B2B Stories

B2B Stories

Competence can be undermined by lack of honesty and accountability

While it has been a while since I have written a column on leadership, recent events have indicated to me that this is an appropriate time to address what I consider some of the most important and necessary leadership traits. Understandably, we put significant emphasis and priority on a leader’s competence. We expect a good leader to demonstrate expertise, relevant knowledge, and the ability to make sound decisions. Such competence is a necessary, but not sufficient, condition for effective leadership. In my opinion, and the opinion of many others, a

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B2B Stories

Simon Says: 2025’s Been a Good Year!

It has been a while since I updated the Augusta Labor Market Index (LMI) because the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis had not updated its website since December. Recently, it did so through April, and the Augusta LMI has increased by 0.5 percent from December and is 1.2 percent higher than April 2024. The LMI measures labor market vitality through five components: employment, unemployment rate, labor force, average weekly earnings, and average weekly hours worked. Over the past five months, employment increased by 1,200, and the unemployment rate fell

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B2B Stories

Busy late July for Augusta banker and parent company

The Augusta market president for a Southeastern Bank has had a busy few weeks, from a trip to the New York Stock Exchange, also to receive an honor across the Peach State. All while the parent company of his bank acquired another bank! Chris McLaughlin from Colony Bank in Evans will be serving a three-year term as a member of the Leadership Georgia Bankers Association Board of Directors. Leadership GBA supports the advancement of career bankers by providing leadership development training, serving as a forum through which career bankers can network and

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B2B Stories

Success for sales strategies seminar coming soon

The Columbia County Chamber of Commerce is holding its final Business Institute of 2025 on August 7th. Russell Lahodny, President and CEO of the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce, told ABD the program was originally going to be called the Small Business Institute, but they realized the information offered benefits for businesses of all sizes. It provides a unique, face-to-face forum to learn tips and tricks to improve their business. “There are so many opportunities on the internet that you can sit down and watch YouTube videos all day long,

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B2B Stories

Always Sunny in Augusta

Once the sun sets on the hot summer, there will be another option to keep your tan year-round. The fourth location of Palm Beach Tan between Evans and Augusta is going to replace the Cardboard Castle Games shop located between Belk’s and Larson Chiropractor in the Mullins Colony Shopping Center. Palm Beach Tan offers spray tans, tanning beds, and skincare products from its 650 centers nationwide. Local stores include one less than a mile away on 4276 Washington Road next to Publix, plus a store at 4115 Columbia Road and

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B2B Stories

August meetings and conventions coming in HOT!

The temperatures are hot, and so are the projections for the economic impact of visitors headed to the Augusta River Region for meetings, reunions, and other events. More than 7,000 visitors will be in town, generating almost $6,400,000 in the month of August. The largest boost comes from the TechNet conference to be held in mid-August. This will be the 12th year TechNet has been hosted in Augusta. It brings in at least 6,000 attendees, with more than half coming from outside Georgia and South Carolina. That conference alone is estimated to generate more

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B2B Stories

Finding financial backing for women entrepreneurs

A recent speaker to an Aiken and national audience said women own 14 million businesses in the U.S., which is about 39% of all businesses, a mixture of independent companies and franchises. They employ than 11 million and generate two and a half trillion dollars in income. In 2024, women launched 49% of all new businesses. The challenge is locating a funding source. The unique challenges facing women small business owners looking for funding were the focus of a recent webinar. Offered by Greater Aiken SCORE, the webinar was led

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B2B Stories

CSRA company expanding programs to meet supply and demand

One of the largest employers in the CSRA, Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS), is enhancing its industrial supply base. The initiative aims to increase the capability and capacity of SRNS suppliers and manufacturers to meet and perform critical mission scopes for the Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). “The Supplier Technical Assessment and Validation program (STAV) is a significant benefit for our suppliers and manufacturers, bridging the gap between part requirements, manufacturing capabilities, and demonstrated execution,” said Wayne Potter, SRNS Supplier Relationship Development (SRD) Manager

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B2B Stories

What I learned on my summer vacation

When I was growing up on Long Island, New York, I always looked forward to summer. My father was a high school math teacher; his second career after first being a mechanical engineer. Most summers, he worked a temporary engineering job with Grumman Aerospace, but always ended that job a couple of weeks before the school year started so that we could take a family vacation. In those years from the early 1960’s through the early 1970’s, we typically took a one-to-two-week automobile vacation. In that time, we covered most

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B2B Stories

Another top report for Augusta businesses

For the third time since May, Augusta is showing up in a survey of locations to do business. Georgia overall is ranked well on another “Best Of” report, and Augusta is in the top 20 in the results. Global Location Strategies (GLS) has published the 2025 edition of its Best Places for Food Manufacturing report. Augusta checks in nationwide at number 12. In May, a report by GLS on the Best Places for Primary Metal Manufacturing Insights report, Augusta was ranked at number 21. That reflected a jump from 42

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