Nominated by President Barack Obama, he was confirmed by the Senate on July 10, 2009, and sworn in by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Susman served on the Board of Directors and Management Committee for the St. Louis Cardinals baseball franchise from 1975 to 1989.

Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy by Ronald Reagan in 1988, and served as a director of the Center for National Policy in Washington, D.C.[5] Susman later served the managing director and vice chairman of Citigroup Corporate and Investment Banking.

He had been a longtime and prolific fundraiser for Democratic Party candidates, including Obama and 2004 presidential nominee John Kerry.

[7] Their daughter, Sally Susman, is the executive vice president of corporate affairs at Pfizer.