From 1982 to 1995, O'Neill founded her first company, O'Neill & Company, advising electric utilities on energy efficiency and helping launch one of the largest curbside recycling programs in the country. In 1992, she served as Chairwoman for the Washington State Women's Political Caucus. O'Neill also advised policy makers on innovation and large-scale consumer adoption.
Entrepreneur
In 1996, O'Neill was the President and CEO of ConnexT - a software company that served the deregulated energy market and was birthed from the idea that electric meters could be read remotely and from one place using new innovative technologies. The company was hailed as innovative for the time for its ability to make communication connections for its clients with new technologies. Her expertise led her to become a delegate to the Advanced Study Institute of NATO on the utility industry. Later, O'Neill created Improvemybusiness.com, a company designed to help small businesses through the Internet. In 2003, O'Neill was the CEO of Explore Life, a public-private company to improve Seattle's life sciences industry and increase the region's rate of commercial research. It led the way in attracting new biotech investors to the Pacific Northwest.
Innovation and international development
In 2009, O'Neill went to work at USAID. She co-led the institution of USAID Forward - the agency's major reform initiative under President Obama. O'Neill led the agency's move to incorporate more public-private partnerships as a key component for effective development. She led the IDEA project. O'Neill was named the First Chief of Innovation and a Senior Counselor to the Administrator in January 2009 at the United States Agency for International Development. Partnerships O'Neill spearheaded at USAID:
Led the LGBT Global Development Partnership that strengthens LGBT community groups, trains LGBT citizens to actively participate in government, and supports research on the economic impact of discrimination against LGBT individuals and communities.
Played a major part in the development of the MAMA Alliance - a global community dedicated to using mobile phones in delivering basic and important health information for expectant mothers and their families around the world. In 2013, USAID received the Best Government Policy for Mobile Development award at GSMA's Mobile World Congress.
Worked on talks that led to the formation of the Tropical Forest Alliance 2020. The alliance was formed by public-private partnerships leading the way in tackling issues surrounding the deforestation of tropical forests around the globe.
Early life, education, and family
O'Neill was raised in the San Francisco Bay Area before moving to Seattle in 1975, where she attended the University of Washington as an undergrad and designed her own degree in environmental studies. She later received MBAs from Columbia University and the University of California, Berkeley. She also has a PhD from the University of Washington, where her research focused on narrow-mindedness and the error it leads to in science, medicine, business, and political decision-making. O'Neill lives in Seattle, Washington, with her husband, where they raised their two grown children.
