Jessamyn Anderson is a generalist, a pattern-finder, a thought-leader, a workplace chaplain, an educator, a parent, a people expert, and an empathetic leader in building organizational cultures that thrive. 

Things she is really good at:

·      Building trust in group dynamics for every level of the organization to share their thoughts and bring their hopes to the conversation.

·      Keeping an eye on the big picture while assessing individual needs

·      Showing up for the hard conversations

·      Uncovering the problem in a way that leads to a solution

·      Forecasting future interpersonal needs and scaffolding resources and building bridges to create a people-focused system that works.

Things she is learning about:

·      Integrating spiritual care into secular spaces

·      Inclusivity as a way of being in organizational culture

·      What to do after disruption

·      Piloting progressive work models concurrent with existing systems

·      Organizational storytelling

Learning experiences that formed her world view:

Jessamyn Anderson was born in a small suburb of Syracuse, NY during the era of roller-skating parties, tight-rolled jeans, and bangs that aspired to touch the sky. Concurrent with the ethos of the eighties, she was raised in the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America.  This dual existence led to a love for the liminal space between the spiritual and the secular. 

Her academic and professional career reflect this foot in both worlds experience.  Her academic experience includes a Bachelor of Arts in Linguistics, and a Master of Library Science specializing in school media, both from the University at Buffalo. She obtained an advanced graduate certificate from SUNY: Empire State College in Social Entrepreneurship and she is currently pursuing a Master of Divinity online at Loyola University in Chicago with a focus on workplace chaplaincy.

Concurrent with her academic studies, she pursued a path of professional curiosity and openness to experiential learning.  From the age of fourteen, she has amassed a list of over twenty-five different work experiences within a variety of settings. These work experiences include nannying, food service, stocking tires and selling automobile parts, selling hiking boots, janitorial, working the overnight shift stocking grocery shelves, youth coordinator at a community center, intern at Lockheed Martin, mortgage banking, legal secretary for the NYS Dept of Law, youth group leader, receptionist, construction, alternative health, waitress, landlord, volunteer at a soup kitchen, school libraries, ballpark suite server, volunteer at a CSA, web design, and academic libraries.

The intellectual capital represented in her academic pursuits converges with her working experience to form an empathetic, dynamic, and comprehensive leadership style. As a workplace chaplain she partners with organizations to help them build a culture where everyone can thrive.