A movement builder and ESG leader who believes in the power of storytelling, Michael Strautmanis serves as the Executive Vice President and leads the engagement strategy for the Obama Foundation, including strategic partnerships, brand, marketing, communications & creative, digital strategy, alumni engagement, and community affairs. Strautmanis also provides strategic guidance to the My Brothers' Keeper Alliance, President Obama’s program to drive evidence-based solutions to create safe & healthy communities for boys & young men of color. From the Foundation’s start-era, Strautmanis built the Foundation's place-based impact strategy in Chicago and has been a key leader in the development of the innovative Obama Presidential Center.

Before joining the Obama Foundation, Strautmanis spent over a decade in Washington, D.C., working to increase access to economic opportunity, strengthen the judicial system, and champion equity and inclusion in the White House, federal agencies, and Congress. An advisor to President Barack Obama for almost two decades, he served in the Obama White House for four years as the Chief of Staff of the Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs and the President's Senior Advisor, Valerie Jarrett. In that role, Strautmanis was at the center of crafting the White House's agenda, policy, and strategic approach to critical initiatives, including healthcare reform, education, criminal justice reform, the growth of the technology sector, and the acceleration of clean energy technology. Strautmanis is also a key architect of President and Mrs. Obama's unique approach to civic engagement and leadership development.

Strautmanis began his career in government working in the Office of General Counsel at the U.S. Agency for International Development. He did stints at the House of Representatives and the American Association for Justice before joining then-Senator Obama’s congressional staff, campaign, and subsequent transition team. After President Obama’s first term, Strautmanis joined the Walt Disney Company in Burbank, CA, where he led an enterprise-wide initiative to consolidate, focus, and deepen the impact of Disney’s corporate social responsibility programs, focused on youth development through creativity and innovation.

An active member of Chicago’s civic community, Strautmanis serves on the boards of Everside Health, Inc., Headspace Health, Inc., the Emerald South Economic Development Collaboratory, Definition Theatre, the Billie Jean King Leadership Institute, and Soul City Church on Chicago’s West Side.

Community Improvement, Inclusion, Global Economy, Black Heritage, Government & Political Professionals, Democrat, Business, Marketing, Storytelling, Communication, Corporate Responsibility, Innovation, Policy, Corporate Strategy, Youth Development, Education Policy Reform, Leadership, Strategic Leadership