Donald Paul, the former chief technology officer for Chevron, has become a senior adviser to the provost, helping shape USC’s efforts in the areas of energy and technology.

Paul, who played a key role in establishing CiSoft, a longtime partnership between USC and Chevron, is now the president and managing director of an advisory group, Energy and Technology Strategies LLC, that will work closely with USC’s new Energy Institute to expand its research programs.

Launched earlier this year, the Energy Institute creates a USC-based home for energy and environmental researchers who develop their research and education programs while engaging outside companies and agencies.

“Energy is a pressing global issue, and research universities need to step up to the plate,” said Provost C. L. Max Nikias. “USC is taking a proactive, forward-thinking role on this front, and Dr. Paul’s leadership and breadth of experience will give us a tremendous boost.”

Paul, meanwhile, praised USC’s ability to develop partnerships.

“USC can do things that other universities can’t,” he said. “Not only does it have an absolutely superior ability to build relationships, but it exudes a sense of pragmatism and an ‘I can do it!’ attitude that you don’t find at other universities.”

The Energy Institute, which brings together experts from across the university, will report to Randolph Hall, vice provost for research advancement. Mark Bernstein, a political scientist at USC College, serves as managing director.

In his new role at USC, Paul will advise faculty, deans and the provost’s office on strategies to expand energy research at USC, allowing the university to create economically viable and environmentally friendly systems for capturing, distributing and using energy. These interdisciplinary efforts will take place across the university.

Before founding Energy and Technology Strategies, Paul had spent his 33-year career at Chevron, retiring as the corporation’s vice president and chief technology officer. During his tenure, he held a variety of positions in research and technology, exploration and production operations, and executive management, including service as president of Chevron Canada and president of the Energy Technology Co.

As chief technology officer, he was the line-reporting officer for Chevron’s three technology subsidiaries: Energy Technology, Information Technology and Technology Ventures. He also served as the global compliance officer for information protection, security and data privacy.

He was involved in forming external research and technology partnerships for Chevron with major universities, governments and businesses, including the CiSoft partnership he helped establish at USC in 2003. He oversaw Chevron’s efforts to build partnerships with U.S. government agencies and national laboratories in energy research and development, alternative fuel infrastructure, high performance computing and cyber-security for oil and gas.

Paul was part of the 1997 Presidential Panel on Federal Energy Research and Development, the National Research Council and the landmark 2007 study by the National Petroleum Council for the Secretary of Energy. He continues to serve on a number of advisory boards on energy and technology, including the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C., where he is a senior adviser.

Paul earned his B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, but said that he has been “a member of the Trojan family from the very beginning.” A Los Angeles native, he was born in 1946 while his father – then an engineering student at USC – was taking his calculus exam.