Lorraine Hariton (born November 7, 1954) is the president and CEO of Catalyst, a New York City–based nonprofit organization committed to the advancement of women in the workplace.[1][2]

Lorraine Hariton
Lorraine Hariton, president and CEO of Catalyst
Born (1954-11-07) November 7, 1954 (age 69)
EducationStanford University
Harvard Business School
OccupationCEO of Catalyst

Early life and education edit

Hariton earned a Bachelor of Science in mathematical sciences from Stanford University and an MBA (1982) from Harvard Business School.[3][4]

Career edit

Hariton started her career in 1977 at IBM, where she worked for 15 years, including in sales and executive roles.[3] She later served as CEO of two venture-backed Silicon Valley start-ups: Beatnik (1999–2002), which made audio software for phones,[5] and Apptera (2003–2005), a mobile communications and advertising company.[4][6][1]

In 2009, Hariton was appointed by Barack Obama to be Special Representative for Commercial and Business Affairs (CBA) at the US Department of State, where she was responsible for outreach to the business community, commercial advocacy and global entrepreneurship efforts, and where she established the Global Entrepreneurship Program, the WECREATE program for women entrepreneurs, and the International Council on Women's Business Leadership.[7][1]

In 2014, Hariton joined The New York Academy of Sciences as senior vice president for global partnerships, where she helped create the Global STEM Alliance and its 1000 Girls, 1000 Futures program, a global mentoring initiative aimed at encouraging girls to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and math.[8]

In 2018, Hariton was appointed president and CEO of Catalyst.[9][4] During her tenure, Catalyst has raised $28 million toward its major gifts campaign,[10] and has received the single largest grant in its history, $5 million from Chevron.[11]

Hariton has served on boards of organizations committed to the advancement of women in the workplace, including the UN Women Global Innovation Coalition for Change, the Clayman Institute for Gender Research at Stanford University, and Watermark, a San Francisco Bay Area organization of women executives in the tech industry.[citation needed]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c Stych, Anne (August 20, 2018). "Lorraine Hariton named Catalyst president and CEO". Bizwomen. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
  2. ^ "Silicon Valley vet to head women's advocacy group Catalyst". Associated Press. August 20, 2018. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
  3. ^ a b Jadhav, Reena A. (January 2014). "Inspiring Women: Celebrating Harvard Business School Leaders" (PDF). Harvard Business School. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
  4. ^ a b c "Correction: Women in Workplace-Catalyst CEO story". The Seattle Times. August 20, 2018. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  5. ^ "Beatnik Audio Engine to deliver Java audio capability in SavaJe OS". Total Telecom. November 10, 2005. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
  6. ^ "Lorraine Hariton Appointed President, CEO of Apptera; Ross Roesner Named Vice President of Engineering". Speech Technology Magazine. July 1, 2003. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  7. ^ "LORRAINE HARITON". U.S. News STEM Solutions. May 2016. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
  8. ^ "The CEO Magazine | Inspiring the business world". The CEO Magazine. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  9. ^ Stych, Anne (August 20, 2018). "Catalyst names new CEO for businesswomen's advocacy group". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  10. ^ "Catalyst Major Gifts Campaign". Catalyst. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
  11. ^ "DealBook Briefing: Chevron Thinks Men Can Fix the Diversity Problem". New York Times. February 26, 2019. Retrieved September 14, 2020.