April 2013 Features

  • Chamber Presents Annual Economic Summit: Lowndes by the Numbers

    April 29, 2013

    The words “teamwork” and “collaboration” echoed throughout the day from presenters, as well as from the diversified audience of community leaders at the Chamber's 2013 Economic Summit, which was presented by VSU's Langdale College of Business and by co-sponsors, Chartwells and First Federal Savings and Loan. Dr. Attila Cseh opened the program with the third edition of Lowndes County by the Numbers.

  • Has Your Sales Team Met Their New Best Friend?

    April 25, 2013

    This month local sales trainer and author Doug Robinson talks about asking questions and how “You will question your way into many more sales than you will ever talk yourself into.”

  • Drawdy Roofing Turns its CEO’s Interest into a New Business Venture

    April 24, 2013

    Drawdy Roofing and Vinyl Siding has been an integral part of South Georgia for more than 40 years. Fifteen years ago, Ken Drawdy took over the family business and two years ago acquired Albany Sheet Metal, a sheet metal fabrication business serving industrial, residential, and commercial customers.

  • Daniel Titus on When to Upgrade Your Website

    April 22, 2013

    You upgrade your cellphone every two years, your workout routine every three months, and you wish you could upgrade your kids almost daily. How do you know when its time to upgrade your website? Daniel Titus of DanielTitus.com shares instances when you need an upgrade.

  • Stacy Bush on Setting and Targeting Investment Goals

    April 18, 2013

    Go out into your yard and dig a big hole. Every month, throw $50 into it, but don't take any money out until you're ready to buy a house, send your child to college, or retire. It sounds a little crazy, doesn't it? But that's what investing without setting clear-cut goals is like. If you're lucky, you may end up with enough money to meet your needs, but you have no way to know for sure. Stacy Bush of Bush Wealth Management talks investment goals.

  • Georgia Credit Unions Continue to Add Members

    April 17, 2013

    Credit union membership and deposits in Georgia grew in 2012, continuing a national trend that began with Bank Transfer Day in the fall of 2011. In a exclusive interview with Valdosta CEO, President/CEO of the Georgia Credit Union Affiliates Mike Mercer speaks as to why credit unions across the state have encountered such growth.

  • Azalea Health CEO Baha Zeidan Reflects on VSU Inauguration Week

    April 16, 2013

    Chief Executive Officer of Azalea Health and a Valdosta State University alumni Baha Zeidan, shares his thoughts on the recent VSU Inaugural Week event for President McKinney.

  • Commentary: Will Health Care Reform Hit A Snag?

    April 15, 2013

    Reports are that a key target of the Affordable Care Act signed by President Obama in 2010 appears ambivalent about buying health insurance. Specifically, the young and healthy have so far not been interested in buying health insurance. However, it is still early and none of the insurance exchanges have been set up. Plus, it is possible that they are waiting until the last minute before having to pay a fee for not being insured.

  • Chamber, Mayor, & City Manager React to Misguided VDT "City in Debt" Article

    April 11, 2013

    As you may know, the Valdosta Daily Times recently published a story ("A city in debt: A look at Valdosta's GEFA loans") which unfortunately was picked up by Georgia Trend Daily and circulated throughout Georgia. The Chamber has a responsibility to be concerned with our community's reputation and so we asked Mayor John Gayle and City Manager Larry Hanson to meet with us on April 9 to discuss these two implications. According to the facts presented, these implications are inaccurate and have unfairly portrayed our City as being financially unstable.

  • VSU Signs AACU Employer-Educator Compact

    April 11, 2013

    President William J. McKinney announced today that Valdosta State University has joined the national Liberal Education and America’s Promise (LEAP) Employer-Educator Compact initiative sponsored by the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U). The LEAP Employer-Educator Compact recognizes that quality learning is a national priority for employers who are seeking college graduates with a broader set of skills and knowledge.

  • Dr. Ray Perren Named President of Lanier Technical College

    April 09, 2013

    The state board that oversees the Technical College System of Georgia has unanimously approved Commissioner Ron Jackson’s choice of Dr. Ray Perren to be the next president of Lanier Technical College. Dr. Perren is the current president of Wiregrass Georgia Technical College.

  • Do You Trust Your Employees to Work Remotely?

    April 08, 2013

    Yahoo’s Marissa Mayer unleashed a firestorm of commentary throughout the business world with her recent announcement that remote working was off the table for the tech company’s staffers, who will now be expected to show up in the office every day. If you’ve still got a nagging feeling that letting employees work at home means paying them to watch Cartoon Network in their jammies all day, how can you get over it?

  • Commentary: Immigration Enhances Local Economies

    April 04, 2013

    Immigration is a divisive topic. Whenever a new segment of workers enter the market, it causes apprehension and distrust. While Arizona, Georgia, and Alabama are passing laws to restrict immigration, cities like St. Louis are openly courting immigrants in order to stem a steady loss of population.

  • Decisiveness: Three Steps To Making a Decision

    April 03, 2013

    Making a decision can be tough, especially when it’s a business decision. You face an almost infinite range of things that you could be doing in your business at any particular moment.

  • VSU Presidential Inauguration This Week Celebrating "Engaged Innovation"

    April 01, 2013

    Steeped in academic tradition, the official inauguration of a university president is an opportunity for an institution to celebrate its history and chart a new course for its future. The the theme of “Engaged Innovation,” events are scheduled for April 1-6, 2013. The formal investiture ceremony of Dr. William J. McKinney will take place at 10 a.m. Friday, April 5 on the Front Lawn of West Hall. University System of Georgia Chancellor Hank M. Huckaby will administer the symbolic conferring of authority to McKinney as VSU’s ninth president.