Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer

Ellie Collinson is the Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer of the U.S. Trade and Development Agency, a U.S. government agency that helps companies create U.S. jobs through the export of U.S. goods and services for priority infrastructure projects in emerging economies.

Ellie has over 20 years of professional operations and organizational leadership experience in the small business, nonprofit, political, and governmental arenas. She has been responsible for leading teams undergoing rapid expansion, downsizing, and leadership transitions on multiple occasions in her career. She has developed programs, and standalone organizations, and has worked with individual and institutional investors to design strategies and tactical plans for political, policy, and social change.

Prior to joining USTDA, Ellie was appointed by the Biden-Harris Administration to serve as Chief of Staff to the Chief Financial Officer and Assistant Secretary of Administration at the U.S. Department of Commerce. In that role, her team’s portfolio spanned Security & Intelligence, Budget, Acquisition Management, Facilities, Civil Rights, Performance Management, Human Resources, Privacy & Open Government, and Financial Management.

Ellie graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Colorado College with a degree in Asian Studies and holds a Master of Public Administration degree from the University of Colorado-Denver.