Lisa D'Acquisto

Lisa D'Acquisto is the VP of Human Resources at Ascent Funding. Lisa has over seven years of experience in the field of compensation and benefits, with a focus on process improvements, implementing best practices, and managing large portfolios of employee and executive benefits.

Lisa began their career in 2014 as a Manager of Compensation & Benefits at Rady Children's Hospital-San Diego. In this role, they oversaw the compensation and benefits for two separate organizations, RCHSD & CSSD, and managed 6 direct reports. Lisa was responsible for a large portfolio of employee and executive benefits, including multiple retirement plans and executive compensation programs. Lisa led the benefits renewal process and open enrollment, and implemented workflow efficiencies and cost saving strategies.

In 2018, Lisa joined Ashford University as the Head of Total Rewards. In this role, they were responsible for the compensation and benefits for 3000+ employees. Lisa was promoted in 2019 to Director of Total Rewards, and served as the head of Compensation & Benefits for Ashford University. Prior to joining Ashford University, Lisa was at the parent company (Zovio) as a Benefits Manager focused on multiple projects and initiatives such as: Workday implementation, process improvements and implementing best practices, especially around our LOAs and ADA accommodations.

Lisa D'Acquisto has a Master's Degree in Human Resources Management from Boston University. Lisa also has a Bachelor's Degree in Criminology from California State University, Fresno. In addition, they are certified by the Institute for HealthCare Consumerism as a Certified in Healthcare Consumerism (CHCC), by the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans as a Certified Employee Benefit Specialist (CEBS) and Compensation Management Specialist (CMS), and by Emtrain as a Preventing Workplace Harassment. Lisa is also certified by the HR Certification Institute as a Professional in Human Resources (PHR) and by the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans as a Retirement Plans Associate (RPA).

Some direct reports include Suzanne Sgroi - Talent Acquisition Partner, Emily Skoubo - Senior Human Resources Generalist, and Priscilla Barajas - Human Resources Coordinator. Lisa D'Acquisto reports to Ken Ruggiero, Chairman & CEO. Lisa D'Acquisto works with Joanna Widmier - Senior Marketing Manager, Ryan Gray - Chief Financial Officer, and Katie Miller - VP, Product Development.