Boston—September 28, 2026—The Bridgespan Group today announced the appointment of Nidhi Sahni, Partner, and Head of US Region and Advisory, as the new Managing Partner leading the firm’s work and operations worldwide. She succeeds William Foster, who is moving to become the President and CEO of the Pew Charitable Trusts. Sahni first joined Bridgespan in 2010.
According to Bridgespan Board Co-Chair Cheryl Dorsey, who is also the CEO of Echoing Green, “I am excited to work alongside Nidhi, whose experience will serve our increasingly global organization well. She is a proven leader, whose energy is both infectious and inspiring. We are looking forward to this next chapter of Bridgespan.”
Dorsey explains that Bridgespan operates as a partnership, with dozens of highly collaborative partners serving clients, pursuing strategic initiatives, and running operating units. The Managing Partner supports the partnership as a ‘servant leader,’ with ultimate responsibility for leading Bridgespan worldwide.
“It is an honor to step into this role, and I am grateful to the Board, William, my colleagues and the many leaders I have learned from along the way,” says Sahni. “Over the past decades, Bridgespan has collaborated with philanthropists and funders to move tens of billions of dollars to leaders in the US and globally and has advised more than 2,000 nonprofits and NGOs. Meeting this moment of compounding challenges and new opportunities will require capital to flow faster — and with more boldness and thoughtfulness. It will require funder and nonprofit leaders to design ambitious strategies, structure new collaborations, and strengthen and evolve organizations. I look forward to being in conversation and partnering with leaders across the sector, my colleagues, and our Board to continue to ask hard questions and shape solutions that matter – all in service of this work.”
Sahni’s work at Bridgespan has addressed a wide range of social issues in the United States, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa, collaborating with local and global NGOs and nonprofit organizations, institutional funders, individual philanthropists, and donor collaboratives. An author and frequent conference speaker on global philanthropy, gender equity, and big bets, Sahni was included on the annual Devex Top 50 Power List in 2026.
Tom Tierney, Dorsey’s board co-chair, and co-founder of Bridgespan says, “We underwent a rigorous review process with Bridgespan’s partners and the Board. Our interviews highlighted a strong appreciation for Nidhi's global outlook, judgment, her ability to build a big tent and bring people together, her deep commitment to Bridgespan's mission and values, and her experience leading through complexity and uncertainty.”
Adds Foster, “It is, of course, bitter-sweet to step away from leading such a remarkable organization, one that I love and in which I believe so deeply. However, knowing that my longtime leadership colleague and friend, Nidhi, will be at the helm of the Bridgespan Group gives me enormous confidence. I am so proud of all she has accomplished, energized by the capabilities she will bring, and I look forward to continuing to collaborate with her, albeit in a new way.”
A first-generation immigrant from Lucknow, India, Sahni started her career in the U.S. with a management consulting firm focused on strategy consulting for Fortune 500 companies. Sahni says she chose to join Bridgespan to “bring together her experience advising and supporting senior leaders, her lifelong engagement with questions of gender equity and the role of power in shaping our lives and societies, and her commitment to connecting capital with the solutions needed to build a better future.”
She holds a degree in management science and engineering from Stanford University and a bachelor’s degree in mathematics with a minor in drama from the University of Texas, Austin.
About Bridgespan
The Bridgespan Group (www.bridgespan.org) is a global nonprofit that collaborates with social change organizations, philanthropists, and mission-aligned private capital investors to achieve breakthrough results in addressing society’s most important challenges and opportunities. Bridgespan’s services include strategy consulting and advising, sourcing and diligence, and leadership team support. We take what we learn from this work and build on it with original research, identifying best practices and innovative ideas to share with the social sector. We work from locations in Boston, Johannesburg, Mumbai, New Delhi, New York, San Francisco, Singapore, and Washington, D.C.
