GoFundMe has secured former Microsoft executive J Allard as its Chief Product and Technology Officer to help the crowdfunding platform reach new heights.
Allard is a 20-year veteran of Microsoft, where he was a founding member of the tech titan’s Xbox unit and served as the Chief Experience and Technology Officer of the company’s Consumer Product group.
After leaving Microsoft, Allard co-created Project 529, a purpose-driven company that has built a bicycle registration platform to reduce bike theft, promote cycling and make cities and campuses more bike-friendly.
In GoFundMe’s press release, CEO Tim Cadogan highlighted Allard’s experience creating beloved products and said, “His keen eye for building tools that connect people, and his ability to deliver thoughtful customer experiences, will come to life in how he will help us improve our core product, launch new products, serve new communities and expand to new markets.”
Since its inception in 2010, GoFundMe has become a trusted global leader in online fundraising, helping to raise and deliver more than $17 billion from over 200 million donations. Earlier this year, GoFundMe acquired Classy, a fundraising platform for non-profit organizations, to widen the scope of projects and causes the company will help fund and bring in new users. Classy and GoFundMe raised a combined $5 billion in 2021.
“GoFundMe perfectly merges people’s collective power to help with a tech platform that can maximize each person’s impact – creating an experience that has the potential to deliver help to people worldwide,” Allard said. “In this role, I will combine my obsession for progression, commitment to innovation and long-term impact to bring GoFundMe’s mission to life in new and unexpected ways.”
Allard is the third executive to join GoFundMe since it closed its Classy acquisition in May 2022. Former Apple and Airbnb executive Margaret Richardson joined the fintech platform as Chief Corporate Affairs Officer in May and ex-Stubhub leader Greg Mrva became the company’s CFO in June.
The trio of hirings indicate the continued maturation of GoFundMe’s operations under Cadogan, who replaced Rob Soloman as CEO in March 2020, as the company chases its goal of one billion donations.
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