January 27, 2015 —  The International Rescue Committee (IRC) today announced that it is expanding its Leadership Board, adding three sector leaders as the organisation begins to roll out a new global strategy. Ciarán Donnelly, who has served in a series of domestic and international roles since joining the IRC in 2001, will become the organisation’s Vice President, International Programmes. Jodi Nelson, who previously served at the IRC, will rejoin as Senior Vice President, Policy and Practice. Nelson currently is the Director of Strategy, Measurement and Evaluation at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. And Amanda Seller, who currently serves as Head of Private Fundraising for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, will become the IRC’s Senior Vice President, Revenue. 

“Those we serve need the very best,” said IRC President and CEO David Miliband. “We are thrilled that these sector leaders are joining our team and our efforts to continue to meet the needs of the millions worldwide whose lives have been shattered by conflict and disaster.” 

According to Miliband, Nelson, Seller and Donnelly will assume key roles in guiding the organisation as it implements an ambitious global strategy developed during the past year in collaboration with IRC staff and sector experts. Built on the organisation’s existing strengths, the new strategy is designed to help the IRC – and the sector – meet the evolving needs of the world’s refugees and displaced people with increasingly evidence-based, higher-impact and more cost-effective programming.

The new leaders bring a unique mix of major accomplishments, knowledge and experience to their respective roles:

Ciarán Donnelly, Vice President, International Programmes

As Vice President, International Programmes, Donnelly will oversee IRC’s humanitarian field operations in more than 30 countries, as well as the organisation’s response to new emergencies as they arise. Donnelly joined the IRC in 2001, having previously worked for the Irish humanitarian agency Concern Worldwide, and has extensive overseas experience in East Timor, Burundi, Uganda, Afghanistan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Jodi Nelson, Senior Vice President, Policy and Practice

As Senior Vice President, Policy and Practice, Nelson will have overall strategic and operational responsibility for IRC programme technical units – including Research and Evaluation, as well as Global Advocacy and Strategic Communications. Nelson joins IRC after six years at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, where she was the organisation’s head of strategy, measurement and evaluation, working across program areas in global health, development, advocacy and U.S. education.

Nelson has an especially relevant connection to the IRC’s new strategy given that she built and led the organisation’s global Research and Evaluation team from 2001 to 2008. Her intellectual leadership and innovative efforts to bridge the gap between academic research and field programmes started IRC on the path it is currently on to become a leader in evidence-based policy and practice. 

Amanda Seller, Senior Vice President, Revenue

In her role as Senior Vice President, Revenue, Seller will lead the evolution of the IRC’s financial and public engagement efforts with an emphasis on private fundraising. With global oversight of five major functions and as key spokesperson, she will play a critical role in developing, articulating and communicating the future vision of the organisation. During her six-year tenure at UNHCR, Seller led fundraising programs in 27 countries and a six-fold increase in UNHCR’s private income.

In the coming weeks, Nelson, Seller and Donnelly will join the following as members of the IRC Leadership Board: