As Principal at Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, Patrick Briaud stands at the forefront of institutional impact investing. His work bridges financial markets and social good, specializing in:
"The future of impact lies in making every dollar a building block for structural change."
With 15+ years shaping $1.2B in impact investments, Briaud's insights guide institutions from the Ford Foundation to Fifth Third Bank. His recognition by the Global Impact Investing Network underscores his role as both practitioner and policymaker in 21st-century philanthropy.
Patrick Briaud's career embodies a rare fusion of analytical rigor and social purpose. After earning his BS in Industrial Engineering from UC Berkeley, he transitioned from professional tennis (competing at Wimbledon 2008) to financial analysis, managing Lee Financial's $900M portfolio. This dual expertise in systems thinking and capital markets laid the foundation for his current role as Principal at Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors (RPA), where he leads their Impact Investing Practice.
This 180-page manual, developed with 50+ experts, operationalizes impact investing for institutional players. Briaud systematizes the field through six implementation phases - from consensus-building to impact measurement. The handbook's COVID-era release timing proved prescient, as foundations sought pandemic-responsive strategies. Its workbook format, featuring 23 case studies like the Global Resilient Cities Network, demonstrates Briaud's talent for translating complex financial instruments into actionable frameworks.
"All investments inherently have impact. The question isn't whether to create impact, but whether to measure and direct it intentionally."
In this 2023 treatise, Briaud argues for reimagining philanthropy as catalytic capital. He profiles innovative models like the Lumina Fund's racial equity work in higher education and Upstart Co-Lab's $12T creative economy mobilization. The article's standout contribution is its "Impact Stack" framework, which visualizes how program-related investments (PRIs), ESG integration, and shareholder activism can compound social returns.
This 2021 manifesto counters impact investing's complexity paralysis. Briaud advocates for "impact anchoring" - identifying an organization's unique value-add before selecting financial instruments. The piece deconstructs RPA's work with the COVID-19 Early Treatment Fund, showing how existing research infrastructure enabled rapid therapeutic development. With 18 actionable implementation principles, it remains RPA's most-downloaded resource.
Briaud prioritizes approaches that reconfigure capital markets rather than incremental solutions. Successful pitches reference his work on Rockefeller's "Scaling Solutions" initiative, which seeks to shift entire economic systems. Example: A recent successful pitch focused on blockchain-enabled impact bonds that automate SDG-aligned reporting.
With four active impact portfolios, Briaud seeks strategies applicable across debt, equity, and hybrid instruments. Proposals should mirror his analysis of Fifth Third Bank's Community Advisory Forum, which blends below-market loans with technical assistance grants.
His corporate social responsibility (CSR) work for Fortune 500 companies informs a preference for cross-sector solutions. Effective pitches highlight partnerships like RPA's work with a major tech firm linking cloud credits to minority-led startup accelerators.
Briaud's board role at ICA Fund Good Jobs underscores his focus on economic justice. Successful case studies quantify racial wealth gap reductions, similar to his analysis of the Catalyst Fund's fintech investments in underbanked communities.
Consistent with his critique of "impact washing," Briaud dismisses projects lacking integrated measurement frameworks. Unsuccessful pitches often focus on high-profile ambassadors rather than systemic change metrics.
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