Frederick Stephens

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Administration

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Frederick Stephens joined the U.S. Department of Commerce as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Administration on August 9, 2010. He is responsible for a broad range of department-wide administrative functions that include acquisition management, administrative services, civil rights, financial and human resources management, privacy and open government, program evaluation and risk management, security, and small business utilization.

Prior to joining the Commerce Department, Stephens served as executive director of facilities and construction for Seattle Public Schools.

Stephens also served the State of Washington as director of the Department of Licensing. Over the course of six years, he transformed the agency’s customer service infrastructure by establishing an agency-wide licensing program that reduced wait times from three hours to 20 minutes and created an automated system for licensing renewals.

At the Commerce Department, Stephens returns to work under U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, having previously been his deputy chief of staff during his time as governor of Washington. Stephens was responsible for the oversight of 22 cabinet-level agencies and spearheaded several gubernatorial initiatives, including regulatory reform and quality improvement. Other public positions he has held include chief administrative officer for King County in Seattle, Washington, and assistant secretary of the Management Services Division for the Washington State Department of Health and Human Services.

Stephens’ private sector experience includes working as the area general service manager for Hewlett Packard Corporation and controller for Xerox Corporation.

Stephens holds a Bachelor of Arts from Wilberforce University and a Master of Arts from Yale University. He has also received executive training in government leadership from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.