![Lorraine Hariton](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/85/Lorraine_Hariton.jpg)
Lorraine Hariton (born November 7, 1954) is the president and CEO of
Catalyst
Catalysis () is the process of increasing the rate of a chemical reaction by adding a substance known as a catalyst (). Catalysts are not consumed in the reaction and remain unchanged after it. If the reaction is rapid and the catalyst recyc ...
, a New York City–based nonprofit organization committed to the advancement of women in the workplace.
Early life and education
Hariton grew up in
Long Island, New York. She has described her mother, a teacher who later became a
clinical psychologist, as "very strong," and as proof that a woman could have both a successful career and a family.
Hariton earned a Bachelor of Science in
mathematical sciences
The mathematical sciences are a group of areas of study that includes, in addition to mathematics, those academic disciplines that are primarily mathematical in nature but may not be universally considered subfields of mathematics proper.
Statist ...
from
Stanford University and an MBA (1982) from
Harvard Business School.
Career
Hariton started her career in 1977 at
IBM, where she worked for 15 years, including in sales and
executive
Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to:
Role or title
* Executive, a senior management role in an organization
** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators
** Executive dir ...
roles.
She later served as CEO of two
venture-backed Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that serves as a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical areas San Mateo Coun ...
start-ups:
Beatnik (1999–2002), which made
audio software
Audio most commonly refers to sound, as it is transmitted in signal form. It may also refer to:
Sound
*Audio signal, an electrical representation of sound
*Audio frequency, a frequency in the audio spectrum
*Digital audio, representation of sound ...
for
phones
A telephone is a telecommunications device that permits two or more users to conduct a conversation when they are too far apart to be easily heard directly. A telephone converts sound, typically and most efficiently the human voice, into ele ...
, and
Apptera (2003–2005), a
mobile communications
Mobile telephony is the provision of telephone services to phones which may move around freely rather than stay fixed in one location. Telephony is supposed to specifically point to a voice-only service or connection, though sometimes the l ...
and advertising company.
In 2009, Hariton was appointed by
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...
to be
Special Representative
Diplomatic rank is a system of professional and social rank used in the world of diplomacy and international relations. A diplomat's rank determines many ceremonial details, such as the order of precedence at official processions, table seating ...
for
Commercial and Business Affairs (CBA) at the
US Department of State
The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other ...
, 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.
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.
In 2018, Hariton was appointed president and CEO of Catalyst. During her tenure, Catalyst has raised $28 million toward its
major gifts campaign, and has received the single largest grant in its history, $5 million from
Chevron
Chevron (often relating to V-shaped patterns) may refer to:
Science and technology
* Chevron (aerospace), sawtooth patterns on some jet engines
* Chevron (anatomy), a bone
* '' Eulithis testata'', a moth
* Chevron (geology), a fold in rock ...
.
Hariton has served on boards of organizations committed to the advancement of women in the workplace, including the
UN Women
The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, also known as UN Women, is a United Nations entity working for gender equality and the empowerment of women. UN Women advocates for the rights of women and girls, and foc ...
Global Innovation Coalition for Change, the
Clayman Institute for Gender Research
Stanford University has many centers and institutes dedicated to the study of various specific topics. These centers and institutes may be within a department, within a school but across departments, an independent laboratory, institute or center ...
at Stanford University, and Watermark, a
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Go ...
organization of women executives in the
tech industry.
Personal
Hariton lives in New York City. She has two children and two grandchildren, and is an accomplished
triathlete
A triathlon is an endurance multisport race consisting of Swimming (sport), swimming, Cycle sport, cycling, and running over various distances. Triathletes compete for fastest overall completion time, racing each segment sequentially with the t ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hariton, Lorraine
Stanford University alumni
Harvard Business School alumni
IBM employees
American nonprofit chief executives
Living people
21st-century American businesswomen
21st-century American businesspeople
Silicon Valley people
American women chief executives
People from New York City
American women business executives
1954 births