CELINA FIGUEROA

Association of Latino Professionals for America

At the Association of Latino Professionals for America (ALPFA), Celina Figueroa serves as director of Women of ALPFA, pairing strategic human resources leadership with genuine relationship-building. She describes herself as both a people leader and a culture ambassador, a combination she considers her clearest distinction from her peers.
Figueroa’s most significant professional accomplishment came at Howard Hughes, where she led and implemented culture and inclusion initiatives that had not previously existed. 

She built a Pride Month speaker series, developed Black History Month programming and organized Hispanic Heritage Month lunch and learn events.Figueroa also arranged a company-wide volunteer event at NAACP Freetown Farm. Those efforts strengthened engagement and belonging, a change reflected in improved annual employee survey results.

Inspiring change remains central to both her professional work and her active community involvement. She works to build inclusive workplace cultures and strengthen employee engagement, creating programs and policies that support equitable growth and opportunity for employees at every level. Human resources professionals, Figueroa believes, have the ability to positively influence both business outcomes and people’s lives, fostering environments where individuals feel valued, heard and empowered to succeed.

Outside work, Figueroa actively volunteers through her local SHRM board and through ALPFA, helping create meaningful opportunities for mentorship, networking and leadership development. Her work with the association has supported initiatives centered on workplace and community conversations affecting underrepresented professionals.

The organization recently hosted an event on machismo in the workplace, opening dialogue around cultural expectations, leadership dynamics and actionable steps organizations and individuals can take to build more inclusive environments for women.