Former Clinton administration official Sally Katzen is joining the Podesta Group as its executive managing director.
Katzen, 66, is a former deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget, and worked on the Obama-Biden transition team. Missi Tessier, a spokeswoman for the Podesta Group, says Katzen will be working with firm principals to craft regulatory strategies for clients, but will not lobby herself. She will also advise on management issues, Tessier said.
Katzen says she has occasionally consulted for Podesta Group in the past. "I had heard from a number of people that it's an unusual place," she said. "There's a collegiality and supportiveness and a camaraderie among people who are there, and the people that they have are very impressive." Katzen said she expects to draw on her knowledge of the executive branch to advise clients, and will also focus on an evaluation of the growing firm's management structure.
The Podesta Group has hired 20 new people so far this year. The firm's revenue jumped 43.9 % in 2008, according to the Influence 50 survey.
Katzen was the first female partner at what was then Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering before leaving the firm in 1993 to join the Clinton administration. She has also taught at several universities, including George Washington University, and said she may continue teaching.
Comments