The Agenda

How small-business issues are shaping politics and policy.

Karen Mills, administrator of the Small Business Administration, announced her resignation on Monday.

Ms. Mills became increasingly visible as a messenger for the Obama administration, which has been eager to present itself as relentlessly pursuing an entrepreneurial agenda. She helped lead the administration’s Startup America program, which pairs government initiatives with private-sector stars in an effort to foster high-growth entrepreneurship. In January 2012, President Obama elevated the position of S.B.A. administrator to his cabinet.

In a statement released by the White House, Mr. Obama thanked Ms. Mills for her tenure. “I asked Karen to lead the Small Business Administration because I knew she had the skills and experience to help America’s small businesses recover from the worst economic crisis in generations — and that’s exactly what she’s done,” he said. “Because of Karen’s hard work and dedication, our small businesses are better positioned to create jobs and our entire economy is stronger.”

The administrator, in turn, praised her staff. “Four years ago, when I arrived at the S.B.A., America’s small businesses and entrepreneurs were struggling in the face of the worst economic environment since the Great Depression — and a banking sector that was frozen,” Ms. Mills wrote in a memo. “Together, we rolled up our sleeves and went to work.”

She will remain at the agency’s helm until the Senate confirms her replacement. A White House spokesman would not say when President Obama would name that successor. Ms. Mills, who was a venture capitalist before she joined the agency in 2009, did not say what she planned to do next.

Article source: http://boss.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/11/s-b-a-administrator-announces-resignation/?partner=rss&emc=rss