Austinite Angela Chao,who died in a car crash, led an impressive professional career

Austin resident Angela Chao, who recently died in a car accident in Central Texas, was chair and CEO of Foremost Group, a global leader in the dry bulk shipping industry founded by her father James Chao and her mother Ruth Mulan Chu Chao in 1964 in New York.

Angela Chau was previously vice president of Foremost Group, concentrating on ship operations and ship management, and was then promoted to senior vice president of the company, adding chartering and sales and purchase to her responsibilities, according to her profile on the Foremost website.

Prior to that, she was assistant vice president where she implemented Foremost Group’s Safety Management System to comply with the International Safety Management Code, a new regulation mandated by the International Maritime Organization, which came into effect for large bulk carriers in 1997, whose objective was to ensure safety, prevent human injury or loss of life and avoid damage to the environment and property as a result of various marine accidents.

She later implemented the fleet’s Vessel Security Plans in compliance with the IMO’s International Ship and Port Facility Security Code, a comprehensive set of measures to enhance the security of ships and ports, developed in response to the 9/11 attacks in the United States.

Before joining Foremost Group in 1996, Chao worked in the mergers and acquisitions department of Smith Barney, now Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, according to Foremost Group.

She was a frequent speaker in the United States, Europe and Asia and served on the Boards of the American Bureau of Shipping Council, Harvard Business School’s Board of Dean’s Advisors, and the Metropolitan Opera.

She also served on the Chairman’s Council of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Founding Board Council of the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles as well as the Boards of the Shanghai Mulan Education Foundation, the Ruth Mulan Chu Chao Foundation, and the Foremost Foundation.

In addition, she served as the co-chair of The Asian American Foundation’s Advisory Council, was a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and served on the Young Leaders Forum of the National Committee on US-China Relations,.

Previously, Chao served on the Boards of the Bank of China, the Massachusetts Maritime Academy’s International Maritime Business Department Advisory Board, the New York City Economic Development Corporation, the China State Shipbuilding Corporation, the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, and the Museum of Modern Art PS1 as well as on the Carnegie-Tsinghua Center for Global Policy Board of Advisors, Lincoln Center Global’s China Advisory Council, the American Ballet Theatre’s Global Council, the Hospital for Special Surgery’s International Advisory Council and the Executive Committee of the Baltic International Maritime Council.

Chao earned an MBA from Harvard Business School after receiving receiving her undergraduate degree in economics from Harvard College where she graduated magna cum laude in three years, according to Foremost Group.

Chao's sister is United States Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao, who is married to Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Austinite Angela Chao was a high-business executive of a shipping firm