Deborah Diamond

Director, U3 Advisors

Philadelphia

Deborah is the director of Campus+City Consulting at U3 Advisors. In this role, she advises cities on talent retention, inclusion, and attraction strategies and has worked with a diverse range of cities and regions including Greensboro, NC, Tulsa, OK, Richmond, VA, and Fargo, ND. Deborah’s expertise in connecting talent to place developed during her 10 years as the president of Campus Philly, the national model for talent attraction and retention. During her time at Campus Philly, she oversaw the startling growth of young people choosing Philadelphia after college. Between 2000 and 2017, the number of 25-34 year-olds with college degrees grew 115% in Philadelphia and 54% of graduates stayed in the region after they graduated. Deborah co-founded the learning network Young Smart and Local for cities planning and implementing talent retention programs. Deborah’s earlier career includes leading research and strategy at Visit Philadelphia and conducting research for service-sector clients at The Melior Group. Deborah began her career as an academic, receiving her Ph.D. in political science from the University of Chicago and teaching at Columbia University in New York and Bryn Mawr College, her undergraduate alma mater.