Keith Krach was born on April 1, 1957, in Lakewood, Ohio. His parents were John and Elda Krach. He grew up in the nearby suburb of Rocky River, Ohio. As a child, he helped in his father’s small machine shop and by age twelve was welding in the five-person family shop. Krach later said this hands-on experience inspired his interest in engineering.
Krach graduated from Rocky River High School in 1975. He then attended Purdue University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in industrial engineering in 1979. He went on to Harvard Business School and received an M.B.A. in 1981.
| Fact Category | Verified Information |
| Full Name | Keith J. Krach |
| Identity | American technology executive and former U.S. diplomat. |
| Birth | Born April 1, 1957, in Lakewood, Ohio. |
| Education | Purdue University (B.S.); Harvard Business School (MBA). |
| Early Career | Began career at General Motors in engineering leadership. |
| GM Achievement | Became GM’s youngest vice president at age 26. |
| Ariba | Co-founded Ariba; led its IPO in 1999. |
| Major Acquisition | Ariba acquired by SAP in 2012 for ~$4.3 billion. |
| DocuSign | Chairman and CEO; led 2018 IPO and global expansion. |
| Net Worth | Keith Krach Net Worth not publicly disclosed as of 2026. |
| Public Service | U.S. Under Secretary of State (2019–2021). |
Keith Krach, technology entrepreneur and former U.S. Under Secretary of State, known for leading Ariba and DocuSign and bridging private-sector innovation with public service. Keith Krach is an American business executive and former diplomat whose career spans engineering, technology and public service. He began in engineering at General Motors and eventually co founded and led major software companies, later transitioning to government service and national initiatives.
In the private sector Krach helped build Ariba into a global commerce platform and led the electronic signature pioneer DocuSign as its CEO for a decade, before entering public service. He later served as U.S. Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment from 2019 to 2021.
More recently he was appointed by President Trump as CEO of Freedom 250, the national nonprofit overseeing the United States 250th anniversary celebration. Along the way he has chaired the Purdue University Board of Trustees and launched education and mentorship programs, demonstrating a blend of industry leadership and values driven initiatives.
After earning engineering and business degrees, Krach began his career at General Motors. He worked in GM’s corporate and research units, eventually leading the newly formed robotics division.
In 1984 he became GM’s youngest ever vice president at age 26, overseeing automation projects at the Cadillac Technical Center. In the late 1980s he left GM to join Rasna Corporation, a mechanical computer aided design software startup, as chief operating officer.
Rasna thrived under his management and was sold in 1995 for roughly 500 million dollars.
In 1996 Krach co founded Ariba Inc., a business to business e commerce software company in Silicon Valley. As Ariba’s chairman and CEO he grew the company rapidly, bringing electronic trading networks to millions of users.
Under his leadership Ariba went public in 1999 at a 6 billion dollar valuation, and the stock rose to a 40 billion dollar market capitalization by 2000. His work at Ariba earned broad recognition, including being named Ernst & Young’s National Entrepreneur of the Year in 2000.
By the early 2000s Ariba had become the world’s largest online B2B marketplace, reflecting the technology and management culture Krach established.
After Ariba, Krach turned to venture investing and board leadership. He served as president of his own investment holding company, 3Points LLC, advising CEOs of technology companies.
From 2006 to 2009 he was on the board of XOJet, a private aviation firm, and from 2007 to 2011 on the board of Ooma, a telecommunications startup.
In 2011 he became chairman and CEO of DocuSign, a company offering electronic signature and transaction management services. He had already served as chairman since 2009, and he assumed the CEO role to accelerate growth.
Under Krach’s decade long leadership at DocuSign, the company expanded worldwide. He helped create the industry of digital transaction management and built the DocuSign Global Trust Network, which grew to more than one billion users across over 180 countries.
He led the company through major capital expansion and organizational scaling, culminating in DocuSign’s initial public offering in 2018, in which he was the largest individual shareholder.
In late 2016 he named his successor as CEO and remained executive chairman until 2019. During this period he was recognized as a key figure in enterprise technology leadership.
While at DocuSign, Krach also held other influential roles in the technology sector. From 2011 to 2014 he served as chairman of the board for Angie’s List during its transition to a public company.
He consistently participated in board and advisory roles across technology and education focused organizations, and he mentored emerging technology companies, reinforcing his influence beyond operational leadership roles.
Keith Krach served as U.S. Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment from 2019 to 2021, leading U.S. economic diplomacy and international technology policy initiatives. In 2019 Krach entered the U.S. State Department after being nominated by President Donald Trump and unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
As Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment, he served as the department’s senior official for economic diplomacy. His responsibilities included advancing U.S. interests in trade, investment, technology and energy while strengthening partnerships with allies.
He led the development of a Global Economic Security Strategy addressing emerging technology risks and worked closely with Congress on major legislation, including contributions to what later became the CHIPS and Science Act.
During his tenure, Krach launched the Clean Network initiative, an alliance of governments and companies committed to securing telecommunications infrastructure and excluding untrusted vendors from 5G networks.
The initiative expanded to include dozens of countries and major global telecom operators. He also helped establish the Lee Economic Prosperity Partnership with Taiwan and became the highest ranking U.S. State Department official to visit Taiwan in over forty years.
During the COVID 19 pandemic, he played a role in coordinating the return of tens of thousands of U.S. citizens stranded overseas and supported efforts to secure critical medical supplies for the United States.
In late 2025, President Trump announced Freedom 250, a national initiative preparing for the 250th anniversary of American independence, and appointed Keith Krach as its CEO.
Freedom 250 operates as a nonpartisan public private organization coordinating commemorative programs, educational initiatives and large scale civic events across the country.
As CEO, Krach oversees collaboration among federal agencies, state and local governments, businesses and civic organizations.
Under his leadership, Freedom 250 has begun rolling out nationwide programming, including a Mobile Museum Tour featuring interactive historical exhibits traveling to communities and schools across the United States.
The organization is also developing large scale national events such as the Freedom 250 Grand Prix, which is planned as the first IndyCar street race in Washington, D.C.
These initiatives aim to promote civic engagement, historical education and national unity in advance of the semiquincentennial celebrations.
Across multiple decades, Krach has built and scaled organizations with substantial global impact. At Ariba, he expanded a digital commerce platform that facilitated trillions of dollars in annual transactions and later became part of SAP.
At DocuSign, he led growth from an early stage technology company into a global digital transaction platform serving hundreds of millions of users and enterprises worldwide.
His leadership consistently focused on scaling infrastructure, building trust based networks and guiding companies through public market transitions.
Krach’s career achievements have been recognized through numerous industry honors, including National Entrepreneur of the Year and technology leadership awards.
He has been widely cited for shaping enterprise technology markets and has influenced public policy discussions around economic security, supply chains and democratic technology standards.
His Clean Network initiative has been described as a lasting contribution to U.S. technology diplomacy, reflecting his ability to merge private sector expertise with public policy objectives.
Philanthropy and leadership development have remained central to Krach’s professional philosophy. He founded the Global Mentor Network to connect students and entrepreneurs with experienced business leaders for guidance and mentorship.
Through the Krach Family Foundation, he has supported education initiatives at Purdue University, including endowing leadership scholarships and supporting the establishment of the Krach Leadership Center on campus.
He also co founded the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue University, which focuses on aligning technology innovation with democratic values and national security.
Throughout his career, Krach has consistently emphasized ethical leadership and responsible technology use.
He has spoken publicly about the risks of advanced technologies being controlled by authoritarian regimes and has advocated for innovation that aligns with freedom, transparency and trust.
His leadership across business, government and civic initiatives reflects a values driven approach that integrates economic success with long term societal responsibility.
As of 2026, no reliable public net worth figure is available for Keith J. Krach. Krach is a technology entrepreneur whose wealth comes from founding and leading tech companies. He co‑founded Ariba (later sold to SAP in 2012 for about $4.3 billion) and was chairman/CEO of DocuSign through its 2018 IPO.
His income derives from stock holdings and compensation in these ventures, plus board roles at companies like XOJet, Ooma, and Angie’s List. Online estimates of his net worth vary widely and no major outlet (Forbes, Bloomberg, etc.) has confirmed any figure, so any reported number should be treated as an unverified estimate.
Keith Krach is an American technology entrepreneur and former U.S. diplomat. He is best known for co-founding Ariba and serving as CEO and chairman of DocuSign.
He is best known for building Ariba into a global B2B e-commerce company and later leading DocuSign through significant growth and its 2018 IPO. Both companies became leaders in enterprise software.
Keith Krach served as U.S. Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment from 2019 to 2021. He was confirmed unanimously by the U.S. Senate.
He earned a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering from Purdue University and an MBA from Harvard Business School. He has remained active in higher education leadership and philanthropy.
Keith Krach serves as CEO of Freedom 250, the national organization preparing for the United States’ 250th anniversary. He also remains active in technology policy, education initiatives, and mentorship programs.