06/04/2012
Karen Gordon Mills served as the 23rd Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration . She was nominated by President-elect Barack Obama on December 19, 2008, confirmed unanimously by the Senate on April 2, 2009, and sworn in on April 6, 2009. During her tenure, her office was elevated to the rank of Cabinet-level officer, expanding her power on policy decisions and granting her inclusion in the President's cabinet meetings. On February 11, 2013, she announced her resignation as Administrator and left the post on September 1, 2013. Since leaving the SBA, Mills has served as a Senior Fellow at both the Harvard Business School and the Harvard Kennedy School with a focus on U.S. competitiveness, entrepreneurship and innovation. She is the president of the investment firm MMP Group, Inc., is the vice chairman of the board of directors of the immigration services company Envoy Global and a regular contributor to Fortune and other publications.
