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I design and deploy innovative solutions to complex organizational challenges by building on foundational knowledge acquired through extensive previous use cases. Striving to increase the public good is at the heart of everything I undertake—and increasing mission impact is usually the best path to get there.
Current projects
Some initiatives I am leading include:
◥ Designing, launching and optimizing global programs to substantially increase their impact on the public benefit;
◥ Developing and testing innovative models for social impact and arts access initiatives;
◥ Forging cross-sector strategic partnerships in civic engagement to enable solutions that would otherwise not be possible; and
◥ Advising on strategic planning for, and implementation of, innovative fellowships for emerging leaders.
A background that spans many functions across every sector underlies a singular aim: to contribute to strong, resilient, and fairer societies by helping visionary people and organizations sustain and amplify their missions. From supporting data-driven public policy to developing social impact grant-making programs, and designing collaborative digital platforms to forming public-private partnerships, I've had the immense privilege of leading teams and projects to outcomes that consistently surpassed targets—and significantly strengthened organizational impact.
“Benjamin has a keen eye for the big picture, and a superb track record of insightful, data-driven analysis.”— Allan Luks, Executive Director, Big Brothers Big Sisters (fmr)
Read more about my background if you're interested.
Vital stats
Education
Phi Beta Kappa, UC Regents Scholar- PhD, Columbia University
- Credential, Harvard Business School
- MA & BA, UCLA
Some organizations I've worked with
Adobe Systems, American Council of Learned Societies, American Red Cross, Biden-Harris Campaign (2020), Columbia Law School, Columbia University, École Normale Supérieure, Google Inc., JSTOR, Microsoft Inc., National Humanities Alliance, New York Academy of Sciences, Obama Campaign, Princeton University, The Economist Intelligence Unit, The Princeton Review, U.S. Department of State
What I've done there
- Analysis (qualitative & quantitative)
- Arts & cultural heritage access, preservation, & engagement
- Board development & facilitation
- Business development
- Capacity building
- Collaborative framework development
- Communications strategy
- Community development
- Cross-organizational project leadership
- Digital strategy
- Engagement & advocacy strategy
- Evaluation & assessment
- Facilitation (cross-organizational, group, multi-stakeholder)
- Foreign policy
- Grantmaking (grant design & management)
- Higher education access & postsecondary success programs
- Impact analysis & measurement
- Innovation & IT modernization (agile, open-source, human-centered)
- International relations & diplomacy
- Knowledge building & sharing
- Leadership development & coaching (in-person & virtual)
- Network building (local, national & global)
- Nonprofit & philanthropic program strategy
- Organizational development & stewardship
- Organizing & movement building
- Program development & management
- Project management (agile & lean)
- Public & digital humanities
- Research-based initiatives
- Strategic partnerships
- Strategic planning
- Sustainability initiatives
- Team building & group process
- Training & knowledge resource development
“Benjamin is an amazingly-effective program manager who oversaw the successful execution of our collaborations with Google.”— Deirdre Ryan, Director, Primary Sources, JSTOR
“Benjamin jumped in with his superior organizational and interpersonal skills to bring important and complex projects to successful completion under tight deadlines.”— Stephen Kidd, Executive Director, National Humanities Alliance
“Benjamin's analyses were models of succinctness and clarity that showed a mature grasp of the policy implications.”— Gary Clements, Division Chief, U.S. Department of State
A few of my interests
Civic engagement; culture & arts access; democracy & public policy; education policy & ed tech; emerging technologies, digital innovation & society; environmental justice; foreign affairs & politics; freedom of expression; higher education access & youth development; humanities & knowledge development; literacy mentorship; neuroscience & behavior; social sector impact & best practices
Selected awards
- Mellon/ACLS Public Fellow
- NYC Service Leader Award, City of New York
- Otis Fellows Doctoral Award, Columbia University
- Presidential Service Award, Columbia University
- Rockefeller Fellow, Princeton University
- Volunteer Partnership Award, American Red Cross
Drop me a line for more info.