Guillaume Bagal
UNFI
Guillaume Bagal serves as Vice President of Diversity & Inclusion at United Natural Foods, Inc., the largest distributor of natural products in North America. In this role, Bagal advances UNFI’s commitment to be a company that promotes equity, celebrates diversity, and supports justice in the communities it serves.
Bagal most recently served as head of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) at Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island (BCBSRI), a nationally recognized health insurance company. Through an ability to create internal partnerships, Bagal helped refine BCBSRI’s internal and external DEI efforts, and earned the Rhode Island Black Business Association’s Diversity Champion Award in 2019. In 2020, Bagal was also appointed to Rhode Island Governor’s Equity Council, to help address inequities witnessed through the COVID-19 pandemic, and inform Rhode Island’s reopening plan.
Prior to BCBSRI, Bagal served as associate director of policy at Whitman-Walker Health, and director of policy at the Center for Global Health & Diplomacy. He also has extensive community leadership experience and currently serves on several boards, including City Year Providence, Amos House, and the Rhode Island Public Health Institute, where he chairs the community advisory and advocacy group for Open Door Health (Rhode Island’s first LGBTQ health center). He also previously served as president of the GLAA (Gay and Lesbian Activist Alliance), the nation’s oldest continuously active gay and lesbian civil rights organization.
Bagal is fluent in French, English and two African dialects and holds two master’s degrees: Master of Healthcare Administration from George Mason University and Master of Sociology from East Carolina University, receiving high honors from both schools. He earned his undergraduate degree in French and biology from East Carolina University. Bagal resides in Providence, RI with his husband, Bobby Gondola, Jr.