Dr. Vanessa Z. Chan is the Chief Commercialization Officer and Director of the Office of Technology Transitions for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Her department's mission: to drive private sector uptake of clean energy technologies.

Dr. Chan is an innovator who has worked across a wide range of ecosystems, from academia to Fortune 1000 companies to startups. She has two decades of experience helping organizations grow at the interface of technology and business, across a diverse set of industries.

Dr. Chan joined the DOE on a leave of absence from her position as Undergraduate Chair of the Materials Science & Engineering department and the Jonathan and Linda Brassington Professor of Practice in Innovation & Entrepreneurship at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. At Penn, she was revolutionizing engineering education by formally integrating real-world skills into the curriculum, ensuring her students are better prepared to make a significant impact upon graduation.

She is a former McKinsey & Company partner, experienced Venture Board Director for Vanguard and United Technology Corporation, and a board member at multiple startups. Dr. Chan was the first woman and the first East Asian elected partner in McKinsey’s North American Chemicals practice. She is a nationally respected educator who is the first Professor of Practice to be endowed a scholarly chair in the history of Penn Engineering and the first Asian and first Professor of Practice to be appointed Undergraduate Chair for a department.

Dr. Chan earned her Ph.D. in Materials Science & Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and her B.S.E. in Materials Science & Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania.

Milken Institute, Government Official, Energy, Technology, Innovation, Female Leadership, Environment, Entrepreneurship, Start-up Advisor, East Asian Heritage