Engagement, Performance Management, Workplace Culture Evaluation, Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity, Training and Development, Multi-Industry Full-Cycle Recruitment and Retention, Program Development and Facilitation, Internship Experience Design, Organizational Development, Talent and Succession Planning, Change Management, Mentoring Program Creation and Implementation, Employee Relations, Startup Experience, Seminar Development, Survey and Scale Development, Event Planning, Positive Organizational Psychology, Immersive Experience DesignTechnical Proficiencies and Skills: Microsoft Office Suite, Quickbooks, ADP, Zoho, Concur, Prezi, Photoshop, Illustrator, Qualtrics, Survey Monkey, LIWC, Social Media, CRM Software

Experience

1. Recruitment and Retention Manager

   KIPP Colorado Public Schools

   Apr 2025 — Present · Denver, CO, US

   Lead regional talent strategy and full-cycle recruitment across three campuses and the Home Office teams of KIPP Colorado, partnering with school and organizational leaders to build high-performing teams that support equitable student outcomes.Talent Strategy & Leadership-Owned recruitment strategy and staffing outcomes for the Far Northeast region, supporting 3 campuses and Home Office leadership teams across instructional, operational, and leadership roles-Supported regional hiring projections of 40+ annual hires across Far Northeast campuses, aligning recruitment strategy with organizational growth and retention trends.Leadership Hiring-Designed and lead full hiring processes for director-level and assistant principal level roles, including process design, competency development, interview architecture, and leadership panel facilitation-Advised executive and school leadership on candidate evaluation, selection decisions, and hiring strategy to ensure mission alignment and organizational fit.Recruitment Systems & Process Design-Standardized interview processes and candidate evaluation tools to improve efficiency, reduce bias, and ensure equitable hiring practices across schools-Managed high-volume applicant pipelines using JazzHR, leveraging data and analytics to track candidate progress, vacancy status, and hiring outcomes.Stakeholder Partnership-Served as a strategic partner to school leaders, providing coaching and guidance on hiring decisions, interview design, and candidate experience-Facilitated ongoing talent discussions with campus leaders to address staffing risks, hiring priorities, and workforce planning.Retention Strategy-Led first-year retention touchpoints for new staff through structured onboarding check-ins and Intent-to-Return processes.Selected Impact-Managed hiring pipelines across 800+ applicants and 200+ interviews annually-Supported 71 hires across the region in one hiring cycle

Education

• Harvard University

  Bachelor's degree, Psychology: Social and Cognitive Neuroscience

  2009 — 2013

• Claremont Graduate University

  Master's degree, Organizational Behavior and Evaluation

  2013 — 2017

Skills

• Print & Electronic Media Promotion Campaigns
• Education
• Employee Engagement
• Graphic Design
• Customer Service
• Data Analysis
• Social Media
• Program Management
• Coaching
• Human Resources
• Leadership Development
• Teamwork
• Events Coordination
• Microsoft Powerpoint
• Organizational Learning
• Psychology
• Compensation & Benefits
• Teaching
• Organizational Development
• Talent Management
• Training
• Photoshop
• Leadership
• Detailed Organization
• Microsoft Word
• Recruiting
• Microsoft Office
• English
• Event Planning
• Research
• Program Evaluation
• Diversity & Inclusion
• Editing
• Organizational Behavior
• Performance Management
• Microsoft Excel
• Powerpoint
• Bookkeeping
• Diversity Training
• Performance Appraisal