Co-founder & President, GMA Foundations
Mary Phillips has worked with foundation trustees, families, and individual donors for over thirty-five years, and is recognized in the field for her insight and focus on critical issues, and her deft facilitation of effective group meetings. Mary leads the GMA’s consulting services and specializes in program design and assessment, governance structure, trustee orientation, planning for transitions, retreat planning and facilitation, foundation start-up services, and coaching for foundation leaders.
Mary is a founding member and past chair of the National Network of Consultants to Grantmakers, a learning community for consultants dedicated to increasing and strengthening philanthropy, and she is a past chair of Philanthropy Massachusetts, a New England-wide regional association. She is active in the non-profit community and is frequently asked to speak and facilitate workshops for Exponent Philanthropy, the National Center for Family Philanthropy, and other local and national organizations.
Mary holds a Master of Science in Leadership and Organizational Change from Regis College, and is a graduate of Emerson College with a B.S. in Business and Organizational Communication. Mary enjoys swimming, yoga, volunteering for community initiatives, taking Edx courses, and being a mother of one, grandmother of two, and aunt of 21. Her experience as a member of a very large family is the underpinning of her interest in healthy family dynamics.
