Bringing Your Whole Self to Work (Without Burning Out)

What does it really look like to bring your whole self to work and still have energy left for the people and life you care about outside of it? In this conversation, Esri’s Jessi Echevarria and Diana Lavery share insights from their careers in GIS and technology about leading with authenticity while navigating the real demands of work and life as mothers and more. They’ll talk about what it means to be women leaders, how creating trust and psychological safety helps teams thrive, and why acknowledging the full lives people bring to work matters. They’ll also reflect on how leaders today can support and encourage the next generation of women entering STEM. Expect an honest, thoughtful discussion about building a career that’s meaningful, sustainable, and true to who you are.

Jessi Echevarria

Jessi is a Project Manager with Esri, Professional Services where she leads GIS implementation projects throughout numerous industries, governments, and organizations. Jessi has a degree in Biology with a focus on environment, ecosystems, and GIS. She started her career 15 years ago as a GIS and natural resources consultant and has grown through various technical and business consulting roles over the years. Jessi leads by centering trust, authenticity, and psychological safety in her teams. She believes that supporting the whole person—by recognizing that people bring their full lived experiences to work—creates more resilient teams and more meaningful results.

Diana Lavery

Diana loves working with data. She has over 15 years' experience as a practitioner of demography, sociology, economics, policy analysis, and GIS. Diana holds a BA in quantitative economics and an MA in applied demography. She is a senior GIS engineer on ArcGIS Living Atlas of the World's Policy Maps team. Diana enjoys strong coffee and clean datasets, usually simultaneously.