About

John Tien previously served from 2021 to 2023 as the Deputy Secretary and Chief Operating Officer of the United States Department of Homeland Security, the third largest U.S. Federal cabinet department consisting of over 260,000 people and operating on a $105 billion budget. He is currently a Distinguished Professor of the Practice in the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs at Georgia Tech and is also a Senior Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School's Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. He previously served in three other U.S. Presidential administrations in the National Security Council and the Office of the United States Trade Representative. Immediately prior to his time as the Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security and from 2011 to 2021, he held various senior leadership positions at Citigroup to include being the Chief Administrative Officer for Citi Global Consumer Operations and Technology and as Citi Retail Services' chief operating officer and chief technology officer for the Macy's American Express and private label credit cards. Earlier in his career, he was a United States Army officer, retiring at the rank of Colonel. From 2006-2007, he led an 1,100-soldier task force in combat in Iraq. His combat awards include the Bronze Star Medal with one oak leaf cluster, the Combat Action Badge, and the Valorous Unit Award. Throughout his Army career, he served overseas for nearly a decade, taught political science at the United States Military Academy at West Point, and was a scout platoon leader in Iraq during Operation Desert Storm. He is currently serving on a number of non-profit boards and advisory councils to include the board of councilors for The Carter Center founded by President Jimmy Carter and First Lady Rosalynn Carter. After serving as the long-time board chair for The Mission Continues, he is now on their advisory mission support board. He is a founding board member of the Avalon Action Alliance, a national veterans non-profit focused on scaling more effective ways to help veterans and first responders cope with their mental healthcare, traumatic brain injuries, post-traumatic stress, and substance abuse. He is a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He holds a Bachelor of Science from West Point and an Oxford Master of Arts from Oxford University where he was a Rhodes Scholar. He and his wife, Tracy, live in Atlanta where they are active supporters of the arts.