Leo Tudela Selected Deputy Director of SBA’s Michigan District

    DETROIT – The U.S. Small Business Administration has selected Leo Tudela to be the deputy district director of its Michigan office. In this role, he will manage the strategic efforts and daily operations of SBA’s work to help the more than 886,000 Michigan small businesses start, grow, expand, and recover from disasters, including the COVID-19 pandemic D.

    “Leo has a rare blend of leadership in public service and in entrepreneurial endeavors,” said district director Laketa Henderson. “His knowledge of SBA programs and experience with small business owners and our resource partners will serve the state well into the future.”

    Most recently, Tudela served in the Office of Strategic Planning at U.S. Postal Service headquarters, where he was responsible for co-developing the organizational strategic plan and led the production of the annual USPS performance report.  He has trained several hundred postal leaders and managers on strategic planning concepts, techniques, and tools.  

    Tudela has been a serial entrepreneur having owned multiple businesses and has mentored hundreds of small business owners.  As a former CEO for a franchise system, he was instrumental in growing a small franchisor to one that had a presence in 13 states and generated over $23 million in system-wide revenue annually. 

    Tudela earned an MBA in management and strategy and attended the Harvard Kennedy School. He is a certified Project Management Professional by the Project Management Institute and a Strategic Planning Professional by the Association of Strategic Planning.  He is a certified SCORE mentor and served as a counselor for the Small Business Development Center, both SBA funded programs. 

    SBA’s Michigan District is one of 68 offices across the nation that works to ensure entrepreneurs and small business owners have access to capital, counseling and contracting resources, helping to contribute to job creation and economic development throughout the country.