Scott Shaw joined The Cohen Group in 2024 following a 36-year career with the Department of Commerce, retiring as a Senior Foreign Service Officer with the rank of Minister-Counselor. He co-leads the firm’s China practice. He is a Non-Resident Senior Fellow on Chinese Economy at the Asia Society Policy Institute's Center for China Analysis.
Shaw held numerous senior positions at the Department of Commerce. He served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for China and Mongolia, overseeing a team of professionals in mainland China, Hong Kong, and the United States and advising Commerce Department leadership on U.S.-China bilateral trade policy and market access issues. He led the Commerce Department’s re-engagement strategy with China, establishing the Commercial Issues Working Group. He also briefed Commerce leadership ahead of Vice-Ministerial meetings, led engagement with counterparts at China’s Ministry of Commerce, and supported the U.S. trade promotion agenda with China. Shaw also worked across the U.S. government on economic and commercial issues, often representing the Commerce Department at the National Security Council.
Prior to his role as Deputy Assistant Secretary, Shaw was the Minister-Counselor for Commercial Affairs in Brasilia. He also served as Counselor for Commercial Affairs in Beijing, where he had day-to-day management responsibilities for the Commerce Department’s largest overseas presence. Shaw also served as the Senior Commercial Officer at the U.S. Consulate in Hong Kong, as well as the Deputy Senior Commercial Officer for Brazil at the US Consulate in São Paulo.
Shaw served as Commercial Attaché in Bangkok and as the Director of the U.S. Commercial Center in Shanghai. He began his foreign service career at the U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou, where he received the Commerce Department’s Individual Gold Medal Award, the highest award granted by the Secretary of Commerce for excellence in federal service. Shaw has received multiple State Department Meritorious Honor Awards during his career, and a Commerce Group Gold Medal Award from his tour in Beijing. He began his career with the Commerce Department in positions in Washington, D.C., Chicago, and Manila.
Shaw received a B.A. in Government from Cornell University and is a past participant of the Cornell Public Policy program in Washington, D.C. He speaks Brazilian Portuguese and has a working knowledge of Mandarin Chinese.
