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The Georgia Minority Supplier Development Council has named Vanessa Lane to the role of the Executive Director of the Georgia Education Foundation (GEF). The GEF is the nonprofit educational arm of the GMSDC, Georgia’s leading supplier diversity and small business development organization. Lane assumed her new role on November 1^st.

As Executive Director, Lane is responsible for a portfolio of capacity-building programs, skills development training, leadership development, mentoring programs and other initiatives designed to help fulfill the GEF’s mission – to provide educational opportunities to small businesses and entrepreneurs across the state of Georgia.

“The GEF plays such a vital role in the mission and vision of the Council, as it drives all of the critical programming focused on guiding businesses to long-term growth and sustainability,” said Stacey Key, President and CEO of the GMSDC and the Georgia Education Foundation. “Vanessa’s experience in this space and her deep relationships in the business community will be an invaluable asset to our organization.”

Lane brings more than 20 years of procurement and contracting experience to her new role, having begun her career as a buyer, contract negotiator and vendor liaison for Worldspan. She further developed her acumen in her various roles at Cox Enterprises, including leading Cox’s corporate Supplier Diversity program, where she facilitated billions of dollars in contract relationships and ensured compliance with company guidelines.

Lane also represented Cox Enterprises on the GMSDC’s Board of Directors, where she served as Board Chair for several years and a Corporate Mentor for the Georgia Mentor Protégé Connection, GMSDC’s signature business mentoring program in partnership with the state of Georgia’s Department of Economic Development. She has also served on various leadership roles for other diverse business advocacy organizations. A native of Atlanta, Lane holds a Marketing degree from West Georgia University.

The Georgia Education Foundation (GEF) has named Reginald Phams the Interim Program Director of the Georgia Mentor Protégé Connection, the state of Georgia’s premier small business mentoring program. In existence since 2001, the GMPC was initiated by Governor Roy Barnes, and was the first state-sponsored mentoring program of its kind in the nation. Oversight and management of the GMPC transitioned from the state of Georgia to the GEF in 2012. Reggie is a veteran of several positions of increasing responsibility with the Georgia Minority Supplier Development Council (GMSDC), including a role as Operations Manager for the GMPC. He is an advocate for small business, an adjunct professor at Atlanta Technical College and a small business owner himself, so he brings a valuable base of relevant experience to the role. The holder of a Bachelor of Science in Business Management from DeVry University and a Master of Business Administration degree from the Keller Graduate School of Management, Reggie has been a valuable member of the GMSDC team since 2012. Please join me in congratulating Reggie on this appointment and welcome him as he makes the transition.

Reggie will immediately begin working with the MPC Advisory Committee to continue the ongoing Alumni Activities and prepare for the incoming 2020 class. You may reach Reggie for questions or suggestions by email at rphams@gmsdc.org or at 404-589-1824. To nominate a small business for the upcoming class visit www.georgiampc.org .