Tech Industry Veteran to Lead Data-Driven Member Engagement and Advocacy
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Chamber of Commerce today announced that one of the nation’s top ranked IT professionals, Chris Contakes, has been named the organization’s chief information officer, effective March 28, 2019. Contakes will lead the Chamber’s technology team and help advance the latest data-driven innovations in advocacy and member engagement on behalf of the business community.
“Technology continues to transform the business models of all our member companies, and the advocacy business is no different,” said Suzanne Clark, senior executive vice president. “Chris is an important addition to the Chamber’s leadership team bringing a sophisticated approach to data and technology that will strengthen our advocacy work.”
Contakes has nearly three decades of experience in media, and in the commercial and nonprofit sectors. His diverse technology background includes extensive experience with digital media, software development, cybersecurity, cloud technologies, and digital transformation.
Contakes joins the U.S. Chamber from The Pew Charitable Trusts, where he served as chief information officer and vice president of Information Technology. Prior to joining Pew, he served as vice president of Technology at PBS, chief technology officer at the Atlantic Media Company, and held various technology leadership roles at The Washington Post.
He received an M.S. in Computer Science from American University and a B.S. in Information Science from the University of Pittsburgh. Chris maintains ties to Silicon Valley as a member of Greylock Partners’ CIO Innovators Program and Andreessen Horowitz’s Executive Briefing Program. He was also named to the Computerworld Premier 100 Technology Leaders.
