Nicole Suydam has served the nonprofit sector for 26 years, working with local and national organizations dedicated to meeting human service needs. Growing up in a low-income, single-parent home gave Nicole a unique perspective and calling to serve others.

As the first woman appointed president and CEO of Goodwill of Orange County, Nicole leads the largest nonprofit in Orange County by revenue, providing workforce development programs and services to help more than 20,000 people in the community annually. Goodwill’s employment social enterprise operation, which started in Orange County 100 years ago, employs more than 1,400 people through 25 thrift stores and donation sites and 15+ workforce development programs.

Nicole is also responsible for leading, modernizing and growing ShopGoodwill.com, an online thrift marketplace owned and operated by Goodwill of Orange County since 1999. The site was designed to be an additional funding source, beyond brick-and-mortar thrift stores, to support Goodwill’s mission to help people learn job skills and find sustainable careers. Now, 25 years later, ShopGoodwill.com is a critical mission revenue driver for 130 other Goodwill organizations across the country. Last year, ShopGoodwill.com generated record site-wide revenue of more than $340 million for Goodwill’s mission nationwide.

Most recently, Nicole led a year-long, collaborative Strategic Planning process for Goodwill of Orange County to guide the organization into its 100^th year of service to Orange County and beyond. The process included a comprehensive community needs assessment, stakeholder interviews, input from partners, and much more. The completed Strategic Plan outlines a bold long-term vision and goal for Goodwill: to double its impact and footprint in Orange County over the next ten years. Under Nicole’s inspirational leadership and the collective excitement felt from both internal and external Goodwill partners, work is already underway to make this bold goal a reality.

Nicole has received several accolades for her community leadership and service, including being named to The Orange County Register’s 125 Most Influential People, Orange Coast Magazine’s Kick Ass Women, and Orange County Business Journal’s OC 50 and OC 500 lists of influential business leaders. She also received the “2018 Women of the Year Award” by the Orange County Business Journal.

Along with graduating from Vanguard University in Costa Mesa with her BA in History and Political Science, Nicole served for seven years on the university’s Board of Trustees and for three years as President of their Alumni Association.

Nicole has a passion for mentoring college students and young professionals and currently mentors students at CSUF’s College of Business & Economics and serves on the Dean’s Advisory Board.

Nicole and her husband Michael live in Aliso Viejo with their two teenage daughters.