Feed the Children Hires a New Leader to Guide the Transition Away From Recent Troubles

New job: Kevin Hagan, 39, will take over in June as president of Feed the Children, an antipoverty charity in Oklahoma City. The announcement marks a turning point for the 33-year-old charity, which ousted its founder, Larry Jones, in 2009 and became embroiled in lawsuits by Mr. Jones and others challenging the organization’s operations.

Career path: Mr. Hagan is chief operating officer at Good360, a nonprofit that collects and distributes products that corporations want to give to charities. He previously served as director of corporate ethics and training and as head of communications at U.S. Foodservice, where he helped the food-products distributor as it emerged from a case involving $800-million in accounting fraud.

Education: He earned a bachelor’s degree in history, political science, and German from Mercer University, and a master’s degree in international affairs from American University.

Why he decided to take the job: Aware of Feed the Children’s troubles, he said he spent a long time considering whether to take the position. But he realized he had the skills to help the organization, and the charity’s board convinced him it was serious about fixing its problems.

Goals: He says he will spend his first few months fulfilling a promise he made to the charity’s employees: to listen to their thoughts about the course the organization’s programs should take. Beyond that, he says, he plans to work to rebuild the charity’s image and focus on fundraising.

Salary: $340,000

Book he’s reading: The First 90 Days: Critical Success Strategies for New Leaders at All Levels, by Michael Watkins