Abi Riak is I4DI’s Senior Advisor in Organizational Effectiveness. Ms. Riak provides leadership to I4DI associates and technical assistance to clients and partners in organizational development and effectiveness.
Ms. Riak believes that a positive, aligned work culture is key to the delivery of innovative, tangible, and sustainable development impact. Well-developed systems, processes and procedures, together with a clear organizational mission and vision, strong leadership teams, and well trained and focused staff are the backbone of solid program effectiveness. Her mission in life is to educate, engage, and inspire individuals and organizations to achieve excellence.
With over 20 years of professional experience in a range of operational and cultural contexts, Ms. Riak is an organizational development expert with extensive experience in organizational assessment, strategy development and execution, leadership and staff capacity development, coaching, program design, and monitoring and evaluation. Prior to joining I4DI, she worked with U.S. based non-profits as well as international development and academic institutions supporting organizational effectiveness in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, Middle East and the United States. She holds two Bachelor’s degrees, one in History and another in Economics, as well as a Master’s of Regional Planning with an Economic Development concentration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
An avid whitewater kayaker, Ms. Riak can be found most weekends paddling the varied and beautiful rivers of the Southeast United States.
