By John Marshall
With great pride, we introduce you to one of our newest team members. Brad Wisdom is not only our Chief Global Development Officer, he is also a newly selected member on Business Elite’s “40 Under 40” list—a prestigious award program that identifies “outstanding young executives in the world’s business.”
Brad brings experience and great enthusiasm to our work at Miracle Foundation, and we pulled him away from his work long enough to answer a few questions for us.
Q: For those who don’t know, what exactly does a Chief Global Development Officer do?
A: In a nutshell, I am responsible for the strategy, execution, and evaluation of our revenue sources that fuel the mission of the organization. In that, I have a team of fundraisers and marketing professionals that deliver on the strategy and execution of the work. The team and I are also responsible for PR, external affairs, marketing & communications, volunteer and partner engagement, and much more.
Q: What do you enjoy most about the work you do?
A: The thing I love most about the work is helping people realize they can do something bigger than themselves. When an individual has the opportunity to make a financial (or other) contribution to a cause they believe to accelerate the work, it has a dopamine effect. When we donate to a nonprofit, our brain releases dopamine as a reward, which can make us feel good and motivated to continue giving. I think the dopamine effect explains why people often feel a sense of fulfillment or satisfaction when they donate to causes they care about, and why philanthropy can become a habit or even an addiction for some.
I also am an extremely extroverted person and have never met a stranger. To me, every donor and community partner is a friend, someone I want to invest time, energy, and effort into building rapport, trust, and a relationship. To some, that’s a daunting task, but to me, I genuinely enjoy it.
Q: When you look to the future at Miracle Foundation, what are you most excited about?
A: My husband and I are in the very long and painful process of starting our own family. When I was interviewing with Miracle and learning about the organization’s mission, the vision stuck with me as I saw myself and my family in that vision—a family for every child in our lifetime. That is what I am most excited about. The vision is possible and achievable because of the way we work. As a scientist by degree, I’ve always heavily relied on data and processes to help drive decisions. The data and strategy behind our Thrive Scale™ methodology is like no other, and we know it works. Now with the ability to scale the methodology into a technology to reach more children and prevent more families from being separated is just phenomenal. Not many nonprofit organizations leverage technology to scale impact like Miracle, and that’s exciting.
Q: Tell us what it means to you to be chosen on Business Elite’s “40 Under 40” list.
A: My mom instilled in me at a very young age a hard work ethic, one derived from goal setting, grit, and a get-it-done attitude. It was the only way she knew how to get through life as a single parent raising me… not the easiest child to raise. She has been recognized a few times in her industry as a leader, and with that, I knew I wanted (and needed) to follow in her footsteps. So, 15 years ago, I created a vision board when I was working on a project in class. One of my visions was being recognized as a top physician in my specialty by the time I was 40. I am not a physician now, but I still wanted to accomplish that goal I set for myself, and I did. I can say that I have done my mom proud and achieved a goal I set for myself.
To read more about the other phenomenal winners, visit the Business Elite website – https://businesseliteawards.com/40-under-40/
