Wed, April 29, 2026

Facebook-f Youtube Instagram
Newsletter Sign up
Show Support
Menu

B2B Stories
B2B Stories

The Job Market of the Future

As we enter “graduation season” for our local public high schools this week (Columbia County) and next (Richmond and Aiken Counties), I know that many of you, both as parents and business leaders, are wondering what the job market of the future will look like. Rapid technological development and recent tariff and immigration policies may likely accelerate some of the changes that have been occurring in the workplace, but some of the other recent changes will continue to move forward. Here are some of the more important trends that are

Read More »
Dr. Rick Franza May 20, 2025 No Comments
B2B Stories

Simon Says: Employment and Earnings Off to a Good Start

The Augusta Labor Market Index (LMI) for the first quarter of 2015 increased by 0.25 percent. This compares favorably to the Georgia LMI, which decreased by 0.2 percent and is just below the growth rate of the LMI for South Carolina, which was 0.3 percent. In Augusta, employment increased by 500 jobs, and average weekly earnings were up $38.20. Hours worked fell by 42 minutes. The two other components in the LMI are the unemployment rate and the labor force. Normally, my favorite site, the Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED),

Read More »
Dr. Simon Medcalfe May 19, 2025 No Comments
B2B Stories

Groundbreaking for the future of nursing education at Aiken Tech

Overcast skies and a light rain did not dampen the enthusiasm for a ceremony marking the start of a new nursing education building at Aiken Technical College. Doctor Forest Mahan, president of Aiken Tech, said the groundbreaking marks the beginning of the next chapter in the school’s commitment to educating healthcare professionals. He said it was the result of partnerships the school has formed in its dedication to providing skilled, compassionate, and dedicated professionals. “And it’s important to note that if you look around this campus, in addition to this

Read More »
Dana Lynn McIntyre May 19, 2025 No Comments
B2B Stories

Family of Entrepreneurs Opens 4th Business

It’s no secret that North Augusta is growing by leaps and bounds. ABD reports on new businesses opening regularly in the area. Carolina Hills Sandwich and Sweet Shoppe is yet another that opened its doors just last week at 433 Georgia Avenue in North Augusta. It’s between Parks Pharmacy and Carpenter’s Tire and Auto. “When my wife and I married 17 years ago, we lived in downtown Augusta. We loved the sandwiches and soups at Sunshine Bakery and at Sandwich City, especially the split pea soup and egg salad sandwiches,”

Read More »
Mitzi Oxford May 19, 2025 No Comments
B2B Stories

Local Wealth Management Team Recognized Best in Georgia

Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) announced that the Nautilas Group, based in Augusta, has been named to Forbes Magazine’s 2025 list of America’s Best-In-State Wealth Management Teams. “I am pleased that the Nautilas Group is representing Morgan Stanley,” commented Lisa Novelo, Branch Manager of Morgan Stanley’s Augusta office. “To be named to this list recognizes Brian Keith (pictured above left) and Jeremy Wilson (pictured above right) and their professionalism and dedication to the needs of their valued clients.” Keith is a Senior VP and Financial Planning Specialist and has spent 20

Read More »
Staff Report May 18, 2025 No Comments
B2B Stories

Two Questions with the Dean: Study Abroad

In the next month or so, business students at AU’s Hull College of Business and other students will leave and study abroad from a week-long trip up to a full term. In today’s “Two Questions with the Dean,” Dean Mark Thompson explains the details. ABD: What trip is set up for this semester? HULL: The study abroad trip this coming summer is going to England and Scotland as part of our international business course. So, it gives students a great opportunity to experience what it’s like to be somewhere else,

Read More »
Neil Gordon May 18, 2025 No Comments
B2B Stories

Supporting our largest employers and local communities

A local non-profit has worked quietly to promote economic interests, joining the Savannah River Site (SRS) with the five South Carolina and Georgia Counties it touches. Those are Aiken, Allendale, and Barnwell in South Carolina, plus Richmond and Columbia Counties in Georgia. The Savannah River Site Community Reuse Organization (SRSCRO) was started in 1993. It was one of nearly 30 such organizations created nationwide when Department of Energy (DOE) sites began closing as the Cold War ended. In the early years, it coordinated revolving loan funds and equity investments, but

Read More »
Dana Lynn McIntyre May 18, 2025 No Comments
B2B Stories

Defining Georgia’s workforce development

A series of policies and recommendations on how to train the workforce for the future are now laws in Georgia. Flanked by elected officials and education leaders, Gov. Brian Kemp (R) signed into law bills passed by the general assembly defining what the state will do to remain a top state in which to do business. A key piece of legislation was HB 192 (www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69701), entitled the Top State for Talent Act. It codifies the Georgia MATCH program, launched in 2023 to facilitate a student’s enrollment in Georgia post-secondary institutions.

Read More »
Dana Lynn McIntyre May 15, 2025 No Comments
B2B Stories

Bank with 115 Georgia branches to add six to the CSRA

It was standing room only at a new bustling bank in National Hills at 2805 Washington Road. National and local leaders from the Chase Bank came to the city to celebrate the opening and to announce plans to open up to six branches in the region over the next three years. A Chase executive told ABD at the event that the next two branches to open will be in Aiken and South Augusta. CSRA Chamber and political leaders joined the lunchtime ribbon-cutting and took a tour of the Chase bank,

Read More »
Neil Gordon May 15, 2025 No Comments
Load More