Jean-Pierre Clamadieu is a graduate of the École Nationale Supérieure des mines de Paris and an engineer from the Corps des mines.

He began his career in the French administration, working in particular for the Ministry of Industry, as well as as technical advisor to the Minister of Labor.

In 1993, he joined the Rhône-Poulenc group and held several management positions. In 2003, he was appointed Chief Executive Officer, then in 2008 Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Rhodia group. In September 2011, following the merger between the Rhodia and Solvay groups, Jean-Pierre Clamadieu was appointed Vice-Chairman of the Executive Committee of Solvay. From May 2012 to the end of February 2019, Jean-Pierre Clamadieu was Chairman of the Executive Committee and CEO of Solvay.

On May 18, 2018, he was appointed Director and Chairman of the Board of Directors of ENGIE. He is also Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Opéra national de Paris, director of AXA and Airbus and Vice-Chairman of the Executive Committee of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.