Horizons January 2013
A publication of the Cumming-Forsyth County Chamber of Commerce
Prestige Members Northside Hospital-Forsyth Premier Corporate Sponsor
Forsyth County Government
jTech Networks
The City of Cumming
Georgia Power
DeKalb Office
Taubman
Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta
St. Joseph’s Hospital of Atlanta
Anchor Home Mortgage
Much to anticipate in ’13 A
s 2012 comes to a close, we can see the signs of economic recovery continue to grow into a strengtheni n g e c o n o m y. I n Forsyth County, our unemployment rate has decreased to 6.4 percent and new single family housing permits have increased by 66 percent over 2011 figures. We saw 18 new and existing companies create 762 new jobs and invest $71.1 million dollars in new capital. With the economy in a steady upward turn, now is the time to seize the opportunities that recovery will bring. With your support, we will expand the reach of our economic development efforts. We will provide additional support to the fastest growing industry in our community — health care. Now is the time to make additional investments in resources to encourage more visitors to our community by targeting the lucrative amateur sports market. We have made important strides in
this area, but there is more work to do and expanding those efforts will yield real economic opportunity for our retail and hospitality industries. Economies are built on relationships and leadership. We are blessed to have both of these in Cumming and Forsyth County. The chamber is an integral part of facilitating those relationships and fostering strong leaders. Your chamber is the sole economic development entity in our community. This streamlined approach to serving the needs of business clients gives us a competitive advantage. The partnership between the city, county and school system makes us a strong player on a global stage. The chamber will continue to work with leaders in Cumming and Forsyth County to concenter the process of business interaction with our local government to ensure it is clear to the region and the nation we have the most business friendly community in the country. Cumming and Forsyth County have already taken strong steps in that direction and I thank them for their
continued support. We have opportunities for growth in 2013. While the chamber is on sound financial footing, new services will require greater resources. While our membership numbers have recovered from the impact of the recession, we still have opportunities for growth and increasing our market share, especially in health care, international business and small business. The chamber is our venue to channel the incredible collective resources of great business people to create economic opportunity for everyone. The opportunity is what makes us remarkable and sets us apart from so many places around the world. As incoming chairwoman, I look forward to working with each of you to expand that opportunity for everyone in our community to reach their potential and achieve more than we could imagine. Linda Cole is chair-elect of the Cumming-Forsyth County Chamber of Commerce.
Mike Cottrell School of Business MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION Get serious about your resolution to advance your career. Earn your MBA in Forsyth County. Register for an Info Session on January 24 at 7pm. NorthGeorgia.edu/mba (470) 239-3030
Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve. - Benjamin Franklin