Franz brings more than 30 years of experience leading public affairs, communications, government relations, and social impact across both private and public sectors.
Most recently, as EVP of Public Affairs and Communications at Columbia University, Franz led communications, government relations and community engagement at a critical time for the university. I had the privilege of working with Franz at PayPal, where he served as Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, leading global communications, public affairs, reputation management and social impact. Franz played a pivotal role in defining PayPal’s mission and values and building the company’s reputation. During our tenure together, PayPal was named one of the World’s Most Admired Companies by Fortune every year from 2017 to 2023, a testament to the company’s commitment to doing right by stakeholders.
Before joining PayPal, Franz held key leadership roles in communications, reputation risk management and law, including serving as the Head of External Relations for North America at McKinsey & Company, Senior Partner at Fleishman Hillard, Managing Director of Clark & Weinstock, General Counsel of Market Data Corporation and litigator at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind and Garrison.
Franz earned his JD from the Columbia University School of Law, where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar, and graduated with high honors from Swarthmore College.
