Greater Charlotte Biz 2010.02

WB M oore Co m p a ny

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S P E ED

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A d v a n ced D i sp o sa l S er vi ce s

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M L- L aBro ss e B ye rl ey Group

february 2010

SAVANT LEADER CPCC's Zeiss Offers an Educated Perspective on Charlotte

Dr. P. Anthony Zeiss President Central Piedmont Community College

CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED 5601 77 Center Dr., Ste. 250, Charlotte, N.C. 28217

PRSRT STD U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 505 Charlotte, NC

in this issue

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cover story

Central Piedmont Community College

“We need a concrete vision,” says CPCC President Tony Zeiss, a nationally recognized leader, speaker and resource in work force and economic development, as he contemplates the next decade for Charlotte from an educator’s viewpoint. His mission statement: “Charlotte intends to be the world’s leader in prosperity, compassion and livability.” Not surprisingly, his school figures prominently.

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WB Moore Company of Charlotte

departments

Billy Graves presides over an electrical outfit that can handle a job from start to finish. “We’re one of the few firms that have a full in-house engineering team. I don’t know of any other our size in this region that has both the field talent and the engineering services to go with it.”

16 SPEED

Launched in 1996 as Speedvision, it quickly became the fastest growing cable network of all time while delivering the highest male viewing audience of any cable or broadcast network in history. Today, re-branded as SPEED, Hunter Nickell sees to it that it offers programming for all things racing and automotive-related.

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legalbiz

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Transforming the Business of Law to Meet the Needs of Business

bizhealth

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Making Healthy Work and Lifestyle Choices

bizxperts

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Smart Salvos, Select Strategies and Succinct Solutions

employersbiz

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Legislative and Regulatory Highlights for Area Employers

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biznetwork

Advanced Disposal Services Carolinas

Timing was perfect for Advanced Disposal and Carole McLeod to join forces last fall. Advanced Disposal is the nation’s fourth largest privately-owned environmental services company.

McLeod brings a good history and they the financing and respected reputation to build a service territory.

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publisher’spost

on the cover:

W B Mo o re C o mpany

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SPE ED

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Adv anc ed D is po sal Se r vi c es

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M L- LaBros se Byerl ey G ro up

february 2010

Dr. P. Anthony Zeiss President Central Piedmont Community College

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SAVANT LEADER Dr. P. Anthony Zeiss President Central Piedmont Community College

ML LaBrosse Byerley

“If you focus on the client and do the right thing, everything else just follows.” These partners at Merrill Lynch live and work by that code.

From scratch 30 years ago, to more than $190 million in assets today, they have built a legacy for their group on the basis of building partnerships and legacies with their clients.

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Photography by Michael LoBiondo

CPCC's Zeiss Offers an Educated Perspective on Charlotte

YEARS

2000 - 2010

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[publisher’spost] 704-676-5850

War of a Different Kind

February 2010 Volume 11 • Issue 02

For thousands of years through the 19th century, war as we knew it was man-to-man, eyes locked in mortal struggle. In the 20th century, the distance between combatants was substantially lengthened due to better weapons, bombs, ships and planes. And by the end of the century it was not even necessary to fight in the same place with the advent of intercontinental missiles and satellite targeting. Now in the 21st century, wars are becoming even more impersonal and deadly as John Paul Galles we use drone planes in maneuvers over enemy camps and mechanized robots to enter hostile territories.

The events of 9/11 thrust a new type of enemy attack front and center—terrorism— which we perceived at the time to be confined to the nations of Iraq and Afghanistan and are now realizing foments well beyond those borders into other countries and perhaps even within our own shores. But we have given short shift to the cyber-terrorism brewing, and in this case, spewing, from China.

On January 12, 2010, search engine Google disclosed that it had been a victim of cyber-attacks from China—specifically that dozens of human rights activists in China had had their Gmail accounts hacked. Computer security firm VeriSign said it had traced the Google attacks back to “a single foreign entity consisting either of agents of the Chinese state or proxies thereof,” and that 30 companies in all were targeted. Google took the bold step of threatening to shut down its Chinese-language search engine Google.cn and curtail its operations in China if officials there did not back down from requiring it to selfcensor search results.

Google’s threat to pull out of China over security and censorship issues risks little in the short term, but the online giant could find itself at a permanent disadvantage in a rapidly growing Internet market—already the world’s largest.

It is estimated that revenue from China could reach about $310 million, or about 2 percent of Google’s total revenue, in 2010. Basically it’s a duopoly in China—Google and Baidu (developed within China). And though Google’s market share is significant, Baidu has about 300 million visitors, a market value of more than $15 billion, and 63 percent of Internet search revenue in China, nearly double the 33 percent share of Google.

Of more consequence is the impact to Google’s long-term goals. With an estimated 360 million Internet users and about 700 million mobile phone users, China has been widely seen as a market Google cannot ignore. Pulling out now will sorely diminish the likelihood that Google will ever be able to catch up to search competitors should it decide to re-enter the Chinese market.

This is a new war—an information war and a cyber-conflict that is being waged against a most formidable foe. The nature of this war may dramatically affect the future of the United States and all the principles upon which we stand including free market capitalism.

In 1977 Coca-Cola, Inc. faced a similar challenge and showed how much it would sacrifice in order to protect its secret formula. The drink was selling well in India, especially since the Dalai Lama, exiled there after the Communist takeover of Tibet, was photographed enthusiastically enjoying a Coke. However, the company chose to shut down 22 bottling plants rather than divulge the recipe to the Indian government, which wanted to “Indianize” the beverage business. When the Indian economy opened up in the 1990s, Coca Cola had some catching up to do, but it had successfully protected its proprietary formula.

China has denied this reported hacking activity and, while they may hold discussions with Google, they remain emphatic that “China proscribes any form of hacking activity.” The U.S. government is also stepping into this conflict. If the Chinese people are limited to the search engine, Baidu, they will have limited access to information. At some point that will become a larger problem.

This is an important battle with significant ramifications far beyond Google. Thank goodness that Google is confronting these attacks. None of our businesses or governmental sites is immune from this aggressive hacking activity. The cyber-conflict is a war of information that cannot be lost to the power of the Chinese government or people. *Google is a registered trademark of Google Inc.

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Cont. on p.42

Publisher John Paul Galles x102 jgalles@greatercharlottebiz.com

Associate Publisher/Editor Maryl A. Lane x104 mlane@greatercharlottebiz.com

Creative Director Trevor Adams x103 tadams@greatercharlottebiz.com

Account Executives sales@greatercharlottebiz.com Marsha Bradford x106 Dave Cartwright x107 Bradley Jackson x107 Sandra Ledbetter x106

Contributing Writers Ellison Clary Zenda Douglas Heather Head

Contributing Photographers Michael LoBiondo Trevor Adams Galles Communications Group, Inc. 5601 77 Center Drive • Suite 250 Charlotte, NC 28217-0737 704-676-5850 Phone • 704-676-5853 Fax www.greatercharlottebiz.com • Press releases and other news-related information: editor@greatercharlottebiz.com.

• Editorial: mlane@greatercharlottebiz.com.

• Advertising: jgalles@greatercharlottebiz.com.

• Subscription inquiries or change of address: subscriptions@greatercharlottebiz.com.

• Other inquiries: please call or fax at the numbers above or visit our Web site www.greatercharlottebiz.com. © Copyright 2010 by Galles Communications Group, Inc. All rights reserved. The information contained herein has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. However, Galles Communications Group, Inc. makes no warranty to the accuracy or reliability of this information. Products named in these pages are trade names or trademarks of their respective companies. Views expressed herein are not necessarily those of Greater Charlotte Biz or Galles Communications Group, Inc. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission from the publisher. For reprints call 704-676-5850 x102.

Greater Charlotte Biz (ISSN 1554-6551) is published monthly by Galles Communications Group, Inc., 5601 77 Center Dr., Ste. 250, Charlotte, NC 28217-0737. Telephone: 704-676-5850. Fax: 704-676-5853. Subscription rate is $24 for one year. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Greater Charlotte Biz, 5601 77 Center Dr., Ste. 250, Charlotte, NC 28217-0737.

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

Wishart Norris Henninger & Pittman

Wishart, Norris, Henninger & Pittman, P.A.

AT T O R N E Y S AT L AW

[legalbiz]

Transforming the Business of Law to Meet the Needs of Business

Grants and Loans You Can Use !

As credit tightened over 2009, many businesses were scrambling for renewals of lines of credit as well as searching for new longer term financing. As you head into 2010, you should be aware of the following programs.

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) offers two main loan programs. If you are looking to buy real estate or build a facility for your business, you should investigate the Certified Development Company 504 Loan Program. This program offers long-term loans at favorable fixed rates to businesses for expansion and modernization of their facilities.

The other main loan program from the SBA is the 7(a) Loan Program. This program provides loan options for the acquisition of businesses as well as loans for certain uses and growth of businesses including working capital needs.

While the federal government does not generally provide grants for businesses, there are certain state and local options you should consider. North Carolina, for example, has grants and incentives available for different businesses

through the North Carolina Department of Commerce. Also, don’t forget to check out your local economic development offices for local grants and other funding options. While many of these programs are for very specific uses, you may be able to find related grants that can work for you.

You may also be seeing a number of very specialized niche loan companies now. These companies may make loans against a single customer invoice or find other creative ways to provide some form of asset-based loans to assist companies with working capital needs. You may also find certain “private equity” groups interested in making business loans as well as purchasing businesses.

These groups have seen the opportunity to fill the gap for businesses that has been left by the banks’ withdrawal.

The key to keep in mind is that your bank is not the end of the search for credit and financing for your business. However, be sure that your search uncovers legitimate financing sources. As you would expect, there are companies and people that are simply seeking to take advantage of businesses and their owners who are desperate for capital.

!Chrysler Sues North Carolina ! In

August of 2009, North Carolina adopted a law that would require automobile manufacturers to take certain actions with regard to dealerships that lost the rights to sell that manufacturer’s brand. This law applies to “successor manufacturers.”

A “successor manufacturer” is basically a “new” company that now has the right to manufacture a brand of automobiles. This law is designed to offer some protection for auto dealers who lost the rights to sell certain auto brands in the event that the successor manufacturer wants to have a new dealership in the old dealer’s area.

•••• •••••• ••••••••

For example, if your local Chrysler dealer lost its right to sell Chrysler products, before the “new” Chrysler manufacturer could allow another person to open a Chrysler dealership in that area, it would have to extend the old dealer the option for the dealership first. There are, of course, certain requirements that would have to be met by the prior dealership.

This law is being challenged by both the prior and current owners of the Chrysler brands through a suit naming state officials in North Carolina as well as other states with similar laws.

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

!Yes, We Have No New Laws Today Health care reform, estate taxes, income taxes and other major issues are still not finalized and it’s already into the first part of the new year. All of these new laws, whenever they are passed, will most likely be effective as of January 1st of this year. How are you going to plan?

Here are some thoughts. Plan as if: " the estate tax laws lower the credits you get for assets transferred upon your death; " estate tax rates are higher; " income tax rates are higher (including capital gains rates); and " expenses for employee benefits and running your business overall increase in ways you cannot control.

Not surprisingly, this advice provides little help. All we truly know at this point is that change is happening this year, and this change will mean your expenses and taxes will likely be higher than they were in 2009.

Overall, with regard to your estate planning this year, keep making gifts as you have planned. Make certain you know what your estate plan says and does. Be ready to take action on short notice.

With regard to your business this year, plan for higher taxes and higher employee costs. Make sure that your business is as lean and efficient as it can be. Consider changing the tax structure of your business (such as making an “S” election for your corporation or considering being taxed as a “partnership”).

For you individually, carefully consider any taxable sales you may want to complete this year. Using options that defer taxes may not be the most beneficial to you if tax rates are going to rise each year.

What is the bottom line? Keep in close contact with your advisors so you know what is happening when it happens. Don’t wait to read about it in the paper!

Wishart, Norris, Henninger & Pittman, P.A. partners with owners of closely-held businesses to provide comprehensive legal services in all areas of business, tax, estate planning, succession planning, purchases and sales of businesses, real estate, family law, and litigation. For more information, please call Robert Norris at 704-364-0010 or visit www.wnhplaw.com.

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[bizhealth]

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!HAVING A ‘DUH’ MOMENT? Ever have a moment where your mind goes completely blank? Or you make a major blunder and said to yourself after the fact, “What in the world was I thinking?” Well, the lapse in thought process is referred to maladaptive brain activity change by some scientists or as the general public more affectionately calls it—a “brain fart.” Researchers have studied this unpredictable and abnormal brain activity and believe it is the brain’s way of conserving energy by momentarily entering a period of rest.

!BRAIN POWER! " The brain is more active when you are at rest than when you are alert "#Blood loss for 8-10 seconds results in unconsciousness "#The brain consists of 80% water

!WANT TO STAY IN SHAPE? DEVELOP A GREEN THUMB! Mowing the lawn, pulling up weeds and digging holes could be actually good for your health.

Seriously. Studies have shown that gardening activities averaging 30 minutes a week for several days out of the week could be just as effective in burning calories as walking,

!The Heart Does What?

The heart is such an amazing organ. The heart is roughly the size of your fist and is capable of carrying out the most complex tasks. According to several studies, the following has been reported:

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number of seconds it takes for the heart to pump blood to every part of the body

cycling and aerobics. In fact, gardening can burn 120 to 200 calories every 30 minutes. This type of activity requires the use of muscles in the upper and lower body and, depending on the activity and frequency, can lead to many health benefits including stronger muscles, bones and joints. This moderate workout, if done consistently, can also decrease the risk of certain ailments such as high blood pressure.

!FEBRUARY IS AMERICAN HEART MONTH February is American Heart Month, drawing attention to heart disease, America's No. 1 killer, and the strides being taken through research and education to raise awareness of risk factors and to decrease death rates.

!"#$%

average number of gallons the heart pumps in a day

number of miles the blood travels as it circulates through the body in one day —four times the distance across the U.S. from coast to coast

1,000,000

number of barrels of blood the heart pumps during an average lifetime —enough to fill more than 3 super tankers

Consider these statistics: "#One in three American adults has one or more types of cardiovascular diseases (CVD); more than half are under the age of 60. "#On average, an American dies of CVD every 35 seconds or about 2,500 every day. "# In 2008 alone, an estimated 770,000 people will have a new coronary attack. 780,000 will suffer a new or recurrent stroke. "#CVD claims more lives than the next four most common causes of death combined. "#Coronary heart disease is the No. 1 single killer of women over age 25, but only 21% of women view it as a health threat. "# CVD kills over 460,000 women a year, about one per minute.

!BEING SEDENTARY IS COSTLY If you’re reading this sitting down, you might consider standing up!

100,000

average number of times the heart beats a day; 35 million times a year; 2.5 billion times during a typical human life span

"#The brain can power the same amount of energy as a small light bulb

&'()*$+",*-

2,000

12,000

"#The brain is able to distinguish between expected and unexpected touch which is why you are unable to tickle yourself

In a provocative look at the impact of sedentary behavior on health, a new study published in the American Heart Association journal Circulation links time watching television to an increased risk of death. One of the most surprising findings is that it isn’t just couch potatoes who were affected—even for people who exercised regularly, the risk of death went up the longer they were in front of the TV. The problem was the prolonged periods of time spent sitting still.

Americans averaged 151 hours of TV viewing a month in the fourth quarter of 2008—more than five hours a day. (Nielsen Co.) Cont. on p.40

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

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[bizXperts]

Smart Salvos, Select Strategies and Succinct Solutions

$%&!'()%

keeping pace with mobile phone marketing strategies !

According to The Nielsen Company, over 56.9 million people accessed Web sites from their mobile phones in 2009. Gartner, one of the nation’s leading information technology research companies, predicts that the use of smart phones and other portable browser-enabled devices accessing Web content will surpass the use of traditional computers as soon as 2013.

Kip Cozart To meet rising demand, businesses are under increasing pressure to design new strategic content, enable greater interactivity and provide added convenience through these new communication outlets. If your online content is not already optimized for this rapidly emerging distribution channel, now is the time to update your strategy. Think “Mobility.”

Consider the Medium… Recognize that the mobile environment works differently than the traditional PC-based online experience. Smart phone users connect in short bursts and they want to get right to the point. Desktop users may prefer to explore more in-depth information and may be willing to invest longer periods of time during the exchange. The mechanics of PC interaction also work differently than those of mobile phones. Large view screens, full-size keyboards and mouse cursors are replaced by tiny touch screens, thumb keys and voice commands.

Reexamine Existing Web Site Content… For best results, content for mobile delivery should be selected, organized and presented using a different approach. The nature of mobile content is more immediate, more

"#

personal and more service-oriented than traditional Web sites. Position your mobile Web site or downloadable application (“App”) as a separate but parallel customer resource, offering just-in-time information and assistance, beyond what is typically found over a desktop connection.

For the mobile community, timing is everything. Prioritize mobile content based on the customers’ anticipated immediate needs. For example, provide links to interactive directions or click-to-call reservations for customers traveling to your location. Don’t waste time or clutter smart phone content with detailed reference documents, lengthy demonstrations, or long-term planning guides that are best presented on your main Web site.

View your mobile Web site as your customer’s “personal assistant,” standing by to provide quick and easy support whenever requested.

Consider Unique Mobile Content Structure… Eliminate Web design components that are not supported by most smart phone platforms, such as “pop-up boxes” or Flash animation. Simplify your page layout, streamline navigational links, and reduce the use of large graphics. Group your information into smaller, distinct “chapters,” allowing users to easily jump directly to desired content. Further, remember to let your customers know that you are specifically offering unique mobile content, promoting a reinvigorated online customer experience and inviting trial.

Kip Cozart is CEO of CC Communications, a Web design, programming and Internet media company. Contact him at 704-543-1171 or visit www.cccommunications.com/ bizXperts for more information about emerging online technologies.

experience of a job loss !

Many Americans have experienced job loss and being released from a job or know someone who has. For those who haven’t, you can try to watch the movie “Up in the Air” with George Clooney. The film gives a glimpse into peoples’ reactions to the news of their job loss. People react differently, as with most emotional situations. Some cry, others Bill Crigger are quiet or non-responsive, still others get angry.

The fact is that job loss is not a linear process. A person will go through different emotions at different times, and can even repeat some stages. The longer the job search, the more difficult the experience can be.

Today, job searches are taking much longer than five years ago, or even two years ago. There are so many individuals in the job market that companies are looking for that “perfect” match…at the lowest possible rate of pay.

A job loss candidate needs lots of positive support: spouse, family, friends, etc. Typically a job seeker’s worst enemy is his/herself. One of the biggest pitfalls he/she faces is poor organizational skills, lack of discipline and lack of accountability. A job seeker needs to be focused and develop a strategic longterm plan complete with weekly routine and benchmarks. This should include attending Job Search Support Groups, calling past and current contacts, getting some professional assistance where needed (resume development, help with job targeting, interview coaching, etc.). As part of job targeting, the job

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loss candidate should research companies as well as participate in some online job postings. Online job search is successful for only 10-12% of applicants, meaning that 88-90% of candidates find their jobs another way.

As you have no doubt heard repeatedly, the REAL effective effort for a job search is NETWORKING. This word can cause some people to freeze in their tracks, but networking is simply “meeting people,” exchanging information and offering something of value. You ‘give’ before you ‘get’. It is NOT an interview. Job search candidates should make every effort to contact any lead and meet with others outside their own network. When meeting with someone new, use the experience to explore new industries or positions.

Any job loss candidate may find him/herself having a bad day. When this happens, lying in bed is counter-productive. Instead, go out for a walk, have coffee with a friend, go see a “funny movie,” etc. Humor really is good medicine. If you know someone in a job loss, please do NOT ignore him/her. Even if you feel you don’t know what to say. Let them know you are thinking of them. Maybe introduce him/her to a new contact. With the extremely difficult job market, job search candidates needs friends, support, and encouragement.

Bill Crigger is president of Compass Career Management Solutions, a career transition and human resource consulting firm. Contact him at bcrigger@ compasscareer.com or visit www.compasscareer.com to learn more about crucial confrontational conversations.

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

Smart Salvos, Select Strategies and Succinct Solutions

*++,-.)(./

[bizXperts]

benefiting from your losses: new tax law could help !

As tax consultants, we are always trying to find valuable tax savings ideas for our clients. In November 2009 the government provided significant help in this quest with the passage of the new Worker Homeownership and Business Assistance Act of 2009, temporarily expanding the net operating loss carryback provisions, among other items. There is a tremendous benefit when businesses are allowed to carry losses back and obtain a refund from the government. When they can be carried back to a year of their choice to maximize the benefit, this enhancement provides a potentially significant bonus and a gift too good to pass up.

There is a tremendous benefit when businesses are allowed to carry losses back and obtain a refund from the government.

When they can be carried back to a year of their choice to maximize the benefit, this enhancement provides a potentially significant bonus and a gift too good to pass up.

Let me provide a little background on why this temporary change is so important. As you are probably aware, normally business losses may be carried back 2 years to obtain a refund of taxes paid in those years. For example, a 2006 loss may be carried only to 2004 and 2005. If you did not pay tax in 2004 or 2005, these losses may be carried forward 20 years.

Carrying losses forward is a good tax strategy but most would prefer to have the money now. These carryback rules are for both small business, S-corporations and partnerships (which pass their losses through to owners), or C corporations (which pay tax at the entity level).

In many cases, state laws allow for some form of carryback, which even sweetens the strategy.

Getting Better: The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, passed in February 2009, allowed losses generated in tax year 2008 (only) to be carried back 2, 3, 4 or 5 years and the taxpayer was allowed to pick the year where they could receive maximum benefit. The year of carryback was required to be elected with the 2008 return. This advantageous 5-year carryback period only applied to qualified small businesses—generally those that had less than $15 million in gross receipts. This was an excellent opportunity but little did we know the best was yet to come.

Even Better: Fortunately, on November 6, 2009, the Worker Homeownership and Business Assistance Act of 2009 was passed.

In addition to expanding the home buyer’s credit to more than first

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

time homebuyers, the new carryback provision did not limit the benefit to only small businesses, but made it available to all taxpayers! Small businesses that already carried their 2008 losses back 5-years can now carry back 2009 losses to the 5 previous years also.

Additionally business with revenue of greater George Bohlé than $15 million can carry 2008 or 2009 losses back 5 years. If on your 2008 return, you did not elect the most advantageous year, no problem—in certain instances the 2008 election may be amended to maximize the benefit. Every company regardless of size and profitability should look at this tax provision and expressly ask: how can we maximize the benefit?

We are assisting our clients with this question. We are working with clients and business leaders to maximize their carryback refund potential. Here are some items you can do to maximize your refund claim: 1. Look at the original 2008 carryback strategy. In certain instances, amending this carryback claim may result in a larger refund (see real example below).

2. Analyze the 2008 returns for items that may increase the 2008 loss, amend where appropriate and therefore increase carryback refund claim.

3. Project 2009 activity; work towards maximizing the 2009 loss either through using other tax strategies (such as bonus depreciation) and review current tax methodologies in order to generate as large a loss as possible for 2009.

Here is an example that will get you motivated. For one of our clients we prepared a 2008 loss carryback claim. In accordance with the previous American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, we carried this loss back 2 years, since they were not considered a small business.

We managed to obtain a refund of $540,000 paid in 2006.

However, upon announcement of the recent tax act in November, we revisited this carryback claim and are now able to make en election to carry this loss back 5 years. Instead of the $540,000 refund, we are now able to apply for a $1.22 million refund—all on the same loss—because we were able to carry the loss back to a year where the taxpayer was in a higher tax bracket.

We had to agree with the client’s words when he heard about the increase in refund amount: “Unbelievable, remarkable, WOW!” I think I may have even gotten a permanent spot on his fishing boat.

We encourage each of you to contact your financial professional and do some planning around this very, very beneficial tax change.

Hopefully this tax law change can help get 2010 off to a good start.

George W. Bohlé Jr. is a managing partner at Blair, Bohlé & Whitsitt, PLLC, a CPA firm that provides accounting, assurance, tax compliance and planning services in addition to strategic planning and tax minimization strategies to privately held businesses. Contact him at 704-841-9800 or visit www.bbwpllc.com.

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[employersbiz]

Legislative and Regulatory Highlights for Area Employers

!6 Mistakes When Dealing with an

3 14 5 2 6

Do you know your rights when working with OSHA during an inspection? You can easily survive an OSHA inspection. Knowing your rights and how to conduct yourself during an inspection is the key to success. Avoid these common mistakes when OSHA comes knocking on your door:

! You take their word for it. An OSHA inspector has to provide proper identification to you. You have a right to examine their badge and business card, and you should. There have been recent stories of people posing as agency inspectors to defraud business owners, so be sure to thoroughly check the credentials. ! You don’t want to bother senior management and legal counsel. Before the inspection begins, the inspector must wait what OSHA considers “a reasonable amount of time,” for you to contact your senior management and attorneys. It is important to gather these people together to help you and your company make the best decisions when working with OSHA.

THE EMPLOYERS ASSOCIATION Trusted HR Advice, Tools & Training

Inspector

! You have an “I have nothing to hide” attitude. Don’t give an inspector free-reign over your facility because you feel confident in your compliance efforts. You may think you are showing good faith, but what you are really doing is waiving important legal rights that protect you. ! You don’t know why they’re there. OSHA must have legal cause to inspect your facility. You have a right to ask the inspector about the reason for the visit and you have a right to an answer. Inspections are usually triggered by an accident, a programmed inspection, or an employee complaint. If there was an employee complaint, you have a right to see a copy of it. Use this information to help you determine the scope of the inspection. ! You just shake on it. If an inspector requests documents from you, get it in writing, even if the request is in handwriting. The point is to avoid getting cited for withholding documents. Don’t ever give the inspector the original copy of documents. Make a copy for the inspector and then a copy for yourself. ! You let them wander around. OSHA has limited probable cause to inspect, so if the complaint is about a machine, take the inspector through the facility in the most direct way to that machine. Everything in plain sight is fair game and open for inspection, so be sure to walk with the inspector to where he or she needs to go and nowhere else.

(Business & Legal Report Safety News EA Facts)

!U.S. Productivity Grows; European Declines U.S. productivity weathered the recession well, remaining remarkably strong, growing 2.5% (in per hour terms) in 2009 according to The Conference Board.

This blip in the prevailing downward trend in U.S. productivity was largely explained by dramatically reduced working hours that offset output decline (employment fell by 3.6% in 2009; hours worked per worker by 1.5%). U.S. productivity growth is projected at 3% for 2010.

Productivity growth in the Euro Area turned negative (-1%) following two years of decline, but is projected to recover significantly (+2%) in 2010. Of the -3.1% decline in hours worked, only -1.9% was due to a fall in employment; the rest was due to a -1.2% drop in hours per worker.

“These are unusually large differences in productivity growth between the United States and

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Europe,” stresses Bart van Ark, chief economist of The Conference Board. “U.S. employers have reacted much more strongly to the recession than their European counterparts in terms of cutting jobs and hours. In 2010, both Europe and the United States will see higher productivity growth coming out of recession. However, a jobless productivity recovery is the most likely scenario in both regions.”

U.K. productivity (-1.9%) fared worse than that of the European Union or the Euro Area, primarily due to a larger contraction in output. Productivity is projected to return to positive growth of 1.7% in 2010. The long-term trend in U.K. labor productivity has been significantly downward since 1995, along with a weakening labor market.

“Most emerging markets outside Central and East Europe and Russia fared better than advanced economies on both output and productivity growth in 2009,” continues van Ark. “Emerging economies are becoming global competitors to be reckoned with on the basis of high productivity growth, not just because of low cost.”

China’s productivity growth rate (8.2%) was

the best among emerging markets in 2009 and is projected to be 7.7% in 2010. “China’s 2009 productivity growth is largely due to government stimulus supporting state-owned enterprises,” van Ark explains. “Going forward, it remains to be seen whether this can continue as support for state-owned enterprises wanes.”

World productivity growth also declined in 2009 (-1% in terms of output per worker), putting it in negative territory for the first time in almost two decades, but it is expected to recover strongly in 2010 (+2.2%) as both emerging and developing economies show stronger productivity performance.

(The Conference Board; www.conference-board.org) The Employers Association provides comprehensive human resources and training services to a membership of over 865 companies in the greater Charlotte region.

For more information, please call Laura Hampton at 704-522-8011 or visit www.employersassoc.com.

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[bizprofile]

by ellison clary

WIRED FOR

SUCCESS WB Moore Has The Capacity

Billy Graves President WB Moore Company of Charlotte, Inc.

M

any firms are satisfied to carve out a lucrative niche, but not WB Moore Company of Charlotte.

While the company enjoys a certain cachet for its work on large corporate projects, they are actively seeking to broaden it.

WB Moore is recognized regionally, having built its reputation on work with big corporations such as Bank of America, Wachovia-Wells Fargo and Duke Energy, yet it conscientiously pursues smaller jobs as well.

“Serving a wide range of clients is the surest path to sustained growth prosperity,” WB Moore President Billy Graves says.

“We’re best known for specializing in the high-end corporate base,” Graves explains.

“That’s the core of our business.”

The electrical contractor counts the new 30-story Bank of America office building, 18-story Ritz Carlton Hotel, and an important part of the Wachovia-Wells Fargo tower, now named for Duke Energy, among its current endeavors.

On the other hand, principal stockholder Graves doesn’t want WB Moore to be passed over by other companies with projects whose scope of work is smaller.

“We do smaller electric jobs,” Graves assures.

The company pursues projects in the healthcare, commercial, industrial, retail, parking, manufacturing and hotel sectors.

Graves takes pride in presiding over an electrical outfit that can handle a job from start to finish. That includes design and engineering on the front end, then guiding a client from drawings to building permits to reality. Finally, it entails acquiring a building inspection seal of approval at completion. And that’s not to mention staying within budget and on schedule.

“I would like to say we’re pretty unique,” Graves adds. “We’re one of the few firms that have a full inhouse engineering team. For firms our size, I don’t know of anybody in this region that has both the field talent and the engineering services to go with it. We work to be a one-stop shop.”

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Such accountability is working well for the company based on North Poplar Street, just outside Charlotte’s I-277 inner loop, within view of many of the buildings in Center City’s skyline that it either has worked on or is involved with right now.

The company has grown about 20 percent a year until the current recession. Still, Graves figures 2009 is about even with 2008, with under $100 million in revenues.

Graves had been with the Dallas-based WB Moore Company for five years when he moved his family to Charlotte in 1989. At the time, founder William Bruce Moore had built a company of approximately 1,800 employees in a dozen states. He wanted Graves to run a Charlotte expansion established to execute the electrical construction for the 60-story Bank of America Corporate Center.

Moore died while the tower was under construction and Graves negotiated with his widow, Susan Moore to finish work on the skyscraper, which was at that time Charlotte’s largest $

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construction project. He also agreed to maintain the warranties on all the firm’s projects in the Charlotte region. In return, she granted Graves the assets and the company name. Mrs. Moore eventually closed or sold the other Moore offices.

Investing in Community and Company A native of Houston, when Graves became principal owner of WB Moore, he could have moved it anywhere. But he chose to stay in Charlotte.

“Everything kept us here,” he smiles. “We liked the community and the environment. We settled in and got acquainted with a church. The climate and weather is good. Traffic wasn’t near what I was used to in Dallas or Atlanta (where he had also worked for WB Moore).”

Now 46, Graves and wife Judy have raised two daughters and live in Monroe.

Graves expanded on Moore’s original concept of a one-stop shop nimble and flexible enough to respond to market changes.

As he established the engineering component, he also instituted a family-style culture that includes great benefits, solid health care coverage and a range of personal development and training benefits.

He has also built a culture of caring for the community and giving back. Just before the employees celebrated the year-end holidays, they helped raise 4,000 pounds of food for the Second Harvest Food Drive to feed the area’s hungry.

A few weeks later, the company held an employee recognition luncheon at uptown’s RitzCarlton Hotel that the company helped build. “I wanted them to appreciate our accomplishments and see what we had done,” Graves explains.

For his large employee work force, Graves also places a premium on continuous training and safety. He’s convinced it gives them a preferred advantage among his clients.

Insurance companies use the Experience Modification Rate (EMR) to establish the cost of insurance premiums by correlating previous job injuries with chances of future accidents. The lower the EMR, the smaller the likelihood of a mishap, which can equate to a better bottom line on insurance premiums. Nobody wants a number higher than 1.0. WB Moore rates 0.7.

That attention to safety brings more opportunities to bid on work and also impresses potential clients, particularly large corporations whose lieutenants scrutinize a contractor’s risk factor.

WB Moore has won safety excellence recognition from the Carolinas Association of General Contractors for five straight years, touts Graves, who adds that the firm is vying for a national safety award this year as well.

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Diversity Is a Strength Graves also operates a diverse work force. He always had paid attention to the mix, but when the company built its headquarters on open land in the shadow of uptown, he obtained a loan through Charlotte’s “City Within a City” program that encourages inner city investment and hiring from the urban core.

WB Moore’s work force is now about 25 percent African-American and 5 percent Latino. It includes a significant number of Slavic nationals who settled here around a decade ago when war drove them from their Adriatic homeland.

“We pride ourselves in meeting all our goals as outlined by our clients on the diversity spend that we need,” Graves says, “both from our employees as well as our vendors and suppliers. A lot of our clients’ goals are in excess of 25 to 30 percent. We’ve been able to consistently achieve that by working with pre-qualified and local minority-owned firms.”

maintaining many it helped build.

WB Moore is also quick to respond to client emergencies. In recent times, the company has been instrumental in expeditiously repairing large electrical outages at both the IJL Financial Center and Charlotte Plaza.

“When there is an unexpected event with the power in downtown,” Graves says, “we’re one of the first 911 calls that get made.”

WB Moore also performs on multiple power plant projects for Duke Energy. For work on an

“I would like to say we’re pretty unique. We’re one of the few firms that have a full in-house engineering team. For firms our size, I don’t know of anybody in this region that has both the field talent and the engineering services to go with it. We work to be a one-stop shop.” ~Billy Graves President

One of those minority subcontractors is The Daniele Company based in Durham. President and Chief Executive Gloria Shealy praises the entire WB Moore management team.

“They engage in building diverse and local work force capacity through training, mentoring, providing access to opportunities and community involvement,” Shealy says.

In a comparatively lean business climate this strategy has served WB Moore well, helping it continue to acquire sizable projects while

emissions scrubber at the Allen Steam Plant in Gaston County, the company wins high marks from Duke engineer Pennie Trevillian.

“The equipment owner has made several comments to management about the quality of the finished product,” Trevillian wrote to Graves.

“His manager made the comment to me that we had to make sure we keep this team together,”

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!CURRENT PROJECTS One Bank of America Center Duke Power Company - Various Steam Stations Wachovia First Street Project - Critical Infrastructure Ritz Carlton Hotel !COMPLETED PROJECTS Hearst Tower Trading Floors Bank of America Corporate Center Wachovia - Main Project McGuire Woods - Legal Offices Charlotte Bobcats NBA Marketing Center SouthPark Mall Expansion & Parking Deck Allen Steam Station Belews Creek Steam Station Cliffside Steam Station Marshall Steam Station River Bend Steam Station Childrens Learning Center Charlotte Douglas International Airport - Parking Deck Gateway Center Restack Bank of America Corporate Center - Executive Floors Mecklenburg County Parking Deck Concord Police Department - Headquarters

she added, concluding that WB Moore “has made me look very good again.”

Green Practices Grow Bigger Another hot button for Graves is building with an environmentally friendly mindset. Not only does the company provide these innovative services to their clients, but WB Moore practices what it preaches by including a multitude of green precepts in the expansion of its headquarters over the last several months.

Besides almost doubling the firm’s space at 16,000 square feet, the project includes greater

water efficiency with a 40 percent reduction in use.

Photovoltaic (solar) capabilities provide 14 percent renewable energy. The design uses 95 percent of existing walls, floors and roof and emphasizes waste management. Materials promote indoor environmental quality and enhance cleaning capabilities.

The company has submitted the building for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification at the Platinum Level.

“A lot of our clients are very engaged in green practices,” Graves points up. “It is taking a high priority. We need to show that we support their endeavors and commit to the same level, so we can say we walk the walk and talk the talk.”

For evidence of outside experience on environmental-related projects, WB Moore Vice President Todd Stevens again cites the Bank of America Corporate Center. In recent years, renovations the company has participated in have brought 24 floors up to LEED standards.

“I’d say we are very client-driven,” observes Stevens, a great believer that clients appreciate the value his company brings to a project.

Stevens had built a lengthy career in Columbia, S.C., and Raleigh when a mutual friend introduced him to Graves. He joined the WB Moore in 2003 and lives in the Charlotte area with wife Robin.

“A lot of the vision I had, Billy had the same vision and had already implemented it,” says Stevens, who at 40 is working for only his second employer. “I was excited.”

One recent innovation WB Moore uses is building information modeling, or BIM. It produces a three-dimensional view of the contemplated structure.

“The client really knows what the building’s going to look like before it gets built,” Graves says. “That saves a whole lot of headaches down the road.”

Expansion Capacity Though the economy remains tough, Graves sees expansion on the horizon, with additional offices in other areas such as recently added Raleigh location.

“We want to be in Raleigh because of our clients,” Graves says. “They are some of the same clients that are right here in our backyard.”

“We’ve got some projects we’re chasing in

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Tennessee and we’ve got stuff we’ve done in the Atlanta area,” continues Graves. “But this is where our main office is and this is our base.”

Meanwhile, Graves intends for WB Moore to continue its heavy involvement with Charlotte area businesses and the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce.

“The Chamber is pro-business and pro-growth and it’s all about creating a great environment for our city,” he says. “We support them pretty heavily.”

The company hasn’t promoted itself otherwise and Graves admits that’s a product of his own personality. “I think cream will rise to the top,” he says simply.

But he wonders if that approach will have to change as the company grows. “A lot of people know who we are around here, but it’s kind of hard to get that message out there in an expansion,” he muses.

“When we go in those new areas, we need to make sure we’re taking our culture with us. And that’s a challenge,” he adds.

Still, Graves can tell the WB Moore story succinctly: “We’ve never worked on a project that we didn’t finish,” he says. “And for every project that we’ve ever worked on, we are still there for our clients.”

He uses the 60-story tower at the Square to emphasize the WB Moore staying power.

“We’re still over there changing light bulbs,” he says of the on-going WB Moore maintenance presence. “We’re not in business for a one-shot deal.” biz Ellison Clary is a Charlotte-based freelance writer.

WB Moore Company of Charlotte, Inc. dba

WB Moore Company of Charlotte, Inc. 916 North Poplar Street Charlotte, N.C. 28206 Phone: 704-331-9300 Principals: Billy R. Graves, President; Todd Stevens,Vice President of Operations Established: 1978 by William Bruce Moore in Dallas; N.C. incorporation in 1993 Charlotte Operations: 1989, providing commercial electrical contracting work for then-NationsBank’s now-Bank of America’s 60-story Corporate Center Employees: 300 Annual Revenues: Under $100 million Business: Electrical contractors and engineers; attributes success to innovative approach to design/construct teams, value engineering andcompetitive bidding processes. www.wbmoore.com

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[bizprofile]

by ellison clary

FAST

COMPANY SPEED Accelerates Charlotte’s Racing Reputation

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PEED is a cable television network dedicated to delivering an “electronic campfire for the vast tribe of speed freaks and gear heads,” according to its official history, and its performance bears that out.

Originally launched in 1996 in Connecticut as Speedvision under the ownership of Cox Communications, Continental Cable and AT&T, it quickly became the fastest growing cable network of all time while delivering the highest male viewing audience per household of any cable or broadcast network in history.

In 2001, Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation purchased its majority ownership, moved it to Charlotte, and relaunched it as Speed Channel. In late 2005, Speed Channel re-branded themselves as just SPEED. But it always has featured fast-traveling vehicles.

Its programming has added more and more of a NASCAR flavor over the years. That makes the West W.T. Harris Boulevard address of its flashy digs even more appropriate. It’s only a few qualifying laps from the concentration of stock car racing teams and related businesses in northern Mecklenburg and southern Iredell counties.

Through all the changes, SPEED has hewed to a focus for people who like competition involving vehicles with two-to-four wheels. These days, Hunter Nickell sees to that, and he enjoys it immensely.

“When you have a cool job, you know it,” says the SPEED president. “And I have a cool job.”

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“Broadcast sports is an exhilarating business. Sports television is so dynamic that the pace of change is extraordinary.

It provides a level of adrenaline that is sensational to have as part of your job.” ~Hunter Nickell President

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Photo: SPEED

Hunter Nickell President SPEED

A Good Lineup It seems a logical line of work for a native of Detroit, America’s auto cradle, who earned a mass communications degree from Ohio’s Denison University, where he captained the ice hockey team. He went on to coach high school hockey and lacrosse while teaching English in Maine and Connecticut.

In New Canaan, Conn., lots of people were involved in the cable television business.

Nickell decided to sign on with Home Box Office, taking an entry level position in New York in 1985.

Since his switch to broadcasting, he hasn’t glanced in the rear view mirror. After working for a time in Boston for a private publishing company that served the television industry, he hooked on with Atlanta’s Turner Broadcasting

in 1990. Fox, owned by Murdoch, eventually acquired all of Turner and Nickell left Atlanta for Charlotte in 2005.

Now Nickell occupies an office in the 78,000-square-foot SPEED facilities the network built specifically for itself and occupied in 2008.

It’s his base for pursuing a passion for broadcasting, sports and fast wheels. Telling his story, he brims with excitement.

“Broadcast sports is an exhilarating business,” he smiles. “Sports television is so dynamic that the pace of change is extraordinary. It provides a level of adrenaline that is sensational to have as part of your job.”

A resident of Charlotte’s Myers Park neighborhood, Nickell professes to becoming a NASCAR fan from the day he set foot in

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

Atlanta. From the summer day he wheeled into Charlotte, his focus has been on enhancing the NASCAR relationship.

“The chance to work in a business whose foundation and top priority is NASCAR is terrific,” he says. “The opportunity that existed when I got here still exists. We continue to add more NASCAR coverage and work on how we are reaching a larger audience with existing programs and programs that we might add.”

To be sure, SPEED also airs events on other racing circuits and a variety of vehicle-related programs. In 2009, it secured new broadcast rights deals with Formula One and MotoGP. It also broadcasts Supercross motorcycle races. It carries the popular Barrett-Jackson Auto Auction extravaganzas, along with original shows such as “Dangerous Drives” and “Bullrun.” $

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On the Program…

Though SPEED’s official history says it turned an initial profit in 2000, Nickell declines to share revenue details. But he’s happy to discuss audience growth.

In early 2005, SPEED scored its first Nielsen rating higher than 2 with a 2.1, meaning it reached more than 1.3 million households. The show that did it was coverage of the opening race in Daytona Beach for the NASCAR Truck Series, whose broadcasting rights SPEED wrested from ESPN in 2002.

These days, live broadcasts of the truck racing series rank among SPEED’s top-rated shows. Further, telecasts of the NASCAR All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord in both 2008 and 2009 scored a Nielsen rating of 3.7, meaning viewership in more than 2.7 million households.

“Another program that’s stout for us is ‘NASCAR RaceDay,’” Nickell adds. It features pre-race coverage of each Sprint Series event, marquee attractions all.

The biggest date for SPEED this year promises to be live coverage of the initial NASCAR Hall of Fame induction ceremony on May 23. Household names Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, Junior Johnson, Bill France Sr. and Bill France Jr. make up the first class. The telecast will originate from the sparkling new Hall in center city Charlotte that will open May 11 with SPEED cameras cranking live.

Such attention is bound to bode well for the whole area, thinks Tim Newman, chief executive of the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority. His organization’s offices are in the Charlotte Convention Center, a homestretch dash from the Hall.

“As Charlotte continues to grow as a hub for NASCAR, SPEED is a vital element in the industry infrastructure,” Newman says.

“We are blessed to have it call Charlotte home. SPEED is a great partner for efforts we make to grow NASCAR business and Hunter Nickell and his team are outstanding partners to work with.”

Nickell returns the praise. “Being here in Charlotte, smack in the middle of the NASCAR world, is tremendous,” Nickell says.

He speaks of impromptu visits by the likes of Petty, known simply as “The King” for his stock car driving exploits, and Formula One legend Mario Andretti.

Grabbing the Audience Charlotte is fast growing into a hub for all types of racing news, says Erik Arneson, SPEED’s vice president for media relations.

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“This place lights up early in the morning; it’s lit up late into the night. It’s cookin’, and you feel that when you get here. Everybody is into it and it’s fun to be around people who are fired up.” ~Hunter Nickell President

He cites the presence in Concord of Bruton Smith’s zMax Dragway and Charlotte Motor Speedway as well as nearby facilities for a new USF1 Formula One racing team.

He points out SPEED’s state-of-the-art facilities, including a trio of high-definition, tapeless studios and the capability for desktop production for Web, mobile, iPod, VOD and linear outlets.

“This facility has been attractive for news conferences and it appeals across the board, not just to NASCAR,” Arneson says.

That brings to his mind another NASCARrelated point. “We are adding the NASCAR Sprint Cup banquet in Las Vegas,” he says, “so we are their only TV partner from opening in Daytona to the banquet at the end of the year.”

Nickell knows the NASCAR tie is critical to building audience, an endeavor he admits is never completed for a network executive.

For five years down the road, Nickell wants SPEED to quadruple the size of the viewing audience it reaches.

“We are primarily a male network,” Nickell says as he discusses demographics

and his hopes for the future. “When we talk about target audiences for our network, we talk about men 18-to-49 and men 25-to-54.”

That older group is also the most likely to watch NASCAR and Nickell hopes to lure a larger number of those viewers to SPEED regularly. But he also intends to coordinate closely with NASCAR to grow fans in the younger group.

“It’s terrific if we attract more females,” continues Nickell as he enumerates other ways to grow. That’s important for SPEED brand awareness, for getting into more households and for attracting more overall advertising, he says.

“There is a tremendous opportunity for us to grow African-American audiences, Hispanic audiences and Asian audiences,” Nickell adds, “because there is a significant motor sport interest in those groups.”

Certainly, SPEED viewers are avid fans.

Nickell relates how executives at Daytona International Speedway praise the channel for making their phone lines light up anytime it mentions a race at that premiere track.

The network has 116 full-time employees

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at its Charlotte hub. Nickell chuckles that he’d like his News Corporation bosses to know that is almost enough. The number swells past 300 when part-timers and stringers help on big live events.

Blowout attractions such as the Daytona races are where SPEED shines brightest, says Arneson, who adds that the channel is concentrating on improvement for its regular broadcasting, too.

By the way, Nickell injects, an orientation toward vehicles is great but not a requirement to work at SPEED. He likes a mix of motor sports enthusiasts as well as junkies for television sports in general. And, sprinkled in, he’s fond of people who don’t fall into either category.

“It’s helpful to have others with a different perspective who can figure out how to do something and give great creativity to our coverage,” he says.

More Action Ahead Past the Hall of Fame induction, Nickell admits a fascination with the impact that iconic female driver Danica Patrick might

have on the NASCAR circuit she’s joining this season. “I’m impressed with the way she handles herself,” he says. “She is really focused.”

Nickell’s network has originated shows from Whisky River, the watering hole in Charlotte’s EpiCentre owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr. Though he went winless in 2009, the younger Earnhardt remains perhaps the most popular driver in North America.

What would it mean if the NASCAR darling caught fire this season, wheeling his Number 88 Chevrolet into Victory Lane multiple times? “It would be huge,” Nickell responds instantly.

So at 53, what does Nickell drive? A Ford Mustang GT, he replies, pointing from his office window to a maroon muscle car parked nearby. A surprise present from his wife and children on his 50th birthday, it instantly fixed a somewhat embarrassing situation.

He was driving a 1996 Ford Explorer with 160,000 miles on the odometer. The air-conditioning had given up the ghost and there were rips in the seats. Though it boasted a V-8 engine, it looked out of place. $

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Speed Channel, Inc. dba

SPEED 1220 West W.T. Harris Boulevard Charlotte, N.C. 28262 Phone: 704-501-5795 Principal: Hunter Nickell, president Established: 1995 as Speedvision; 2002 relaunched as Speed Channel; 2005 rebranded as SPEED; 2007 “Channel” dropped from logo Charlotte Headquarters: 2001 Employees: 116 full-time Available: 79 million homes in North America, January 2010 Business: News Corporation (Rupert Murdoch) cable and satellite television channel broadcast, primarily in the U.S., of automotive-related programming including Formula One racing, NASCAR-related shows, how-to programming, auto-related movies, auto shows, etc. www.speedtv.com

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“In the SPEED parking lot, there were some cool cars,� he laughs. “We have car guys and gals.�

Besides being a better fit, the Mustang has provided Nickell a one-time thrill. He aired it out on that nearby Bruton Smith drag strip.

Nickell hesitates to name his favorite drivers. He does confess to closely following the careers of three younger NASCAR chauffeurs who were friends with one of his sons in Legends mini-car competition. He’s happy that Reed Sorenson, Joey Logano and David Ragan—all of whom he’s known since they were youngsters or teens—are now in the big time.

That brings him back to thoughts about having what is for him a dream job. “This place lights up early in the morning; it’s lit up late into the night,� marvels Nickell, who admits to working seven days a week. “It’s cookin’, and you feel that when you get here. Everybody is into it and it’s fun to be around people who are fired up.�

On his personal future, he doesn’t hesitate. “This is where I want to be,� he vows. “I’m lucky to work in this business and in this company.� biz Ellison Clary is a Charlotte-based freelance writer.

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Photo: Michael LoBiondo

“

Dr. P. Anthony Zeiss President Central Piedmont Community College

“We need a concrete vision. The picture for 2020 should be sharply focused, rather than an amorphous concept such as ‘world-class city.’

I’ve been to a lot of world-class cities and I wouldn’t want ours to be just like them. Charlotte needs to continue the momentum of building on its strengths—drawing on its people and resources—to make it all that it can be...I’m optimistic about Charlotte. The synergy is here and the energy is here. We’ve got the right people and a wonderful climate. And we’ve got good educational institutions.”

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w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

Photography by Michael LoBiondo

by ellison clary

[bizprofile]

Harper Campus

SAVANT LEADER

CPCC's Zeiss Offers an Educated Perspective on Charlotte

C

Charlotte’s no stranger to 10-year progress plans, but a leader who’s long watched from an educator’s viewpoint offers a bit different perspective.

“We need a concrete vision,” says Dr. P. Anthony (Tony) Zeiss, the 17-year president of nationally acclaimed Top-10 Central Piedmont Community College (CPCC), as he contemplates the next decade. Not surprisingly, his school figures prominently.

Zeiss is adamant that the picture for Charlotte in 2020 should be sharply focused, rather than an amorphous concept such as “world-class city.”

“I’ve been to a lot of world-class cities and I wouldn’t want ours to be just like them,” he says. “Charlotte needs to continue the momentum of building on its strengths—drawing on its people and resources—to make it all that it can be.”

As a recognized leader, speaker and resource in work force and economic development, Zeiss, offers a succinct mission statement: “Charlotte intends to be the world’s leader in prosperity, compassion and livability.”

The area already boasts those three qualities, he quickly adds, but can improve on each. To do so requires efforts regionally as well as state-wide and nationally.

Compassion and Livability For compassion, Zeiss cites Charlotte’s leadership in supporting non-profit efforts such as the CROP Hunger Walk, Habitat for Humanity and the Arts & Science Council. Such strong generosity figures only to grow, he feels, especially with more civic involvement from non-profit executives.

“But it can’t be just non-profit leaders,” he admonishes. “You’ve got to have good educational leadership, good business leadership and job-creators. We have to have entrepreneurs. And all of them have to work together. The future belongs to the innovators. $

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Central Campus

Harris Campus

North Campus

Cato Campus

Levine Campus

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“There are some very bright people with the Chamber and with the Charlotte Regional Partnership and Center City,” he continues. “The old leadership model of four or five guys making important decisions is gone.”

For livability, Zeiss gushes ideas and projects. Take green space, for example.

As chair of the Little Sugar Creek Action Committee, Zeiss has been instrumental in putting together a 15-mile greenway that starts in north Charlotte and runs to the South Carolina border. His committee wants to expand it and has buy-in from leaders on both sides of the state line, in neighboring Gaston and York counties.

Out of that support and the good work of Trust for Public Land and Catawba Lands

to the Continental Congress. He completed his ride in June 1775, more than a year before that body authored the Declaration of Independence for the United States.

Other statues will depict Thomas Spratt, one of the area’s first white settlers, and King Haigler of the Catawba Indians.

Prosperity Linked to Jobs For perhaps the most important of the three vision qualities—prosperity—the main ingredient is jobs, according to Zeiss.

To promote job creation, he’d like to rein in a Congress he sees as spending wildly and creating laws that are often anti-capitalistic.

On the state level, he wishes for tax reform.

“Corporate taxes here are through the roof

field with China and other foreign steel producers.

Here at home, DiMicco has bought into a CPCC plan to develop skilled, mobile workers for Nucor’s far-flung plants. He funded a Nucor Scholars Program to train workers to his company’s specifications.

For a larger manufacturing vision, Zeiss has pieced together grants, including one from Duke Energy, to establish a program called Integrated Systems Technology. It cross-trains students in various trades, such as electronics and hydraulics, so employers can save money with more versatile—and more valuable—workers.

“We have very few of our own students in there because it’s full of people from manufacturing firms,” Zeiss says. “Working together with industry and education—that’s

!"#$%&'()#*(*#(+,&'()##-('-$.,*/#0,1(1',-'23+/45()##-(6$3/0'33(1',-'23+/4(,0-(7#68.2',*#239( :'(+,&'(*#(+,&'('0*2'42'0'$239(;0-(,11(#<(*+'=(+,&'(*#(>#2?(*#)'*+'29(@+'(<$*$2'(6'1#0)3(*#( *+'(/00#&,*#239(@+'2'(,2'(3#='(&'2A(62/)+*(4'#41'(>/*+(*+'(B+,=6'2(,0-(>/*+(*+'(B+,21#**'( C')/#0,1(D,2*0'23+/4(,0-(B'0*'2(B/*A9(@+'(#1-(1',-'23+/4(=#-'1(#<(<#$2(#2(E&'()$A3(=,?/0)( /=4#2*,0*(-'./3/#03(/3()#0'9F( ~Tony Zeiss

President

Conservancy came the idea for the Carolina Thread Trail project which is under Ruth Shaw’s direction. It would extend green areas for 258 miles through 15 counties.

Zeiss is making sure that at least the Sugar Creek Greenway melds an appreciation for area history. It will feature 21 bronze statues of historic Mecklenburg notables.

The first will adorn a greenway section near the main CPCC campus and it will be a likeness of Capt. James Jack. Jack was the local patriot who couriered by horseback three copies of the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence

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which is why so companies move across the border to South Carolina,” he observes.

Perhaps surprisingly, Zeiss makes manufacturing prominent in his job thoughts. Despite widespread diminution in industries such as textiles and furniture, he believes the sector can enjoy a promising future.

“Manufacturing is alive and well,” Zeiss says.

“We have to make sure we’ve got the right trade policies in place.”

For an example, he uses Charlotte-based steelmaker Nucor. Chief executive Dan DiMicco has testified to Congress about leveling the playing

how you develop a model to out-compete anybody in the world.”

Distribution is important, and Zeiss likes the plan to place an inter-modal center that features rails, air cargo service and roads at Charlotte-Douglas International Airport. He cites high-quality access to Charleston, the country’s third-largest port.

And don’t slight roads, he advises. “As much as people get excited about light rail, you still have to have basic roads. We’re not that dense.” On his list of critical thoroughfare additions and improvements are a Monroe

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G0( H0*')2,*'-( IA3*'=3( @'.+0#1#)AJ( !H*( .2#338*2,/03( 3*$-'0*3( /0( &,2/#$3( *2,-'3( 3$.+( ,3( '1'.*2#0/.3( ,0-( +A-2,$1/.3( 3#('=41#A'23(.,0(3,&'(=#0'A(>/*+(=#2'(&'23,*/1'((K,0-(=#2'( &,1$,61'K>#2?'239( :'( +,&'( &'2A( <'>( #<( #$2( #>0( 3*$-'0*3( /0(*+'2'(6'.,$3'(/*%3(<$11(#<(4'#41'(<2#=(=,0$<,.*$2/0)(E2=39( :#2?/0)(*#)'*+'2(>/*+(/0-$3*2A(,0-('-$.,*/#05(*+,*%3(+#>(A#$( -'&'1#4(,(=#-'1(*#(#$*8.#=4'*'(,0A6#-A(/0(*+'(>#21-9F ~Tony Zeiss

President

bypass, a widening of I-485 in the south, and a Gaston County toll road.

Another potential jobs bonanza, Zeiss believes, will result from Jim Rogers’ efforts to establish Charlotte as the energy hub of America.

To train workers for CEO Rogers’ Duke Energy as well as Shaw Industries and the area’s rapidly growing number of other related firms, Zeiss is raising funds for a CPCC energy training center.

He’s enlisted help from representatives Mel Watt and Larry Kissel in the U.S. House.

Promotes Innovation and Creativity Zeiss is emphatic about Charlotte’s need for a medical school which could help train health care-givers to administer to aging baby boomers. While he hopes Charlotte can someday be home for such an institution, he points to an interim answer—CPCC’s newest structure called the Allied Health Building. It brings nine allied-health and associate-degree health programs under one roof for the first time.

He means for his school to continue providing skilled workers to the financial sector, which remains a Charlotte strength with institutions such as Bank of America and Wachovia-Wells Fargo, as well as regional powerhouse BB&T. “We have a financial services institute and it will just get bigger,” he says. “We provide customized training based on financial institutions’ needs to be more competitive.”

As the area’s defense industry concentration burgeons with names such as General Dynamics,

Goodrich and Zapata Engineering, Zeiss and staff are working on how to serve them better.

Overall, he’s sure of the need to promote innovation and creativity. “We want to keep bright young people in our city,” he says. “We want to encourage them and help them as much as possible.”

A promising sign is at CPCC’s Center for Entrepreneurialism. It teaches people how to start a business.

“We’re up 80 percent in entrepreneurial class enrollments,” Zeiss says. “These are people who have good ideas. They have a good American spirit of entrepreneurialism. In the long run, that’s where most of our new jobs come from.”

It reinforces his strong faith in capitalism. “If you just back off and let the free market system work,” he vows, “it will work.”

But he warns that education must improve.

“We have to do a better job of aligning the curriculum and achievement standards between the college and K-12,” he says, adding that 70 percent of recent high school graduates who enroll at CPCC need remediation classes.

With grant money from Dick Spangler’s family, Zeiss and staff hope to implement an initiative at West Charlotte High to test African-American males in the 9th or 10th grades to determine any deficiencies for teachers to address before they graduate.

Peter Gorman, superintendent of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, is interested in the concept and it has captured the attention of Bill and Melinda Gates, who visited CPCC recently. Their foundation seeks a national basic skills remedial model which will double the number of post-high school completers; Zeiss hopes that model can be developed right here. $

Dr. Paul Anthony (Tony) Zeiss, President, CPCC Education: B.S. (Speech Education), 1968; M.S. (Radio and Television), 1972 (Indiana State University); Ed.D. (Higher Education Administration), 1979 (Nova Southeastern University) Accomplishments: During tenure, CPCC has grown from one campus to six and has become recognized as a national leader in work force development Authored/Co-authored: Several books on economic development, adult literacy and national work force development; four books on creating high performance employees, a novel based on the War Between the States, and a book on Community College Leadership Associations: Past Board Chair, American Association of Community Colleges and League for Innovation; Association of Community College Trustees’ National CEO of the year (2004-05); NCCCS President of the Year (2002); serves on several local, regional and national boards and is a workgroup member for the U.S. Department of Education and U.S. Department of Labor Speaker: Professional speaker and member of the National Speaker’s Association; frequent keynoter on recruiting, developing, and retaining peak performers at the workplace; consults regularly with states and regions on economic development

:'(+,&'(*#(-#(,(6'**'2(7#6(#<(,1/)0/0)(*+'(.$22/.$1$=(,0-( ,.+/'&'='0*( 3*,0-,2-3( 6'*>''0( *+'( .#11')'( ,0-( L8MNO( PQ( 4'2.'0*(#<(2'.'0*(+/)+(3.+##1()2,-$,*'3(>+#('02#11(,*(BDBB( 0''-(2'='-/,*/#0(.1,33'39F( ~Tony Zeiss President

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!:'(>,0*(*#(?''4(62/)+*(A#$0)(4'#41'(/0(#$2(./*A9(:'(>,0*( *#('0.#$2,)'(*+'=(,0-(+'14(*+'=(,3(=$.+(,3(4#33/61'9(:'%2'( $4(RQ(4'2.'0*(/0('0*2'42'0'$2/,1(.1,33('02#11='0*39(@+'3'(,2'( 4'#41'( >+#( +,&'( )##-( /-',39( @+'A( +,&'( ,( )##-(;='2/.,0( 34/2/*( #<( '0*2'42'0'$2/,1/3=9( H0( *+'( 1#0)( 2$05( *+,*%3( >+'2'( =#3*(#<(#$2(0'>(7#63(.#='(<2#=9( ~Tony Zeiss President

The Gates’ message was that more people have to be educated with skills to get a job, Zeiss says, adding that “illiteracy is probably the worst disease we have in this society.”

Nearly a quarter of the adult population—23 percent—is functionally illiterate.

Resources to Meet the Needs As usual, CPCC needs more funding to be an effective leader, Zeiss says. The school enrolls about 70,000 on its central campus and five satellites, making it the largest of the state’s 58 community colleges. But its funding is down $10 million and enrollment has jumped 35 percent in three years.

CPCC has instituted various cost-saving measures. Still, there is an urgent need for additional dollars.

“Fortunately, I enjoy raising money,” says Zeiss. “I’d say a full 50 percent of my time is fundraising, probably more than that, because I’m always attentive to fundraising opportunities.”

He’s proud that, when consultants advised that it was only possible to raise $7.5 million, their foundation’s recent five-year CPCC campaign garnered more than $28 million in community contributions.

But most of that went to scholarships, leaving Zeiss to find more money to hire teachers to meet bulging enrollments. On that front, he’s tapped the resources of generous givers such as Ron and Katherine Harper and Leon and Sandra Levine.

He’s thankful for a sympathetic ear from Gov. Beverly Perdue. In state funding, CPCC got cut 6 percent, but she recently rescinded 2 percent of that.

“I want to put in a plug for Beverly Perdue,” he says. “She gets it. Being a former educator, she understands how critical these community colleges are to economic recovery.”

Making a Difference Zeiss has harbored a zeal for education since a self-described epiphany when he was a 13-yearold in rural Indiana.

“I remember thinking how wonderful life was and what a privilege it was,” he muses. “That’s

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when I decided I wanted to make a positive difference in others for God.” He thought about the ministry but chose education.

He got a bachelor’s in Speech Education and a master’s in Radio/Television, both from Indiana State University. His doctorate is in Higher Education Administration from Nova Southeastern University of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. He worked his way to executive dean at Central Texas College, then served seven years as president of Pueblo Community College before joining CPCC in 1992.

“I like the community college mission $

Central Piedmont Community College P.O. Box 35009 Charlotte, N.C. 28235-5009 Phone: 704-330-2722 President: Dr. P. Anthony (Tony) Zeiss (since 1992) Founded: 1963 (N.C. Community College System) Students: 1.5 million Campuses: Central (Uptown), Cato (Northeast), Harper (Southwest), Levine (Southeast), North (North), Harris (West); also a virtual campus for distance learning Enrollment: Approximately 70,000 Faculty/Staff: 1,000 full-time; 1,500 part-time Rank: Largest of 58 N.C. community colleges; among top 10 in nation Honors: Community College of the Year (2002), National Alliance of Business; one of two best colleges in work force development, U.S. Government Accountability Office Business: CPCC offers programs to meet work force demands, including more than 285 degree, diploma and certification programs; customized corporate training; and market-focused continuing education. www.cpcc.edu

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VoIP

because that’s where the most good is being done for the most people,” he says.

“The most gratifying part of what I do is looking at the hope and pride in our students’ eyes when they come across that stage to collect their degree or certificate,” he adds.

“Most of these people have struggles” he goes on. “They’re single parents. They’ve got one, two or three jobs. They’re raising kids and they don’t have money to go to school, but they know that getting some sort of credential or degree is critical.

“They don’t want a hand out; they want a hand up. That’s what community colleges do.

We give them a chance to have a vision. And that’s the most important thing, whether it’s for an individual or a community.”

one company | one call

Unified Communications !Business Telephone Systems

At 63, Zeiss hopes to lead his school for several more years and to be involved in civic affairs long afterward. That’s at least a decade of progress to influence.

“I’m optimistic about Charlotte,” Zeiss sums up. “The synergy is here and the energy is here. We’ve got the right people and a wonderful climate. And we’ve got good educational institutions.” biz

!Structured Cabling Systems !Office & Warehouse Paging !Data Networking Build & Design !Telecom Management & Consulting MRNS(H TUVI@CH;W (B XT@XC (B HCBWX( B Y;CWG@@X 5(TB(NRNMZ PQS9[\R9SPQQ(( : : : 9 @ X W:; C X 9 B G ]

Ellison Clary is a Charlotte-based freelance writer.

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“

Carole McLeod Charlotte District Manager Advanced Disposal Services Carolina, LLC

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“It’s a mutually beneficial relationship.

I bring to them a good history here in Charlotte. What they bring to me is the financing and respected reputation to accomplish what we all want to do.”

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by zenda douglas

[bizprofile]

“I don’t know of a better city in which to start a business,” declares Charlotte’s Carole McLeod. She should know.

The veteran waste industry executive, now Advanced Disposal’s pick to set up operations in Charlotte, has 20 years of experience in waste management in the Charlotte area.

Advanced Disposal’s new office in Charlotte represents the first stages of expansion into North and South Carolina. At $300 million in annual revenue, Advanced Disposal is the nation’s fourth largest privately-owned environmental services company. In business since 2000, the company has operations in Georgia, Florida, Mississippi, Alabama, and most recently, Tennessee. It is headquartered in Jacksonville, Fla. Timing was perfect for Advanced Disposal and Carole McLeod to join forces last fall.

“They had a vision and I found that I shared that vision,” says McLeod, who was considering a return to the industry after fulfilling a five-year non-compete agreement as part of the sale of her former company, New South Waste, to Waste Management in 2004.

McLeod started New South Waste from scratch in 1997, utilizing one collection truck.

Having only the parking site, she and her partner, Dave Weller, met there to handle “office” business. Together they grew the company, which managed solid waste for residential, commercial and construction industry clients, into a 20-truck, $5 million business in Charlotte and spilling over into Greenville, S.C. After the sale of New South Waste, Weller became a consultant for Advanced Disposal. In a twist of fate, when Advanced Disposal decided to develop a hub in Charlotte, it was he who led management to his former partner, Carole McLeod.

“Carole came highly recommended,” says Chairman and CEO Charles Appleby.

Citing her successful experience in the waste industry in Charlotte, Appleby says the management team “felt Carole to be an excellent person to help us with this.” McLeod was hired as the Charlotte District Manager.

“It’s a mutually beneficial relationship,” says McLeod. “I bring to them a good history here in Charlotte. What they bring to me is the financing and respected reputation to accomplish what we all want to do.”

A CLEAN SWEEP

OF THE

CAROLINAS

Advanced Disposal Targets Carolinas for Expansion

An Opportune Time For Advanced Disposal, the timing for expansion into the Carolinas rests on a very positive outlook for economic recovery as well as an appreciation of the business climate in Charlotte.

“We want to be in the place where things will come back, explains McLeod. “ If you wait until the economy comes back and then try to enter that market, you’re behind the eight ball.” $

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Advanced Disposal can afford such a proactive approach. It touts financial stability and access to financial capital among its major strengths.

“We are very strong financially,” states Appleby.

“Tomorrow we will close on a $400 million credit facility with a group of banks. Notwithstanding a very difficult economic environment, we have the ability to borrow that kind of money.”

Appleby attributes this position to the company’s track record since inception in 2000.

“The banks have seen our management team show strong leadership during difficult times. We’ve been saying for years that the waste industry is a recession-resistant industry; in the past couple of years, we’ve had to prove it,” reflects Appleby.

Advanced Disposal plans to build a full-service waste management and recycling operation in the Charlotte area which will include services for residential, commercial, construction and industry.

This involves the purchase of trucks, specialty containers and compactors, but it doesn’t end there. The company is scouting for disposal sites to manage or buy.

“It’s a highly capital-intensive business,” says Appleby. Investing this level of resources signifies the company’s commitment to Charlotte.

“One new dumpster truck costs close to $285,000” says McLeod. “To start an operation and bring in five trucks is a pretty bold statement.”

McLeod sees a big part of her job as being ready when the contracts come in. Having trucks and containers preceded marketing efforts.

“There’s nothing worse than having customers want to order when you don’t have anything.

Like the adage, build it and they will come—I’m building it.”

As McLeod watched the first two trucks roll onto the lot, it sank in. “This is real. We’re in business in Charlotte.”

Talking Trash First up for the Charlotte office is becoming engaged in the bidding process for municipal contracts, a major market within the industry.

“Opportunity for municipal work is incredible,” says McLeod. She explains that in this strained economy, cities are soliciting bids for waste management services rather than simply renewing existing contracts.

Staying abreast of when North and South Carolina cities and towns will open their bidding processes will be the task of the Charlotte office.

The company has just added an employee to serve as a municipal representative.

Says McLeod, “Making sure we’re on the bid list and building relationships; that’s all he does.”

This process is facilitated by staying in contact

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“They had a vision and I found that I shared that vision. Many didn’t think I could stay out of the industry for long; they were right.” ~Carole McLeod Charlotte District Manager with city managers and their public works and purchasing departments.

Advanced Disposal is currently preparing bids for the area towns of Cornelius and Huntersville.

Many other opportunities are expected throughout the coming year, including a request for bids from Greensboro to be announced in the spring, according to McLeod.

Advanced Disposal currently services more than 126 city and town contracts across the Southeast, representing more than 708,000 residential customers. According to Appleby, municipal contracts are an important part of the business, making up 35 percent of the company’s revenue. Advanced Disposal also services more than 34,000 commercial and industrial and construction and demolition customers.

Together with corporate development personnel, McLeod is on the lookout for industry properties and businesses for acquisition including hauling companies, transfer stations and landfills.

“We are a high growth acquisitive company,” says Appleby who quickly adds, “the intention is not to just increase market share, but rather to grow a high quality service wherever we go.”

Advanced Disposal currently owns 11 landfills in the Southeast and owns or operates 20 transfer stations and 22 operation facilities. Since 2000, the company has completed 65 acquisition projects.

Referring to the waste industry as a “business of partnerships,” McLeod points out that landfill and transfer station ownership is not required for the operational components of the business to forge ahead.

“We don’t have to own a landfill here to be successful here; we can partner with other facilities,” she explains.

Advanced Disposal is working to raise awareness of the waste industry apart from the traditional image of trucks, containers and landfills.

“People most often think of the waste industry as a dirty business, but what we do is keep the environment clean,” says Appleby.

The company conveys a deep commitment to environmental care and pride in its provision of disposal facilities with “state-of-the-art engineering and construction techniques to protect the Earth.”

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The use of lower sulfur fuels and more efficient oils in their trucks is reported to be among its environmentally friendly practices.

McLeod says she was struck by Advanced Disposal’s sense of family. Though she’s proven she can go it alone in the industry, she is happy to be part of something bigger: “This gives me an opportunity to expand beyond what I could have done alone.”

McLeod likens the feeling of company support to the Verizon commercial: “Here I am in Charlotte with Advanced Disposal as my network behind me.”

Service Areas Alabama | Florida | Georgia Mississippi | North Carolina South Carolina | Tennessee

“Essentially, solid waste is a local business. Local execution is very important in this business; we allow our local managers to do that.” ~Charles Appleby Chairman and CEO

Essentially a Local Business For Advanced Disposal, the district managers are key. The company maintains a very lean corporate structure.

“Essentially, solid waste is a local business,” says Appleby. He goes on to explain that while the company does have operational oversight and provides strategic direction, it expects its local managers to make decisions for their location: “Local execution is very important in this business; we allow our local managers to do that.”

Perhaps ironically, Advanced Disposal’s Charlotte office and equipment lot is in the exact same building and location as McLeod’s former business, New South Waste.

Once on board with Advanced Disposal, McLeod was seeking out an operation site.

“Fortunately for me, I was riding around and was curious to see if my old building was available.”

She soon discovered that the last company there had expanded and moved.

McLeod is happy to be back in the waste industry.

“Many didn’t think I could stay out of the industry for long; they were right.”

Raised in Greensboro, McLeod and husband Mans have a daughter in law school and a son studying engineering. She credits her entrepreneurial spirit to her father, Jack Moore, who owned a wrecker company.

Since 2005, she has been helping other aspiring entrepreneurs to prepare for their chosen business careers. Through an endowment she has gifted to her alma mater, Appalachian State University’s business school, she is the named sponsor for the Carole Moore McLeod Entrepreneur Summit which occurs each fall.

Over the next weeks and months Advanced Disposal will be adding trucks and dumpsters, operational staff and drivers. Disposal facilities will be identified for acquisition. As contracts are made across the Carolinas, other operation sites will be set up for local management, with Charlotte maintained as an integrated

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geographic hub for the two-state region.

Advanced Disposal’s most recent expansion into Tennessee used the same business model being used here with Nashville serving as the hub location.

The company is satisfied to grow within the Southeast region. Appleby relates a saying of COO Walter Hall, “If it snows, we don’t go,” but with recent winter weather conditions, he’ll have to reconsider.

“We just feel like the Southeastern United States is a good growth area,” says Appleby.

According to Appleby, Advanced Disposal’s plans in the Carolinas are to continue the growth of a highly effective, environmentally sensitive company through excellent customer service and the efforts of a superior management team.

McLeod sums up: “Our philosophy is that failure is not an option. With the amount of resources Advanced Disposal is putting into Charlotte, we don’t even consider failure.”

What they will focus on is building a fullservice solid waste and recycling collection, processing and disposal business in Charlotte and the Carolinas and working towards their ongoing mission of leaving the world—and the Charlotte area—a little cleaner than they found it. biz Zenda Douglas is a Charlotte-based freelance writer.

Advanced Disposal Services Carolinas, LLC 1100 W. Craighead Road Charlotte, N.C. 28206 Phone: 704-596-9428; 803-817-6669 Principals: Charles C. Appleby, Chairman and CEO;Walter H. Hall, Jr., President and COO; Carole McLeod, Charlotte District Manager Parent Company: Advanced Disposal Services, Inc. headquartered in Jacksonville, Fla.; operations in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi,Tennessee and North Carolina Founded: 2000 Employees: 1,569 (not including Charlotte) Revenue: Approximately $300 Million Business: Advanced Disposal is the fourth largest privately-owned environmental services company in the United States providing integrated, non-hazardous solid waste collection, transfer, recycling and disposal services in the Southeast; owns and operates commercial, industrial, and residential solid waste collection operations, municipal solid waste landfills, transfer stations, and recycling facilities. www.advanceddisposal.com

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Gary LaBrosse First Vice President-Investments Britt Jones Byerly Vice President LaBrosse Byerly Group Global Wealth Management Merrill Lynch

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by heather head

[bizprofile]

Building a Legacy LaBrosse and Byerley Redefine “Partner” “If you focus on the client and do the right thing, everything else just follows from that,” says Britt Byerley,vice president and Wealth Management Advisor for Merrill Lynch.

Byerley and partner Gary LaBrosse, first vice president. and Financial Advisor, live and work by that code, creating a new definition of partnership both for themselves and their clients. From scratch 30 years ago, to more than $190 million in assets under management today, LaBrosse and Byerley have built a legacy for their Merrill Lynch Wealth Management group on the basis of building partnerships— and legacies—with their clients.

A Rich Experience Upon entering LaBrosse’s office for the first time, a potential client feels instantly welcomed and comfortable.

Soft-spoken and dignified, with white hair and monogrammed shirts, LaBrosse radiates an air of reliability and experience as he extends a firm handshake.

Next to him, Byerley wears stylish high heels and a warm smile, and speaks in animated tones about her love for her customers, whom she repeatedly refers to as being “like family.”

Both partners participate in every client meeting, which is where their commitment to service begins. “When a client leaves our office,” explains Byerley, “they know they’ve had two sets of eyes and two sets of ears. There’s a comfort level

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for our clients that their needs are being watched.”

She adds that the male-female combination adds another layer of comfort. “You never know which of us the client is going to feel most comfortable with calling first, but they take comfort in knowing that we are both here.”

And they can also feel comfortable knowing that both sets of ears have really been listening. LaBrosse explains that there is no form to fill out before entering their office, no social security number or gender box to check. Client meetings are a conversation, a time for LaBrosse and Byerley to get to know the client. They ask questions about goals and objectives, and try to understand what it is that the client wants to accomplish.

“Our clients are all high net worth individuals, so their balance sheets may be similar,” says Byerley. “But all their lives are different, so their goals and objectives are different as well.” Byerley says it’s through understanding those differences that they are able to help their clients achieve their goals.

Exceptional attention to client needs doesn’t stop at the end of each meeting. Every client knows that LaBrosse and Byerley are there for them whenever they need them. For instance, no caller ever reaches voice mail. Both Byerley and LaBrosse answer their own phones, and if they are tied up with another client, their assistant Julia Marble takes a message. $

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And they always return calls within minutes.

“I know when I call someone, I want to get a call back,” says Byerley. “Our clients can’t move forward until we answer their needs, so we want to do that immediately. They never typically have to wait more than 10 minutes.”

They also never have to wonder when a task will be accomplished. When possible, LaBrosse and Byerley complete tasks while the client is on the phone, so they can feel confident that what they’ve requested has already been done.

Despite the fact that they answer their own phones when they ring, LaBrosse’s office is a very quiet place. Not one of the 250 households they serve calls them during our nearly

“When a client leaves our office, they know they’ve had two sets of eyes and two sets of ears. There’s a comfort level for our clients that their needs are being watched.” ~Britt Byerley Vice President

hour-long meeting. Byerley smiles as she brings my attention to that fact.

“It’s because we’re proactive from the very beginning,” she explains. “We do get phone calls, but we’re on top of everything so our clients are never surprised.”

Just Like Family Besides calling clients when their portfolios need attention, Byerley and LaBrosse make sure each household receives a call at least once a month. They also call each family member on their birthdays, and send cards and gifts on special occasions such as graduations.

They attend weddings and funerals (two last week, Byerley admits sadly), send flowers for new babies, and on the whole become a part of their client’s lives as something more than just financial partners—they become like family.

But, of course, they do become an integral part of the client’s financial business as well. “One thing that distinguishes us,” says LaBrosse, “is that we get to know the CPAs, attorneys, and other professionals who play a role in our client’s lives.”

If they don’t already know a new client’s CPA, they make a point to meet him or her face-to-face. This allows them to stay abreast of every element of the client’s financial life, and to hold their hands through all their life stages—retirement, college, and estate

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planning, for instance.

Finally, adds Byerley, they celebrate with their clients during good times, and reassure and guide them through tough times. Thanks to the LaBrosse-Byerley conservative growth approach and their proactive communication with clients, none of their clients is suffering too much from current economic conditions.

“We’re not day traders, and we don’t work with day traders,” explains Byerley. “We’re in this for the long term, so we’re not scared by inevitable ups and down in the market.”

Ultimately, the proof of success for their “like family” approach to partnering with clients, is in their extremely high client retention. When LaBrosse began with Merrill Lynch in 1980, he had to build his client base from scratch. “And some of those original clients are still with us,” he says. As a result, they have serviced multiple generations of the same families through births and deaths, weddings and graduations.

“Because we service them so well, we become part of their families,” says Byerley.

“When someone in a client’s family achieves something great, like retirement or getting into a college, they call and they share that with us.

We see them around town and become a part of their day-to-day lives.”

Mutual Assets While LaBrosse and Byerley’s focus is partnership with clients, the foundation of that approach is their own partnership. LaBrosse has been serving clients for Merrill Lynch for his entire 29-year career, but he says the past 9 years—those spent in partnership with Byerley—have been the most productive and fun. Byerley, who has likewise spent her 12-year career with Merrill Lynch, is equally delighted with the quality of their partnership.

It began in 2000, when LaBrosse was approached by a principal in the company and

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asked to consider a partner. “I knew I needed a financial planning specialist, and I had looked for years for someone that I would feel comfortable with and who worked as hard as I did,” explains LaBrosse.

“I was asked who I would pick as a partner, and I immediately suggested Britt. They said, ‘Well, there are a lot of people who want her to be on their team,’ and I said, ‘Well, just give it a shot,’ and it worked out.”

As if to emphasize their strong connection, Byerley is smiling throughout his retelling, and as he says, “it worked out” she is already saying, “It worked out great.” She adds, “I had to go through the motions of talking to everyone else about partnering with them, but I’d already made up my mind. I knew from the very get-go that I wanted to work with Gary. No one cherishes his clients as much as he does.”

Since then, they agree, not much has changed about their commitment to each other and to their clients. “It’s very easy to come to work with Britt every day,” effuses LaBrosse, “She’s the best partner I could ever imagine.”

“We benefit so much from each other,” agrees Byerley.

Like their commitment to clients, their partnership extends beyond the office. Byerley describes Gary: “He’s Uncle Gary” to her

“The neatest part of our business, is that we watch our clients’ children grow up and have children, and we watch how the dynamic changes. We help them plan for college and retirement, and we help them leave legacies for those children and grandchildren.” ~Gary LaBrosse First Vice President-Investments children. Because they can’t both be gone from the office at the same time, the families don’t vacation together. But they do nearly everything else—carpool, spend holidays together, and even live close to each other.

Company Benefits It’s no accident that LaBrosse and Byerley have spent their entire careers at Merrill Lynch.

The company Web site emphasizes client needs and objectives, and the same personal touch that LaBrosse and Byerley live by.

In addition, the company offers a nearly 100-year history of stability, along with a comprehensive assortment of research tools and investment vehicles. Despite some close shaves during the mortgage crisis of the past few years, Merrill Lynch has remained strong and is now fully backed and wholly owned by the financial security of Charlotte’s largest financial institution.

With over 20,000 brokers and $2.5 trillion under management, Merrill Lynch is the world’s largest brokerage. Headquartered in New York, the company was purchased by Bank of America in 2008 and now employs over 60,000.

LaBrosse and Byerley work from the Charlotte SouthPark office, which employs 82.

Their partnership operates specifically under the umbrella of Global Wealth Management.

The backing of such a large and respected organization is important to the LaBrosseByerley partnership, but more significantly, they have remained with the company all these years for the quality of management. “Not very many people can say that they truly love the management where they work,” confides Byerley. “But we really do. Whatever we need in order to support our clients, our management is always there for us.” $

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One way in which both the company and the partnership care for their clients is by becoming involved in the community and the causes that clients care about. The Bank of America Web site touts a commitment to serving communities through philanthropy, volunteerism, and supporting arts and culture, all of which are closely in line with LaBrosse and Byerley’s own commitments.

LaBrosse is on the Business Advisory Committee for the City of Charlotte, as well as being on the CPCC Foundation Board. Both are involved in multiple charities supporting children, cancer research, and many other causes dear to the hearts of their clients.

“Every day is a new day with new opportunities and challenges,” says Byerley. “The reason we keep going through these challenging market conditions is that we are committed to finding solutions for our clients—whether it’s leaving a legacy or providing for loved ones, we make a difference in their lives.”

“The neatest part of our business,” concludes LaBrosse, “is that we watch our clients’ children grow up and have children, and we watch how the dynamic changes. We help them plan for college and retirement, and we help them leave legacies for those children and grandchildren.” biz Heather Head is a Charlotte-based freelance writer.

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[bizhealth] Cont. from p.7 Being Sedentary is Costly Cont.

Australian researchers who tracked 8,800 people for an average of six years found that those who said they watched TV for more than four hours a day were 46% more likely to die of any cause and 80% more likely to die of cardiovascular disease than people who reported spending less than two hours a day in front of the tube.

As opposed to the typical public health message urging vigorous physical activity, the Australian study focuses on incidental moving around, walking around, standing up and utilizing muscles—activity that doesn’t happen when we’re being couch potatoes.

The results are supported by an emerging field of research that shows how prolonged periods of inactivity can affect the body’s processing of fats and other substances that contribute to heart risk. And they suggest that people can help mitigate such risk simply by avoiding extended periods of sitting.

The results also likely apply to such sedentary activities as sitting in front of a computer, reading a book, driving or taking the train to work, as indicated by a recent Canadian study that linked increasing time spent sittingdown for any reason to higher risk of death from heart-related reasons and from any cause.

Researchers reported that the risk of death from any cause increased by 11% for each hour a day of reported TV watching; for death from cardiovascular disease, the risk increased 18%.

Scientists have found that after just a few hours of inactivity, an enzyme called lipoprotein lipase that pulls fat from the blood shuts down.

Instead of fat being transported to muscle tissue where it is burned as fuel, fat accumulates in the blood stream, where over time it can damage arteries and lead to cardiovascular disease.

After just one day of inactivity, levels of HDL, or good cholesterol, which helps

STAND UP

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THE NEW NORMAL... transport LDL or bad cholesterol out of the blood stream, can fall by as much as 20%.

Keeping these processes working more effectively doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t require constant exercise, but consciously adding more routine movement to your life might help, doctors say. In other words, just standing is better than sitting.

Simple strategies for increasing activity include incorporating household chores such as folding laundry into TV-watching time or getting up to change a TV channel rather than using a remote control. (The Wall Street Journal Health Article by Ron Winslow, January 15, 2010)

!Take it to heartâ&#x20AC;Ś

Are you working harder?

Are you working smarter?

Is your company vital?

Has the way you see things, feel about things, and think about things changed in response to the New Normal? The New Normal for a lot of businesses means working harder, working smarter, doing more with less.

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E-mail us at jgalles@greatercharlottebiz.com with Potential Biz Profile in the Subject line and tell us why!

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[publisher’spost] Cont. from p.4

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Google / China Cyber-conflict Google’s threat to shut down its search engine and operations in China in response to cyberattacks is certainly the most publicized confrontation to date, but by no means the first significant occurrence of hacking.

Similar techniques have been used to gain access to confidential information and/or cause damage to sensitive data across a multitude of scenarios. Chinese hackers have penetrated deeply into the information systems of U.S. companies and government agencies and have even gained access to electric power plants, possibly triggering blackouts in Florida and the northeast.

As a typical scenario, consider the following: Gregory Fayer opened an e-mail from a fellow lawyer at another law firm that looked like a normal electronic chat with a colleague. Instead, it was laced with a computer virus intended to allow the sender to spy on Fayer’s computer, a blatant act of espionage and a similar technique to that used in the Google attack.

It turns out that Fayer’s firm had filed a blockbuster lawsuit against the Chinese government on behalf of CyberSitter LLC, which makes parental control software. CyberSitter says the Chinese stole its computer code while creating the infamous Green Dam censorship program, which was designed to be placed on every Chinese citizen’s PC last year.

The technique the hackers employ fools one victim at a time—and then uses that computer to spy on the target agency or steal data.

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The Great Firewall of China Google’s response to the Chinese was based on dual concerns: enabling their use of the Internet to unethically obtain and/or destroy information, while at the same time enabling them to prohibit the free flow of information on it.

In order to start up Google.cn in 2006, Google agreed to screen out content that the Chinese government specified as objectionable, drawing criticism from some human-rights groups.

Internet control is considered a critical matter of state security in China. Beijing promotes Internet use for commerce, but heavily censors content it

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[publisher’spost] deems pornographic, anti-social or politically subversive and blocks many foreign news and social media sites, including Twitter and Facebook and the video-sharing site YouTube.

One big question is whether ordinary Chinese will continue to accept China’s arguments justifying Internet censorship. Although urban, middle-class Chinese often support government policies on sovereignty issues such as Tibet or Taiwan, they generally deride media censorship.

That feeling is especially pronounced among those who call themselves “netizens.” China has the most Internet users of any country, some 384 million by official count, but also the most complex system of Internet censorship, nicknamed the Great Firewall. Canny netizens across China use software to get over the Great Firewall while chafing at the controls.

The Information Curtain Descends In response to the situation, Secretary of State Clinton was quoted as saying, “a new information curtain is descending across much of the world” and named China as one of a handful of countries that had stepped up Internet censorship in the past year. She also praised companies such as Google that are “making the issue of Internet and information freedom a greater consideration in their business decisions.”

The English-language edition of The Global Times said Mrs. Clinton “had raised the stakes in Washington’s clash with Beijing over Internet freedom.” The American demand for an unfettered Internet was a form of “information imperialism,” the newspaper said, because less developed nations cannot possibly compete with Western countries in the arena of information flow. It called the U.S. campaign for the uncensored flow of information “a disguised attempt to impose its values on other cultures in the name of democracy.”

We will see how this conflict plays out over the coming weeks. Like its electrons, Internet information will flow freely by any means it is unrestricted; censorship has an uphill battle in that regard. However, proscribing its use while at the same time using it to censure activists or engage in organized hacking activity should be unacceptable in all instances. biz

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DON’T LET THE NAME FOOL YOU.

Yes, we have a reputation for doing things differently. But you have to shake things up in order to make a difference in the community. From our attorneys leading the largest mental health organization in the country and defending free expression for the arts to serving breakfast to the homeless in the wee hours of the morning.

For over 50 years James, McElroy & Diehl has helped individuals and businesses avoid problems, overcome obstacles and minimize consequences – fairly, efficiently and economically. So call us what you will. We’re rebels with good cause.

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