Tricia Van Orden

Tricia Van Orden is the Director of the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee Secretariat (TPCC) at the International Trade Administration (ITA). In this role, she coordinates trade promotion strategies with 20 federal agencies, as well as states and localities, to help U.S. businesses and economic development organizations successfully compete in global markets in order to expand firm-level revenues, create and sustain U.S. jobs, and contribute to local and regional economic growth. With a focus on small business export promotion, Tricia also serves as the U.S. delegate to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Small and Medium Enterprises Working Group and the OECD Committee on Small and Medium Enterprises and Entrepreneurship.

Tricia has held several positions at ITA. She has managed the President’s Export Council and the President’s Advisory Council on Doing Business in Africa. She has served as the Canada Desk Officer, where she was responsible for increasing access to the Canadian market for U.S. businesses. Tricia started at ITA as a Presidential Management Fellow in the Office of the Western Hemisphere, where she led efforts to promote ethical business practices among local business communities throughout Central America and the Caribbean.

Tricia has also worked at the Inter-American Development Bank, where she developed programs to increase the capacity of small businesses to access capital. She started her career as an aide in the U.S. Senate covering foreign affairs and international trade. Tricia earned a Bachelor of Arts in economics from Colorado State University, a Bachelor of Arts in political science from the University of Washington, and a Master of Public Policy from George Mason University.