Cordia Harrington

Cordia Harrington is CEO and founder of Crown Bakeries, a highly-automated, high-speed baking company that bakes over 10 million baked goods daily and employs more than 800 people, serving elite customers in the United States, South America and the Caribbean. As CEO, Ms. Harrington guides the executive team to successful planning, business development, sales and marketing, and brand management.

Ms. Harrington serves on the Ascent Global Logistics Board of Directors, the Global Crossing Airlines Board of Directors, the Broadcrest Capital Advisory Council and the Belmont University Board of Trustees. She is past chair of the Chief Executives Organization Board of Directors and a Chair of the American Bakers Association Board of Directors.

Under Ms. Harrington’s leadership, Crown Bakeries have received many awards, including the 50 Fastest-Growing Women-Owned Businesses, Business with Purpose Award, and Nashville Business Journal’s Best in Business Award. Ms. Harrington was listed at #93 on Forbes magazine’s list of 100 wealthiest self-made women in 2020. That same year, the University of Arkansas awarded her an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree. Ms. Harrington was named Nashville Post’s 2020 CEO of the Year and was included on their list of “Most Powerful Women” in 2021. She was inducted into the American Society of Baking Hall of Fame in February 2018, and Directors & Boards magazine named her a “Director to Watch.” She received the Most Admired CEO Lifetime Achievement Award from the Nashville Business Journal in 2017 and has been recognized by numerous other organizations for her commitment to excellence and entrepreneurial spirit.

Ms. Harrington attended Kansai Gaidai University in Osaka, Japan; she graduated from the University of Arkansas with a Bachelor of Science degree. She currently resides in Franklin, Tennessee, with her husband Tom. Together they have five children and eleven grandchildren.

LECTURE BY CORDIA HARRINGTON

Participant in Panel Discussion
Session 5, 18 June 2022