- Port Tampa Bay President & CEO Paul Anderson announced today the promotion of Phillip Lawson as the port’s new Director of Finance. Lawson previously served as a senior accountant for the port and has more than 15 years of experience in accounting and finance positions. Prior to joining the port, Lawson worked for a variety of public and private entities, including the Hillsborough County Public Utilities. He has progressively advanced in his career. He has worked for Port Tampa Bay since 2015.

As Director of Finance, Lawson will be responsible for managing the day-to-day administration of Port Tampa Bay’s Finance Department and all aspects of accounting/bookkeeping functions, all financial reporting, audit oversight and coordination, financial systems and implementation, risk management and administration of Port Tampa Bay’s internal controls. The Director of Finance maintains communication with port Board Members, Executive Management and Senior Managers. Lawson will report to the port’s Chief Financial Officer, David Delac.

Lawson holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from DeVry University and is currently pursuing a Masters of Public Administration from the University of South Florida. He is a Certified Government Financial Officer and is Six Sigma Greenbelt certified.