April 2015 Features

  • Mercer Business School to Host Second Annual Entrepreneurial Festival in Atlanta

    April 30, 2015

    Mercer University’s Stetson School of Business and Economics will hold its second annual Entrepreneurial Festival on Saturday, on the Cecil B. Day Graduate and Professional Campus in Atlanta. Five finalists in the festival’s business model competition will vie for $10,000 in prize money, presented by BB&T, and Karen Robinson Cope, co-founder and senior vice president for business development of LED lighting design corporation NanoLumens, will be presented with the University’s Atlanta Outstanding Entrepreneur Award.

  • BB&T Renews Title Partnership with BB&T Atlanta Open

    April 29, 2015

    The BB&T Atlanta Open, an ATP World Tour 250 event with world-class men’s professional tennis players, has announced a multi-year title sponsorship renewal agreement with BB&T. The BB&T Atlanta Open, scheduled July 25-Aug. 2, is Atlanta’s only professional tennis tour event and is the first men’s tournament of the Emirates Airline US Open Series.

  • Tickle Your Funny Bone: 20 Desk Toys for the Office

    April 29, 2015

  • Kelly McCutchen: Economic Diversity, State Leadership Recipe for Georgia’s Success

    April 28, 2015

    Many older Georgians recall our economic leadership in what were called the “Four Ps” — peanuts, poultry, pine trees and pecans. These were solid building blocks of the Georgia economy decades ago, and we can be proud that Georgia still leads in these areas. Moving into the 21st-century economy, Georgia added highly innovative communities of industry to the state. The state has become a leader in health care information technology, financial technology, information security, video game development, interactive marketing, logistics, communications and television and film production.

  • Iconic "King" and "Queen" Towers Sold in Almost $500 Million Deal

    April 24, 2015

    Building and Land Technology, a privately held, vertically integrated real estate private equity, development and property management firm, announced the acquisition of the landmark Concourse Corporate Center, home to Atlanta’s iconic “King and Queen” towers, and a prime parcel of developable land.

  • AGL Resources Moves the Natural Gas Industry and the Economy Forward

    April 23, 2015

    Hank Linginfelter, Executive Vice President, Distribution Operations, articulates with ease the activities of AGL Resources, headquartered in Atlanta since 1856. “Every year we’re running pipes to new areas of the state. We want to serve customers reliably and safely. We want to keep costs low,” he says.

  • AT&T Invests Nearly $2.8B Over Three-Year Period to Enhance Local Network in Atlanta

    April 22, 2015

    AT&T has invested nearly $2.8 billion in its best-in-class wireless and wired networks in Atlanta during between 2012 through 2014, driving a wide range of upgrades to enhance reliability, coverage, speed and performance for residents and business customers.

  • Novelis Announces Steve Fisher as New Interim President

    April 21, 2015

  • Berkshire Hathaway: Metro Atlanta Luxury Real Estate Growth Strong

    April 20, 2015

    Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Georgia Properties hosted an exclusive event for Luxury Collection Specialists at Ansley Country Club and announced the latest results for the luxury real estate market in Metro Atlanta. The report shows very positive gains for the last 12 months.

  • Kaiser Permanente to Open Information Technology Campus in Atlanta

    April 17, 2015

    Mayor Kasim Reed and Invest Atlanta announced yesterday Kaiser Permanente will expand its presence in Atlanta by opening a new information technology (IT) campus in Midtown. The new IT campus is expected to create approximately 900 high technology jobs by 2019 and an estimated total economic impact of more than $363.9 million based on IMPLAN Analysis.

  • Kennesaw State Names First VP for Economic Development, Community Engagement

    April 15, 2015

    Kennesaw State University President Daniel S. Papp has named Charles Ross, director of Startup Networks for the Enterprise Innovation Institute at Georgia Tech, as Kennesaw State’s first vice president for economic development and community engagement. Ross will assume the role on July 1st.

  • Q&A With GDEcD Director of Global Commerce Annie Baxter

    April 14, 2015

    In the first of a monthly series with the Georgia Department of Economic Development, Director of Global Commerce for Logistics, Energy, Agribusiness & Food Annie Baxter discusses important transportation projects, innovations in logistics, and the economic development climate in Georgia.

  • Birch Achieves Record Breaking Organic Sales

    April 13, 2015

    Birch Communications, Inc., a leading nationwide provider of communications, network and cloud services to small, mid-sized, enterprise and wholesale businesses, today announced it achieved record organic sales in the first quarter of 2015, achieving an overall sales increase of 113% compared to the first quarter of 2014.

  • Are Your Employees Getting Enough Sleep? (And if Not, Why Do You Care?)

    April 13, 2015

    It’s no secret to any harried entrepreneur that getting too little sleep has plenty of ill effects. But did you ever stop to think about the effect lack of sleep might be having on your employees. And, by extension, how that could be affecting your business?

  • Kroger-Atlanta Division Raises More Than $292K Through MDA Shamrock Program

    April 10, 2015

    More than 186 Kroger-Atlanta Division stores in Georgia, South Carolina and Eastern Alabama teamed with customers to raise more than $292,000 to help save and improve the lives of people fighting muscle disease during the 33rd annual MDA Shamrock program to benefit the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

  • McKenna Long & Aldridge Merging With Dentons US

    April 09, 2015

    The Atlanta-based McKenna Long & Aldridge announced yesterday it is combining with the world’s largest law firm – Dentons US.

  • 2015 Georgia Chamber Red Carpet Tour Begins Today

    April 08, 2015

    The 2015 Georgia Chamber of Commerce Red Carpet Tour kicks off today and runs through Saturday, April 11th. Twenty-four business leaders who are planning to locate or expand from throughout the nation and the world are participating in this year’s tour, which will visit the Governor’s Mansion, the College Football Hall of Fame and the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta and the Masters golf tournament in Augusta.

  • TechSquare Labs Announces 25K sq. ft. of Coworking, Startup, & Corporate Innovation Lab Space

    April 07, 2015

    TechSquare Labs announced 25,000-square-feet of coworking space and corporate innovation labs at Technology Square in Midtown Atlanta near Georgia Tech.

  • Emory and WellStar Health System to Begin Design Work on New, Unified Health System

    April 06, 2015

    The Executive Committee of the Emory University Board of Trustees and the WellStar Health System Board of Trustees have each approved a resolution to begin the design process for a new, unified health system. The new health system would be formed by combining Emory Healthcare, an entity owned by Emory University, and WellStar Health System into a new system.

  • Atlanta CFO's Reveal Hiring Plans for Next Six Months

    April 03, 2015

    The just-released Atlanta Professional Employment Forecast from Robert Half indicates 17 percent of Atlanta chief financial officers expect their companies to create new jobs in the next six months. Another 75 percent plan to hire for open roles, compared to 67 percent in the previous six months.

  • Southern Co. Plans Energy Innovation Center at Tech Square

    April 02, 2015

    Electricity use in America has grown five times faster than other energy sources over the past four decades. That means delivering clean, safe, reliable and affordable power is no longer an aspiration – it is a necessity. That is why Southern Company has announced the creation of a new hub that will help the company deliver the solutions its customers need for today – and for tomorrow.

  • Profile: Richard Raby, Asset Management for Creative Financial Group

    April 01, 2015

    Richard Raby, portfolio manager with Creative Financial Group, came to the company in 2000 looking for a position offering more face-to-face interaction with his clients. “I was working with E*TRADE when I heard of the opportunity at Creative,” he says. “I was looking for something less transaction-based and more relationship driven, and I found exactly that.” Richard enjoys the opportunity to see the tangible results of his work.