Donna M. Ennis, C.P.F provides leadership across all EI2 units to develop collaborative funding opportunities and provide support and services to assure the integration of diversity and inclusion into EI2’s programs and operations. Ennis serves as the Co-Lead for the GA-Artificial Intelligence in Manufacturing (GA-AIM) Corridor, an $82 million project funded by the U.S. Economic Development Administration to develop equitable talent and innovation development and deployment in Georgia. She also leads Community Engagement for GA-AIM to ensure that the project is inclusive across all communities.
Ms. Ennis heads the Georgia Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) Business Center and the SE MBDA Business Growth Hub, programs funded in part by the US Department of Commerce. Under her leadership, the Center has assisted companies in generating over $6.4 billion in contracts, financing, and sales and creating or retaining more than 7,000 jobs. She also oversees the Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center (GTPAC), a national program that assists businesses with securing contracts with local, state, and federal governments.
Ennis has been at the forefront of helping minority business enterprises (MBEs) learn and understand the role that technology plays in scaling businesses. She established the NEXTTECH initiative for MBEs to bring technology solutions to federal agencies and corporations, and started the national MBE Manufacturers Summit in 2016, the only Summit of its kind in the U.S. to focus on bringing opportunities and education to MBE manufacturers. A certified professional facilitator, Ennis has mentored hundreds of business owners and frequently presents to audiences on minority business issues, business challenges, and entrepreneurial ecosystems.
Ennis received the 2022 Georgia Tech Diversity Champion Faculty Award and the 2022 Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce President’s Partnership in the Promise Awards. She is the Atlanta Business Chronicle’s 2021 Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Outstanding Voice awardee and one of Georgia Tech’s 2021 Faces of Inclusive Excellence.