Mercy Corps Launches Chief Executive Officer Search

Global organization seeks new leader to guide global team of humanitarians working on the frontlines of today’s biggest crises

Portland, Ore. – The global organization Mercy Corps has launched its search for a new Chief Executive Officer to lead its efforts helping communities around the world forge new paths to prosperity in the face of disaster, poverty, conflict and climate change. The CEO will oversee 6,000 dedicated team members across more than 40 countries around the world and will forge partnerships with governments, forward-thinking corporations, social entrepreneurs, foundations and international institutions to unlock the power and innovation of a global humanitarian community.  

The CEO search committee is led by Mercy Corps Board Directors Lucy Lee Helm, Executive Vice President and Chief Partner Officer of Starbucks, and Kevin Ryan, entrepreneur and founder of several companies, including AlleyCorp, Zola, Nomad Health, Business Insider and GILT. Following the resignation of previous CEO Neal Keny-Guyer in Fall 2019, the CEO search committee has spent recent months conducting extensive listening tours at Mercy Corps headquarters and country offices around the world to solicit feedback and input to help determine the key characteristics needed in a new leader.

The Mercy Corps CEO search committee is working with the global executive search firm Heidrick & Struggles and its social impact executive search practice, which specializes in helping philanthropy, government, higher education, academic and non-profit clients find new leadership. Heidrick & Struggles, established in 1953, was one of the first executive search firms established in the United States.

In 2019, Mercy Corps reached nearly 29 million people in more than 40 countries. The organization helped 2.3 million farmers thrive in the face of climate change; responded to six global emergencies, from hurricanes to earthquakes to flooding; and opened up opportunities for more than 200,000 young people. Today, Mercy Corps is ensuring the delivery of lifesaving aid to meet the needs of tens of millions of vulnerable people around the world whose lives and livelihoods are most threatened by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Expressions of interest and nominations for the position of CEO can be sent to MercyCorpsCEO@heidrick.com. 

Read a statement from the Mercy Corps Board of Directors regarding former CEO Neal Keny-Guyer here.