Northwest Florida Business Climate

April/May 2013

A Tale of Two (post-divorce) Christmases Or why there is a better way to Divorce

Navy Federal Expansion

www.nwflbusinessclimate.com

The End of Fierce Individualism

from the

publisher’ s pen Malcolm Ballinger Publisher

As many business owners can attest, teamwork is essential for any enterprise to run smoothly. Members of a department must work together for the best possible outcomes, and the department as a whole must communicate effectively with other departments to take projects and assignments to completion. If your business is based on more individualized performance, it might be time to shift toward a culture of collaboration. See why in our article on page 50, “The End of Fierce Individualism: Why Teams Matter More Than Ever.”

Another area where collaboration can be most useful is during the legal quagmire of divorce proceedings. Local lawyer Autumn O. Beck with MacDonald Fleming Moorhead has written about the benefits of collaborative divorce, which can have improved outcomes for divorcing families and avoids the sometimes aggressive and painful trips to the courtroom. Read more on page 54.

Lastly, the Greater Pensacola Chamber and the city received good news recently as Navy Federal Credit Union announced plans for its Langley Bell 4-H property, which includes a $200 million investment and 1,500 new jobs for the area by 2020. With high average salaries, these jobs will give a boon to local economy and indirectly create even more jobs in other sectors—a big win for our area.

Turn to page 48 for the full story from the Chamber.

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> 48. economic development Navy Federal Expansion 50. teamwork

The End of Fierce Individualism in every issue 60. around the region 62. it tips 63. businessscene

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April/May 2013 P UBLISHER M A L C O L M B A L L I N G E R

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>economic development

Navy Federal Expansion

By Jim Hizer

Staff at the Greater Pensacola projected the impact that these jobs Chamber couldn’t be more pleased will have, which includes an estimated that Navy Federal Credit Union has $6.2 million annual impact on the made a formal announcement retail trade sector by next year. The regarding its plans for the former report also projects an estimated Langley Bell 4-H Center property. On $94.4 million impact on the April 3, the nation’s biggest credit construction sector by 2015 and, by union announced a $200 million 2020, an estimated additional $220 investment and 1,500 new jobs million dollars added to our total guaranteed for Greater Pensacola by annual Gross Domestic Product 2020. There’s also a discussion about (GDP). You can read the full report a long-range plan to have another online at PensacolaChamber.com 5,700 jobs by the year 2020 and under “Chamber News.”

Strategic Plan ultimately a $1 billion campus. This is It is true that some employers easily the single biggest job expand regardless of the creation announcement in efforts of local and state 30+ years for Greater economic development Pensacola. officials, but with respect to It is anticipated that this announcement, there is these jobs will pay an no question that its ultimate average annual salary of success came only because more than $44,000, which so many local and state will ultimately have a huge officials were dedicated to impact on the local seeing it through. The key economy, not to mention turning point for this project the additional 1,000 indirect came when Chamber staff, jobs that will be created in especially Senior Vice our regional economy as a President of Economic result of this project.

Development Scott Luth, A very conservative study cleared the hurdles from the Haas Center associated with Navy Governor Scott at the Navy Federal press conference

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Federal’s purchase of the 4-H property with the help of the Escambia County Commission, the 4H Council and other local leaders.

The State of Florida also stepped up to the plate with regard to incentives for this project.

Prior to Navy Federal’s announcement, Vision 2015 had participated in creating nearly 1,400 jobs with a mean salary of more than $52,700 — well above the local average. Now we are another step closer to our goal of helping to create 3,000 high-wage jobs by 2015.

For now, local company growth, aircraft maintenance and repair, offshore energy services and backoffice centers like Navy Federal’s are the best opportunities available because they are the sectors with competitive local available workforce, buildings and sites. The sites that are needed to attract and grow highquality, high-paying jobs require infrastructure we do not have yet but that we are working hard to develop.

To get there we are working hard to prepare our community for success and have specific goals, which include: • Developing a 500- to 600-acre inventory of truly shovel-ready land near Interstate 10 with all requisite infrastructure and modern development covenants. Today, no local sites meet these requirements.

• Creating a nationally recognized comprehensive business/education workforce development partnership, including a world-class employment education endowment to train and educate local individuals for our immediate employment needs.

• Working behind the scenes on many fronts, from improving the public-sector development approval processes and supporting Pensacolaarea revitalization to helping finance high-growth-potential entrepreneurs and retaining and attracting key armed services commands.

There’s a lot of work to be done – seizing both long-term solutions and immediate opportunities – but we are well on our way.

For more information, visit www.PensacolaChamber.com/Strategi c-Plan.

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>teamwork

The End of Fierce Individualism: Why Teams Matter More Than Ever (and What You Need to Know About Them) Bruce Piasecki shares a blueprint of what a well-run team looks like and explains why, now more than ever, the power of teams should trump the appeal of the rugged individualist.

America loves a fierce individualist.

And yes, there is something inspiring about the lone enterpriser and large business executive blazing a path into the valuable future. And yet, while our culture will always celebrate the individual, Bruce Piasecki insists that the business world must acknowledge the truth behind the (alleged) Aristotle quote: “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” In other words, the

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near future will be all about innovation for sustainable value creation, led by teams.

“In a world that becomes more complex by the day, ‘command and control’ is out, and employee engagement is in,” says Piasecki, author of the new book Doing More with Teams: The New Way to Winning.

“The days when a larger-than-life personality is allowed to steamroll

over the rest of the company are over. This destroys morale, which destroys results. Teams, not individuals, drive performance.

“And make no mistake,” he adds.

“The best organizations, the ones with real staying power, are fueled by well-run teams.

“Teams are more important than ever because the way we work and do business has changed,” Piasecki

explains. “Within the fierce competition that is the global economy, companies that get fast results because they excel at collaboration and innovation will rise to the top and rule the day. And the ideas that allow an organization to achieve, grow, and prosper (as opposed to merely survive) will be created only when teams leverage their combined skills and hold themselves mutually accountable. No individual, no matter how brilliant, is likely to have the skill set to take projects from start to finish in this fast-paced and complex environment.

“The good news is, companies can shatter this individualistic mindset wherever it occurs and guide employees to a better way to work— while tapping into and maximizing their raw talent,” Piasecki says. “But first, they must understand that managing teams, with their web of hidden politics and complex interplay of human differences, is very different from managing individuals.”

Here, Piasecki shares eight insights on teams: Great teams are led by captains.

Like many popular terms, the word “leader” has become so overused and commonplace that it has lost all meaning. Anybody can call himself or herself a leader, it seems. Anybody can follow the “dos” and “don’ts” in leadership manuals. But it takes a special type of leader—a captain—to create not just a loose affiliation of individuals but a true team that’s centered around shared values and focused on a common goal.

“Captains are quick to recognize the key capabilities of their team members, including strengths and weaknesses, and to build the plan around those capabilities,” Piasecki says.

Fierce individualism has no place in teams. Captains need to be sure that “the MVP syndrome” is not allowed to define their teams and be on the alert for individuals who might be losing sight of the team that gave them an identity—the group with whom they worked to produce the fame for which they are now known.

It is in such situations that workplace ills such as favoritism, sexism, and

even criminal activity like embezzlement tend to flourish.

“Seek to hire ‘coachable’ individuals rather than individualistminded high performers,” Piasecki advises. “Do everything possible to promote and reward teamwork rather than individualism. Whether your efforts are centered on pay structure, group incentives, verbal recognition, or some other technique, seek always to send the signal that it’s strong teams (not strong individuals) that make up a strong company.”

Teams hold the bar high for everyone (especially the superstars). In all teams there is an inherent desire to protect our superstars and keep them winning.

(Never mind all the others whose quieter, though no less critical, contributions are downplayed.)

“We are all aware of conditions when everyone else was willing to go along with a wrong,” Piasecki points out. “We recall instances in recent history where the politics of fear enabled the Nazis, and where embezzlement seems the norm. Yet it is harder to see when victory shines so brightly. Captains must be mindful of this very human tendency, in themselves and in others, to look the other way, to give our victors the benefit of the doubt. We must be vigilant and ever alert to wrongdoing.

We must be willing to ferret out corruption in the highest echelons, to bench the MVP, even to fire the superstar for the good of the team and the sake of integrity.”

Teams have to be willing to lose sometimes or they will eventually self-destruct. When teams keep winning, they can become addicted to victory—feel entitled to it even—and this is what drives them to illicit extremes. The lesson is clear: When we don’t learn to tolerate failure, we will do anything to keep the public adulation coming.

“Teams become great because they keep things in perspective and understand the broader context of competition; namely, that there is always a larger league and a set of better players out there, no matter what you’ve achieved or what rung on a ladder you’ve just hit,” Piasecki

explains. “In other words, no one can always win. In fact, if a team becomes addicted to victory—entitled to it even—it may take the Lance Armstrong route and go to illicit extremes to keep winning. An inability to tolerate failure makes a team easy prey for ‘the dark side.’”

Great teams revel in the pleasure of persistence and the sheer thrill of striving. Knowing that we will stumble and fall from time to time, yet get up and try again with some success, is at the heart of a great team.

Piasecki insists that it’s critical to teach teams to be well prepared for assignments and to keep going in spite of hardship. He shares, “When my company enrolls an executive in leadership training, we emphasize the following lessons of teamwork: - How to play through pain - How to resist the criminal opportunities inherent in becoming an MVP - How to keep your feet on the ground despite being a member of special teams with special force - How to outlive uncomfortable appointments, such as when your boss has selected you for teams that are a bad fit, and how to behave when you are chosen for teams you do not want to play on “Life can be a tough slog, and victories are sporadic at best. Maybe we can’t win but we can keep going.

This striving brings with it its own unique rewards. It is up to us to learn to appreciate them.”

Successful teams share values, integrity, and a commitment to one another. In preparing for a team event, or in becoming a member of a team, a transformation occurs where team members end their individual associations and create a team identity through sharing with others the experience of that process. Once the team is created, a strong bond is already in place from that preparation, from the obstacles everyone had to overcome to get there.

When joining the military, everyone has a crucible, basic training, which really isn’t basic at all and is usually the hardest experience to get April/May 2013

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through, Piasecki points out. The crucible is something all members have to overcome to be part of the team. They shave all the soldiers’ heads to take away their individual designations and rebuild them as team members, reshape their identities into a shared identity.

Teams must feel “at home” with uncertainty and complexity. In a world getting faster, flatter, and more competitive every day, uncertainty and complexity are the rule rather than the exception. (As Piasecki mentioned earlier, that’s why collaboration and teams are so important!) Teams and their captains need to be comfortable functioning in such an environment.

“In complex situations where outcomes are unknown, the temptation is always to play it safe,” Piasecki points out. “But in a world of constantly changing tides, yesterday’s ‘safe’ is likely to be today’s ‘not enough.’ That’s why teams must work on instinct, often at a moment’s notice, and constantly

move forward. Effective teams learn by doing and stay focused on results; they are not bound by method or processes. And that gives them the flexibility and resiliency they need to thrive in the midst of flux.”

Effective teams take risks.

Because business climates are constantly changing, teams and the captains who lead them know that yesterday’s guidelines can quickly become obsolete. That’s why they don’t allow themselves to be overly bogged down by rule following and order taking. Rather, they push boundaries when it’s proper (in other words, when ethical and moral lines aren’t being crossed), because the greatest innovations happen beyond existing laws and rules.

When led by great captains, teams regularly work beyond normal and limiting boundaries to increase productivity and success.

“Of course, while it’s important to encourage the kind of risk that involves seizing opportunities, it’s

also equally (and increasingly) critical to take steps to eliminate the risk of negative team behavior,” Piasecki warns. “I’m speaking here of the risk of allowing the ‘dark side’ to encroach on ethical behavior—as evidenced in the stories of Bernie Madoff, Lance Armstrong, and the latest string of scams reported in the New York Times and the Financial Times of London.”

“The word ‘team’ is more than just a business buzzword,” Piasecki concludes. “If done well, building and captaining a team will determine whether you merely survive or instead thrive in this strange new economy.”

Piasecki speaks from experience.

He is a change agent and management consultant whose firm, AHC Group, Inc. (www.ahcgroup.com), has now worked for over 100 of the 1,000 largest organizations in the world.

About the Author: Dr. Bruce Piasecki is the author of Doing More with Teams: The New Way to Winning and president and founder of AHC Group, Inc., a management consulting firm specializing in energy, materials, and environmental corporate matters, whose clients range from Suncor Energy, Hess, FMC, the Warren Buffett firm Shaw Industries, Toyota, and other global companies in his Corporate Affiliates training workshops.

Piasecki is the author of several seminal books on business strategy, valuation, and corporate change, including the Nature Society’s book of the year In Search of Environmental Excellence: Moving Beyond the Blame, as well as recent New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestseller Doing More with Less. Since 1981, he has advised companies about the critical areas of corporate governance, energy, environmental strategy, product innovation, and sustainability strategy with his teams of senior associates. See www.brucepiasecki.com and www.ahcgroup.com for more details.

About the Book: Doing More with Teams: The New Way to Winning (Wiley, March 2013, ISBN: 978-1-1184849-5-1, $25.00, www.brucepiasecki.com) is available at bookstores nationwide, from major online booksellers, and direct from the publisher by calling 800-225-5945. In Canada, call 800-5674797. For more information, please visit the book’s page on www.wiley.com.

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A Tale of Two (post-divorce) Christmases Or why there is a better way to Divorce

By Autumn O. Beck, Esq.

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December is a relatively slow time of year for marital and family law attorneys. Mostly because this is the time of year when couples, even if they know they are about to divorce, try to maintain civility for one more Christmas so that that the children will not suffer. But what if this civility could continue through the â&#x20AC;&#x153;last Christmasâ&#x20AC;? and set the tone for the relationship between the divorced couple for the rest of their lives?

Before you smirk at the suggestion, let me tell you the stories of two divorced couples and their 2012 Christmas.

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The first couple, I will call the Kranks. They have two daughters, ages eight and four. This couple is going through a bitter divorce (flashback to War of the Roses). Per their temporary child timesharing agreement entered into 15 months ago, the two girls spent Christmas Eve morning with their father, Mr. Krank. A little before noon, Mr. Krank loaded up the girls, taking them away from the cousins they were playing with at the family Christmas Eve party and drove in Christmas Eve traffic to Target.

Precisely at noon, Mrs. Krank pulled into the parking lot, and opened her van doors. Mr. Krank helped the girls out of his car, hugged them and they quickly loaded them into their mother’s van. No words were spoken between Mr. and Mrs. Krank, as they had confirmed all the plans for the holiday weekend via email, copying their attorneys of course.

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On Christmas morning, the girls awoke to Santa’s majesty, but were quickly whisked away to attend Mrs. Krank’s family Christmas gathering. The girls were just in the middle of dessert when mom told them to quickly give their hugs and kisses, say thank you to their family members for the gifts and load up in the car. Mrs. Krank noticed the sad look on their faces as they pulled away from their grandparent’s house and paused to let the girls run back in and say good bye again. Now headed to Target again, Mrs. Krank glanced at the clock on the dash and noticed that she was 5 minutes late already. By the time she got to the Target parking lot, Mr. Krank had already texted his family law attorney about his wife’s tardiness and was waiting impatiently. Twenty minutes later, an apologetic Mrs. Krank arrived and hurriedly said goodbye to the girls as Mr. Kank muttered under his breath to his wife, “I will see you in court!” Mrs. Krank scowled, “Bring it!” The girls buckled their seatbelts, and leaned on each other while silent tears puddled in their eyes and knots formed in their stomachs.

The second couple, Mr. and Ms. Merry, went through a divorce earlier this year. This was their first Christmas as divorced parents. They have three children, twin eight year old boys and a seven year old daughter. During the first week of December, the couple talked on the phone about their ideas and obligations for the upcoming holiday. On Christmas Eve, Ms. Merry had a gathering of family and friends at her home. She expected lots of guests and the event was scheduled to last all day. That morning the children were so excited they called Mr. Merry to find out what time he was coming over.

By mid-day, the house was full of family and friends including Mr. Merry. The kids played while Ms. Merry played hostess. Mr. Merry talked with Ms. Merry’s family members and even Ms. Merry’s new boyfriend. Several of the guests commented to Ms. Merry how nice it was that the children’s father was there and how amazed they were at how everyone interacted with him. By late afternoon, being respectful of his former wife’s time with the children, Mr. Merry decided to leave. He gave long hugs and kisses to the kids. Ms. Merry gave a friendly hug to Mr. Merry as they said goodbye at the door. The kids were eager to keep playing with their friends, and were confident enough to let dad leave without tears or insecurity as they were sure that their parents had figured out a schedule that would allow them to get the most out of their holiday.

The next morning, the kids awoke to Santa’s majesty.

The kids called Mr. Merry to report on Santa’s loot.

Looking around the home that looked like Christmas had exploded on it, Ms. Merry told the kids to get dressed to go to their grandparent’s home. At grandma and

grandpa’s the kids enjoyed more friends and family and Christmas lunch. When it looked like lunch was going to take a little longer than expected, Ms. Merry texted Mr. Merry and asked him if it was OK if they could exchange the children 30 or 45 minutes later. It was no problem for Mr. Merry since he knew that pulling the kids from the Christmas table would cause them unnecessary stress and anxiety. At 3 pm that day, Ms. Merry took the kids to their dad’s house, she lingered a short time inside to hear the kids tell dad about the gifts they received. Then she kissed and hugged the children good bye. By bedtime, the kids were exhausted from excitement of the day, not from family stress.

Now, I know you may be rolling your eyes at these two couples thinking that they represent the real extremes of the spectrum, but these are the events from two actual local couples. You may ask what the difference is in why they were able to put their differences aside and really work together to determine what was best for their children. It wasn’t the severity of the issues that were relevant in their divorce; in fact, the couple with the more extreme issues would be the Merrys. The difference lies, in great part, to the WAY they divorced. Although they had significant issues to muddle through in the process of divorce, Mr. and Ms. Merry did not want to fight with each other. They divorced in an amicable, collaborative way, focusing on the needs of the children and attempting to repair their relationship to the fullest extent possible so that they could be good co-parents in the future. They never considered “going to court” to iron out their differences, but agreed from the beginning that they would reach a mutually agreed upon settlement. They hired attorneys who understood that they wanted the divorce to be the END of the marital strife and not the beginning.

Mr. and Mrs. Krank on the other hand, looked for attorneys who would be willing to “go for the jugular” and really punish the other for the wrongs he/she committed.

As a result, the couple cannot communicate about even the most menial topic without pulling in their lawyers, and consequently, everything becomes a fight. The children are in constant inner turmoil, despite their outward appearances. The Kranks have not found the maturity they need to be able to pull themselves together for their children; and every member of the Krank family is suffering because of it. Meanwhile, the Krank’s are getting poorer and their divorce lawyers are getting richer, leaving less for themselves or their children as the time clocks run with two attorney’s time.

There is a better way to divorce. Collaborative divorce is a new method that allows the divorcing parties to sort through their issues and learn to work together to care for their children. When a couple enters into the Collaborative process, they agree that Mom and Dad will decide how their children will be raised and how time with their children will be shared, not a judge. The process is perfect for the couple that wants to have a better relationship with each other as single people than they did while married to each other so that they can focus on what’s

really important to them both, their precious children and years of happy Christmas’ future.

Autumn O. Beck is a Marital and Family Law Attorney with McDonald Fleming Moorhead in Pensacola, Florida. She is one of only two Certified Collaborative Divorce Attorneys in the Florida Panhandle. For more information on Collaborative Divorce, contact her at 850.477.0660 or aobeck@pensacolalaw.com.

Collaborative Divorce FAQs For parties who wish to get divorced but are looking for the divorce process to be the end of the marital conflict and not the beginning of it, there is a new approach to divorce that provides a more peaceful process than that of traditional litigation called Collaborative Divorce. Here are some answers to the most frequently asked questions I receive on the process.

What is Collaborative Divorce?

Collaborative Divorce provides the benefits of attorney assistance while avoiding the negative atmosphere of litigation. In the collaborative divorce process, the parties each retain attorneys with training in non-adversarial, conflict resolution.

Collaboratively trained coaches (communication specialists, mediators and/or mental health professionals) are also part of the team. Financial specialists, mortgage brokers and real estate agents participate in the process, as needed.

Instead of going to court to litigate the issues of custody, parenting time, spousal maintenance and property division, the parties and their supporting professionals meet in a series of conferences to make better decisions in the best interest of the family.

Research shows that the most creative solutions for parents and children are generated in a non-adversarial atmosphere.

How is Collaborative Divorce Different? a. You and your spouse agree that you will not go to court to settle your differences. If either party goes to court or threatens court action, the attorneys are bound by agreement with their client to withdraw from the case. b. Your attorneys, while representing you and providing you with legal advice and counsel, are not out to “win” the case for you. Their role is to help you and your spouse to come to an agreement that is in the best interests of both of you and your children. They should be trying to achieve a “win-win” solution. c. Collaborative divorce teams work on solutions for both the short and long term that are robust, and designed specifically for your particular situation. As you and your attorney are not preparing for a judge to decide, you can be very creative in your solutions and do not necessarily have to follow case law in deciding how you and your spouse wish to dissolve your marriage.

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d. Collaborative professionals generally acknowledge the divorce is not primarily a legal event, but is more an emotional and financial event. Thus, collaborative attorneys recognize that other professionals are often better suited to assist parties with the emotional and financial aspects of their divorce, and thus will include those professionals as part of the team so that you get the appropriate help by the appropriately trained professional. e. You and your spouse will agree that you will fully disclose all information, will conduct yourselves respectfully and with dignity, and will negotiate in good faith. Most collaborative attorneys will help you to speak for yourself, rather than speak for you. We recommend the use of a divorce coach to help you with communication and emotional issues that will facilitate your ability to communicate effectively in meetings with your spouse and his/her attorney.

What are the key advantages to Collaborative Divorce?

Both attorney and the parties share the goal of cooperative problem solving, instead of pulling in opposition to each other.

There is no pain-free way to end a marriage, but by reducing destructive conflict, a climate of cooperation and respect can be created.

The judge’s ability to resolve your family’s issues is limited due to lack of time and information. The collaborative problem solving process leaves the decision making up to the divorcing parties with the input and support of the collaborative professionals.

The collaborative process embodies civilized, respectful communication. This protects children from the harm associated with a conflicted, litigated divorce.

The collaborative process provides a foundation for a positive ongoing co-parenting relationship.

For Whom is the Collaborative Divorce Process Advantageous?

You and your partner may wish to proceed collaboratively if you: • Desire the assurance provided by having legal representation throughout the process.

• Want to retain control over your own lives and the lives of your children.

• Want to divorce at your own pace rather than on the Court’s timetable, which is often very slow.

• Wish to reach agreement through open discussions and co-operative problem solving.

• Desire to build two functioning households that foster a

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successful co-parenting relationship for the benefit of your children.

• Do not want the threat of going to court to influence your decisions.

• Desire your issues to remain private.

How does the collaborative process help you reach these goals?

• By creating a safe, cooperative environment which provides the opportunity for open communication and creative problem solving.

• By establishing a team, rather than adversaries, who work toward a mutually agreeable settlement, while at the same time providing direction and boundaries for the process.

• By bringing you the expert consultants needed to address such issues as parenting time, communication skills, real estate and financial issues.

• By scheduling meetings on your timetable rather than the court’s.

• Since the process remains private; only the required legal documents are filed with the court.

Why is the Collaborative Process Successful?

The collaborative divorce model views divorces as the restructuring of the family, not a battle to be won or lost.

Instead of litigation, it empowers and supports parties to reach their own solutions.

An agreement formed together by the divorcing parties is more likely to be followed years in the future.

About the author: Autumn O. Beck is a Marital and Family Law Attorney with McDonald Fleming Moorhead in Pensacola, Florida. She is one of only two Certified Collaborative Divorce Attorneys in the Florida Panhandle. For more information on Collaborative Divorce, contact her at 850.477.0660 or aobeck@pensacolalaw.com © Autumn O. Beck, 2013, All Rights Reserved No part of this article may be reproduced, copied, modified or adapted, without the prior written consent of the author, unless otherwise indicated for stand-alone materials.

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>aroundtheregion

business news bits you should know

Navy Federal Credit Union to add 1,500 jobs On April 3, Gov. Rick Scott announced that Navy Federal Credit Union will create 1,500 jobs in Northwest Florida, as part of a $200 million expansion. It will be the fourth expansion for the credit union since opening in 2003 in Pensacola. The credit union already employs almost 3,000 people.

Additional property that was bought will allow the credit union to put up two new buildings to house the new workers. With an average wage of more than $44,000, the influx of new jobs will mean more people in the two‐county region will have an opportunity to obtain jobs that pay 115 percent more than the average Pensacola-area salary. According to a study by the Haas Center, the Navy Federal jobs will also generate an additional 1,000 jobs in the local community by 2020 due to the indirect effects of the employment increase.

PSC to host 2013 Florida SkillsUSA state competition & Worlds of Possibilities career expo Showcasing technical talents and leadership abilities, the best and the brightest of Florida SkillsUSA competitors will face off at the 2013 Florida SkillsUSA State Competition held in conjunction with the 2013 Worlds of Possibilities Career Expo.

The event is April 29 and 30 at the Pensacola Bay Center. The Worlds of Possibilities Career Expo will showcase businesses and vendors in technical and vocational career fields by engaging more than 3,000 seventh and eighth grade students and 2,500 high school and college students from throughout the state of Florida, with exciting hands-on and interactive experiences in 14 worlds and industry sectors, ranging from the World of Aviation to the World of Energy. Back by popular demand, SkillsUSA will co-host an

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Electrathon Race competition at Five Flags Speedway on Saturday, April 27. Sanctioned by Electrathon America and sponsored by the Gulf Power Engineering Society, high school competitors from Florida will race electric vehicles through an endurance course to determine how far they can travel on electric batteries.

Escambia County jobless rate drops Escambia County’s unemployment rate dipped to its lowest levels since 2008 recently, according to the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity. The county’s unemployment rate is 7.4 percent, and Santa Rosa’s is 6.7.

New development coming to Rosemary Beach In early April, Walton County commissioners approved plans for The Inn on the Gulf, a trio of luxury four-story buildings. The development on Rosemary Beach will feature one-, two- and threebedroom units ranging from 460 square feet to 2,118 square feet.

Phase one of construction should be complete by the summer of 2014.

Hotel planned at foot of Shalimar Bridge A Louisiana-based development firm plans to build a four-story, 120-room hotel on Eglin Parkway overlooking Garnier Bayou. InterMountain Management, a hospitality development and management company, plans to build a Marriott TownePlace Suites across the street from Eglin Federal Credit Union at the south end of the Shalimar Bridge.

UWF College of Business maintains AACSB Business Accreditation The College of Business at the University of West Florida officially maintained its business

accreditation by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International).

Accreditation confirms that the curriculum, faculty, students and management of the UWF business programs meet the highest standard of quality, rigor and relevance.

AACSB Accreditation is the hallmark of excellence in business education and has been earned by less than 5 percent of the world’s business programs. Today, there are 650 business schools in 50 countries and territories that maintain AACSB Accreditation.

UWF BEI moves to RFP phase of University Park & Northwest Village Development Project University of West Florida Business Enterprises, Inc. (BEI) announced April 12 the names of three development firms selected to submit Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for the University Park & Northwest Village Development Project. The selected firms are: American Campus Communities (Austin, Texas): In partnership with Bullock-Tice Associates (Pensacola, Fla.) and Greenhut Construction Company (Pensacola, Fla.) as well as Niles Bolton (Atlanta, Ga.).

Balfour Beatty Campus Solutions (Newtown Square, Pa.): In partnership with Caldwell & Associates (Pensacola, Fla.) and Provident (Baton Rouge, La.).

KUD International (New York City, Ny.): In partnership with JehleHalstead (Pensacola, Fla.), as well as EMO (Tallahassee, Fla.) and Haskell (Jacksonville, Fla.), among others.

Gulf Power wants to attract big business with certified sites Gulf Power Company is introducing its new economic development program that will help communities create jobs by having large sites ready for business growth and expansions — a recognized need in Northwest Florida for successful

peopleonthemove< economic development.

Through the program — the first-of-its-kind in Florida — potential industrial sites will be submitted to a site consultant firm retained by Gulf Power.

The firm, McCallum Sweeney Consulting, will evaluate the sites, make recommendations for preparing the site for a new business and then certify the site once the improvements have been made. Gulf Power is paying for all of the program design costs and will pay onehalf of the consultant costs for publicly owned parcels submitted by cities or counties.

The consultant fees amount to about $20,000 per site. Private developers can participate as well, but will have to pay the full amount of the consultant fees. Gulf Power will not pay for any of the site improvements for public or privately owned sites.

The Panhandle Job Advisory Board has named Christina Johnson, branch manager of Landrum Staffing Services in Fort Walton Beach, as education chair.

Johnson will lead the organization in the planning of educational events for potential candidates participating in the bi-annual job fairs. The professionalrelated education sessions include resume workshops, interview coaching and job search assistance.

Compass Solar Energy names new marketing director Amy Vogt has been named marketing director at Compass Solar Energy. She will be responsible for strategic market development, branding and market awareness initiatives. Vogt comes to Compass Solar Energy with more than 15 years of management, marketing and communications experience in industries as varied as technology, education and entertainment.

Keith Hoskins is named new Commanding Officer at NAS. Capt. Keith Hoskins began his career at NAS in 1989 and has recently been named the base's first Afican-American commanding officer. Capt. Hoskins is a native of Parkville, Mo. and graduated from Missouri Western State University with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering Technology in 1988. He was commissioned after completion of Aviation Officer Candidate School in September of 1989 and was designated a Naval Aviator in February of 1992 in Kingsville, Texas. Hoskins flew with the Blue Angels flight demonstration team from 1999 to 2001. He holds more than 3,400 flight hours and 570 aircraft carrier landings.

Walton County eyes new executive director The search for a new executive director for the Walton County Economic Alliance appears to be coming to an end. The EDA’s board of directors voted unanimously Friday to begin negotiations with Steven Jaeger, the executive director of TransPORT, the port authority in Peoria, Ill. If negotiations go well, the board would like Jaeger to start work next month.

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>it tips

12 Signs Your Business is Ready For a Server

By Mike White

If you are like most small businesses, you acquire desktop computers, phone systems, and software in a random, “buy-itwhen-you-need-it” fashion as your business operations demand it.

But at some point, this patchwork of stopgap technology you’ve acquired is going to end up costing you more in downtime, system errors, breakdowns, and other problems than it would to rip out and replace everything.

If you’ve suddenly become aware that you’re at that stage of growth in your business, then you want to stop purchasing more software and hardware in a willy-nilly fashion and get serious about planning for your future growth and business operations so you don’t end up with a big pile of expensive hardware and software spaghetti that doesn’t meet your business needs.

One secret to saving money on IT costs is to strive for as much uniformity and connectivity as possible across your business network - and the first place to start achieving that is through the use of a server.

If you have two or more computers that are loosely connected to share information, printers, scanners, Internet access, or fax machines, then you could inject a great deal of simplicity, productivity, and security with a small business server.

A server simply acts as a single specialized computer that ensures all of the computers connected to it (called “clients”) have access to the resources, information and systems they need, faster and with fewer problems. It also acts as a centralized manager to make sure data is secure and organized.

At one time, servers only made sense for large organizations because of their high cost and complexity. But today, there are very affordable and easy-to-implement server systems designed specifically for a growing small business. If you’re not absolutely certain that installing a server could help your business enough to justify the cost, here are 12 surefire signs that your business could definitely benefit from an upgrade.

1. You have two or more computers that need to share office equipment (printers, fax machines, scanners) and resources (Internet access).

2. You have irreplaceable files and data residing on more than one computer that need to be secured from loss, corruption or unauthorized access.

3.You need (or would like to have) secure access to your computer files while traveling or working from home.

4. You need to back up critical files on more than one computer, and you would like to be able to restore accidentally deleted files or previous versions of your files.

5. You need CRM (customer relationship management) software and accounting programs to manage and communicate with your growing list of clients and vendors.

6. You need to manage different versions of one file.

7. You need a central communication system that makes it easy to schedule group meetings and share information with

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employees, vendors and customers.

8. You need to allow employees to share databases and other software tools.

9. You would like to send group faxes and e-mail broadcasts to customers.

10. You want to save money by hosting your own company website and e-mail.

11. You want to control employees’ access to sensitive financial records and personnel information.

12. You want a central access point for information instead of having to hunt down various files and data on various computers on your network.

All master craftsmen demand excellent tools to complete their work. They know that the best tools allow them to focus on creating their next masterpiece rather than being sidetracked, frustrated or limited by the tools they are using. The computers, software and office equipment you use are the tools you use every day to create your greatest masterpiece: your business.

If the technology in your office is not simplifying your business and making it easier for you to get more done with fewer employees, it’s costing you a lot more than the price of a server. While there is no shortage of white papers on the topic of ROI (return on investment) for upgrading technology, you and I know that this is truly a hard cost to quantify; however, there certainly IS a cost, and depending on your business operations and how you use the computers and technology in your office, the cost may be significant.

In his book Automatic Millionaire, author David Bach talks about the “latte” factor. Simply put, most people end up financially broke not because of the big purchases they make, but because of the small, seemingly innocent day-to-day spending of small amounts of money over a long period of time.

For example, no one thinks twice of spending $4 for a cup of coffee at Starbucks every morning.

However, add that up over the course of a year and they’ve invested $1,460 into a daily cup of coffee. Why am I telling you this? Because massive loss of productivity in any business plays out exactly the same way.

Think about this: a faster processor and a faster hard drive with greater capacity allow you to open and use applications faster, saving a few minutes every hour. Information is centralized, which saves a few more minutes every hour in finding files. There are fewer crashes and hang-ups.

Each of these little things adds up to significant employee hours saved over the course of a year. Then there’s the costsavings of outsourced IT support. A properly configured and maintained client-server network is far easier to support and troubleshoot than a patchwork of computers that are loosely connected. All of this translates into higher revenue from your technology investment and should land on your bottom line.

>businessscene ...at the Wind Creek Casino and Hotel “Wonders of the Gulf”

Jay Dorris, Arthur Mothershed

Brent Pinkston, Tim Martin

Rodrigo Macias, Joe Quinn

...at the “Breakfast with the Fed,” Crowne Plaza Hotel

Ted Holz, Todd Torgersen, Bob Warren

Yvonne Nellums, Ted Kirschner

Jim Guttman, Wallace Sample

...at the Veterans Memorial Park

Jack Brown with Veterans Memorial Park Steering Committee

Jeff Grosso & John Ochs

Mayor Ashton Hayward with Veterans Memorial Park Steering Committee

Matt Schmitt, Gerald Wingate

Veterans Memorial Park Steering Committee April/May 2013

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