Our Founder

Penny Pritzker

Founder and Chairman

Penny Pritzker is the founder and Chairman of PSP Partners and its affiliates, Pritzker Realty Group, PSP Capital, and PSP Growth. From June 2013 through January 2017, she served as U.S. Secretary of Commerce in the Obama Administration.

Ms. Pritzker is an entrepreneur, civic leader, and philanthropist, with more than 30 years of experience in numerous industries. In addition to her work at PSP Partners, Ms. Pritzker launched a number of other businesses over the course of her career, which included founding Vi Senior Living (formerly known as Classic Residence by Hyatt), and co-founding The Parking Spot, Artemis Real Estate Partners, and Inspired Capital Partners.

Ms. Pritzker is a member of the boards of Microsoft Corporation, DEPT and Icertis. She is also the former executive chairman of the board of TransUnion and is a past board member of Hyatt Hotels Corporation, Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company, Marmon Group, and LaSalle Bank Corporation.

Ms. Pritzker serves as President Biden’s Special Representative for Ukraine’s Economic Recovery. In July of 2022, Ms. Pritzker was elected as the Senior Fellow (chair) of the Harvard Corporation and is the first woman to hold the position. In addition to those roles, Ms. Pritzker is a member of the Aspen Strategy Group and Aspen Economic Strategy Group, member of the Obama Foundation Board and co-chair of the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum Advisory Council.

Ms. Pritzker previously served as chairman of the board of trustees of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, cofounder and board chair of Chicago-based civic-tech organization P33. She also was formerly a member of the board of the Council on Foreign Relations, the board of trustees of Stanford University, the Harvard University Board of Overseers and founded Skills for America’s Future. Ms. Pritzker also served on President Biden’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, and President Obama’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness, and his Economic Recovery Advisory Board.

Ms. Pritzker earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Harvard University and a Juris Doctor and Masters of Business Administration from Stanford University. Ms. Pritzker and her husband, Dr. Bryan Traubert, co-founded the Pritzker Traubert Foundation, a private philanthropic foundation that works to foster increased economic opportunity for Chicago’s families. To learn more about the Pritzker Traubert Foundation, visit www.ptfound.org.

Fast facts:

  • Former U.S. Secretary of Commerce
  • Founder/Co-Founder of 6 businesses
  • Current Board member and investor in
    Microsoft Corporation, Icertis, and DEPT
  • Former board member and/or investor in
    Hyatt Hotel Corp., TransUnion, Marmon Group,
    Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co., and LaSalle Bank
  • Numerous domestic and global civic and
    philanthropic leadership roles

“I believe that building durable businesses and investing in growth and innovation is an inherently noble endeavor. Building businesses successfully—and the right way—requires more than capital and certainly more than one person. It requires a great culture, vision and team which I am proud to say we have here at PSP Partners.”