Bio

Susan Rae Ross is the founder and CEO of SR International, a private consulting company that provides corporations, nonprofits and government agencies with strategies and tools to actively manage their stakeholder engagement processes and facilitates successful partnerships across traditional sectors. Ms. Ross is a highly regarded business woman, international health and development expert, author and speaker who aims to improve the lives of vulnerable groups.

Capitalizing on more than 20 years of stakeholder engagement, nonprofit management and technical consulting experience in over 30 countries around the globe, Susan works with institutions, both in the US and internationally, to forge effective multi-sectoral partnerships to promote sustainable development efforts. She has led, brokered and evaluated many collaborative efforts among diverse stakeholders. Susan has developed several innovative tools and a systematic partnership approach that assists organizations to design and execute efficient partnerships and evaluate the “value-added” aspects of the partnership. She also provides strategic planning; organization development; and technical and analytical expertise in various aspects of healthcare.

Ms. Ross is currently writing her third book that focuses on the importance of multi-sectoral partnerships. The book examines current trends, benefits and challenges of these partnerships as well as providing a meta-analysis of cases studies from around the world and a step-by-step decision tree on how to select and mange partnerships.

Prior to establishing SR International, Susan was CARE’s Director of Reproductive Health where she  propelled an innovative, state-of the-art program that positioned CARE as a leader in the field of maternal and newborn health.  Before her CARE tenure, she served as a Health Advisor for United States Agency International Development (USAID) in several countries. In this capacity she oversaw many large scale, multi-country projects. She also spearheaded several key policy change efforts that were adopted by USAID and several other multilateral organizations.

Susan holds a dual Masters in Business Administration degree from Purdue University and Tilburg University in the Netherlands, a Masters in Public Health degree from University of Illinois and a Bachelor of Science in nursing degree from the State University of New York at Plattsburg.