About the IAPP

In February 2016, Renard François was named GE’s Global Chief Privacy Officer with responsibility for privacy and personal data protection.  Renard leads the privacy practice group across GE; supports GE’s corporate functions, including human resources, labor & employment, IT, and litigation teams; and coordinates with the Government Affairs & Policy team on relevant issues.  Before becoming Chief Privacy Officer, he was GE Capital’s Chief Privacy & Data Protection Counsel.  In this role, Renard provided legal support, chaired GE Capital’s Privacy & Data Protection Committee, and oversaw the development and implementation of GE Capital’s privacy and data protection policies, standards, and practices globally during the time GE Capital was designated as a Systemically Important Financial Institution.

 

Prior to joining GE Capital, Renard spent four years at Caterpillar Financial Services Corp. in Nashville, Tennessee, where he provided global, legal support in the areas of privacy and data protection, economic sanctions, AML, and anti-bribery.  From 2008-2010, Renard worked in Caterpillar Inc.’s Law and Public Policy Division as the Privacy and Data Protection subject matter expert for its global operations and helped to establish the company’s privacy and data protection governance structure.

 

In 2001, Renard started his legal career at the U.S. Federal Trade Commission in Washington, DC, as a staff attorney in the Division of Marketing Practices and then became an Advisor to the Director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection.  As a staff attorney, he litigated cases under Section 5 of the FTC Act, including the lead case in the International Netforce law enforcement sweep; co-chaired the FTC’s Spam forum; and worked on the CAN-SPAM Act. As an Advisor, he continued his work on privacy and reviewing actions brought under Section 5 of the FTC Act.

 

After working at the FTC, Renard was an associate at Bass, Berry & Sims, PLC in Nashville, TN, where he litigated in federal and state courts, advised clients on privacy and intellectual property issues, and worked on internal investigations and regulatory audits.

 

For seven years, Renard served on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Data Privacy and Integrity Advisory Committee. He is also a former candidate for the Nashville City Council, and has served as a Commissioner of Nashville’s Metro Social Services Commission. He earned a B.A. in history from the University of Pennsylvania, his law degree from the George Washington University Law School, and has an LL. M. in Information Technology and Privacy Law.