Former Unicef Official Succeeds Founder of Women for Women International

New job: Afshan Khan, 51, will start in June as the new chief executive of Women for Women International. She succeeds Zainab Salbi, who founded the group in 1993. The organization provides women in war-torn countries with vocational training, education in human rights, and other support.

Career path: Ms. Khan spent the last 20 years at Unicef, most recently in charge of raising money from governments and managing their relations with the U.N. agency.

Education: She holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Canada’s McGill University and a master’s in public policy from the Johns Hopkins School for Advanced International Studies.

Her goals: To build on Women for Women’s gains in measuring impact, communicating results to donors, and stepping up advocacy. Ms. Khan will examine whether the group should try to reach more women in countries where it already works or expand elsewhere.

On fundraising: About two-thirds of Women for Women’s revenue comes from individuals; Ms. Khan says she’ll look to raise more from foundations and governments.

Biggest frustration with nonprofit work: The growing demand for instant, quantifiable results, which she says can lead to unrealistic expectations by donors and nonprofits. “People are much more comfortable seeing a school built or a well dug,” she says. “But when you’re dealing with an organization whose mission is as complex as Women for Women, when you’re transforming women’s lives and society, time frames are sometimes longer term.”

Salary: $275,000

What she’s reading: The Ground Beneath Her Feet, by Salman Rushdie.