Claire Ehmann

Claire Ehmann is the Deputy Associate Administrator for the Office of International Trade where she is responsible for helping U.S. small businesses grow by reaching new customers in the global marketplace.  Working with 21 U.S. Export Assistance Centers, SBA district offices, and public and private-sector partners, the Office of International Trade directs Export Loan Programs, the State Trade Expansion Program, and other trade assistance to encourage and assist U.S. small business exports. 

Claire Ehmann is a member of the Senior Executive Service with over 20 years of experience working on international issues.  Before joining SBA, she served as the U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID’s) Deputy Director for Management Services, where she oversaw the Agency’s operational readiness, workforce safety during the COVID-19 pandemic, and a wide range of management services including the Agency’s real estate portfolio and planning efforts for the post-pandemic Future of Work.  From 2015-16, she was selected as a White House Leadership Development Fellow and spent a year at the Office of Management and Budget, working on federal IT, open data, and data-driven decision making for the Federal Chief Information Officer.  She has extensive experience working on international development policy and programs, research and evaluation, and developing public-private partnerships.

Ms. Ehmann has a Master's Degree in International Public Affairs from the School for Public and International Affairs at Princeton University, was a Fulbright Scholar in Burkina Faso, and has a BA from the College of William & Mary.