Jan Grayson led the state agency formerly known as the Department of Commerce and Community Affairs — the state’s economic development arm — for four years during the administration of the late Gov. Jim Edgar, and he later chaired the board of the Chicago Architecture Foundation.
“Jan was an affable business leader and problem solver,” said Regional Transportation Authority Chair Kirk Dillard, who served as Edgar’s chief of staff. “He was instrumental in the early 1990s in guiding Illinois’ economy through a severe national economic downturn.”
Grayson, 84, died of a bacterial infection on Oct. 19 at the Norton Brownsboro Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky, said his former wife, Jo Ann Loschenkohl. He had been a Louisville resident, and previously had lived in Old Town.
Born in 1941 on the South Side, Grayson grew up in Hyde Park and got a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of Chicago in 1962. He then served in the Army for a time, and he got an MBA from the U. of C. in 1965.
Early in his career, Grayson had several jobs, including as a math teacher in Chicago Public Schools and as a quality control chemist for Armour & Co.
Grayson was a financial analyst and marketing representative for the Northern Trust Co. from 1967 until 1970, when he joined what became the Deloitte consulting firm, where he became a partner in 1980.
In 1986, Grayson left Deloitte to serve as chief financial officer for the Charles A. Stevens apparel retail chain. He then worked for what now is the PricewaterhouseCoopers accounting and consulting firm from 1988 until 1991.
Shortly after Edgar was elected in 1990, he tapped Grayson to become the head of Illinois’ Department of Commerce and Community Affairs, now known as the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. With a private-sector background, Grayson was tasked with streamlining the department, including curtailing the state’s participation in large job-attraction incentive sweepstakes bids, as had been the case under Edgar’s predecessor, Gov. Jim Thompson.
“Jan’s passion was assisting small and medium-sized businesses, since they make up 85% of Illinois jobs,” Dillard said. “As director, Jan helped lead Illinois to an unemployment rate lower than the national average — a rare feat for the state.”
Grayson’s role for the state included representing Edgar on various boards and commissions that promoted economic activity. He also served on several task forces, including one on reforming the state’s civil service system.
Grayson left the state government shortly after Edgar was reelected as governor, and he consulted further, including serving for a year as the CEO of LaSalle Photo Services, a large commercial photo finishing company. He then spent two years as the chief information officer for Holiday Inn Worldwide.
In 1998, Grayson established his own consultancy.
In the early 2000s, Grayson joined the board of the Chicago Architecture Foundation, which in 2018 was renamed the Chicago Architecture Center. Founded in 1966 to save Chicago’s historic Glessner House, the nonprofit group hosts tours, river cruises and exhibits, serving about 500,000 guests a year.
From 2001 until 2003, Grayson chaired the Chicago Architecture Foundation’s board. That year, the group opened a space for exhibits, workshops and a store in the Railway Exchange Building, also known as the Santa Fe Building, at 224 S. Michigan Ave.
“Jan just excelled as chairman,” said Lynn Osmond, then the group’s president. “He was fun, and he was curious, and he was good at planning and thinking big and making us aspire. Plus, he was very well-connected in the city. He started helping me set high standards for what we could be.”
Grayson held roles with other nonprofits in Chicago, including chairing the board of the Victory Gardens Theater and serving on the boards of the Better Government Association, the Chicago Jazz Ensemble, the Golden Apple Foundation and the Society of Architectural Historians.
In 2014, Grayson moved to Louisville, where he served on the board of the Actors Theatre of Louisville from 2015 until 2021.
During retirement, Grayson enjoyed traveling, visiting nearly 100 countries, Loschenkohl said.
His daughter, Olivia, died of leukemia in 2003 at age 2. In addition to his former wife, Grayson is survived by a brother, Alan.
A service is being planned.
Bob Goldsborough is a freelance reporter.
