Kerri (Robinson) Davidson is Executive Director and Chief of Staff in the Office of the Chief Operating Officer at Arizona State University, providing leadership to the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of ASU, Dr. Chris Howard. She leads and directs a wide range of strategic activities, initiatives, and projects to advance the University's mission and vision. Since 2010, she has dedicated her efforts to advancing the University's role for public good while supporting the ASU Charter as one of the most inclusive, high performing and innovative universities in the world. She has over 25 years of experience successfully translating visionary ideas into strategic, actionable plans through business operations and enterprise development.
Formerly, she served as Senior Director and Chief of Staff at ASU’s Biodesign Institute, the premier scientific research institute in the nation’s fastest growing research university, Arizona State University, where she led strategic administrative, operational and business development for the institute. Annual research expenditures and philanthropic funding exceed $65M. A proven business leader and strategist, Davidson led mission-critical programs at the Institute for 12 years, responding to global challenges in biomedical health, environmental sustainability and global security.
Davidson played a vital role in ASU’s University and state-wide COVID response, providing free COVID-19 testing throughout the State of Arizona. She designed, developed and scaled operations for 100’s of sites throughout the state, especially for underserved communities, vulnerable populations and for the general public. She helped ASU forge a $100MM partnership with the AZ Department of Health Services and launched vaccination and testing sites statewide, including State Farm Stadium, home of the Arizona Cardinals football team, deemed “Best in the United States” by the Center for Disease Control and virtually visited by the President of the United States, Joe Biden, and United States Vice President, Kamala Harris, on February 8, 2021. As of today, Biodesign has processed nearly 1.5 million tests to detect the presence of SARS-CoV-2.
Davidson is a 2023 Leader of the Year (Large Business) finalist & Champion of Change Awardee in the state of Arizona, recognizing "those dynamic innovators and trailblazers who are changing Arizona's business landscape through leadership, visionary thinking and philanthropy, and have earned the right to be called a Champion of Change" by AZ Business. She is also the 2021 Most Admired Leader honoree of the Phoenix Business Journal. Nominees recognized for their “integrity, values, vision and commitment to excellence” in business and community leadership. She is the first in her family to earn advanced degrees.
She holds a Master's degree in Healthcare Innovation from ASU and a Master's degree in Organizational Leadership from NAU. She is a Certified Project Manager and holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Management.