Don Graves served as the 19th Deputy Secretary of Commerce where he was the Chief Operating Officer of the Department, managing a workforce of nearly 50,000 colleagues and a budget of more than $160 billion. He led policy development on issues including national security, industrial strategy, commercial space development and place-based economic development. As Deputy Secretary, Graves guided Commerce through several major organizational change management initiatives.
While Deputy Secretary, Graves served as the Economic Growth Coordinator for Puerto Rico, overseeing a whole-of-government effort to support the economic recovery and long-term growth of the archipelago, including the coordination of more than $100B in federal investments. He was also a member of the Helsinki Commission, formally known as the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe. After leaving office, he became a fellow at the Georgetown University Institute of Politics and Public Service.
Graves brings decades of experience in the private sector and government. Prior to his role as Deputy Secretary, Graves served as Executive Vice President and Head of Corporate Responsibility and Community Relations at KeyBank. In that capacity, Graves managed the bank’s $16.5B Community Benefits Plan, oversaw the KeyBank Foundation and the First Niagara Foundation, coordinated Key’s community lending and investment practice and led stakeholder engagement for the bank.
During the Obama-Biden Administration, Graves served as Deputy Assistant to the President and Domestic and Economic Policy Director for then-Vice President Biden. He was previously appointed by President Obama as Executive Director of the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness and led the federal government’s efforts in the economic recovery of the city of Detroit during and after its bankruptcy. In that role, he coordinated investments of more than $300M in the city and coordination of activities between the federal government, State of Michigan, City of Detroit, philanthropic investments and the private sector. Graves also served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Small Business, Community Development, and Housing Policy at the U.S. Department of the Treasury, where he oversaw the CDFI Fund, the $4 billion Small Business Lending Fund, and the $1.5 billion State Small Business Credit Initiative. He was also the U.S. Federal Representative to the G7 Task Force on Social Impact Investment.
Graves holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and History from Williams College and a Juris Doctor from the Georgetown University Law Center, where he received the Dean’s Award. He is the father of two amazing college-age children and is an avid hiker, backpacker and a Cleveland sports fan.