Luana Vaetoe

Experience

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  Safeway

  Mar 1997 - Jun 2007

  Retail Leadership

  Luana began her professional career at Safeway, where her leadership qualities were quickly recognized and supported. She was chosen to participate in the company’s highly competitive and sought after Retail Leadership Development program for Store Managers and key leadership positions, where she developed her skills in front line leadership, supporting a diverse workforce, and strategic retail operations. Two promotions quickly followed, and Luana spent her last five years with the company serving in Human Resource and Store Leadership support. Show less

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  Becoming Independent

  Jul 2007 - now

  Luana Vaetoe has been with Becoming Independent (BI) since 2007 and was named Chief Executive Officer in 2013. She has spearheaded significant operational and program growth at Becoming Independent, including launching a new program, “Passport to Independence,” designed to support young adults with autism. Luana has also expanded BI’s Social Enterprise Division to create opportunities for job training and market-wage employment for BI’s participants, while also generating revenue for the organization. Under Luana, BI now operates two service enterprises: mobile shredding services (complete with a mobile document destruction truck) and the BI Buzz Café at Kaiser Permanente’s new Mercury Way Medical Offices in Santa Rosa which opened in 2018. Luana recently received a KPIX 2020 Jefferson Award for Public Service. In 2015 Luana was awarded the Nonprofit Leadership Award and in 2016, she was named to the prestigious “Forty Under 40” club, both by the North Bay Business Journal (NBBJ) for her outstanding leadership and community impact. In 2014, Becoming Independent was awarded “Business of the Year” by the Young Professionals Network for excellence in developing young professionals in the community and in the workplace. Most recently the organization was awarded the 2019 Nonprofit Community Hero award by the Santa Rosa Metro Chamber and has been selected by The NBBJ as one of the North Bay’s Best Places to Work every year since Luana became CEO. Becoming Independent (BI) is one of California’s most progressive and successful service agencies for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, with the majority of people receiving services residing in Sonoma Co. and approximately 5% residing in neighboring North Bay counties. With a staff of nearly 250 and an annual operating budget of $14 million, BI serves over 1,000 individuals each year with a continuum of services based on best practices in the field. Show less Luana was promoted to Agency Director in July 2012. Among other duties, she was responsible for: the major administrative and fiscal operations of all agency services; compliance with all applicable local, state, and federal standards and regulations; recommendations to the Board of Directors on needed policies and procedures, and, the development and monitoring of the agency's annual budget policies.As leader, she pro-actively and aggressively instituted efforts to diversify BI’s revenue streams in the face of significant downward trends in government funding. As she instituted changes in personnel and protocol, Luana continued to practice her human resources savvy in recruiting and expanding the organizations Board of Directors Show less Luana joined Becoming Independent’s Human Resources department in 2007, where she was eventually promoted to the Director position. As an integral part of BI’s Human Resources team for five years, Luana helped the agency to enhance a committed investment in employees and helping both managers and direct staff realize how together they all work toward a common goal. Luana facilitated employee new hire and benefit orientations, creating positive relations with employees in all six BI work sites. She trained the management team on employee recognition and building strong employee relation skills, and served as benefits administrator, processing monthly enrollments, working with multiple benefit carriers, completing all necessary state aid documentation and facilitating/organizing annual open enrollment. Show less

  • Chief Executive Officer

    Jul 2013 - now

  • Agency Director

    Jul 2012 - Jul 2013

  • Human Resources

    Jul 2007 - Jul 2012
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  CVNL Center for Volunteer & Nonprofit Leadership

  Jan 2021 - now

  Board Member - Chair