Carmenlita Scott
President & CEO of The ATL airport chamber
“Collaborating towards Success”
Carmenlita Scott, President & CEO of ATL Airport Chamber drives results through a servant leadership that inspires collegial relationship building, common goal setting, and accountability among multi-geography resources. Having held progressive senior-level positions throughout her career, Carmenlita is a consummate executive who influences teams with a “lead by example” style that facilitates tangible benefits and measurable outcomes. She builds high functioning teams and coaches them to think across disciplines, industries, culture, and scenarios to implement innovative and progressive economic, community, and workforce development initiatives. She moves the Chamber forward by nurturing alliances with a wide range of constituencies; one of which led to a strategic partnership with local chambers of South Fulton and Clayton Counties and specialty chambers such as Ecuadorian-American Chamber, Women’s Chamber, Atlanta Black Chamber, Greater Georgia Black Chamber, and the American World Trade Chamber.
Carmenlita is intentional in spotlighting women entrepreneurs. During the month of March, women executives and entrepreneurs were spotlighted in the company’s newsletter, The Runway which is an essential business communication. “We provide professional development opportunities, commercial and government contract certifications, and create a platform to expose them to new clientele,” she says. “I have partnered with the "100 Women 100 Million Dollar Project" founded by Dr. Diane Adoma to provide certification coaching to women in the ATL Airport Chamber with a goal of winning government contracts.”
The ATL Airport Chamber was formed in February 1947 to promote integrity, good faith, just and fair principles in business along with uniformity in commercial usage. The circa 1947 pain points were the up-building and advancement of the City of Hapeville in population, commerce, and finance. As the chamber evolved, it was renamed in 1992 as the Airport Area Chamber of Commerce and in 2017 as the ATL Airport Chamber, Inc. The chamber now addresses regional pain points for Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the Airport Region, and Southern Crescent. These pain points include growth and sustainability, subcontracting opportunities, workforce development, technology enhancements, broadband, thought diversity, and COVID-19 challenges.
Safehouse Outreach is one of the company’s long-standing members. They are a community outreach organization that helps people in homeless situations. In 2020, they helped to feed and give resources to thousands of people in metro Atlanta that were in need. In 2020, there was an increase in people that desperately needed their services. “Our board took notice and when Safehouse needed our help marketing their Day of Hope fundraiser, we were ecstatic to jump into action,” says Carmenlita. “Between board giving and our marketing efforts, Safehouse could raise $80,000. These funds will assist Safehouse in helping even more people in our region.”
The chamber develops and delivers a robust suite of essential business services that fuel profitability and growth in the small business sector, while supporting economic development among our constituents throughout the Atlanta Airport Region and Southern Crescent, fondly known as the Southside. The area is the home of renowned businesses such as Delta Air Lines, Porsche North America Cars, and the Wells Fargo Processing Center.
The future of the chamber is to serve as the primary conduit for global commerce in the tri-cities area at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. They plan to improve their weekly events, major or signature events, and programs. “The ATL Airport Chamber fosters an atmosphere that welcomes diverse voices as highlighted through our board of directors and demographics of our membership,” adds Carmenlita. “We are steadfast in our mission and priority to support the business memberships of the Chamber, the communities we serve, and the people they employ.” Collaboration is also an essential ingredient to success. The ATL Airport Chamber is working in collaboration with the Ecuadorian-American Chamber to provide international business opportunities to our constituents through an Annual International Business Expo. In addition, customer engagement strategies include collaboration with the Atlanta Black Chamber, Georgia Greater Black Chamber, Georgia Hispanic Chamber, and the Women’s Chamber. We also collaborate with our sister chambers of South Fulton and Clayton Counties. Equally important, the ATL Airport Chamber is a proud In-Kind Sponsor of the Virtual International Women’s Summit hosted by the Women’s Chamber. IE
Company
Management
Carmenlita Scott
President & CEO
Description
ATL Airport Chamber, Inc. is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the business climate and making our community the best place to live, work and play. Founded over 50 years ago, TAAC is dedicated to the promotion, development, and growth of business and professional activities within the airport area.