by P.J. DiNuzzo March 20, 2013
The Pope as CEO
The Roman Catholic cardinals selected a new pope: Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, now more popularly known as Pope Francis I. 
With his ascension to the Papacy, the Argentinian-born Jesuit became the second-largest employer in the American economy, behind only Wal Mart. The Economist magazine estimates that American-based Catholic institutions (including churches, health care networks, primary and secondary schools plus 244 Catholic colleges and universities) employ more than a million people. Its annual budget comes to some $170 billion, higher than General Electric's annual revenue of $150 billion. Catholic Charities USA and its subsidiaries employ over 65,000 paid staff members and distributed $4.7 billion to the poor in 2010, the last year for which data is available. The Archbishop of New York is believed to be Manhattan's largest landowner.
Less well-publicized is the fact that the church is now an active issuer of bonds. The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board reports that at least 736 American state bond issues–with interest exempt from federal government taxation–are currently outstanding to pay for expansion and renovation of hospitals, schools and other church facilities in 30 states.
In all, 74 million Americans identify themselves as Catholic; only three countries in the world–Brazil, Mexico and the Philippines–have larger Catholic populations. The sheer size of the church's operations in America–an estimated 60% of the its global wealth–makes us think about the new pope in a new way: as a CEO who takes over a troubled franchise, and an important player in the U.S. economy.
Sources: http://www.economist.com/node/21560536
http://www.economist.com/blogs/newsbook/2012/08/catholic-church-america
Sincerely,
P.J. DiNuzzo, CPA, PFS®, MSTx, MBA
President, Founder, and Chief Investment Officer