January 9, 2024
Global Partnerships (GP) announced today that Chief Executive Officer Rick Beckett will retire from his CEO position effective June 30, 2024, after eighteen years of distinguished leadership. He will become GP’s Chief Executive Officer Emeritus, serving as a senior strategic advisor to his successor and as a champion of impact-first investing.
Mr. Beckett joined GP as CEO in 2006. Under his leadership, GP transformed from a small nonprofit making grants to support microcredit in Central America into a global leader in impact-first investing. Since 2006, GP and its affiliated funds have invested over $750 million in social enterprises across Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean, bringing the opportunity for improved livelihoods and better lives to more than 32 million people living in poverty. GP has played a leadership role in thinking differently about capital – prioritizing high impact over maximizing financial return and demonstrating the results that can be achieved through an impact-first approach.
“GP has benefited immensely from nearly two decades of Rick’s visionary leadership. Under his stewardship, GP has empowered millions of people living in poverty to improve their lives while establishing itself as an exemplar of impact-first investing,” said Maggie Walker, Co-Chair of the GP Board of Directors. “Rick’s successor will inherit an organization with a clear mission, sharply defined strategy, strong track record, high performing team, effective board, innovative economic model, lots of momentum, and a bold vision.”
The GP Board of Directors has chosen Mike Galgon to succeed Mr. Beckett as Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Galgon has served on the GP Board for over twenty years, including as President and Chair. He is deeply committed to GP’s mission and well versed in its strategy. Mr. Galgon brings extensive executive and investment experience to the CEO role. After serving as an officer in the US Navy and as a Vista Volunteer, Mike completed his MBA at the Harvard Business School. He co-founded and served in multiple senior executive roles at aQuantive, a digital advertising company acquired by Microsoft for $6 billion. Mike went on to co-found Pioneer Square Labs, a next generation start-up incubator and venture fund. He has served as a director on the boards of more than 15 private and public companies, as well as numerous nonprofit organizations.
“As I pass the torch to Mike, I know that GP’s future is bright,” said Mr. Beckett. “I am excited to see GP have even greater impact in the world in coming years.”
“Mike is uniquely positioned to step into the CEO role, to build on the incredible work that has been done, and to lead GP into the future,” said Bill Richter, Co-Chair of the GP Board. “He is a proven and growth-oriented executive, a strategic thinker who thrives in nascent and emergent markets, an innovative and successful investor, a leader of high performing teams, and an effective resource developer. His two decades of service on GP’s Board speak volumes about his commitment to our mission.”
“The Board of Directors is thrilled to have Mike Galgon become GP’s next Chief Executive Officer,” added Ms. Walker. “He has the experience needed to sustain strategic focus and achieve the organization’s ambitious five-year strategic goals, while at the same time bringing energy and expertise to the front edge of GP’s aspiration – amplifying impact-first as a powerful new category of capital in order to expand opportunity for people living in poverty.”
“I am honored to serve as Global Partnerships’ next CEO,” said Mr. Galgon. “GP is tackling market failures which leave billions of economically marginalized people behind. Impact-first investing has an essential role to play in driving more inclusive, equitable, and sustainable global development.”
Mr. Galgon will continue to serve on the GP Board through June 30, 2024. Over the next six months, he will work closely with Mr. Beckett to ensure a smooth leadership transition.
Contact:
Melissa Lockhart Fortner
Vice President, Investor Relations
mlockhart@globalpartnerships.org
206-456-7835