February 2014 Features

  • The Benefits of Giving Your Staff a Raise

    February 28, 2014

    Are you trying to keep your key employees happy by offering them perks like work-at-home days, cross-training and flexible hours? That’s great and I encourage you to keep offering those extras, but a new study shows that they may not be enough to retain workers.

  • The Tax Price of Success

    February 27, 2014

    It’s commonly understood that the better you do in business, the more taxes you’ll pay. As Scottish whiskey distiller, Thomas Robert Dewar, said: “Nothing hurts more than having to pay an income tax, unless it is not having to pay an income tax.”

  • Language of Leadership: Constructive Versus Destructive

    February 26, 2014

    While many people are given the title of leader, a lot of them don’t elicit results because they don’t communicate in a way that inspires action and results. Having studied leaders for several years there are three distinct behaviors that I see real, impactful leaders engage in.

  • Home Instead Senior Care of Valdosta Wins Award from Bulldog 100

    February 25, 2014

    Home Instead Senior Care, based in Valdosta, GA, was recognized as the No.87th fastest growing business owned or operated by a University of Georgia graduate during the 2014 Bulldog 100 Celebration on January 25th at the Marriott Marquis in downtown Atlanta.

  • Governor Scott Announces Azalea Health Expands to Gainesville

    February 24, 2014

    Friday, Governor Rick Scott announced that Azalea Health has selected Gainesville for a corporate expansion, creating 10 new jobs over the next year with a capital investment of $30,000.

  • Stacy Bush on the Recent Love of the Market

    February 21, 2014

    With the enthusiasm of new love, American stock markets pushed higher during Valentine's week. Were investors enamored of the Federal Reserve's new Chairwoman, Janet Yellen, who spoke on behalf of the Fed for the first time last week?

  • Gathering of Eagles Symposium at Georgia Wiregrass Technical College Today

    February 20, 2014

    Today at the Valdosta Campus of Wiregrass, the annual Gathering of Eagles Business and Leadership Symposium will celebrate its 8th year of networking and world-class speakers.

  • Steel Magnolias Defies the Odds

    February 19, 2014

    The restaurant business isn’t for the meek, with some studies showing failure rates as high as 60-80% for new restaurants. Yet, for the prepared and persistent—like Steel Magnolias owner Keira Moritz—the doors can remain open.

  • Georgia Experiences Fourth Record Year in International Trade

    February 18, 2014

    Georgia experienced its fourth record year in a row for international trade, exceeding last year’s milestones in both imports and exports. The total value of goods exported from Georgia totaled $37.6 billion, the most the state has ever exported within a single year.

  • SBA Nominee Talks Marketing to Banks, Businesses at Confirmation Hearing

    February 14, 2014

    If finally confirmed, the newly nominated chief of the U.S. Small Business Administration promised to do more to promote the agency’s services. Maria Contreras-Sweet said at her confirmation hearing before the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship that more must be done to brand the SBA.

  • The Gift of Margin - 3 Ways to Get You Some

    February 13, 2014

    Margin in life is truly a gift and most of us have so little these days. Margin in our calendar gives us time to listen to a friend. Margin in our finances allows us to help a friend, or help ourselves. It is also keeps us out of debt and reduces stress.

  • VSU Launches Institutional Identity Study

    February 12, 2014

    As part of Valdosta State University’s strategic plan, an institutional identity study is being conducted to examine the university’s core strengths and to determine the best ways to communicate those strengths to the university’s key audiences.

  • Buying is a Sensual Activity

    February 11, 2014

    I once heard Ken Blanchard (the One Minute Manager author) tell a story about Sheldon Bowles, a Canadian entrepreneur who decided to go against the self service gas trend back in 1970 by creating a full service franchise in western Canada called Domo Gas.

  • Top Economists Provide Valdosta Business Outlook for 2014

    February 10, 2014

    Southeastern Federal Credit Union hosted the Valdosta-Lowndes Chamber’s Business Outlook Breakfast at the Valdosta Country Club on Thursday. The meeting held 170 of the area’s top business leaders to provide an economic forecast for 2014.

  • Small Businesses Once Again Create More Jobs Than Big Businesses

    February 07, 2014

    Small businesses created almost double the new jobs in January 2014, compared with large businesses. And when you add growth among medium-sized businesses to the employment growth in small businesses, the numbers swamp the job growth of large corporations.

  • CJB Industries, Inc. Expansion Set for Gil Harbin Manufacturing Plant

    February 05, 2014

    The Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority announced CJB Industries, Inc. is adding a 42,000-square-foot expansion onto its current manufacturing facility, adding 10 full-time jobs.

  • Georgia Manufacturing Activity Drops for Second Consecutive Month

    February 04, 2014

    Georgia manufacturing activity dropped slightly for January, while the nation experienced a greater decline for the same month, closing the gap between manufacturing activity in the state and the nation.

  • Fewer Small Businesses Paying Late in 2013

    February 03, 2014

    Small businesses were prompter at paying their loans and bills in 2013 than in 2012, data from several sources reveals. Moody’s Analytics and Experian reported substantial declines in both 30 and 90 day small business credit delinquency rates during the past year, part of an improving trend since the summer of 2011 when those rates peaked.