Dr. Karmetria Dunham Burton

Karmetria Dunham Burton is Sr Director- Global Supplier Diversity for McDonald’s Corporation. In this position, she is responsible for developing and executing a global Supplier Diversity program while enhancing the processes to assist McDonalds’s achieve its vision of being an industry leader of making minority and women owned businesses (MWBEs) a natural and integral part of the way the company does business. Karmetria has worked in strategic sourcing in various national and international corporate settings, including Delta Air Lines, Xerox, AT&T, and Union Pacific Railroad. A rising star in her field, Karmetria was the 2005 recipient of the Trailblazer Award presented by the Black Business Professionals and Entrepreneurs organization and was recognized as Who’s Who of Black Atlanta in 2010. In 2012 and 2013, Dr. Burton was honored as one of the Top 25 Women Impacting Diversity by Diversity Inc. Magazine. A well-respected authority in supplier diversity, she is a contributing writer for MBE Magazine which focuses on minority business development. Also in 2013, she was honored by Kentucky State University with the Thorobred Award. And in 2014, she was noted as a Woman of Excellence by the Atlanta Daily World Magazine. Her work and her passion have gained her notoriety in several publications: Black Enterprise, AMOI and Diversity Inc. In 2015 she was awarded the InfluenceHER Award and was featured in the June issue of Black Enterprise Magazine for her work at Delta Air Lines in supplier diversity, along with being awarded as one of the Top 25 Women of Atlanta. She has an honorary doctorate degree from Global Oved Dei Seminary and University. In 2016, she was awarded the Women of Vision Award by Atlanta Business League and awarded, for the third time in a row, a 2016 Woman Impacting Diversity. Karmetria has also been awarded one of the top women in diversity for 3 years.  

Karmetria holds a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing from Southern University-Baton Rouge, La., and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Nebraska. She also has a doctorate degree in business from Argosy University. Dr. Burton has instructed business, procurement, and diversity related courses at Kennesaw State University as well as Shorter College, Strayer University, Georgia State University and Monroe Community College in Rochester, N.Y. Dr. Burton is a sought out speaker of women’s organizations, youth empowerment groups, and entrepreneur forums. 

An international speaker coined as the “Transformational Leader”, Dr. Burton is an advocate of servant leadership with the ability to transform and motivate executives and entrepreneurs to become fearless, impactful, resourceful, and engaged leaders. Dr. Burton’s 7-step system develops inner power through transformation.  

Karmetria is also the founder of “Paint Your Lips Red” movement, a global non profit platform to encourage, motivate, and empower women to level up their lives as mothers, wives, leaders, and entrepreneurs through the power of a red lip. She started the 5by20 pledge, a commitment to have 5000 women sign the pledge by the year 2020. Karmetria volunteers locally and globally with organizations who serve women who were victims of sex trafficking. Dr. Burton is also a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated and a board member of Southern University- College of Business. She is also the founder of Women Connecting Through Christ. A prayer group of women across that globe. A native of Houston, Texas, Karmetria is married to Horace A. Burton, and resides in Atlanta. Her philosophy is: “Show up!”