Karen J. Simon
Karen J. Simon serves as chair of Energean plc (LSE) and as a director for Aker ASA (OSL) and Crescent Energy Inc. (NYSE). Ms. Simon retired from JPMorgan in December 2019 as Vice Chairman of Investment Banking after a 36-year career with the firm. She possesses extensive experience in corporate finance, including M&A, debt, and equity transactions. Her leadership roles at JPMorgan included head of the Global Financial Sponsor and European Debt Capital Markets groups. Ms. Simon established JPMorgan’s Director Advisory Services group, which provides client services for independent directors of public company boards. During her 20 years living in London with JPMorgan, she also served on the firm’s European Reputational Risk, Debt Underwriting and Management committees. Ms. Simon is also involved philanthropically, currently serving as the Chair of the Dean's Executive Committee for the Thunderbird School of Global Management, which is part of Arizona State University and as Trustee for the Institute of Shipboard Education, which runs the Semester at Sea undergraduate study abroad program. She also chairs REV Ocean, a Norwegian ocean research organization established to operate an ocean exploration and research vessel from 2027. She holds a Master of International Management from Thunderbird, a Master of Business Administration from Southern Methodist University and a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and International Relations from the University of Colorado.
