Panagora is excited to welcome Benjamin Feit as our first Chief Operating Officer, a milestone for the company. In this position, Ben will play a pivotal role in driving Panagora’s continued growth and impact, leading strategic planning, cultivating partnerships, and fostering innovation and learning.
A seasoned and inspiring executive leader with 30 years of experience, Ben has gained a reputation as a thought leader who is committed to impactful programming, continuous learning, and creating positive change globally. For the past 15 years, Ben has held a variety of US-based positions with an emphasis on strategic leadership, business development, and driving next generation operating models for leading international development organizations such as DAI, Deloitte, and CARE US. Most recently, Ben was Chief Growth Officer for Creative Associates, responsible for business development, marketing and communications, and growth strategy amidst a shifting landscape in international development.
“I am thrilled to have Ben join Panagora as our first COO,” said Betsy Bassan, Panagora’s founder, President, and CEO. “Ben brings a unique set of skills and experience to help take Panagora to the next level in our rapidly evolving field at this juncture in our journey. He is a rare find, bringing a wonderful blend of entrepreneurship, executive experience, and successful overseas work. As important, he is a person of exceptional integrity and is known for his can-do, collaborative, and supportive management style. He will fit right into and help advance Panagora’s culture of inclusion and employee co-ownership.”
Ben’s technical focus is public sector management, democratic governance, and social accountability, with a cross-cutting emphasis on systems strengthening, and monitoring, evaluation, and learning. Earlier in his career, Ben lived and worked in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where he was USAID’s governance advisor supporting post-war reconciliation; Romania and Niger, where he managed multi-year democracy, rights, and governance work; and South Africa, where he helped provincial governments more equitably deliver health and education infrastructure. Since 2010, Ben has served as an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, designing and teaching master’s level classes on development aid management, state institution building, and locally led development. With this impressive background, Ben will strengthen Panagora’s existing work, as well as lead us into adjacent areas.
“Panagora’s vibrant and inclusive employee-ownership culture was a real draw for me,” Ben remarked. “I could not be more excited to join this fast-growing company that is at the leading edge of global health security, programmatic learning and adaptation, and localized management and delivery including organizational strengthening in the public and private sectors.”