Senate confirms new SBA deputy

In one of its final acts before adjournment, the Senate early Dec. 9 confirmed Jovita Carranza as deputy administrator of the Small Business Administration.Earlier in the week, the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee unanimously endorsed Carranza, an experienced business executive.Carranza said she was enthusiastic about using her 30 years of experience at UPS at SBA. Both institutions, she said, have “a network whose employees are dedicated to meeting the service needs of small businesses and the communities they serve. Like large corporations, small businesses expect timely assistance in the delivery of services.”She promised to bring to SBA her "goal-oriented management philosophy with a history of successes on two continents.”Carranza started at UPS in 1976 as a part-time night shift clerk in Los Angeles and worked her way up to regional manager for international relations in Miami by 2000.Most recently, she was vice president of air operations at the worldwide package shipping company in Louisville, Ky., where she oversaw the automation of UPS’ package processing operation.Carranza also was president of UPS’ operations in Latin America and the Caribbean. Additionally, she has experience in human resources management and workforce planning.“I look forward to working with Jovita,” SBA Administrator Steven Preston said in a statement. “Her combination of drive, insight, personnel management and business process experience offers a tremendous value to the SBA as we work toward a higher degree of customer responsiveness and operational sophistication at the agency.”Carranza, a native of Chicago, earned her MBA from the University of Miami. Hispanic Business Magazine named her Hispanic Woman of the Year in 2004.