Robert J. Goodwin
Chief Operating Officer
Robert J. Goodwin is Chief Operating Officer of International Aid, a healthcare relief and development organization located in Michigan. As COO, Mr. Goodwin is responsible for accomplishing the mission of International Aid focused on:
Addressing the ongoing needs of 1.1 billion people globally who lack access to safe drinking water resulting in unnecessary and preventable poverty, disease, and death on a daily scale that dwarfs headline-grabbing natural and man-made disasters. Providing critical medical equipment, supplies, and training to support hospitals, clinics, and health professionals in areas of the world where need is greatest. Developing the technical infrastructure that will efficiently link donor-partner resources and recipient-partner needs globally to create the most trusted and effective network of independent relief and development organizations in the world; capable of responding to need and opportunities in real-time.
Mr. Goodwin grew up in Fort Myers, Fla., and entered the Air Force after graduating from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1994. His career was in Acquisition Program Management, handling F-15, F-16 and B-2 aircraft engine support equipment, Foreign Military Sales programs in Saudi Arabia, and counter drug radar and communications projects throughout Latin America. After leaving the military in 1999, he worked for a private sector defense company. In 2001, he returned to government service in the Secretary of Defense's Transition Office, where he assisted with recruiting and selecting senior executives to staff the Defense Department. Also in 2001, while assigned to the U.S. Agency for International Development, he helped plan and execute the humanitarian response in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, coordinating and executing 20 commercial and military airlifts into Central Asia carrying 2 million pounds of relief supplies and 200 tons of high-energy food items.
Mr. Goodwin was assigned as Director of Humanitarian Affairs for Presidential Envoy John Danforth in 2002. He improved access to areas of southern Sudan and co-led technical discussions that helped pave the way for successful peace negotiations. He later went to Iraq as part of the Coalition Provisional Authority, serving as Chief of Staff and Deputy Senior Adviser to stand up the Iraqi Ministry of Health, which was the first ministry to transition sovereignty back to the Iraqis. Mr. Goodwin returned to the Department of Defense in June 2004 to work in special operations. In 2005, he served as Deputy Associate Director, Office of Presidential Personnel at the White House, working to fill senior national security positions requiring Senate confirmation.
Prior to his current position at International Aid, he was Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Force Management Integration, performing the additional duties of Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Manpower and Reserve Affairs, Washington, D.C. As acting Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Manpower and Reserve Affairs, he led a four-division department that dealt at the policy level with Air Force manpower and Reserve affairs issues. His areas of responsibility included force management and personnel, equal opportunity and diversity, Reserve affairs and Air Force review boards. As Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Force Management Integration, Mr. Goodwin provided guidance and oversight in the formulation of strategic plans, policies and legislative initiatives impacting Air Force military and civilian human resource functions and activities.
