Donna Phillips

Originally from Murfreesboro, Senior Economic Developer Donna Phillips is the manager for the N.C. Dept. of Commerce's regional office in Greenville. A graduate of East Carolina University, Donna still pulls for the Pirates and often spends her free time volunteering at the university.

Donna works with various industries, including pharmaceutical production, wood products, concrete and brick building products, and construction equipment manufacturing. Recently she worked with DuPont's Kinston facility to recruit the Sorona Project, in which Toyota will use DuPont fibers in a new green car.

She says that Eastern North Carolina has many growing industry sectors such as metalworking, precision instruments, rubber, nonresidential building products and marine-trade related segments. She also says that the state's versatile workforce, excellent infrastructure and superior workforce development training make it a good fit for many industry sectors.

"Eastern N.C. has a remarkable appeal to companies," she says. "We have a dedicated workforce, great available sites for new construction and generally offer a lower cost to do business. Our close proximity to the coast and numerous water amenities is a strong plus for us. There is a strong sense of loyalty, family and history that prove we are a nice place to live, work and play."

North Carolina counties served: Carteret, Craven, Duplin, Edgecombe, Greene, Jones, Lenoir, Nash, Onslow, Pamlico, Pitt, Wayne, Wilson