Craig Lesser

Managing Partner
Pendleton Consulting Group, LLC
T: 404-446-4174
F: 404-446-4173

Mr. Lesser is the former commissioner of the Georgia Department of Economic Development. He is now in the private sector providing advice and strategy in the areas of economic development and government affairs through various entities including the Pendleton Consulting Group, the JEL Consulting Group and the Saffron Group.

Mr. Lesser served the Department of Economic Development from 2004-2007. As chief marketing officer for the state, he led efforts to recruit new business to Georgia and expand trade and tourism on a global stage. During his tenure, there were almost 500 new investment and expansion announcements, totaling more than $8 billion, creating more than 40,000 new jobs. Mr. Lesser also oversaw expansion of Georgia’s international presence with the opening of state representation in Chile, Brazil, China and France, in addition to the already existing international offices. During this period, he also served as president of Hemisphere, Inc., a public private partnership that led efforts to bring the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas Secretariat to Atlanta.

Previously, Mr. Lesser served as managing director of McKenna Long & Aldridge, where he headed international affairs consulting. He served as vice president of government and regulatory affairs for Georgia Power Company; president and CEO of Mirant, New York; and senior vice president of external affairs for Mirant Americas.

He is chairman of the board of the World Trade Center, Atlanta, chairman of the board of the World Chamber of Commerce, chairman of the international committee of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, secretary of the Georgia China Alliance and trustee of CIFAL , a UN based initiative to train elected officials in the western hemisphere. He recently agreed to join the board of the Council for Quality Growth.

Mr. Lesser has been recognized numerous times by Georgia Trend, James Magazine and the Atlanta Business Chronicle as one of Georgia’s most influential people and has been honored for his work in the international sector and the arts by a number of organizations. He has been asked to speak on international business at universities and seminars around the world.

He received his B.A. from the State University of New York College at Oneonta and is a graduate of the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School, Leadership Georgia and the Regional Leadership Institute.