25/01/2022 - Laurence Boone and Kerri-Ann Jones have been appointed as new Deputy Secretaries-General at the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Laurence Boone will take up her appointment on 1 February 2022 and Kerri-Ann Jones on 1 July 2022. Ulrik Knudsen’s appointment as Deputy Secretary-General is extended for two years to the end of 2024.

Laurence, a French national, will also continue to serve as the OECD Chief Economist and Head of the Economics Department, a role she assumed in July 2018.

She worked previously as the Chief Economist and Global Head of Multi-asset investment at French insurance group AXA and was Sherpa and Special Advisor for Multilateral and European Economic and Financial Affairs to the President of the French Republic (2014-2016). Prior to this Laurence held various senior roles in both the public and private sectors.

Laurence has a PhD in Applied Econometrics from the London Business School (UK), a MA in Econometrics & Macroeconomic Modelling from Reading University (UK), a Master's Degree in Economics from Université Paris X Nanterre (FRA) and a postgraduate diploma (DEA) in Modelling and Quantitative Analysis from University Paris X Nanterre (FRA).

Dr. Kerri-Ann Jones, a US national, most recently served as Vice President, Research and Science, at the Pew Charitable Trusts, where she was responsible for overseeing research quality and environmental and biomedical research investments. 

She previously served as the US Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs (OES) from 2009-2014.  In this position she led the bureau responsible for bilateral, regional, and multilateral engagement on oceans, environment, science, space, and health.  She also served as the Department’s Special Representative on Avian and Pandemic Influenza.  She has also served in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), where she was appointed Associate Director for National Security and International Affairs and served on the National Security Council. 

Kerri-Ann is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).  She obtained her Ph.D. from the Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry at Yale University and holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Barnard College, Columbia University.

Ulrik Knudsen, a Danish national, has served as Deputy Secretary-General of the OECD since January 2019, having covered a wide-ranging portfolio, including Science, Technology and Innovation; Employment, Labour, Social Affairs and Health as well as Entrepreneurship, Education, Skills, Well-being, Inequalities of Opportunity and Sustainability; Trade, Agriculture and Fisheries; Gender and Diversity.

He is an economist and diplomat with more than 25 years of experience in international cooperation. He previously served as Permanent Secretary of State/CEO of the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2013-2018), as Chief Foreign Policy and EU Advisor (EU Sherpa) to the Danish Prime Minister (2010-13), and as Group Director for International Policy at Vodafone 2013. Before that, he has held diplomatic postings to Moscow, Washington, London and Paris. 

During his five years as CEO of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he was in charge of a change-management process, brought the Ministry successfully through a period of budgetary constraints and redefined the strategic direction for the organisation. The role also included de facto deputizing for the Foreign Minister and the Minister for European Affairs at EU, UN and other international fora.

In his earlier career, Ulrik, a Danish national, held the position of Political Director (coordinating EU foreign policy) in 2009-10 and worked as Chief Press Officer and Spokesperson for the Minister of Foreign Affairs in 2004-08 and 2001-03 respectively.

“Laurence, Kerri-Ann and Ulrik bring a wealth of experiences and knowledge to the senior leadership team at the OECD. I look forward to working with them very closely, as we continue to ramp up our efforts to help optimise the strength and quality of our recovery, tackle climate change, better manage the digital transformation of our economies, and support the sustainable expansion of global trade”, OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann said.

For further information on the appointments, journalists are invited to contact OECD Media Office (Tel: + 33 1 45 24 97 00).

Working with over 100 countries, the OECD is a global policy forum that promotes policies to preserve individual liberty and improve the economic and social well-being of people around the world