Efraín Gutiérrez

Efraín Gutiérrez (he/his) is a Senior Fellow with the Center for Evaluation Innovation. His research at CEI focuses on re-imagining strategy, evaluation, and research practices so that philanthropy is in service of racial equity and justice. He is also a Visiting Fellow with the Evans Policy & Innovation Center at the University of Washington. Efraín has dedicated his career to advancing belonging, dignity, and justice in the social sector. He came to CEI after serving as inaugural Head of Impact and Evaluation at the Obama Foundation. During his tenure he oversaw equity-centered evaluation practices that significantly increased access to high quality, multicultural, valid data to inform decision-making, improve strategy, and measure impact. Prior to the foundation, Efraín was Associate Director for Equity Partnerships at FSG, a global consulting firm that focuses on social impact. There he advised over 25 foundations, corporations, governments, and nonprofits on the development of strategic plans, evaluation systems, and program evaluations. He also co-led efforts to embed racial equity into FSG’s culture and consulting practices. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Universidad Panamericana in Guadalajara Mexico and a master’s from the Evans School of Public Policy & Governance at the University of Washington. He is a proud queer immigrant from Capilla de Guadalupe, a small town in Jalisco Mexico and currently lives in San Francisco CA.