Ron Gass joined the organisation’s predecessor, the Organisation for European Economic Co-operation in 1958, and witnessed the transition to the OECD. He was founding director of the OECD Directorate of Social Affairs, Manpower and Education in 1974, and before that, helped launch the Centre for Educational Research and Innovation. He also worked for NATO and is a former consultant to the European Commission and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.