After a thorough global search, the Board of Directors is pleased to announce the selection of Tracie Cordeiro, CFO, as the new President and CEO of Friendship Bridge. Cordeiro will officially assume the position on January 23, 2023, working closely with the current President and CEO, Karen Larson, until that time to ensure a smooth transition.

Cordeiro joined Friendship Bridge more than four years ago and has become a trusted advisor to Larson and the leadership team ever since. Throughout these years, she has had the opportunity to work in Guatemala and travel around the country visiting staff and clients.

“We are very excited to welcome Tracie Cordeiro on as our new CEO!  Karen Larson has brought Friendship Bridge to a level of excellence over the past 13 years that is reflected in all aspects of our organization and Tracie’s combination of experience with her knowledge of Friendship Bridge and the passion and dedication she brings to her work make her an ideal CEO for the next stages of growth.”
– Susie Miller, Friendship Bridge Board of Directors Chair

Cordeiro is a CPA, fluent in English and Spanish and brings 25 years of valuable finance and managerial experience to the CEO role.  Before joining Friendship Bridge, for 11 years she helped lead the finance and procurement area of Opera Australia, a 100 million dollar nonprofit organization. This experience exposed her to many key dynamics such as leadership, fundraising and strategic planning. Prior to that, she worked in finance and leadership positions for Honeywell and KPMG in the U.S., Europe and Asia Pacific, where she gained deep, technical experience in finance, accounting and audit, working in both English and Spanish across a diverse portfolio of industries and organizations. These qualifications, paired with her ability to motivate and inspire trust and confidence in those around her, made her an excellent choice for the role.

A Wisconsin native and current Colorado resident, Cordeiro is a summa cum laude graduate of Arizona State University with a BA in accounting and a minor in Spanish. As a mother of two girls, Cordeiro is excited to take on the new position that will allow her to have greater influence in empowering Guatemalan women.

“I am thrilled with the selection of Tracie as my successor, and I know Tracie is passionate about our mission. As the CFO, Tracie has been intimately involved in building our strategic plan with me and the leadership team and is familiar with every financial detail of our organization.”
– Karen Larson, President and CEO

The Board of Directors elected the Executive Search and Transition Committee, composed of four board members. The committee engaged an external recruitment search firm specializing in nonprofit executive placement to guide us through the search and transition process. A very robust, transparent, and inclusive process was implemented and followed for the past several months to ensure we selected the best candidate.