US: Google taps former Obama advisor as Policy Chief

Google says it has appointed former White House economist Caroline Atkinson as its global public policy chief.

The appointment comes as the world’s most powerful Internet company faces escalating regulatory headaches in every public arena from privacy to antitrust, particularly in the European Union.

“Caroline’s an internationally respected diplomat and adviser, and we’re delighted to have such a thoughtful leader heading our global public policy team,” Kent Walker, Google’s general counsel, said in a statement.

With the backlash against US tech companies in Europe, BGC Partners analyst Colin Gillis applauded the hire of Atkinson, a former International Monetary Fund official who has dual United Kingdom and US nationality.

“Government regulatory concerns are one of the top risks to Google and if not handled correctly could result in overhead, expense and management distraction,” Gillis said. “It’s hard to do business when you are constantly under a regulator’s eye. It’s an important role.”

Atkinson has been President Obama’s representative at the G7 and G20 summits and coordinated U.S. policy on global economics.

Full content: Fortune

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