Governor Wes Moore today announced the appointment of Francesca Ioffreda as chief innovation officer for the State of Maryland. Ioffreda will lead the first-ever Bloomberg Philanthropies-supported state-level Innovation Team.
“Our administration has been, and always will be, data-driven and heart-led. Francesca Ioffreda’s experience developing collaborative, data-driven solutions to big problems makes her the right choice to lead Maryland’s ambitious innovation agenda,” said Gov. Moore. “She is widely recognized as a leader with a record of delivering results that make life better in our communities. I thank her for raising her hand to serve.”
As chief innovation officer, Ioffreda will oversee a seven-person Innovation Team with expertise in data analysis, insight development, rapid prototyping, and project management, all focused on helping state agencies develop, test, and incubate novel efforts that will advance the Moore-Miller Administration’s fight to reduce child poverty. The Innovation Team will be funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies.
Ioffreda brings more than a decade of experience in leading economic development efforts and establishing public-private partnerships to her new role, with a career spanning work in promoting economic mobility, collective action, and place-based development. She most recently founded Breakthrough Strategy Partners, which helps build thriving communities through strategies that promote cross-sector collaboration, innovation and workforce development. Ioffreda also served as vice president for inclusive growth and talent initiatives at the Greater Washington Partnership, where she played a key role in securing a $4.7 billion five-year commitment to expanding opportunity in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C.
In June, Governor Moore and Bloomberg Philanthropies announced a new partnership to promote public sector innovation, establishing the Bloomberg Philanthropies-supported state Innovation Team.
Innovation Teams are an effective model for public sector leaders seeking collaboration across agencies and sectors focused on finding more effective ways to address complex challenges. To date, the Bloomberg Philanthropies Innovation Team program has driven success in 83 cities across nine countries and four continents, representing the lives of more than 65 million residents. Maryland is the first state in the nation to implement this proven model, positioning the state as a national leader in public sector innovation.
“When government leaders want to be ambitious – and embrace creativity, data, transparency, and resident results – Bloomberg Philanthropies is glad to support them, every step of the way,” said James Anderson, who leads the Government Innovation program at Bloomberg Philanthropies. “Governor Moore has focused state agencies on an ambitious mission—reducing childhood poverty—and we are excited to support Francesca and the new Innovation Team as they support State agencies to unlock creativity, collaboration, and new approaches on these challenging issues.”
Ioffreda holds a Master of Business Administration from Harvard Business School and a Master of Public Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, where she was a Zuckerman Fellow, a George Leadership Fellow, and a Forte Foundation Fellow. She was also a Fulbright Research Fellow in Bogotá, Colombia, where she studied the country’s flagship poverty alleviation program.
She earned her undergraduate degree in economics and international relations from Claremont McKenna College, where she graduated cum laude.
