Massimiliano Santini is a senior leader with over 20 years of experience in sustainable development, policy and strategy formulation, and inclusive economic growth. He has worked in multilateral, private sector, and non-profit organizations, and has direct experience in working with political and business leaders in 10+ countries, including emerging markets and developing economies.

From 2008 to 2019, Massi worked at the International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, where he led the policy dialogue with governments to deliver lending operations and technical assistance projects that promoted attractive financial markets and vibrant business environments, in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). He led diagnostics and analytics on private sector development topics, including investment climate assessments and randomized-controlled trials, and managed a multi-year trust fund to implement impact measurement frameworks to monitor the performance of projects portfolio.

In April 2019, Massi left the World Bank to run for a seat in the European Parliament. After the campaign, he joined the European University Institute in Florence and later the University of Hong Kong as a fellow, where he contributed to research and analyses of the political economy of private sector development, and the narrative required to mobilize the stakeholders involved in creating sustainable growth.

Massi started his career at Baring Asset Management in London, served in public and private international organizations in New York, and worked in the independent film industry where he produced and post-produced documentaries exposing environmental and social challenges. An avid public speaker, he co-founded the Harvard Toastmasters Club in 2007. He is a frequent contributing opinion writer in media outlets around the world.

Massi graduated from the Master in Public Administration in International Development (MPA/ID) program at Harvard Kennedy School (2008), where he was Ruffolo Fellow in Sustainability Science, and he holds a Bachelor degree in Economics from the University of Modena in Italy (1998).