Deborah Adams retired from Phillips 66 October 1, 2016, after working 33 years in the oil and gas industry. She began serving on public company boards in 2017. From 2014 until retirement, Adams served on the Executive Leadership Team at Phillips 66 as senior vice president, HSE, Projects, and Procurement. Having three years of board director experience in addition to her roles at Conoco, ConocoPhillips, and Phillips 66, she has broad industry knowledge, international experience, and proven board and executive leadership capability.

From 2008-2014, she led the midstream operations of Phillips 66 and ConocoPhillips as the division president of transportation. She has also held various leadership posts including chief procurement officer, general manager of the international refining business, and general manager of global downstream IT for ConocoPhillips. Adams currently serves on three public company boards (EnLink Midstream LLC, Gulfport Energy Corp., and MRC Global Corp.) and one privately held employee-owned company (Austin Industries). She completed her second term on the BakerRipely nonprofit board in 2018. She also earned the NACD Governance Fellow certification in 2019.

Adams earned a BS degree in Chemical Engineering at Oklahoma State University in 1983. She served her alma mater as a member of the foundation board of trustees from 2012-2020 and continues to serve on the foundation board of governors. In 2014, she was inducted into the Oklahoma State University College of Engineering, Architecture, and Technology Hall of Fame and was honored as a Distinguished Alumna of the University. In 2015, the National Diversity Council named Adams to the list of the Top 50 Most Powerful Women in Oil and Gas.