Ramon L. Benedetto

Ray Benedetto, DM, is a retired US Air Force Colonel with a distinguished military career in organizational transformations. An expert in leadership and culture, Ray spent nearly a decade in corporate America leading cultural and operational transformations before forming a firm of his own, GuideStar, Inc. GuideStar, Inc. helps leaders in business, government, and community-based organizations build high-performing, character-based cultures.

With nearly 40 years of experience in various aspects of leadership and management in the public and private sectors, Ray’s professional life has been devoted to instituting change. His military career, completed in 1996, included such challenging assignments as serving as one of the first professional recruiters to recruit fully-qualified physicians at the end of the Vietnam War, instituting change as part of the post-Cold War restructuring of the military services, and leading a portion of the transformation of the Military Health Services System. He received the Department of Defense Superior Service Medal upon his military retirement, reflecting his significant contributions to this effort.

Prior to forming GuideStar, Inc., Ray continued his work in organizational transformation in civilian life, leading corporate transformation efforts inside four medium-to-large-sized companies. Since 2005, Ray has worked with his GuideStar, Inc. partner focusing on the needs of small-to-mid-sized business owners and leaders concerned with organizational effectiveness and strong profitability.

An active member of the Academy of Management, Ray serves as a reviewer for academic papers and a conference speaker. He has been board certified in Healthcare Management since 1981 and is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE).

Ray received a Doctor of Management degree in organizational leadership from the University of Phoenix. While there, he held a position as a practitioner-faculty position with the MBA Program teaching leadership and strategic planning. He also has a Master of Science degree from the University of Southern California and a Bachelor of Science from Penn State.

Ray enjoys spending time with his wife, Joan, their three children and their seven grandchildren. He also enjoys traveling and helping Joan with her mosaic art.