Senior Leadership

Our professional network worldwide is comprised of 1,400 development professionals, the majority of whom are from the “host” country, helping us to build local capacity and foster sustainability. Eighty percent of MSI’s core technical work is performed by a group of 100 in-house professionals. Staff and associates are highly proficient in MSI’s tools, techniques, approaches and underlying philosophy prior to embarking on an assignment of any size or scope.

MSI’s senior leadership, based in Washington, D.C. is comprised of seasoned development professionals who oversee business development, operations, and strategic communications; and also work intensively on a variety of technical topics from the home office and in the field.

 

  • Larry Cooley
    President

    Mr. Cooley founded MSI, now a part of Coffey International Development, in 1981. He is a specialist in strategic management, public sector performance and organizational development. He has served as an advisor to cabinet officials in federal agencies and in more than a dozen countries. For 15 years, he was the Chairperson of the American Society of Public Administration’s Development Management Network and received its National Award for Training Excellence. He directed USAID’s Implementing Policy Change program that assisted governments worldwide and, beginning in 2006, oversaw a 7-year effort to rebuild Iraqi public administration. He previously worked at the World Bank, UNPD and as a Peace Corps volunteer.

    He was elected as a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration in 2008 and, in 2011, was elected to serve as the North American representative on the Governing Council of the Society for International Development (SID). He serves on the Executive Committee of the Professional Services Council, on the Advisory Board of Elma Philanthropies, and as a Trustee of World Learning. Mr. Cooley holds a master’s in Economics from Columbia University, MPA in Public Policy from Princeton, and M. Phil. in Management from the UK’s Cranfield School of Management.

     

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    Marina Fanning
    Executive Vice President

    Ms. Fanning has more than 30 years of experience as a senior trainer specializing in management skills development. She has managed hundreds of projects for U.S. and foreign government agencies, international organizations and private sector firms in Latin America, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. She possesses an in-depth understanding of USAID’s culture, procedures and management. She designed and implemented MSI’s Entrepreneurship Development Program as the Senior Master Trainer of Trainers. As the Executive Director of the Inter-American Literacy Foundation, she was responsible for designing and implementing innovative community development and non-formal education projects in 18 countries in Latin America. She is fluent in and conducts training in Spanish, French and Portuguese. She has a master’s in organizational development from American University.

     

  • Brown, Keith_web
    Keith Brown
    Senior Vice President, Programs

    Mr. Brown leads the firm’s Strategic Management and Performance Improvement practice area. He has designed organizational strategic planning and performance measurement systems for USAID, the Department of Labor, the International Labor Organization and the WFP. He has extensive technical expertise in designing and conducting evaluations, data collection methods and statistical analysis. He developed a range of products for client organizations that support the installation of planning and management systems, including policies and procedures, training materials, and analytic instruments. He holds a master’s in international affairs from Columbia University and a bachelor’s in government and economics from St. Lawrence University.

     

  • Carter, Lynn
    Lynn Carter
    Senior Vice President, Democracy, Governance and Conflict Mitigation

    Ms. Carter has developed democracy and governance (DG) and conflict mitigation programs since 1992. She helped USAID to develop a framework for assessing democratization that has been used since 1997. She conducted DG assessments and strategy development in 24 countries and applied research on violent extremism and the role of development assistance in mitigating risk. She led a team to produce the first handbook of indicators for measuring progress in DG programs and developed democratization results frameworks. She has extensive strategic planning, training, performance monitoring and evaluation experience. She has a PhD from the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies in Political Development and the Comparative Politics of the Middle East and a master’s degree from Harvard.

     

  • Griminger, Andy
    Andrew Griminger
    Senior Vice President for Business Development

    Mr. Griminger oversees MSI’s regional approach with an emphasis on the Middle East. He is a specialist in institution building/organizational development, project design and management, and entrepreneurship development. He led numerous projects in and consulted throughout the Middle East for more than 20 years. He was USAID’s Technical Director on Iraq’s initial $4 billion reconstruction project and led USAID’s $340 million public administration reform project on behalf of MSI. He previously managed the Defense Department’s bilateral weapons programs, focusing the Arabian Gulf. He has worked extensively in Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Yemen. He holds a bachelor’s in Russian studies from the University of Illinois and a master’s in International Affairs from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs. He speaks Arabic and German.

     

  • Renzi, Mark
    Mark Renzi
    Senior Vice President

    In addition to his marketing responsibilities, Mr. Renzi’s technical work focuses on project evaluation, policy analysis and implementation, project management, and management improvement. He has consulted profit, non-profit, governmental and international organizations in 35 countries, with expertise in Brazil, Sudan and Georgia. He previously served as the Technical Director for a diamond policy and management project in Sierra Leone, as well as the Sudan SUPPORT project. In Tanzania, he was Chief of Party for USAID’s policy and institutional strengthening activity. Prior to MSI, he was a management consultant at a New York City firm. He holds a master’s in public affairs and urban and regional planning, as well as a second-degree black belt.

     

  • Stacy Stacks
    Chief Management Officer

    Ms. Stacks has extensive experience with U.S. federal acquisition regulations, USAID-specific procurement and is current on acquisition streamlining initiatives and reforms, costing and compliance. She manages large and complex projects from procurement planning through contract execution, managing more than 50 project management professionals. She coordinated the USAID Agency Performance Report, Agency Performance Plan, production of the Department of Health and Human Services 2001-2006 Strategic Plan and the 2003-2007 Plan, as well as led the HIV/AIDS strategic planning for the combined task force of agency leaders. She has also consulted with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, USAID, United Nations, the U.K. government, the Food and Agriculture Organization, and several civil society organizations.


  • Wise, Paul
    Paul Wise
    Chief Financial Officer

    Mr. Wise has held high-level executive positions, directing the work of organizations in excess of 600 employees. He has a specialized knowledge of governmental cost accounting, financial planning, and financial statement analysis. Paul was previously the Vice President for Lockheed Martin Financial Shared Services and held other high-level finance positions for them in accounting, financial analysis, budgeting and government accounting policy. He has extensive knowledge of Government Cost Accounting Standards (CAS) and Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR). He has been active in the Private Sector Council, where he consulted with federal agencies. Paul holds a master’s in business administration and a bachelor’s degree in biology from Michigan State University.

     

  • Yount, Ellen
    Ellen Yount
    Senior Vice President for Strategic Communications and External Relations

    Ms. Yount has more than 20 years of experience in global media relations and strategic communications. She oversees strategic communications and marketing for Coffey International Development and coordinates MSI’s corporate communications efforts. She has advised governments and donor-funded development projects and trained in more than 30 countries. As USAID’s former press director and Director of Communications for Governor Tom Ridge (PA), she has served as a senior advisor to USAID on foreign aid communications efforts since 2005 and to the HELP Commission and the U.S. Peace Corps. She currently serves as the Advisory Group co-chair for the Coalition of International Development Companies (CIDC). She spent more than five years in the Balkans, as the International Republican Institute’s country director for Serbia and Croatia. A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Allegheny College, she received a master’s degree from Tufts University’s Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.