Emily Hicks

Chief of Staff

Favorite inspirational quote:

“Life is tough, my darling, but so are you.”

— Stephanie Bennett-Henry

Emily Hicks is Chief of Staff at Aperio Philanthropy, where she partners closely with the CEO and President to drive organizational clarity, alignment, and execution. She focuses on shaping and advancing Aperio’s strategic priorities while strengthening the organization’s approach to people leadership, team effectiveness, and culture.

Emily plays a central role in translating strategy into action—supporting planning processes, aligning leadership around priorities, and building the structures that help teams operate effectively (and sanely) in a remote environment. She is particularly passionate about developing practical frameworks that empower managers to lead with confidence, consistency, and a little less guesswork.

Prior to joining Aperio, Emily led operations, reporting, and analytics at The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, where she supported the launch and growth of a national philanthropy program. Her work helped equip leadership with the insights needed to grow annual philanthropic revenue from $28 million to $42 million.

Before transitioning to the nonprofit sector, she held management roles with global retail brands including Christian Dior, Anthropologie, and Stuart Weitzman—where she learned that great performance is equal parts data, discipline, and understanding people.

Emily holds a B.S. in Merchandising with a minor in Marketing from Florida State University. She lives in Connecticut with her two young sons and two cats—who collectively ensure there is never a dull moment.

Pronouns: she/her

Areas of expertise: organizational strategy & planning, people resources, leadership operations, performance management systems, team effectiveness, data & analytics, business operations

Causes I’m most passionate about: domestic violence (support, resources, and prevention), women’s rights (especially maternity leave and support for working mothers), community development, youth programs, and medical research

My fundraising story: I’ve spent my career at the intersection of revenue and operations. While I didn’t start as a frontline fundraiser, I’ve focused on what makes fundraising organizations actually work—building the systems, insights, and structures that enable teams to grow revenue and deepen impact.

At Aperio, that translates into helping leaders align around clear priorities, strengthening how teams operate, and ensuring the behind-the-scenes work is just as strong as the mission-facing work.

Why I care about helping nonprofits grow: Nonprofits—and the people behind them—do some of the hardest, most important work out there. I care about helping them operate more effectively so they can spend less time navigating internal friction and more time delivering on their mission.

Hobbies: playing shuffleboard (tabletop, not deck), spending as much time outside as possible with my kids, live music (especially anything from the 90s), interior design, and trying new things

Unusual talent: superhuman spice tolerance—my dream is to be a contestant on Hot Ones