Brett Vassey

Brett Vassey

President & CEO
Virginia Manufacturers Association (VMA)

The Virginia Manufacturers Association (VMA) is the only statewide association that is exclusively dedicated to Virginia’s 5,000+ manufacturers, 239,000+ employees, and their allies. Since 1922, the VMA has served as Industry’s Advocate™ and its mission is to create the best business environment in the United States for world-class advanced technology businesses to manufacture and headquarter their operations for maximum productivity and profitability. Brett Vassey is the sixth President & CEO of the VMA and has led the organization for 23 years. Vassey also leads the VMA’s affiliate organizations: the Virginia Craft Brewers Guild, the Manufacturing Skills Institute, Women in Manufacturing – Virginia Chapter, the Virginia Chemistry Council, the Virginia Industry Foundation, and the VMAPAC.
The VMA or its affiliates are the state affiliate for the American Chemistry Council (ACC), Brewers Association (BA), Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA), National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), and Women in Manufacturing (WiM).

Vassey serves on numerous Federal, State and business Boards and Councils: Former Chairman and current Board member of the Consumer Energy Alliance; the Virginia Manufacturing Development Commission; Chairman of the Southern Manufacturing Council; the Conference of State Manufacturers Associations; the ACC Chemical Industry Council; US Global Leadership Coalition’s Virginia Advisory Committee; the Virginia Board of Workforce Development (served 21 years including Chair – Performance & Accountability Committee); the Mid-Atlantic Region Minority Business Development Agency – Baltimore Advanced Manufacturing Center – Advisory Board; and the Virginia Community College System’s State Board of Directors (including the Budget, Finance & Facilities Committee and Workforce Development Committee).

Prior to the VMA, Vassey held positions in public policy, economic development, and college administration in the Commonwealth of Virginia, Kansas, and Missouri. Vassey has a Master of Public Administration from Virginia Tech’s Center for Public Administration and Policy. He is a member of the National Honor Society for Public Affairs and Administration – Pi Alpha Alpha. Vassey has a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Kansas.

Mr. Vassey was listed in the Virginia Business 500 – 2020 Power List. He was selected for the CEO Today USA Awards in 2019. He was honored with the 2017 Norman C. Hammond Award, selected for the 2015 University of Kansas Who’s Who of Distinguished Alumni, and 2006-2007edition of the National Register’s Who’s Who in Executives and Professionals.