Small Business Commission
Commissioner Scott R. Daugherty
Scott Daugherty was appointed by Governor Beverly Perdue to serve as North Carolina's first Small Business Commissioner. In this capacity he reports to the Secretary of Commerce and is a senior member of the Department of Commerce staff. Mr. Daugherty also serves as the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Extension, Engagement and Economic Development at North Carolina State University and directs the Small Business and Technology Development Center. The SBTDC is the business and technology extension service of The University of North Carolina system, administered by North Carolina State University. The SBTDC is administered by NC State University on behalf of the University of North Carolina System and operated in partnership with the US Small Business Administration.
Mr. Daugherty attended Wake Forest University, The University of Miami and The University of Florida. He has a law degree and has practiced as a corporate attorney in Florida, Mississippi and Washington, DC. He also has managed two large regional economic development organizations and organized and run a small business investment company. Just prior to joining The University of North Carolina system in 1984, Mr. Daugherty was a Vice President and Deputy General Counsel of a large quasi-public financing agency in Washington, DC.
Mr. Daugherty has had significant involvement with business, trade, technology development and capital formation issues throughout his professional career. He has served as a consultant to the OECD, the World Bank, the Ford Foundation and the U.S. Small Business Administration. He is a member of a number of boards of directors and government agency task forces, a past (three times) Chairman of the Board of Directors for the national Association of Small Business Development Centers, a member of the North Carolina District Export Council, an Advisor to the NC Economic Development Board, and to the North Carolina Board of Science and Technology.
Assistant Commissioner Dr. George E. Millsaps
Dr. George E. Millsaps is the Assistant Commissioner for Small Business and the State Director for the NC Small Business Center Network (SBCN) composed of 61 centers located throughout North Carolina. The SBCN is the nation's most expansive state funded technical assistance program and serves over 70,000 North Carolinians each year. Previously, George served as the Liaison for Productivity and Legislative Affairs for the NC Department of Administration. His other work experience includes Small Business Center Director, SBTDC and SBDC Counselor, VP of Finance/CFO, Commercial Banker, business manager and business owner. George also serves as a helicopter pilot in the NC National Guard. He holds a number of instructor certifications in entrepreneurship, exporting, quality, and business management. Having started his collegiate studies at Mitchell Community College in Statesville, NC, George received his BS Degree in Business Management from the University of Maryland, an MBA from Western Carolina University, and his doctorate in Educational Leadership from Nova Southeastern. Dr. Millsaps is on active military duty through spring 2012; in his absense, Anne Shaw is serving as the Interim Assistant Commissioner for Small Business and the Interim State Director for the Small Business Center Network (SBCN).
Interim Assistant Commissioner Anne Shaw
Prior to serving in these Interim roles, Anne has worked for 25 years as the Director for Economic Development at Coastal Carolina Community College, overseeing the operations of the College's Small Business Center, Industry Training Center, and a satellite office of the NC Military Business Center. She earned her baccalaureate degree from East Carolina University and is a graduate of the University of Georgia's Institutes for Organization Management and the Georgia Institute of Technology’s Economic Development Course.
Anne's background includes seven years in the banking industry and the operation of three family-owned businesses. She has been with Coastal Carolina Community College for 24 years, establishing the Small Business Center program there in September, 1986. Under her leadership, Coastal's Small Business Center has been recognized with the Excellent Small Business Center Award four times since the award was established in 2000. She has worked with thousands of entrepreneurs and small business owners to start and improve their businesses and holds a number of certifications in business planning, program management, and economic development. She has consulted to numerous business and nonprofit organizations in strategic planning, operations, financial management, and marketing and has chaired a variety of SBCN and economic development task forces.
Anne was named the Athena Woman of the Year by the Jacksonville-Onslow Chamber of Commerce in 1990 and was recognized as one of the “Ten Most Influential Women in Onslow County” in 1998. She has served on the Jacksonville–Onslow Chamber’s Board of Directors since 1990 and has served on and chaired numerous chamber committees. She was the past Chairman of the downtown redevelopment board (three years) and has chaired a variety of civic and charitable organization boards and committees. In 2010, she was named the Linda L. Richardson Minority Business Advocate by the Chamber's Minority Business Services Committee.