Daniel FitzGerald Runde

Daniel FitzGerald Runde (born January 21, 1972) is a senior executive and strategist in international development, international trade, investment, global business and organizational change. Runde is the author of the book, "The American Imperative: Reclaiming Global Leadership through Soft Power."

Currently, Runde is the senior vice president at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and holds the William A. Schreyer Chair in Global Analysis. He is also the director of the Project on Prosperity and Development.

He was an architect of the BUILD Act which led to a major reform of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) and created the US Development Finance Corporation (DFC). He testified before the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives related to the BUILD Act. He was consulted by the U.S. government in the preparation of PROSPER Africa-an initiative to deeper trade and development ties between the United States and Africa. Runde also contributed to the reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) in 2019.

In 2017, Runde convened a bipartisan Task Force on the Future of U.S. Foreign Assistance in the context of a major review by the U.S. government of its foreign aid. The Task Force persuaded the U.S. Government to maintain the U.S. Agency for International Development as an independent agency. He has chaired the Advisory Committee on Voluntary Foreign Aid at USAID (2018-2021), which coordinates relations between the U.S. government and private voluntary organizations (PVOs) engaged in relief, rehabilitation, and development abroad, and the EXIM Sub-Saharan Africa Advisory Committee (2019-2022), which helps guide the development and implementation of policies and programs designed to promote EXIM’s engagement in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Runde has played a role in the election of several key multilateral posts starting in 2018. In 2019, Runde was a supporter of David Malpass for President of the World Bank. In 2019 and 2020, Runde supported Mr. Darren Tang as Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization. Runde also played a significant role in the election of Matias Cormann as Secretary-General of the OECD in 2021.

Runde is often cited an expert on international political affairs and an advocate of American leadership in global economic development. He writes and speaks on global development and U.S. foreign policy at symposia including the World Economic Forum for which he also serves as a member of its Global Agenda Council on the United States.

At CSIS, Runde has hosted several public and private discussions that sought to influence governments (both the United States and foreign) on various policy issues, including general capital increases for multilateral institutions, reorganization of the State Department and USAID and ongoing development projects such as Power Africa.

Runde was awarded the Order of Isabella the Catholic (Orden de Isabel la Católica) by the Spanish Government in 2017 for his support of Spanish unity. On November 3, 2022, at a ceremony at the official residence, Brazilian Ambassador Nestor Forster Jr. awarded the Order of Rio Branco to Mr. Runde. Runde also received a decoration from Colombian President Ivan Duque for Runde’s dedication to the U.S.-Colombian bilateral relations.

Support for Ukraine
Runde has played an active role in mobilizing U.S. and international support for Ukraine.

Since May 2022, Runde has served as Director of the Ukraine Economic Reconstruction Commission at CSIS, a bipartisan and international project with the goal of producing a policy framework for a future Ukraine.

Runde convened the CSIS Doing Business in Ukraine Conference in September 2023 to discuss Ukrainian business and trade opportunities with the U.S. and G-7 allies.

At the 2024 World Economic Forum in Davos, Runde participated in two panels at Ukraine House Davos discussing views on Ukraine in Washington and the need to galvanize global support for Ukraine

Runde sits on the board of the Western NIS Enterprise Fund (WNISEF), a $285 million fund investing in small and medium-sized enterprises active in Ukraine and Moldova. WNISEF was an investor in Horizon Capital “HCGF IV” Fund and Runde met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv for the official signing ceremony on April 28, 2023.

HCGF IV is “the first growth capital and largest fund raised since the onset of the full-fledged invasion.”

Runde currently serves on the board of Spirit of America and the International Foundation for Electoral Systems.

Early years (1994-2002)
Runde began his career in financial services and corporate finance at Alex. Brown and Sons (now part of Deutsche Bank) in Baltimore, Maryland. Later, he worked as an assistant vice president for commercial banking at Citibank in Buenos Aires.

Bush Administration (2002-2007)
Runde joined the USAID in 2002, under the Bush Administration. At the USAID, he led the GDA partnership initiative by providing training, networks, staff, funds, and advice to establish and strengthen alliances. Under Runde, the GDA initiative was recognized by Harvard University as a runner-up for the Innovations in Government Award.

World Bank (2007-2010)
In 2007, Runde joined the private-sector arm of the World Bank Group, the IFC, where he was the head of the Foundations Unit for the Department of Partnerships and Advisory Service Operations.

CSIS (2010-present)
Runde joined CSIS in 2010, where he currently holds the William A. Schreyer Chair in Global Analysis. He focuses on the role of non-military power in an age of Great Power Competition.

Runde is a regular contributor to The Hill and hosts a CSIS podcast series, “Building the Future with Dan Runde: Freedom, Prosperity, & Foreign Policy.”

Role in policy design
Runde's role in policy design also includes public testimonies before the U.S. Congress. In July 2016, he testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development. In November 2017, Runde also testified before the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific, where he emphasized the role of development finance and U.S. federal agencies like United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) and Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) in securing American leadership in Asia. In the international space, Runde has testified before the Canadian Parliament's Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development. He has also testified before the Australian Parliament. He has advised several governments, including the United States, Japan, Australia, Canada, South Korea and Denmark as well as the World Bank and United Nations.

Runde is a life member of the Council of Foreign Relations.

He is a member of the Bretton Woods Committee.

Politics
Having served during the Bush Administration, Runde is very active in Republican politics. Runde served as a key foreign policy advisor and fundraiser for Governor Scott Walker's 2016 Presidential Campaign. Runde serves as the chairperson for the international assistance working group within the John Hay Initiative (JHI), a network of foreign policy experts who have briefed or are advising many of the Republican candidates in the 2016 presidential election. In October 2011, Runde was named as member of Governor Mitt Romney's Foreign Policy and National Security Advisory team as co-chair of Governor Romney's International Assistance Working Group. Representing the Romney campaign, Runde joined a bipartisan delegation, led by Senator Norm Coleman and organized by the ONE Campaign, to visit Liberia and Ghana in 2012.

He has also authored the international assistance chapter in the JHI Book, Choosing to Lead: American Foreign Policy for a Disordered World. From 1999 to 2000, Runde chaired Republicans Abroad in Argentina.

Personal
Dan Runde is the son of James A. Runde (former partner of Morgan Stanley) and M. Barbara FitzGerald. Runde went to Dartmouth College, where he received his Bachelor of Arts (cum laude) in Government in 1994. He also received his Master of Public Policy from the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University. He is married to Sonia Cavallo, the daughter of Domingo Cavallo, former Argentine Economy Minister and Foreign Minister. She has been proposed as Argentina's Ambassador to the Organization of American States. He and his wife have three sons.