Diana Farrell

Who is Diana Farrell?

Diana Farrell is a Director of McKinsey & Company and the global leader and co-founder of the McKinsey Center for Government.

From 2009 to 2011, Farrell was Deputy Director of the United States National Economic Council and Deputy Assistant on Economic Policy to President Barack Obama. She was also a member of the Presidential Task Force on the Auto Industry. While at the White House, Farrell directed interagency processes for the administration’s financial regulatory reform, housing and housing-finance policy, and innovation and competitiveness agendas.

On November 22, 2010, Farrell announced that she would be leaving the administration by the end of the year. Lawrence Summers, then the Director of the NEC, who had previously announced that he would return at the end of the year to Harvard University, noted that Farrell had "played a central role" in the efforts of the administration to encourage economic growth, restructure the auto industry, and respond to the housing crisis. Summers further stated: "Her natural talent as a policy maker and her good judgment made her invaluable in setting a course for economic recovery."

Prior to serving in government, Farrell was the Director of the McKinsey Global Institute, McKinsey & Company's economics research arm. While at McKinsey she was also a leader of the Global Financial Institutions and Global Strategy practices. Prior to joining McKinsey, she worked for Goldman Sachs in New York.