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Josh Gagliardo, Consultant

Josh Gagliardo is a strategic thought leader and a visionary problem solver with an aptitude for elevating teams and driving results. Josh has been recognized for his agile decision-making style, business acumen, and expertise in community engagement.

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Josh’s proven track record includes award-winning performance at public and private operating companies, corporate data analytics, board recruitment, sales and marketing, B2B solutions, nonprofit fundraising, and strategy development at a Fortune 100 company. This supports the idea of enabling a nonprofit to achieve its most successful ever fundraiser by raising $90K in three days, using design thinking to identify over 50 growth opportunities at a national quick-service restaurant chain that boosted sales led to multiple company-wide rollouts, developing a nonprofit board training program to facilitate a 33% growth in board size, and leveraging Gapology to advise executive-level staff on strategies to optimize net operating income (NOI).

Josh was acclaimed for his values-based leadership and passion for winning after demonstrating an unwavering commitment to investing in others and helping to keep a group of stores open amidst severe staffing shortages in the days immediately following Hurricane Irma.

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Josh later went on to support major donor outreach work for a nonprofit organization by leveraging the Benevon model, where he helped to secure over $490M in annual gross receipts.

The two-time New York Times #1 bestseller How to Win Friends and Influence People explains “the world is full of people who are grabbing and self-seeking. So the rare individual who unselfishly tries to serve others has an enormous advantage... People who can put themselves in the place of other people who can understand the workings of their minds, need never worry about what the future has in store for them.” Josh drives performance through empathy and servant leadership.

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Josh began his work at Mastercard in 2023. He cultivates positive and enduring change through his efficiency and engagement on high-performance teams.

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Josh has been an outspoken ambassador for expanding Mastercard's nonprofit and pro bono client portfolio. He is a catalyst for inclusive growth within Mastercard, serving on the governing boards and planning committees of the Latin, Asian, and African American resource groups. Josh's extensive background in strategy, marketing, and governance, combined with his ability to build strong partnerships across the nonprofit sector, have delivered transformative results throughout his career.

Josh serves on:

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• Pro Bono Outreach Committee / Data for Good and Social Impact Programs at Mastercard

• Board of Directors Development Committee / DC Arts and Humanities Education Collaborative, a.k.a. DC Collaborative

• Board of Directors Nominations Committee / Family & Youth Initiative of Washington DC

Professional History

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Previously, Josh conferred two managerial positions at operating companies through internal promotion, where he led three award-winning teams and worked both jobs (full-time) simultaneously for four consecutive years during college. Prior to that, Josh co-founded the First Assembly Food Bank in his local community, which used unsold inventory from nearby bakeries and grocery stores to feed 30-50 families weekly, logging over 15,000 volunteer hours from ten highly devoted volunteers. Josh was also recruited from his studies to Harvard Business School by executive advisor Dr. Eugene B. Kogan, Ph.D., to perform cutting-edge research based on John F. Kennedy’s strategic negotiations during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

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Undergraduate Thesis / "The Impact of Digital Currencies on Corporate Business Operations in the United States"

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Education

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Harvard Extension School / ALB cum laude
Harvard Business School / CORe with honors
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Harvard DCE / Organizational Behavior 16-Credit Professional Graduate Certificate
Harvard DCE / Project Management 16-Credit Professional Graduate Certificate

Harvard Extension School / Dean's List Honors conferred 2020-2024