WASHINGTON, Jan. 15, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- On Monday, January 13, ACDI/VOCA's board of directors expressed their gratitude to Carl Leonard for his leadership as president and CEO of the organization for the past 8½ years, and they welcomed Bill Polidoro as the organization's new president and CEO.
"Carl has been an outstanding leader of ACDI/VOCA, seeing the organization through challenging transitions but also through a remarkable period of growth. He has played a major role in increasing the organization's professionalism and status. We're sorry to see him go, but we know that with Bill at the helm, ACDI/VOCA will continue to evolve and thrive," said Chairman Mortimer Neufville.
Mr. Leonard announced in June 2013 that he would retire at the end of the year, after marking ACDI/VOCA's 50th anniversary.
Mr. Leonard has served as ACDI/VOCA's chief executive since July 2005 and has overseen a doubling of the organization's annual revenues. He joined ACDI/VOCA in 2001 as senior vice president for Global Programs and the Latin America Division. Prior to joining ACDI/VOCA, he served USAID as a mission director in three countries and as acting assistant administrator for Latin America and the Caribbean. He achieved the rank of career minister in the Senior Foreign Service and received the agency's Distinguished Career Service Award.
Bill Polidoro joined ACDI/VOCA in October 2005 as senior vice president for special projects and ascended to the role of chief operating officer in February 2006. He came to ACDI/VOCA from Pact, Inc., where he served as director for the Africa region. Mr. Polidoro earned his doctorate in development anthropology at the American University, in Washington, D.C. He worked in Guinea for USAID as a personal services contractor, managing an integrated natural resource management (NRM) program. Subsequent assignments with Pact, Datex and Development Assistance Corporation included strengthening public administration, agricultural marketing, NRM and environment, livelihoods, and civil society development, including community responses to HIV/AIDS. Since joining ACDI/VOCA, Mr. Polidoro has introduced significant improvements in project management and operational support systems.
"Bill's in-depth knowledge of our organization, proven track record and profound understanding of the competitive environment will be of tremendous value as ACDI/VOCA builds upon its success in recent years," said Mr. Neufville.
About ACDI/VOCA
Based in Washington, D.C., ACDI/VOCA is a nonprofit international development organization that delivers technical and management assistance in agribusiness, financial services, enterprise development, community development and food security in order to promote broad-based economic growth and vibrant civil society. ACDI/VOCA currently has approximately 60 projects in 30 countries.