March 2021 Features

• Athens-based W&A Engineering Honored with goBeyondProfit Champion Award

  March 31, 2021

  Georgia’s goBeyondProfit business alliance announced today that Athens-based W&A Engineering earned the goBeyondProfit Champion Award. The peer-nominated honor is given for exemplary citizenship in company culture and deployment of company resources that empower community.

• Residents Sought for 16 Positions on Seven Policy-Making Boards by April 9th

  March 30, 2021

  The Athens-Clarke County Unified Government is seeking qualified candidates to fill the following terms on seven important policy-making boards.

• Georgia Ports Authority Makes Major Infrastructure Investment

  March 30, 2021

  On Monday, the Georgia Ports Authority Board approved capital improvement projects that will increase the Port of Savannah’s container capacity by 20 percent.

• Georgia’s Unemployment Rate Continues to Drop in February

  March 26, 2021

  The Georgia Department of Labor (GDOL) announced that Georgia’s unemployment rate dropped 0.3 percentage points in February to reach 4.8 percent and has decreased 7.7 percentage points since the start of the pandemic.

• Surge in Economic Optimism Among CEOs Means More Hiring and Investments on the Way

  March 26, 2021

  Confidence among CEOs in the first quarter of 2021 is the highest it has been since 2018, according to the Q1 CEO Confidence Index from Vistage.

• Lawmakers Work to Pass Bills Before Session Ends Next Week

  March 25, 2021

  The clock is ticking on the 2021 session on the Georgia General Assembly, and lawmakers are working to get their bills passed before session ends March 31st.

• Google Announces Plans to Invest $25M+ in Georgia this Year

  March 24, 2021

  Google plans to invest $25M+ in Georgia in 2021, including its new Atlanta office currently under construction in Midtown where the company will occupy 19 floors at 1105 West Peachtree. Nationally, Google plans to invest more than $7 billion in offices and data centers and create at least 10,000 new full-time Google jobs across the United States this year.

• Spring Travel in Full Swing: Half of Americans Planning a Trip This Season

  March 22, 2021

  Although the idea of a vacation has felt like an impossible dream for such a long time, paradise may be on the horizon. Americans are becoming increasingly confident that life will soon return to normal — and they are keen to hit the road as soon as possible.

• Athens’ Unemployment Rate Drops in January

  March 19, 2021

  Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said Thursday that Athens saw a decrease in its unemployment rate in January. In Athens, the unemployment rate decreased by 0.6 percentage points in January, reaching 4.2 percent. A year ago, the rate was 3.3 percent.

• Historic Day for Transit Funding in Georgia

  March 19, 2021

  The Georgia Legislature today took the historic step of establishing a mechanism to annually fund capital transit projects that support economic development priorities throughout the state.

• Tax Day for Individuals Extended to May 17th: Treasury, IRS Extend Filing & Payment Deadline

  March 19, 2021

  The Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service announced that the federal income tax filing due date for individuals for the 2020 tax year will be automatically extended from April 15, 2021, to May 17, 2021. The IRS will be providing formal guidance in the coming days.

• J.P. Morgan Pays $50.75M for The Cottages at Ridge Pointe in Athens

  March 17, 2021

  New York based J.P. Morgan, an American multinational investment bank and financial services holding company, has purchased The Cottages at Ridge Pointe for $50.75 million from Vinings-based Jim Chapman Communities, one of greater Atlanta’s premier homebuilders.

• Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC) Georgia Chapter Survey Highlights Changing Role of In-House Counsel

  March 17, 2021

  A recent survey by the Association of Corporate Counsel Georgia Chapter and its in-kind sponsor and communications agency, Poston Communications, highlights a shift in the role of in-house counsel.

• New U.S. Chamber of Commerce CEO: Business Will Lead the Next American Century

  March 16, 2021

  Over the past 12 months, our nation has seen a decade of disruption. What we’ve collectively experienced will change our lives, businesses, communities, and world—permanently. Now, coming out of the global pandemic, we have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to embrace and lead transformation and usher in the Next American Century.

• Companies' Post-COVID Dilemma: Will the Rise of Remote Work Become a Permanent Pandemic Legacy?

  March 15, 2021

  When COVID-19 suddenly forced millions of Americans to work from home (WFH), employees and employers alike feared confusion, dislocation, and lost productivity. A year on, as vaccines finally put a return to the office within sight, companies are rushing to decide where WFH fits as a permanent part of their postpandemic strategy.

• Technology Association of Georgia Announces the Top 40 Innovative Technology Companies in Georgia

  March 12, 2021

  TAG’S Top 40 Awards, sponsored by Comcast Business and Cherry Bekaert, recognize Georgia-based technology companies for their innovation, financial impact and efforts to spread awareness of the state’s technology initiatives throughout the U.S. and globally.

• PwC: Three Quarters of CEOs Predict a Return to Growth in 2021

  March 12, 2021

  One year after COVID-19 was declared a pandemic, CEOs are voicing record levels of optimism in the global economic recovery, with 76% of global business leaders predicting that economic growth will improve in 2021.

• St. Mary's Hospitals Mark Anniversary of Start of COVID-19 Pandemic

  March 11, 2021

  St. Mary’s Health Care System will begin its observance of the first anniversary of the start of the COVID-19 pandemic by planting hundreds of white flags on the lawns of its hospitals in Athens, Lavonia and Greensboro. The flags will recognize the nearly 1,500 inpatients with COVID-19 who have received care at the three hospitals over the past year.

• Georgia Starts 2021 Off Strong

  March 11, 2021

  The Georgia Department of Labor announced today that Georgia’s unemployment rate dropped 0.2 percentage points in January to reach 5.1 percent and has decreased 7.4 percentage points since the start of the pandemic. Georgia’s January unemployment rate was 1.2 percent lower than the national unemployment rate.

• Georgia’s Leadership in a Pandemic World

  March 09, 2021

  The State of Georgia is a technology leader with a profile that is quickly rising. Not only have Microsoft and Airbnb recently announced that they would create large tech hubs in Atlanta, but four Georgia-based startups reached “unicorn” status in the last year.

• Explore Georgia Awards Grants to Support Tourism

  March 05, 2021

  Explore Georgia, the tourism division within the Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD), announced that it has awarded $20,000 in tourism product development grants to four new and expanding projects across the state.

• Statewide Executive Insights Survey Open for CEO and Executive Participation

  March 04, 2021

  The third annual statewide survey is in the field to gather executive insights comparative to consumer and employee attitudes and behaviors. Survey sponsors goBeyondProfit and Georgia CEO have opened the research to participation by CEOs and senior business leaders who can then gain advance access to the full insights report this spring.

• Georgia’s Agriculture Industry is Weathering the Storms — with the Help of UGA Support

  March 04, 2021

  It’s been a rough three years for Georgia pecan farmers, whose cash crop has been battered by a hurricane, a fungal tree disease, and a global pandemic — all in relatively rapid succession.

• Oconee State Bank Announces Athens Full Service Financial Center Expansion

  March 02, 2021

  In a demonstration of commitment to the local community Oconee State Bank announced the expansion of its Athens Loan Office to a Full Service Financial Center.

• AG Chris Carr Announces 10th Annual Legal Food Frenzy to Benefit Georgia Food Banks

  March 02, 2021

  Attorney General Chris Carr announced that registration is open for the 10th Annual Georgia Legal Food Frenzy, a statewide virtual fundraising competition among Georgia’s lawyers to help end hunger across the state.