Chris Lipp joined the Freeman School in 2023 after previously serving as a lecturer in communications at Rice University and the University of Southern California. His work covers persuasion, startup pitches and power dynamics. He wrote two books on persuasion and investor pitching, and he currently coaches entrepreneurs in their fundraising journeys. Prior to his career in academia, Lipp led business projects in semiconductor manufacturing. He holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from UC Berkeley and a master’s degree in social psychology from San Francisco State University focused on implicit motivation and moral emotions. His current work explores personal power and how power is displayed through language.