Gail J. McGovern (born 1952) is an American businessperson, who became president and CEO of the American Red Cross on June 23, 2008. McGovern held top management positions at AT&T Corporation and Fidelity Investments. She is a member of the board of trustees of Johns Hopkins University and the board of directors of DTE Energy.[1]
Gail McGovern | |
|---|---|
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| President of the American Red Cross | |
| Assumed office June 23, 2008 | |
| Preceded by | Bonnie McElveen-Hunter |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1952 (age 71–72) Springfield, New Jersey, U.S |
| Alma mater | Johns Hopkins University Columbia Business School |
| Occupation | Corporate executive; non-profit executive |
Early life edit
Born in 1952 and raised as Gail J. Rosenberg in Springfield, New Jersey. She was born into a jewish family, her father fighting on Omaha beach [2] She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in quantitative sciences from Johns Hopkins University in 1974[3] and an MBA from Columbia Business School in 1987.[3]
Career edit
She began at AT&T Corporation as a programmer also working in sales, marketing and management.[3] Eventually she became the executive vice president of the consumer markets division, the largest business unit, responsible for $26 billion in residential long-distance service.[3] She held this role from 1997 to 1998.[4]
She joined Fidelity Investments in September 1998 as president of distribution and services.[3][4] Her department served 4 million customers with $500 billion in assets.[3]
She was recognized by Fortune magazine in 2000 and 2001 as one of the top 50 most powerful women in corporate America.[3]
She joined the faculty of the Harvard Business School in June 2002 where she taught marketing and consumer marketing to first and second year students.[3][4] McGovern was an adjunct faculty of the Harvard Business School.
She assumed the role of president and CEO of the American Red Cross on June 23, 2008,[3] replacing Mark W. Everson, a former IRS commissioner and becoming the seventh chief in seven years.[5] In June she joined a delegation of 30 community leaders organized by the United States Agency for International Development to visit China and those affected by the 2008 Sichuan earthquake.[6] The focus of her work at the Red Cross has been to improve the image of the Red Cross brand and thereby increase donations.[5]
In 2015 McGovern became embroiled in a controversy, after writing a letter to congressman Bennie Thompson, which appeared to be an attempt to quash a congressional investigation into the Red Cross's dealing with the federal government during its disaster relief work.[7]
In October 2023, it was announced that McGovern would retire as president and CEO on June 30, 2024.[8]
Honors and awards edit
On May 27, 2020, McGovern was invited to and gave special remarks at her alma mater Johns Hopkins University's 2020 Commencement ceremony.[9] Other notable guest speakers during the virtual ceremony included Reddit co-founder and Commencement speaker Alexis Ohanian; philanthropist and former New York City Mayor, Michael Bloomberg; Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and later leading member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force; and senior class president Pavan Patel.[10]
McGovern was selected for the inaugural 2021 Forbes 50 Over 50; made up of entrepreneurs, leaders, scientists and creators who are over the age of 50.[11]
Personal edit
She currently resides in Washington, D.C., with her husband, Donald E. McGovern. She has three children and two grandchildren.[3]
References edit
- ^ "Muckety Listing". Muckety LLC. Archived from the original on 2008-08-20. Retrieved 2009-01-22.
- ^ https://www.redcross.org/content/dam/redcross/enterprise-assets/pdfs/Gail-McGovern-In-Her-Own-Words.pdf
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Gail J. McGovern, CEO, President of the American Red Cross" (Press release). The American Red Cross. 2008-04-08. Archived from the original on 2020-07-12. Retrieved 2020-08-11.
- ^ a b c "Forbes Profile". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2009-09-11. Retrieved 2009-01-22.
- ^ a b Rucker, Philip (2008-09-12). "Red Cross CEO's 'Trial by Hurricane'". Washington Post. p. B01. Archived from the original on 2012-11-07. Retrieved 2009-01-22.
- ^ "China Earthquake Update: New President Gail J. McGovern Visits Affected Region". Red Cross Chat. 2008-06-30. Archived from the original on 2009-01-04. Retrieved 2009-01-22.
- ^ Sullivan, Laura (17 August 2015). "In Private Letter, Red Cross Tried To End Government Inquiry". NPR. Archived from the original on 17 August 2015. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
- ^ "American Red Cross President and CEO Gail McGovern to Retire" (Press release). American Red Cross. October 31, 2023. Retrieved March 5, 2024.
- ^ Eva Chen (2020-05-21). "Johns Hopkins Alumni Welcome the Class of 2020". Johns Hopkins University. Archived from the original on 2020-05-30. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
- ^ Hub staff report (2020-05-21). "Senior class president Pavan Patel said the Class of 2020 is "ready to make its mark"". Johns Hopkins University. Archived from the original on 2020-05-30. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
- ^ Gross, Elana Lyn; Voytko, Lisette; McGrath, Maggie (2021-06-02). "The New Golden Age". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2021-06-07. Retrieved 2021-06-02.