Paula Murphy

Paula Murphy, Director
Massachusetts Export Center

Paula Murphy is founding director of the Massachusetts Export Center, part of the Massachusetts Small Business Development Center Network. She has over thirty years of international trade experience in both the public and private sectors. Paula helps exporters through technical assistance, training, research, and resource development. In addition, she has helped to organize several overseas marketing activities, such as trade shows and trade missions. Most recently, Paula launched the Export Center’s successful Compliance Alliance initiative, which provides a forum for exporting firms to share best practices and stay current on export regulatory compliance issues. On average, clients report over $200 Million in export sales as a direct result of the Massachusetts Export Center’s assistance each year.
In addition to her role at the Export Center, Paula taught graduate-level international marketing and export/import operations at Boston University for many years. Previously, she served as international trade counselor for the Commonwealth, and was an international marketing analyst with Hagan & Company, where she served as the New England agent for a number of foreign government agencies, including the Irish Trade Board (now Enterprise Ireland), the Australian Trade Commission and others.
Paula speaks and writes frequently on international trade matters. She has led the Massachusetts Export Center to receive numerous awards, including the national winner of the SBA’s Small Business Development Center Excellence and Innovation Award and the Presidential E Award – the highest honor the federal government can give to American people, firms or organizations that have made significant contributions to the increase of American exports. Paula is also a three-time recipient of the Massachusetts State Star award by the Association of Small Business Development Centers. She has served on the boards of several non-profit international trade organizations, including many years as national co-chair of the international trade committee for the Association of Small Business Development Centers. She currently serves on District Export Council of Massachusetts. She is a graduate of Suffolk University, a Certified Global Business Professional (CGBP, and a Certified U.S. Export Compliance Officer (CUSECO).