Speaker Bio

Jeff Smith is serving as interim director of ORNL. He previously served 21 years as ORNL’s Deputy for Operations, retiring in April 2021.

As deputy for operations, Smith led a $400 million modernization effort, which resulted in the most new construction at the Laboratory since the Manhattan Project. Under Smith’s leadership, UT-Battelle used partnerships with the State of Tennessee, private-sector financing, and innovative approaches to optimize federal resources to transform ORNL. In support of this transformation, Smith also serves as the president of UT-Battelle Development Corporation, a not-for-profit focused on the development of facilities to support the Lab’s mission. Read more about Jeff Smith