José Ferrão

Senior Vice President of Marketing

As Senior Vice President of Marketing, José Ferrão leads a team of professionals who facilitate strong and meaningful connections among United Way audiences, allowing donors and volunteers to better understand the impact they’re having and partner organizations to have a clear and far-reaching voice in the community. He and his team focus on understanding each audience to inform a more personalized United Way experience. Under José’s leadership, marketing plays an integral role in the United Way mission and benefits from organizational collaboration and the expertise of key community stakeholders. A creative and strategic thinker, José emphasizes efficient and effective communications and the continuous pursuit of innovation that delivers value.

Having previously held executive positions in consumer packaged goods organizations in South Africa, José joined Peppers and Rogers Group’s Connecticut practice in 2000, where he played a leading role in the development of the first multi-channel customer relationship management pilot for Ford Division in the USA, as well as performed assessments and roadmaps for Ford Motor Company in Asia Pacific. However, the highlight of his work in the United States was the change management and enterprise-wide organizational design work he led at Boise Office Products which supported Boise’s win of Gartner's inaugural CRM Award of Excellence in 2001.

More recently José led the growth of Peppers and Rogers Group in Europe and was president of Carlson Marketing Group’s Europe and Middle East operations. The client work encompassed the full spectrum of strategy, process design, momentum building and the implementation of outsourced solutions. The client portfolio was also diverse and consisted of organizations in a wide range of industries (Financial Services, Life Sciences, Consumer Packaged Goods, Travel and Hospitality, Retail, Automotive and Government) including a relationship with Her Majesty’s Revenue Services which culminated in a full-scale change to a customer-focused organizational approach.

Throughout his career José has solidified an expertise in classical product development, brand management, and crafting customer-focused relationships. These experiences, together with his proven strategic and operational leadership skills, diplomacy and people-focus enable José to foster the organization’s long-term growth and success, which is essential to deliver greater results for the people and communities United Way serves.