John E. Craig, Jr., The Commonwealth Fund's Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, has announced he will retire at the end of 2014, after 33 years at the Fund. Since joining the foundation in 1981, Craig's impact on The Commonwealth Fund—and on the field of philanthropy—has been profound. First as vice president and treasurer, and, since 1992, as executive vice president, Craig has overseen an endowment that has more than quintupled since his arrival, and in doing so, has shored up the Fund's capacity to continue enhancing "the common good" for decades to come. His skills and vision extend to the administration of the foundation as well. The systems he has developed to increase the effectiveness of the Fund's grantmaking, as well as the efficiency and transparency of its operations, have not only maximized the foundation's impact in the world; they have served as models for other foundations to follow.
Prior to joining the Fund, Craig had an impressive and varied career. A graduate of Davidson College and Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, he was a Foreign Service reserve officer in Vietnam from 1968 to 1971, commanding combined military and civilian advisory teams in the Mekong Delta. Following this service, he was an economic advisor to the planning and finance ministries of several Asian and African countries while associated with the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Department of Commerce.
Craig's work with foundations began when he directed the Health Policy Research Group at Georgetown University School of Medicine; besides conducting general research on private foundation and governmental health care activities, he helped evaluate and design several programs sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, he launched the John A. Hartford Foundation's health care financing reform program.
Among his many early contributions after his arrival at the Fund, Craig established a system for ongoing appraisal of institutional performance that has served as a guidepost for the foundation world. He writes regularly on foundation endowment investment and management issues, with his most recent publication being The Archives of U.S. Foundations: An Endangered Species (The Commonwealth Fund, 2012). For these essays and many other innovations, he has become a national leader in articulating principles of sound foundation management.
"It is not often that it can be said of a key officer's retirement that the organization's prior and future successes are directly related to one man's efforts, but in this case, it's the truth," said Blumenthal. "John Craig's contributions have made it possible for The Commonwealth Fund to continue to pursue its mission of a high-performing health care system for the U.S. both now and long into the future. He will be sorely missed, not only for his intellect, judgment, and integrity, but for his kindness and humanity."
The search for a new Executive Vice President and COO is being conducted by Russell Reynolds Associates. The position is featured on the Fund's website. Inquiries should be directed to Ms. Kate Harvey who can be reached at 212-351-2278 or via email at [email protected].