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The Rockefeller Foundation announced that Ashvin Dayal has been named Chief Operating Officer (COO). Mr. Dayal, who has been at the Foundation since 2008 and worked in development institutions, programs, and operations for decades, will succeed Natalye Paquin, who will retire on August 1, 2026.
“Natalye leaves behind a Foundation that is more capable, more connected, and more human than the one she joined — and all of us owe her an enormous debt of gratitude for that,” said Dr. Rajiv J. Shah, President of The Rockefeller Foundation. “And I can think of no one better to build on her legacy than Ashvin. During his 17 years at the Foundation, he has demonstrated again and again the ability to build for the long term — developing teams, forging partnerships, making big bets, and building operations that deliver real results. Now, he brings that same vision and operational discipline to ensuring The Rockefeller Foundation has the structures, systems, and talent to meet this moment.”
As COO, Mr. Dayal will oversee the 113-year-old philanthropic organization’s Connected Leaders Program, Bellagio Center, Foundation Services, Human Resources, Information Technology, Finance, and Legal teams, as well as its workforce and offices in the United States, Africa, Asia, Colombia, and Italy. He will also serve as President of RF Catalytic Capital, which, as the charitable offshoot of The Rockefeller Foundation, has a mission to channel funding to places and people in a faster and more efficient manner, serving both investors and recipients with visionary solutions that help solve today’s most urgent challenges.
“The Rockefeller Foundation has a unique ability to shape the solutions, build the institutions, and mobilize the resources needed to bring opportunity and change in an ever more dynamic world,” said Mr. Dayal. “I’ve seen firsthand what our Foundation can do when its operational engine is firing on all cylinders. I look forward to working with Raj and the entire Rockefeller Foundation team to strengthen the systems, deepen our partnerships, and build the organizational excellence that will allow us to keep delivering on our century-long promise to improve the well-being of people around the world.”
As a key architect of the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet — the Foundation’s largest single investment in its 113-year history — Mr. Dayal helped bring the Alliance from idea to reality. Since launching in 2021, the Alliance has implemented projects that are on track to connect more than 90 million people to electricity in over 30 countries worldwide, while creating 3.1 million jobs and reducing nearly 300 million tons of carbon emissions.
Mr. Dayal joined The Rockefeller Foundation in 2008 as its Asia Managing Director, running the Foundation’s regional office in Bangkok, where he led the Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network — a nine-year partnership that equipped more than 50 cities across the continent to better withstand climate impacts.
He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economic Geography from the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London and a Master’s degree in Economics and International Development from the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.
