Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), has announced her intention to appoint Ms. Carla Grasso to the position of Deputy Managing Director and Chief Administrative Officer.

The role of Chief Administrative Officer is new to the IMF.

It was created to bring the Fund’s internal operational and administrative management to the level of excellence required by the organization’s unique role and responsibilities in the fast-changing global economy.

“Carla brings outstanding leadership, a strategic mindset, and strong operational management expertise to her new appointment. We conducted an extensive global search for this new and key position at the IMF. I am fully confident that we have found a terrific manager and leader to be part of our team,” Ms. Lagarde said.

Ms. Grasso, a dual national of Brazil and Italy, will start her work at the Fund on February 2.

In her new role, she will oversee all the Fund’s administrative functions. She will coordinate the budget, human resources, technology, general services, and internal audit, in order to ensure the efficient, effective and comprehensive management of these functions, which are vital to the Fund’s overall effectiveness. She will also oversee the IMF’s capacity-building and training work.

Ms. Grasso’s professional experience spans both the private and public sectors. For fourteen years, she worked at Vale S.A., one of the world’s largest mining companies, serving as Vice President for Human Resources and Corporate Services from 2001 to 2011.

During that time, she led efforts to modernize the company—with operations in 38 countries and involving 138,000 people—in the areas of human resources, IT, procurement, communications, and health and safety.

Before joining Vale S.A., Ms. Grasso served as Secretary of the Brazilian Supplementary Social Security Office from 1994 to 1997, and also held several positions as Advisor and Coordinator in the Ministries of Social Security, Finance, and Planning, as well as in the Office of the President of Brazil.

She has also worked as a consultant for the World Bank, gaining experience with low-income countries, including on public expenditure reviews.

Ms. Grasso holds a Masters degree in Economic Policy from Universidade de Brasília and was Professor of International Economics and Monetary Economics at the Pontifical Catholic University of Brasília, and of Economy Mathematics at the Centro Universitário do Distrito Federal. In 2014, she was Professor of Business Education at Insper (Instituto de Ensino e Pesquisa) in São Paulo.