Business Coaching

B2B Stories

2025 Predictions Update: Mid-Year Status

Today, July 2, we officially move into the second half of 2025. Therefore, I thought it would be a good time to perform a “mid-year check” of the predictions I made for the year in this space on December 18, 2024. As a reminder, the title of that column was “2025 Predictions:  Trump Policies Edition.” So, in the remainder of this column, I will evaluate each of my predictions based on the promises President Trump made prior to returning to the White House by giving myself a “midterm grade,” a

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B2B Stories

Large entrepreneurship summit set for Augusta

Augusta has been selected to host a summit conference this fall to talk entrepreneurship, accelerators, and incubators. The Startup Champions Network is bringing the Fall 2025 Ecosystem Builder Summit to the Garden City, Nov. 5-7. “Startup Champions Network is one of the largest organizations made up of entrepreneur support organizations in our country,” explained Eric Parker, co-founder with Grace Belangia of theClubhou.se and Make Startups, Inc. based in the Georgia Cyber Innovation and Training Center “We will have 150 to 200 people convening in Augusta, Ga. to learn about our

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B2B Stories

Hull to host new competition

Future business leaders will have a new level of competition this fall when the Hull College of Business hosts its first contest for two high school organizations devoted to business, FBLA and DECA. Dean Thompson says the platform will provide an opportunity to hone their business skills.

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B2B Stories

Time for Social Security reform…avoid the iceberg!

Last Wednesday (June 18), the Social Security Trustees released their annual report on the financial status of the program. The 2025 report projects that Social Security will become insolvent in 2033. Such insolvency means that the Social Security trust funds will not have enough money to pay promised benefits in full and on time. If this insolvency is not addressed, in 2033, retirees will face an automatic 23% benefit cut under the law. The problem will continue to get worse as more and more baby boomers like me continue to

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B2B Stories

Hull to host student business competition

Two high school organizations devoted to business, FBLA and DECA, may soon have a new outlet for honing their competitive skills. The Hull College of Business wants to create a platform prior to the two groups’ regional and state contests.

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B2B Stories

Dealing with your Oakmont

Father’s Day is always special for me. Now that my two daughters are well into adulthood, it is a great time for me to reflect on their childhoods and the many great memories that I have of those times. However, it is also a special day for me to think about my own father, not just because it is Father’s Day, but also because it is traditionally the day of the final round of the golf’s US Open. While neither my dad nor I would be mistaken for great golfers,

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B2B Stories

Summer camp to spark students at the Cyber Center

The Georgia Cyber Innovation and Training Center was the high-tech campground for a four-day summer camp and pitch competition. Purpose-Fueled Leader, an executive coaching and consulting firm based in the Shaffer-MacCartney Building, launched its first “Spark the Hustle: Youth Entrepreneurship Lab.” “It’s for rising eighth graders to rising 12th graders. It’s a four-day camp,” Anna Bradsher, Director of Strategy, Trainer and Coach, told ABD. “We’ve really boiled down to the fundamentals of business, because a lot of times we overcomplicate things. So, we’re going to help you find your product,

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B2B Stories

How hospitality touches every business

The second session of the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce’s Business Institute centered on hospitality and how every business should have it in their professional tool kit. The Business Institute is a series of four programs held each year during the summer months. The June program was Leaders in Hospitality. Leading the discussion was Erik Smith, Owner & Operator of Chick-fil-A’s location in Grovetown. Smith said hospitality is demonstrated by making guests feel welcome from the start. At Chick-fil-A, it is accomplished by several traits that mark the company’s philosophy.

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B2B Stories

Make a case and win cash

Each year, the Hull College of Business student is paired with a mentor to develop a case that may result in a $3000 top prize. Here’s the scoop on the case competition.

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B2B Stories

A Process-Driven Life

In last week’s column, I discussed the importance of processes in how firms compete in their markets. As a quick review, a process is a series of steps or actions to achieve a specific result, typically a transformation or major change. Therefore, processes are required for a firm to produce its goods and deliver its services in such a way that they are attractive to potential customers. To enable my students to grasp this fundamental lesson and lay the foundation for the remainder of the course, their first assignment is

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