Dan Blair

Dan G. Blair is a BPC senior counselor. He is an internationally-recognized expert and leader in public policy and administration, with more than 30-years of experience in top leadership positions in the nonprofit, governmental—including executive and legislative branches—and regulatory sectors.

From July 2011 until January 2017, Blair led the National Academy of Public Administration, an internationally-recognized, congressionally-chartered think tank and consultancy that advises public and private sector entities on issues of governance, transformation, change management, and human capital.

He previously served as deputy director in the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) from 2001 to 2006. As OPM’s acting director in 2005, Blair directed major civil service and human capital reform efforts at the Department of Homeland Security and Defense Department. He led legislative and administrative reforms of senior executive pay systems in the federal government and was responsible for managing the largest employer-sponsored health care program in the United States.

Following passage of comprehensive postal reform legislation in 2006, President George W. Bush named Blair to lead the newly created Postal Regulatory Commission, where he was charged with creating a new regulatory structure for the U.S. Postal Service; transformed the agency’s personnel and organizational operations; and developed its first comprehensive strategic plan.

Blair has represented private and public sector organizations before national and international media, Congress, and international organizations. He has testified on numerous occasions before both House and Senate appropriations and authorizing committees. He has led U.S. government delegations in talks within international organizations, including the Universal Postal Union and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, and on official trips to countries including Iraq, Mexico, China and Japan.

Before joining the executive branch, Blair served in senior leadership positions on congressional committee staffs in the House and the Senate from 1985 to 2001. He led oversight efforts of the Internal Revenue Service, the Postal Service and civil service systems. He led staff efforts to enact legislation establishing a long-term care program for federal employees and a new retirement system for federal employees covered by Social Security.

Blair received a bachelor’s degree in journalism and juris doctor degree from the University of Missouri. He is a member of the Missouri and DC bars.