Betsy Bassan is Chair of the Board and President and CEO of Panagora Group, a woman- and employee-owned social enterprise she founded in 2011. Betsy brings over 30 years of experience as an innovator in the international development field. From 2011 to 2024, Betsy grew Panagora into a successful company with a proven track record of excellence providing novel solutions in health, development, and learning, with more than 200 long-term employees and over 300 short-term contractors working in and supporting 55 countries. The company was named Small Business of the Year for FY2018 by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), Panagora’s main client.
Betsy is an industry leader who has developed novel approaches to address major global health challenges and she works tirelessly to elevate the voice of small and women-owned business in international development. Through the Panagora platform, Betsy led the founding of the Council for International Development Companies (CIDC) and, as chair, transformed the Small Business Association for International Companies (SBAIC) over three pivotal years from an informal network into a registered and recognized advocate. Through the USGLC, a membership-based foreign aid advocacy group, Betsy helped build support for critical foreign aid programs. As Program Vice President and then Chair of the Society for International Development-Washington D.C., a leading professional association, she greatly enhanced its profile as the “the public square of development” through cutting-edge knowledge exchange. In 2021, she co-founded the Global Small Business Sustainability Coalition, which works to voice the needs of larger small businesses seeking to graduate successfully and continue partnering in support of international health and development.
As a 2021 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year for the Mid-Atlantic region and a 2020 Enterprising Woman of the Year Awardee for her leadership and mentorship of other women entrepreneurs, Betsy is a recognized business leader. Panagora was on Inc. Magazine’s list of “5,000 Fastest-Growing Private Companies in America” three times; in 2019 and 2020, we ranked in the top 10 percent and top 20 percent respectively and in 2022 in the top 30 percent. We also ranked number 12 on the Women Presidents’ Organization list of “50 Fastest Growing Women-Owned and Led Companies” in 2020.
She lived overseas for seven years in Kenya and Sudan, where she worked for a variety of NGOs and USAID missions. She holds an M.A. from Columbia University in New York City, where she completed a joint degree program (Planning in Developing Nations) in the School of International Affairs and the Division of Urban Planning; and a B.A. cum laude from St. John’s College, Great Books Program, in Annapolis, Maryland. She speaks French. Betsy has three children: Madeleine, Rebecca, and Ben.
David Binns is an experienced corporate executive with extensive expertise with employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs), equity compensation strategies and international economic development. At Panagora, he serves as an independent member of the Board of Directors and worked closely with Panagora leadership to establish the company as an ESOP.
He served as President & CEO of Macfadden & Associates, a 100% ESOP-owned company, from 2011 through 2018. A professional services government contracting company with approximately 325 employees, Macfadden specializes in delivering a broad range of services to support the U.S. government’s response to international disasters and humanitarian crises. From 2008-2011 he served as Macfadden’s Chief Operating Officer where he was responsible for management and oversight of operations, including integrating an acquisition that effectively doubled the number of professional staff. Macfadden was acquired by PAE in February 2018.
From 1991-2008 Mr. Binns served as Associate Director of the Beyster Institute, where he consulted with scores of companies on the use of equity compensation plans and managed many of the Institute’s international economic development and privatization programs.
He served as Executive Director of The ESOP Association from 1984-1991. His experience includes work in over 20 countries on a variety of entrepreneurship and economic development programs, including the design and implementation of employee ownership plans to facilitate the privatization of state-owned enterprises.
Mr. Binns has served on multiple corporate and non-profit boards of directors and advisory boards including Macfadden & Associates, Mattos Pro Finishes, the Beyster Foundation for Enterprise Development, Wilson Global Communications and several other private companies.
A published author, Mr. Binns has written extensively on ESOP-related issues and is Co-Editor of Employee Stock Ownership Plans: ESOP Planning, Financing, Implementation, Law & Taxation.
Mr. Binns is a graduate of the University of Virginia. He and his wife Beth live in Silver Spring, MD.
Fernando Barragan serves as a Member of the Board of Directors and previously as Panagora’s Executive Vice President. In that role he provided hands-on multidisciplinary guidance and supervision to senior leadership and collaborated with the CEO and others in the development and implementation of Panagora’s immediate and long-term strategies. He brings more than 25 years of experience working in international development, with a successful track record leading the accounting, treasury, financial planning and analysis, and compliance functions of high-profile organizations with portfolios in more than 80 countries around the world. Fernando also served in senior positions on projects in Bolivia, Egypt, and El Salvador. He holds a B.S. in engineering and an MBA with a concentration in corporate finance from the Catholic University in Bolivia. He speaks Spanish and English.
Lhundup Amdo leads Panagora’s finance and accounting management. He brings more than 20 years of experience as a corporate accounting and finance expert, with a passion for learning, getting things done, and delivering solutions to complex problems. His experience includes 12 years working at the Deloitte GPS practice serving a variety of government clients as Project Controller and later leading several digital system transformations within the GPS accounting department. Prior to his government contracting work, Lhundup led accounting and finance operations at major corporations like Verizon Business, Cable & Wireless, and Morrison Healthcare, as well as at small business and nonprofit organizations. He holds an MBA from the Monterrey Institute of International Studies and earned a CPA certificate. Lhundup is a native speaker of Tibetan.
Aleksandra (Sasha) Belenkaya oversees Panagora’s new business strategy. She brings over 20 years of experience in international development, having served in leadership roles in new business development, programmatic delivery, and client service. Aleksandra began her career in international development at Chemonics International, where she worked hand in hand with then the Chemonics’ Senior Vice President, and now the Panagora’s founder and President and CEO, Betsy Bassan. She was at the helm of launching Chemonics’ international health practice, taking it from a handful of small projects to a successful major business unit. During the following 12 years, Aleksandra worked in project management and business development, and held leadership positions, first at Booz Allen Hamilton, then at the American Bar Association, and finally at Chemonics again, returning to help stand up its wholly owned supply chain management subsidiary, Connexi. In these roles, she worked in international health, supply chain management, food security, democracy & governance, and rule of law sectors, and managed contracts and grants funded by USAID, Department of State, U.K. Foreign and Commonwealth Office, DFID, the World Bank, and private foundations. Aleksandra developed organizational vision and strategies, set financial goals and managed financial performance, designed and implemented impactful and sustainable international development programs, facilitated knowledge sharing, and managed and developed staff. Aleksandra holds a change management advanced practitioner certificate from the Georgetown University McDonough School of Business, a master’s degree in Slavic studies from Florida State University, and a bachelor’s degree from the Moscow State University of Education. She speaks English and Russian.
Katie Reichert has lived in South Africa since 2010 and has led Panagora’s technical and operational work in Southern Africa since 2018. With over 20 years of experience managing large-scale programs and high-performing teams, she has a proven track record of scaling operations, expanding portfolios, and achieving measurable results across complex, multi-sector environments. Katie is known for her innovative leadership and sharp eye for design—bringing creativity and intention to both physical spaces and technical solutions to create user-centered, visually compelling experiences. She is recognized for building inclusive, results-driven cultures and fostering strong networks of technical experts that continue to collaborate beyond individual projects. Her expertise spans global health including HIV and AIDS, evaluations, organizational transformation, and data for decision-making. Katie holds an MPH in Biostatistics and Evaluation from Boston University. She speaks English and Spanish.
Leslie Rider provides specialized support to Panagora’s new business and programmatic work. She brings more than 25 years of technical, new business development, and management experience in international development. Her expertise includes performance monitoring, performance and impact evaluation, surveys, capacity building, and knowledge management. In a previous role, she served as a new business manager at Chemonics International, where she worked with Betsy Bassan to build Chemonics’ international health practice. As associate director at Westat, a large research firm, Leslie helped expand and diversify the company’s international health research portfolio and international survey work. She helped manage the performance monitoring component of Westat’s USAID-funded Feed the Future FEEDBACK project. Leslie holds a master’s degree in international development from Columbia University. She speaks Spanish.
Katie Stauss oversees Panagora’s programmatic work and brings over 25 years of experience in international development, including providing technical and management support to projects funded by the U.S. Departments of State and Labor, the U.K. Department for International Development, the former U.S. Agency for International Development, and multi-donor funds. Prior to joining Panagora, Katie led Scintilla Consulting, a woman-owned small business, where she focused on business development, program design, facilitation, and monitoring and evaluation services for international development programs. Katie also served for 12 years at Chemonics International, where she led a range of global health and private sector initiatives, including projects funded by the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). Katie has skills integrating gender, youth, social inclusion, and climate change mitigation and adaptation into program activities. She brings knowledge of policies and strategies to combat global human trafficking through past support to strategic planning for the Alliance to End Slavery and Trafficking and other country-level anti-trafficking work. Katie has experience in Africa (Burkina Faso, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Uganda, and Zambia), Asia (Cambodia, Kyrgyzstan, Maldives, Myanmar, Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Thailand) and in Haiti. She speaks fluent French and conversational Wolof and Spanish and studied Arabic in Syria. She holds a bachelor’s degree in history and political science from Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, and a master’s degree in international public policy from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) in Washington, D.C.
Amy Talbot supports global health program implementation and project management at Panagora, with a focus on optimizing health systems, program impact, knowledge management, and adaptive learning. She has more than 15 years of experience managing complex global health programs funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Millennium Challenge Corporation, USAID, and CDC. At Panagora, she serves as Program Director for the USAID Global Health Supply Chain Program–Procurement and Supply Management (GHSC-PSM) project. Amy specializes in program operations, supply chain management, and health systems strengthening with a passion for supporting local teams to drive sustainable impact. Prior to joining Panagora, Amy held roles at University Research Co., LLC (URC), Chemonics International, JSI, and served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Rwanda. She has provided technical and operational support to programs across more than a dozen countries, including Ethiopia, Haiti, Lesotho, Malawi, Mali, Nigeria, Rwanda, Timor-Leste, Uganda, Vietnam, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Amy holds a master’s degree in public health from Boston University and a bachelor’s degree in international affairs from George Washington University.
