Jon Roberts
Jon has focused on the role of innovation and technology in economic development since the 1980s. Upon joining TIP as a principal and managing partner in 2000, Jon helped transition the company from its Texas-based site selection practice to a national strategy firm. As managing partner, Jon plays an instrumental role in strategic goalsetting. He has also amassed an impressive portfolio that includes planning work from New York to California, with significant regional projects in the Mississippi Delta, Seattle’s Puget Sound, and the Great Lakes area. Prior to joining the firm, Jon was the director of business development first for the State of Washington and then, under Governor Ann Richards, for the State of Texas. During the transition to Governor Bush’s tenure, he helped restructure the state’s economic development organization and then co-authored the new strategic plan for the State of Texas. Jon also has deep ties to the state of Oregon. He was vice-president with the Oregon Technology Fund and lead investor for the Hood River Brewing Company (Full Sail), managed two start-up technology companies (Fiberlite Composites and LifePort Inc.), and founded a mountain bike company in Portland, Oregon (Fat Tire Farm). He received a BA in philosophy and MA in political philosophy from the University of Hawaii and did post-graduate work towards his PhD at the University of Oregon. Born and raised in Germany, Jon now resides in Austin and spends his summers in Bend, Oregon.
