Coleman, Isobel

Isobel Coleman is an American diplomat, author, entrepreneur, and former management consultant. From 2021 to 2025, Coleman served as Deputy Administrator for Policy and Programming at the United States Agency for International Development. As Deputy Administrator, Coleman was responsible for USAID’s policy and programming, overseeing the Agency’s Regional and Pillar Bureaus. She guided USAID’s crisis response, including representing USAID on the Deputies Committee of the National Security Council, and oversaw Agency efforts to promote food security, global health, democracy, and economic growth, and address the root causes of conflict. Before joining USAID, Ambassador Coleman served on the Biden Transition Team, leading the review of the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. During the second term of the Obama administration, she served as the U.S. representative to the United Nations for UN Management and Reform with the rank of ambassador. During that time, she represented the United States in the UN General Assembly on budgetary matters and in the UN Security Council on Africa and peacekeeping issues. From 2018 to 2020, Dr. Coleman was the COO of GiveDirectly, a New York-based non-profit that helps families living in extreme poverty by making unconditional cash transfers via mobile phones. She was previously a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, CEO of a healthcare recruitment company and a partner with McKinsey & Company.