Joseph LeBaron
| Joseph LeBaron | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| United States Ambassador to Qatar | |
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In office July 18, 2008 – July 29, 2011 |
|
| President |
George W. Bush Barack Obama |
| Preceded by | Chase Untermeyer |
| Succeeded by | Susan L. Ziadeh |
| United States Ambassador to Mauritania | |
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In office September 1, 2003 – November 22, 2007 |
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| President | George W. Bush |
| Preceded by | John W. Limbert |
| Succeeded by | Mark Boulware |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1947 (age 69–70) |
| Spouse(s) | Elinor R. Drake LeBaron |
| Children | Petra Drake LeBaron |
| Alma mater | Portland State University |
| Profession | Diplomat |
Joseph Evan LeBaron (born 1947) is the former United States Ambassador to the State of Qatar (July 18, 2008 – July 29, 2011) and to the Islamic Republic of Mauritania (September 1, 2003– November 22, 2007).
In September 2011, Ambassador Joseph LeBaron joined Patton Boggs, now Squire Patton Boggs, LLP, a company that does business with the Government of Qatar, as senior advisor. He is active in the practice areas of Public Policy and International Business, with an emphasis on the Middle East, especially the Persian Gulf. Additionally, Ambassador LeBaron is the Founder and CEO of GulfScape Arabia, LLC, a private consulting firm based in Washington, DC. He is also the Vice Chairman of Daruna for Real Estate Brokerage & Development, a Qatar-based company focused on building migrant worker housing that meets all international standards. In October 2015 Daruna signed a $219.4 million dollar deal to build a residential complex for 12,000 workers housed on a 150,000 square meter plot.
Ambassador LeBaron was sworn in as Ambassador to Qatar by Chief Justice Paul J. De Muniz of the Oregon Supreme Court on July 18, 2008, in a ceremony at the Simon Benson House of Portland State University in Portland, Oregon. PSU Interim President Michael J. Reardon presided over the ceremony. The event is believed to be the first time a career U.S. diplomat has been sworn in as ambassador in a public ceremony that was held in the United States outside Washington, D.C.
While in Qatar as Ambassador, LeBaron introduced the doctrine and practice of “interagency synchronization in the field,” an innovative "process that sounds complicated at first," but that is a strategic framework for Embassy operations. In a Report released by the Department of State’s Office of the Inspector General after its routine inspection of the Embassy in April 2010, the OIG called it “an idea worth considering by other chiefs of mission.”
The Report described the approach in detail: “The Ambassador and DCM place a high priority on teamwork among the agencies and sections of the mission. Their emphasis is not just on coordination, but on working together to achieve clearly laid out goals. The primary vehicle for this priority is the Ambassador’s synchronization process, which is an innovative approach to strategic planning and execution that draws on his recent experience working with the U.S. military.” The report went on to say that "the Ambassador's experience, both in the region and as a political advisor to U.S. Special Operations Command, contributes to the embassy's close and productive coordination with the military."
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