Beth Cobert is Former President of the Markle Foundation. In this role, Cobert led Markle’s work to expand access to quality jobs and create a more equitable labor market through initiatives including the Rework America Alliance (Alliance), Rework America State Network, and Skillful.
She helped create these strong national coalitions of government, business, education and training, and non-profit stakeholders focused on transforming our country’s approach to skills development and access to career opportunities.
These efforts culminated in the recent transition of the Alliance to Jobs for the Future (JFF), where the Alliance’s catalytic efforts and influence will continue to grow. Cobert led this barrier-breaking initiative to combine the reach of the Alliance and JFF, where the Alliance’s innovative progress in building connections among stakeholders, focusing on career coaching for workers, and creating practical tools to shift employers to skills-based practices and building capabilities in communities, will continue with JFF.
In her role as President at Markle, Cobert employs her extensive experience in talent management and partnership development, as well as her acumen for harnessing the potential of new technologies.
Prior to joining Markle, Cobert honed her leadership skills as Acting Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) under President Obama. During her tenure, OPM adopted new technology to improve customer service and cyber security and championed innovations to support a talented and diverse federal workforce. Cobert came to OPM from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), where she served as the Deputy Director for Management and the U.S. Chief Performance Officer beginning in October 2013. At OMB, she led the President’s Management Agenda, an effort to make government more effective and efficient so it can deliver better, faster, and smarter services to citizens and businesses.
Beth began her career at McKinsey & Company, where she became Senior Partner, and worked with clients across a range of sectors, including financial services, healthcare, real estate, telecommunications, and philanthropy.
Beth is a fellow at the National Academy of Public Administration. She is also a member of the Board of Directors of CBRE Group, Inc., and serves on the Princeton University Board of Trustees and Colorado Workforce Development Council.
Beth received a bachelor’s degree in economics from Princeton University and a master’s in business administration from Stanford University.
