Kristin O’Planick is a recognized leader in private sector development with over 20 years of experience driving inclusive economic growth across emerging and frontier markets. Most recently, she served as the Market Systems Team Lead at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) within the Bureau for Resilience, Environment, and Food Security. In this role, she oversaw high-impact, multi-million-dollar global initiatives advancing the U.S. Government’s Global Food Security Strategy through market systems development and strategic private sector engagement. Kristin has shaped and executed economic development strategies across diverse technical areas including market systems, enterprise development, workforce readiness, agribusiness, food security, rural finance, and sustainable tourism. She also managed USAID’s institutional relationship with Cargill, fostering public-private collaboration to spur investment and innovation in global food systems. Her career is grounded in field experience and a systems-thinking approach to development. A former Peace Corps Volunteer in Guinea, she brings both grassroots perspective and boardroom fluency to her work. Kristin holds an MBA with distinction from Cornell University’s Johnson Graduate School of Management.