On Jan. 12, 2016, Google announced that Caroline Atkinson had been hired as the American search engine giant’s new head of global policy. Atkinson will be in charge of making sure that Google’s interests are heard as more countries decide what the best policy, in regards to privacy technology, for their respective countries will be.
Many national governments, particularly in Europe, have been beefing up their legislation regarding technology, privacy, and data collection—fields in which Google has a deeply-vested interest in. The new job title comes with the responsibility to make sure that Google is able to play nicely with governments around the world.
Atkinson recently stepped down from her role as an economic advisor at the White House—a position that she held since the summer of 2013. Atkinson’s experience working with governmental bodies, as well as her vast knowledge of economics, has made her an important asset for Google’s progress. Atkinson’s job history also includes a tenure working with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and a position on the Council of Foreign Relations.
North American technology companies, such as Google, have begun to experience more and more roadblocks in the European marketplace. Google is currently involved in an ongoing legal battle with the European Union in regards to their data collection and the power that it gives them in the global market.
Sites such as Google and Amazon have massive amounts of data detailing their user’s search history—data that can be used to cater search results to specific Google-backed companies, while muscling out smaller competitors.
In 2000, the transfer of the data of European users over to North American companies and data holding centres was legalized. However, the collected data cannot be utilized by third-party companies—which is the main charge levelled against Google by the European Union.
Atkinson’s diplomatic history and political ties to Europe could prove to be a significant asset for the technological giant, by smoothing over Google’s present legal troubles with the European Union, and preventing any further legal hang-ups going forward.
Atkinson’s high level appointment also provides a small victory in terms of gender equality in the technological field. Science and technology are industries that are notoriously male-dominated, and the appointment of Caroline Atkinson is another step forward in the fight to bring better representation to the field of computer sciences, and in the fight for hiring the right person for the job—not just the right man.
Kent Walker, a member of Google’s general council released a statement which read:
“Caroline’s an internationally-respected diplomat and adviser, and we’re delighted to have such a thoughtful leader heading our global policy team.”