George Cloutier is the nation’s leading small business expert, bringing more than 30 years of small business experience to his roles as Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of American Management Services, Inc. He founded the company in 1986 to offer implementation-based profit-maximization services to privately held, small and mid-sized business owners. Over the last 17 years, Cloutier has forged more than 6,000 client relationships in 400 industries, realizing over $1 billion in savings for his clients, 40% of which are family-owned businesses. He has grown American Management from a one-man operation to a 150-plus employee company with offices in Waltham, MA, Rochester, NY, Washington, D.C, and Orlando, FL.

Cloutier also serves as Chairman of Partner America™, a unique, small business growth program developed by American Management Services and The US Conference of Mayors. Formed in 2000, the program is the nation’s first public-private small business resource initiative, providing management expertise, technical assistance, education and government procurement opportunities to small businesses across the nation.

Cloutier’s business expertise has also been tapped by large publicly traded companies. In 1999, he played a major role in turning around Circon Corporation during its much-publicized merger with Maxxim Medical. Cloutier served as Vice Chairman on Circon’s board of directors, and was called in to serve as interim CEO. He was enlisted to help guide the troubled Californian medical instrument manufacturer to better fiscal performance, and ultimately a successful merger with Maxxim Medical.

Cloutier has been recognized for his dedication to small business. Cloutier was awarded the first-ever Small Business Advocate Award by the U.S. Conference Mayors in recognition of his tireless efforts on behalf of small business owners on a local, state, and federal level. In 1999, The Minority Business Development Agency awarded Cloutier for being a critical partner in America’s economic success.

In 2000, Cloutier was appointed to the Commerce Advisory Committee on Africa, by then Secretary of Commerce William M. Daley, to provide recommendations for providing a business environment in Africa. Cloutier was the only Massachusetts business owner selected to join the 21 member committee.

Cloutier serves as a Visiting Lecturer at Harvard, teaching a class on corporate governance. Cloutier has also been tapped to address small business issues at conferences throughout the country sponsored by the U.S. Conference of Mayors, U.S. Department of Energy, and U.S. Department of Commerce Cloutier is also a member of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, National Federation of Independent Business, American Small Business Association, Small Business Survival Committee, and National Small Business United.

Cloutier founded the Lucile Cloutier Scholarship, a program named after his late mother, that grants 4-6 fully funded Harvard University scholarships to Maine public high school graduates. Cloutier also serves on Harvard’s Standing Committee on University Resources and on the Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences Financial Aid Council at Harvard. Other boards Cloutier sits on include Harvard’s Boston Major Gifts and Research Committee and The Wellness Community.

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