AMAC Denver Chapter: Building Wealth through Concessions

Join us to hear from Denver International Airport (DEN) Chief Commercial Officer Penny May on the future of concessions at DEN, including an overview of the concessions program on the concourses, the Service in Excellence program, and the Great Hall Concessions Program.

• 5:30 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.: Networking
• 6:00 p.m. – 6:10 p.m.: Welcome and Introductions — Lisa Buckley
• 6:10 p.m. – 6:25 p.m. Introduction of Sponsors – Jeannie Killebrew
• 6:25 p.m. – 6:35 p.m.: AMAC National Strategy – Eboni Wimbush, AMAC President & CEO
• 6:35 p.m. – 6:40 p.m.: AMAC MWBE Update – Ricky Smith, National Board Chair
• 6:40 p.m. – 7:05 p.m.: Guest Presenter – Penny May DEN
• 7:05 p.m.: Networking

Eboni Wimbush, AMAC President & CEO:

Eboni Wimbush is the President & CEO of the Airport Minority Advisory Council (AMAC). In this role, Eboni continues AMAC’s rich, nearly 40-year history and legacy of advancing equitable opportunities and maximum participation for minorities and women throughout the aviation and aerospace industries. She provides strategic leadership, oversees the national office, collaborates with committee chairs, and strengthens relationships with AMAC’s industry partners, advocacy organizations, and local, state and federal governments, among other key stakeholders. She currently serves on the Equity in Infrastructure Project Advisory Council and the U.S. Department of Transportation Advisory Committee on Transportation Equity.

Prior to AMAC, she was the Deputy Director of the Baltimore Mayor’s Office of Children & Family Success. She was responsible for advancing all of the work across the agency, including building and implementing the strategies and systems to operationalize the city’s $100 million eviction prevention program in response to the global pandemic, as well as leading the agency’scy’s contracting, human resources, grant compliance and equity strategy. She also served as Chief of Staff at the Baltimore City Department of Transportation. She was responsible for the Office of Communications and Legislative Affairs and External Affairs. Additionally, she served as a key advisor to the Director overseeing the day-to-day management, operations and performance activities of the agency’s 1,250 employees and $250 million budget.

Before joining Baltimore City and over two decades, Eboni had a distinguished private sector career with Fortune 500 companies, including FedEx Corporation, Johnson Controls and Siemens, where she held leadership roles, gaining a depth and breadth of knowledge and experience in developing and building energy infrastructure projects and delivering outcomes.

Eboni holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a concentration in Management from Embry Riddle Aeronautical University.

Ricky Smith, AMAC Board Chair:

Ricky Smith was appointed Executive Director/CEO of the Maryland Aviation Administration (MAA) on July 10, 2015. Mr. Smith is responsible for the management and operations of Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI Marshall), Martin State Airport, and regional aviation activities throughout the State of Maryland.

Mr. Smith, a 32-year transportation professional, returned to Maryland after serving as Chief Executive Officer of the Cleveland Airport System, which includes Cleveland Hopkins International Airport and Burke Lakefront Airport. In addition, he was responsible for overseeing the development and management of the City’s lakefront properties.

Since returning to BWI Marshall, Mr. Smith has led the airport to five (5) consecutive record-setting years for passengers, including restoring BWI Marshall as the busiest airport in the Washington/Baltimore region and the Best Airport in North America for Customer Service, according to Airport Council International. Establishing a culture of performance, customer service, safety, and innovation, the airports have received several other national and regional awards for customer service, capital development, and marketing, including the Emmy Awards in 2018 and 2019. In 2017, the LaunchPad program was started to enable minority-owned micro-businesses the opportunity to participate in BWI Marshall’s thriving food and retail program without barriers to entry. In 2015, he launched the BWI Marshall Youth Initiative aimed at introducing youth in Baltimore City to careers in aviation and transportation. To date, over 100 youths have participated in this program.

Prior to his service in Cleveland, Mr. Smith served as the Chief Operating Officer for the MAA, where he helped lead BWI Marshall Airport through a $2 billion expansion program, increased air service throughout the world, and the creation of a new food and retail program. Prior to returning to the MAA after a two-year departure, Ricky served as the Deputy Administrator for the Maryland State Highway Administration. In addition, he served in the private sector for several years with International Business Machines, H&R Block Business Services, The May Company, and others.

Ricky holds an Accounting degree from Howard University and an Executive MBA from Loyola University in Maryland.

Penny May, Chief Commercial Officer at DEN:

Penny May is a 28-year public service executive leader. She services as the Chief Commercial Officer at Denver International Airport (DEN) where she leads a portfolio that includes Concessions, Procurement and Business Operations, Business Technology, Airline Affairs, and Air Service Development. Prior to her current role, Penny led as the airport’s Deputy Chief of Staff when she joined DEN in December 2018.

Before her tenure at DEN, Penny led citywide impacts as Interim and Deputy Chief of Staff for Mayor Michael B. Hancock, where she concentrated her efforts on enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of city agencies. She also contributed to the execution of administrative policies and priorities and provided oversight for key local and regional strategic initiatives.

As a long-standing public servant, Penny has also served the City and County of Denver in several mayoral senior administration roles focused on enhancing customer service delivery, continuous process improvement, and aiming to provide a better experience for Denver’s most vulnerable residents with assistance, protection, and prevention services. Her distinguished career has crossed three mayoral administrations and includes roles of Executive Director of Denver Human Services, Director of Excise and Licenses, Executive Director of the General Services Department, Legislative Analyst for Denver City Council, and Deputy Denver City Council Liaison.

Penny earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Colorado, a Master of Business Administration from the University of Denver and is an alum of the Dallas Institute of Funeral Service.

Thank you to the following organizations for sponsoring this event! It is not too late to become a sponsor! Please contact Jeannie Killebrew at jeannie@kkieng.com