About

Nicole Townsend is the founder of Experience Counts, a consulting firm launched in 2020 to help organizations strengthen culture, engagement and performance by intentionally designing the employee experience from pre-hire through retirement. She brings 20+ years of leadership experience across human resources, marketing and communications, helping organizations connect people, culture and business results. Nicole began her career at Raley’s bagging groceries and later returned in progressive corporate leadership roles, ultimately serving as Vice President of Employee Experience. She led culture and employee experience through recruiting, internal and executive communications, learning solutions and leadership development. She is the author of Just Be REAL: A Manager’s Field Guide to Making Work Count for Employees and Companies (2023), president-elect and Partnerships Chair for NAWBO Sacramento Valley, and an advocate for women’s health and neurodiversity inclusion in the workplace.