John W. Wiles, MPH

John Wiles has over 35 years direct experience with economic development programs and operations in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Eastern Europe/Eurasia, and Latin America/Caribbean as a US Agency for International Development (USAID) career Foreign Service Officer, as a Personal Services Contractor, and a consultant. Wiles has extensive experience as a technical Project Officer/Activity Manager and senior Project Development Officer. John's credibility as a project development officer was strengthened by his proven activity management and implementation experience and expertise. He is an expert in the USAID procurement process and knows how to get things done in a positive way within the system. In recognition of his vast knowledge, John was selected as one of the key participants on a team that developed and delivered highly creditable, successful and effective project/activity management training courses for USAID's Europe and Eurasia, Asia-Near East, and Africa Bureau employees in Washington and overseas. This training program has a strong focus on the design and planning aspects of project development in international settings. John's association with these Project/Activity Manager workshops was noted as a significant reason for the high level of credibility the workshop had among staff.

As a Senior Program Operations Advisor in USAID's Europe and Eurasia Bureau, John developed guidance for simplified decentralized activity/project development and approval procedures and procurement planning processes for Washington and overseas offices related to economic transition programs in Eastern Europe and Eurasia. These procedures are still in use today. He advised and guided project/activity managers in the design of strategically relevant technical projects using these new procedures. Throughout his career, John built strong and effective partnerships with foreign country officials; private voluntary, non-governmental and international organizations; and other foreign government donors, contractors, grantees, and customers/beneficiaries that resulted in positive working environments, policy reforms and successful program results.

John enjoys sharing his knowledge with others. His goal is to make others' jobs easier and to ensure the accomplishment of positive results and ultimately the client's goals.

John Wiles holds a BA degree from West Virginia University and a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree in International Health from the University of Michigan. John also has a Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) Qualification from the Otto Kroeger Associates (OKA) Institute in Fairfax, Virginia, and is a trained facilitator for Human Synergistics' organizational development tools such as the Organizational Culture Inventory.

Richard D. McLaughlin, MBA

Ric McLaughlin has worked with USAID in various capacities for over 35 years. He has worked in all regions of the USAID world from Latin America to East Asia, including Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Eurasia, and South Asia. Recognized as one of USAID's most senior and experienced program officers, Ric's career included extensive design and development work at both the strategy and project or activity levels. Ric served as the Senior Program Operations Advisor for the Europe and Eurasia Bureau in USAID and played a major role in setting Bureau policy and operating procedures. Substantially involved in both curriculum development and actual training, Ric helped develop and present the Activity Manager and Program Design and Assessment workshops used in the Europe and Eurasia Bureau. He has also been involved in team-building efforts as a qualified Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) facilitator.

Highlights of Ric McLaughlin's career include more than 35 years of hands-on experience in the analysis, design, and implementation of U.S. development assistance strategies around the globe. Ric has a solid working knowledge of development analysis and approaches, and comprehensive expertise in USAID operations. He researched, developed, and wrote development strategies in countries reflecting a broad range of development situations and resource constraints. Further, Ric served as a leader in the USAID reengineering effort for the Philippines (an experimental lab), Thailand, Cambodia, and Mongolia. He has a proven ability to build effective teams and create broad ownership of results.

Ric features a strong background in economic growth and private sector objectives. He served as Strategic Objective Team Leader for the Economic Growth sector, and has a long track record of promoting the private sector as a key to development. With his sound understanding of the democracy sector and participation objectives, he has actively participated in the development of democracy strategies in a number of countries. He also played an operative role in preparing Customer Service Plans in countries such as Cambodia, Thailand, Mongolia and the Philippines.

Ric McLaughlin holds a BA in International Economics and a MBA in International Management. An ENTP, he also has a Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) Qualification from the OKA Institute and is a trained facilitator for Human Synergistics' organizational development tools such as the Organizational Culture Inventory.