The Human Side of Nonprofit Technology at the Central Texas Food Bank

When most people picture a food bank, they picture volunteers, food drives and warehouse teams. They probably don't picture IT.

But behind every food distribution is an invisible network of technology helping food move efficiently, information flow accurately and team members stay focused on serving neighbors.

Jordan Lewis is constantly thinking about that network, but not in the way you might expect. As IT Manager at the Central Texas Food Bank (CTFB), Jordan is constantly asking this simple, but important question:

How can technology make someone's day a little easier?

Whether he's building a better onboarding experience for new team members, automating routine IT requests, configuring warehouse scanners or planning the technology infrastructure for our Waco facility, Jordan starts with people — not computers.

"I think that technology should be an aid to what we do and not something that's in the way."

It's a philosophy that's a little different from what people often expect from IT.

Human-Centered Technology

Jordan believes the best technology is almost invisible.

It removes friction. It simplifies work. It helps people focus on the things that matter instead of the systems supporting them.

That means he spends as much time thinking about workflows and human behavior as he does hardware and software.

One analogy he uses says everything about how his mind works: Imagine a college campus where sidewalks form a perfect square, but students ignore them and cut straight across the grass. Most people would tell students to stay on the sidewalk. Jordan would redesign it.

"You can either have a lawn with a path cut into it or you can pave the path that people want."

That's how he approaches technology at CTFB. Rather than expecting team members to change how they work to fit a system, he looks for ways the system can better support the way people naturally work.

"You really have to empathize with the people that are going to be using the solutions that you make."

Innovation Within Constraints

Working at a nonprofit means every investment matters.

For Jordan, innovation isn't about having the biggest budget or the newest software. It's about being thoughtful with resources while creating the greatest impact.

Sometimes the right answer is purchasing a tool that already exists, and sometimes it's building a solution in-house. As Jordan puts it, nonprofit IT requires balancing the decision to "build versus buy." It's a creative challenge he genuinely enjoys.

"There’s a lot of opportunity for improvement," he says. "The ceiling for automation and process improvement is really, really high."

Because CTFB already has strong operational processes, Jordan gets to focus on making those processes even better through technology. His goal is to remove the repetitive tasks, unnecessary complexity, and frustrating barriers that keep people from doing their best work.

Technology Enabling Service

Jordan rarely hands a neighbor a box of food. Instead, he makes hundreds of small improvements that help the people who do.

When warehouse technology runs smoothly, food keeps moving. When everyday processes become simpler, team members spend less time navigating systems and more time serving neighbors. When technology removes barriers instead of creating them, the entire organization can focus on its mission.

Building Relationships Before Systems

Ask Jordan what makes great IT, and he won't start by talking about servers or software. He'll talk about teammates.

"I don't like the idea of us being two separate parties. I like the idea of us all being teammates."

That mindset has changed how many people experience IT at CTFB. Instead of waiting for something to break, Jordan looks for opportunities to collaborate with departments, understand their challenges and build solutions together.

His favorite part of the job is seeing teams work better because of the solutions he implements.

"Seeing a team have cohesion... it's really satisfying."

Technology, in his mind, serves as a bridge.

"Technology makes it possible for the creative ideas that everyone has to be brought into real life."

Team Member of the Month

Jordan was recently recognized as CTFB's Team Member of the Month not just because of the systems he's improved, but because of the way he approaches those improvements with curiosity, creativity, and a genuine commitment to helping others succeed.

In many ways, that's what innovation looks like at the Central Texas Food Bank. Not technology for technology's sake, rather technology that helps us do what we do best: serve our neighbors.

Jordan doesn't measure success by how many tickets he closes or systems he deploys. He measures it by something harder to build: trust. When people see IT as a partner instead of a barrier, he knows the technology is doing exactly what it was designed to do — help people succeed together.