The. Glowot owledge INVESTMENT PROFILE: GEORGIA. by ADAM BRUNS. y all indications, Georgia's talent. ad am. b ru nway. co m

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1 INVESTMENT PROFILE: GEORGIA The Glowot owledge When the call goes out for skills, training and creative thinking, Georgia's work force lights up the landscape. The world is noticing. y all indications, Georgia's talent base is at the top of its gae, higher education is a priary factor, and copanies around the globe are paying close attentioll. " Hieh talent is the key lor NCR to grow its innovation hub," says Bill Nuti, chairan and CEO of NCR Corporation, which is creating soe 2,100 new jobs in t he state via a corporate headquarters ove to the Atlanta suburb of Duluth, expansion or its services and training capabil ities in Peachtree City, near Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, and a new ATM anufacturing plant in Colu bus. "Georgia is a state that is COITllll itted to attracting and retaining high-tech talent, and a strong work-force training progra such as Quick Start is essential for our existing and future eployees." It's not just copanies; it's nations theselves who are noticing. In October, Abassador Capricia Penavic Marshal l, chief of protocol of the Un ited States, led a group of 3.5 abassadors to Atlanta (hoe to nearly 70 consulates and trade ofrces) for the first-ever stop in the Southeast by the federal governent's "Experience Aerica" progra. "This is a strong testaent to Atlanta's reputation as an international leader in business, logistics, education and research," said Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue, just a few weeks after attending the grand opening of Sony Ericsson's new North Aerican headquarters in Atlanta. "I expect this event Above. a technician perfors specialty welding at edical equipent fir Angiodynaics in Manchester, Ga. by ADAM BRUNS to lead directly to closer diploatic and econoic ties for Georgia across the globe." ad a. b ru ns@co nway. co Those ties are growing stronger already, thanks to such institutions as the Georgia Institute of Technology, where a focus on econoic developent has been part of the university's ission since its founding in A recent study by the Southern Growth Policies Board found Georgia Tech's econoic developent progra to be the ost coprehensive of any Aerican university. "Most CEOs that I eet with are already very faili ar with the reputation of our universities and they know that we can help copanies not on ly with workers, but also R&D and ways to help the coerciali ze products," says Gov. Perdue in an interview. "Georgia's Centers of'lnnovation progra, for instance, is housed in the Departent of Econoic Developent, but each center is attached to a university in order to help con nect those dots for a copany and get to unique resources acadeic institutions bri_ng to the table." Georgia Tech's Technology Square developent, a ixeduse area near its ain capus in downtown Atlanta, connects the dots by bringing the closer together. It's literally the hoe of econoic developent for t he state, housing the Georgia Departent of Econoic Developent, the legendary Quick Start custoized job training progra, and the University Syste of Georgia's Intellectual Capital Partnership Progra, aong others. It's also hoe to Georgia Tech's Enterprise Innovation Institute, and to the econornic developent resources of Georgia Power, a Southern Copany utility that is perennially aong Site Selection's Top Utilities in Econoic Developent. A SITE SELECTION INVESTMENT PROFILE: GEORGIA NOVEMBER

2 Tie and efficiency is so iportant right now to copanies." When operations need a quick rap-up, " We have the assets to ake that happen. - Heidi Green, Coissioner of the Georgia Departent of Econoic Developent "A good candidate for 'best of breed' can be found at Technology Square," said the Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Governent in early World Within Reach Hans Gant, senior vice president of econo ic developent for the Metro Atlanta Chaber, says copanies' workforce objectives today include a certain global savvy "They're looki ng for people who can work in a tea environent in proble solving," he says. "They're also looking for ulticultural assets. Since a lot of copanies we recruit are international, they are looking for a \vork force that is culturally sensitive and aware, and has specific skill sets in ters of language, and understanding business environents in other countries." Gant's tea has analyzed both general and student populations in the region, and concluded that whether your copany hails fro Latin Aerica, Asia or Europe, "you will be able to nnd workers who speak your language, understand your country and the U.S. econoy." That holds true for the whole state, says Gov. Perdue: "The teas at our 10 international offices are well-equipped to introduce copanies in their regions to Georgia's work force and other assets," he says. " \Ve also ensure these copanies know that we are deliberately cultivating an environent that not only educates and trains our v. rkers, but that encourages the to stay in Georgia. Once people coe here, they want to stay. That's the truth, and that's part of our essage." Interest in Georgia is co ing fro copanies based in eerging econoies such as China, India and Brazil. A nuillber of Chinese copanies are al.ready growing in Georgia, including construction equipent aker Sany Aerica in Peachtree City and appliance aker Hisense with H&D and headquarters in Gwinnett County. Georgia Departent of Econoic Developent CoissiOller Heidi Green, who's visited seven cou ntries in the past five onths, says it's evident fro a recent China trip that any ore are interested, provided they get the support they need. "'vve fored an international tea just to work with copanies who'd never done FDI into the United States, because they need so uch support," she says. "Certainly Chinese copanies wi ll be doing FDI into this country, and we're prepared to be of assistance to the, not just fro a oney standpoint, but for things like how peritting works and how taxation works." Progras such as the award-winning and uch-iitated Quick Start pave the way for incoing finns. But Quick Start staff are just as likely to be on an outgoing Hight, if'that's what it takes to help the client. "Quick Start wi ll send people all over the world to ake Sllre we're capturing those best practices the copany wants," says Green. NCR officials, for exaple, were astonished that Quick Start, with the ink still wet on the ATM plant agreeent with Georgia, put people on a plane to the copany's new facility in Hungary. And in an econoy focused on exports as an indicator of econoic success, it's the export of expertise that ay be Quick Start's own global signature: "\Ve've heard fro international copanies all over Georgia who've said they have taken those anuals and translated the, and used the at other FACT: A spot check of weekly earnings by production eployees on anufacturing payrolls found an hourly rate of$ in June 2010, 15th lowest in the country. Overall, Georgia wage and salary workers paid hourly rates had edian hourly earnings of$12.13 in 2009; nationally, the edian was $ For anufacturing copanies, this presents ore business opportunities. locations," says Green. "}t's hard to put a dollar aount on that." Diverse Opportunities Masino and Gant both cite the Atlanta area's attractiveness to the "young and restless" types, between 25 and 35 years old, who are oving there fro au over the Southeast and Midwest. "My wi fe and I were engaged to be arried in 1994, had just graduated fro The Ohio State University and had great degrees," testifies Masino. "\ive ade a pros-and-cons list that included Chicago and Colubus, and there were way ore pros to oving to Atlanta. Atlanta continues to grow, and it's continued since we've been here." "Although jobs are stiu iportant, they are no longer enough," says Kevin Stolarick, research director lor the Martin Prosperity Institute at the University of Toronto. "People expect or require ore than just ajob if they are going to ove to a region. Soe people will ove just because they like the region or because they feel they can ake their own job once they are there... People like thick labor arkets - they want to go soeplace where they know they will have ultiple opportunities." That description helps ake an equally copelli ng case for such ges as Savannah, hoe of institutions such as Gulfstrea Aerospace and the Savannah College of' Art & Design (SCA D). SCAD now has a capus presence in Atlanta, in addition to a new capus in Hong Kong. With the tagline "the university for creative careers," the school is known as uch for its attention to redevelopent and preservation as for its cultivation of' artistic talent. Metro Atlanta's Hans Gant says beyond his area's well-known schools such as Eory University, he'd point to the el11erging presences of Georgia State University (downtown) and Kennesaw State University, along 1-75 north of Atlanta. But SCAD's new capus has been "particularly iportant to us fro the standpoint of digital content and 798 NOVEMBER 2010 A SITE SELECTION INVESTMENT PROfiLE: GEORGIA

3 Mitsubishi Power Systes Aericas welders participate in a Uuick Start training class in Richond Hill. Ga. near the site in Pooler where the copany is constructing a new anufacturing facility. the power indu stry. Larry Brown, anager of huan resources for Savannah Machinery vvorks, says hi s growing cadre oi" ulti-skilled professionals includes a echanical engineer out of Southern Polytechnic State University in Marietta near Atlanta; an advanced physics ajor fro Morris Brown College in Atlanta who's part oi" the quality engineering group; and an i.ndustrial designer fro SCAD. Just as ipressive to Brown is the depth of experience he found aong other welders, fro exotic etals to prograing welding robots. Progress on the project has been swirt enough that the copany gave the goahead for phase two of the project a full six onths earlier than expected. edia. The training and progras they have in those areas are very attractive to the copanies we're trying to recruit in that space." Strong digital content and edia progras are also in force at Georgia State, Kennesaw State and Gwinnett Tech in the Atlanta area, and at Georgia Southern University in Statesboro, aong others. The Art of Innovation Back in Savannah, digital edia is alive and well, and not only at SCAD. \Vitness last year's $5.5-illion digital edia production studio fro Meddin Studios. The copany took advantage of Georgia's 2008 Entertainent Industry Investent Act, which offers up to a 30 percent tax credit for qualified productions. "SEDA worked with The Creative Coast Alliance to support Meddin's start-up by introducing the to as any people and resources as we could - fro potential clients to potential investors," said Lynn Pitts, senior vice president of the Savannah Econoic Developent Authority. "Savannah is eager to ebrace and nurture these types of operations, and Meddin Studios will lead the way" Even the area's biggest industrial project has creative connections. :Mitsubishi Power Systes Ael"icas' Savannah Machinery Works project in Pooler expects to eploy 90 by the end of 2010, 200 by the end of 2011 and ultiately 500 by 2016 in the anufacture oi" gas turbine cobustors and coponents and, eventually, entire turbines to serve FACT: Geo rgia is hoe to 54 public and private un iversitie s and 34 techn i cal and co unity colleges. Greater Georgia is Augusta, Colubus, Macon and Savannah. \'(falt Sprouse, CEcD Augusta Econoic Developent Authority wsp rollse@augustaeda.co www. AugustaEDA.co (706) Patri ck Topping, CEcD Macon Econoic Developent Coission pi oppillg@fjlacoiljvorks.cofji JV JVW. fjla COil JIlorks. COfJI (478) Becca Hardi n Greater Colubus Georgia Chaber of Coerce The Valley Partnership bha rdill@collffjibflsgachafjiber. cofji JJlJVW. Iheva Ilrypa rl ljersh ip. COfJI (706) Lynn M. Pitts Savannah Econoic Developent Authority Ipitts@seda.org Jl)JJlJl).seda.org (800) A SITE SELECTION INVESTMENT PROFILE: GEORGIA NOVEMBER

4 '~-? ';!"",,,- New York 252,602 Philad.lphla 92,187 Washington 143,228 ".vuit- 92 Top 10 Metros BoUo 10 Metro, Houston 88,024 o 54S _ so _ 100,001- ISO,DOO _ 160, _ 2OO,OO1-2S0000 _ 250, Map by Zara Matheson, MaI'1ln Pro&periry InM~UI. Creative Class Growth Points to a Strong Future Aong the ost recent forecasts by the Martin Prosperity Institute, headed by "Rise of the Creative Class" author Richard Florida at the University oftoronto's Rotan School of Manageent, is the growth in density of the creative class in the coing decade, with the creative class defined as "people eployed in science and engineering, business and anageent, health care and law, and arts, culture, design, edia, and entertainent," As the ap above shows, Greater Atlanta will be aong the national leaders in attraction and retention of such talent, predicts Florida's tea, outgaining such cities as Boston, Dallas and Philadelphia. According to Florida, creative class jobs, which already coprise roughly one-third of total eployent and ore than half of wages and salaries, will represent half of all projected U.S. eployent growth in the coing years, "adding B.8 illion new jobs by 2018." "Technology does not self-replicate - ittakes skilled and talented people," said Dr. Kevin Stolarick, research director for the Martin Prosperity Institute, during a recent speech to Canadian econoic developers. What's ore, he said, creative-class workers, alost by definition, do not face uneployent in the sae way as blue-collar and servicesector workers do. "Having lots of these people in your region is probably a pretty stabilizing influence," he said, pointing to data that indicate a rise in earnings accopanies increases in a work force's analytical and social intelligence skills. In an interview, Stolarick points out several notable at- tributes of Atlanta. Aong the, "it is hoe to a significant nuber of college-educated African-Aericans. And educated people attract educated people." He says there are ore than 800,000 creative-class workers in the Atlanta etro area, aking an average wage of ore than $72,000. Such a critical ass of whole-brained people exerts a agnetic pull for even ore talent, even when the econoy is down overall. Analysis of oving data across a large cross-section of oving copanies by Movers.co found that Atlanta had the third-ost ove-ins of all U.S. cities during the second quarter of "NCR was in Dayton for 125 years. The No.1 reason they oved was because of talent," says Gwinnett County's Nick Masino. "There are tons of highly educated people in Dayton. Ohio has a very high percentage of people with a four-year degree. The proble was people wouldn't ove to Dayton... Not only did we have the talent they needed now, but they could get anybody they need to ove to Atlanta. And there's a lower cost of living." What's ore, says Masino, NCR had to find jobs for spouses too. "We helped dozens of spouses find jobs," he says. "Cisco uses the progra now too. We called it Georgia Pathways because we fully intend to share it with everyone. If you look at NCR or Suniva, they were attracted by state tax incentives, local personal and real property tax abateents, then Quick Start, and then progras at the local level like Georgia Pathways. It's not a silver bullet - we package and layer these opportunities." 800 NOVEMB ER 2010 A SITE SELECTION INVESTMENT PROfiLE: GEORGIA

5 Chattahoochee Technical College in October graduated the first class (above) fro its new aircraft structure skills certification course, housed in a rehabbed transission shop adjacent to the school's capus in Ma rietta, nea r the operational base of Lockheed Martin. Nearly all of the graduates already have jobs at Lockheed. and two ore classes are now being conducted siultaneously. There are ore than 500 aerospace and aviation copanies in Georgia. "Quick Start did a treendous job in helping us in the design of a welding evaluation process," says Brown, noting that the speed was even ore dazzling for having un folded between Thanksgiving 2009 and New Year's Day "We got with three different sourcing copanies, and we esti ate they went th rough 1,544 resues to get us 193, culled down to 124, which we interviewed over 13 days to get to 34 to put through the welding evaluation to get to the first 20 we brought on board." He describes the core of his ernployee base as "welding surgeons" who work with achi nery he calls "eye-popping" in its sophistication. But on refl ection, he says, "The ore I thi nk about it, what's really neat is the huan capital we have here, ore than the capital equipent. The biggest challenge we had is there aren't a whole lot of places in the world that have ever bu ilt thi ngs like we're building. These are jobs that were sent out of the country 25 years ago that we're resurrecting here." A 37-year industry veteran, Brown has sta rted up and turned around plants around the world. He calls Savannah one of the last bastions of Southern civility. Just as welco ing is the sall city's depth of talent, intelligence and character, he says, identifying the people's work ethic and integrity as an ideal atch for his copany's culture. "vvhen yo u consider that the Greater Savannah area has 132,000 people, we've been highly sllccessful in finding the talent we need," he says. "I call it ining /01' diaonds." He says the behavioral questions that were part of the interview process for hourly workers were the sae ones posed to executi ves, "and I've watched executives elt during the over the years. We have a work Welcoe Hoe M e e t You r Neighbors Aftac ~Jt. AGee A DELTA rc. First NCR NewellRubberail/. SOUTHERN.\. COMPANY,~ ~ SUNTRUSf Let us help you with corporate relocation or expansion Metro Atlanta Chaber Econoic Developent Division I MetroAtlantaChaber.co A SITE SELECTION INVESTMENT PROFILE: GEORGIA NOVEMB ER

6 Colubus Technical College in Oclober opened Ihe doors 10 Ihe Robert l. Wrighl Jr. Health Sciences Cenler (left). Conslrucled by Skanska, the facilitv will house a variety of progras across edical disciplines. Nearlv half of the school's enrollent of 4,000 is enrolled in one of its health sciences progras. When it opens in earlv 2011, Chattahoochee Technical College's Canton Capus (right) will be the eighth for Georgia's largest technical college. "It is a sart location for us to grow into," said Or. Sanford Chandler, president of Chattahoochee Tech, calling Canton "an eergent city," force that is f~u1tas tic, and the bulk of the are local." Brown says the partnership with Quick Start has included adaptive leadership, forklift, otivation and con Aict resolution training, "and if they don't have it olt the shell: they design it lor e. The State of Georgia ay not realize the jewel they have in Quick Start. It is truly one of those things that, to e, is a dirrerentiator. I had not worked with the before, and I have never been lllore ipressed in y life." College Syste Helps Copanies and Counities Alike A recent slew of projects fro Geran autootive supplier ~foelle.. Tech (Elberton ), King's Hawaiian bread copany (Oakwood), TIMCO Aviation Services and Fi.. st Quality (Macon) and Mage Sola.. (Dublin) are aong the newest roster entries at Quick Start, where the resources often surprise even the ost well-travel led corporate site evaluators, who ay have a liited conception of what "work-force training" can encopass based on experiences in other states. Georgia Quick Start offers such tools as video-, coputer- and vveb-based odules, and its own studio and editing suite. It offers a range of services fro pre-eployent assessent to leadership, orientation, operations and productivity en hanceent tech niques such as kaizell, to courses on teillll building, colllunications and other soft skills - skills uch ore in deand in an era of hybrid and virtual copanies. In fact, Quick Start could be considered the starti ng blocks for nearly every prospect. Alost any project will have Quick Start brought up in the conversation, because of the active, hand-in-hand partnership between the progra and the state's technical college network. The agency's nae is especially relevant today, says COlll issioner Heidi Green. "Copanies llsed to have six to nine onths of pad tie," she says. Today, "they're waiting longer to ake that investent, so they're needing that investent to coe online ore quickly. Quick Start has the ability to get those workers up and trained and working that line or answering that phone as quickly as possible. Tirne and efficiency is so iportant right now to copanies. We have the assets to ake that happen." After the project announceent, when the caeras are turned off, is when Quick Start goes to work v.lith the Sense of Duty II Fort Gordon is not just the Ary's training center, but all the ilitary's training center for IT: says Walter Sprouse, executive director of the Developent Authority of Augusta-Richond County, also noting the base's core expertise in veterinary edicine. "On average there are about 130 people per onth who rotate out of Fort Gordon. Of that nuber, about half of the go hoe, and about half of the stay because there are eployent opportunities here." That, in a nutshell, is why Georgia's ilitary installations are a key eleent of the state's work-force infrastructure. One of the things we consistently hear fro eployers is that they love to hire people coing out of the ilitary," says Heidi Green, Georgia's coissioner of econoic developent. That affinity for forer ilitary land for ilitary spouses as well) has been a strong tool forthe Colubus area owing to the expanded ission at Fort Benning. As part of becoing the Ary s Maneuver Center of Excellence I MCOE), Fort Benning will welcoe $3.5 billion in investent; 30,000 ore people; 4,000 new houses and 900 replaced hotel roos. MCOE spokesperson Bridgett Siter told Site Selection the influx aounted to a trickle as of late 2009, but 'about the tie school lets out in 2011, that's when you're going to start seeing the population flood." Dobbins Air Force Base e filort McPherson.. Fort Gille Robins Air Force Base e Fort Benning e Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany e Georgia Military Bases e Fort Gordon Moody Air Force Base e Fort Stewart e Ary e Air Force e Marine Corps e Navy 802 NOVEMBER 2010 A SITE SELECTION INVESTMENT PROfiLE: GEORGIA

7 heavy lifting of process and organizational study. Quick Start staff go beyond rote functions to understand coplex operations, such as cell cultures in the biotech arena, all in an effort to break things down into clear, teachable for. At Kia's training center at its new a nuf ~ lc turin g and assebly coplex in vvest Point, Ga., Quick Start's advanced anufacturing tea developed a stairstep traini.ng strategy oving fro theoretical fundaentals such as electrical concepts to specirc operational details such as prograing electrical devices, then prograing the PLC's that control robotics. By integrating and structuring the training, Ki a has thus been able to axiize the nubers of people being trained effecti vely and quickly. Kia Motors Manuf~lcturin g Georgia's senior vice president called Quick Start's training "the new global benchark" for advanced autootive anufacturing. Quick Start has pursued siilar process-based projects with Dendreon, a biotech copany located in Union City just to the south of Atlanta; with longtie Georgia eployer and floor covering anufacturer Shaw Industries at a plant recoissioning in Calhoun; and with Efacec, which is now assebling electric power transforltlers in EfRngha County, north of Savannah, with the help of aniation produced by Quick Start that breaks down the assebly process. The agency's training assistance in such areas as icro-welding also helped convince 1T1edical device aker Angiodynaics to bring ore product lines to its plant in Manchester, south of Atlanta. And it's assisted NCR with wiring diagrarns for its ATM plant in Colubus. Most iportantly, Quick Start's support extends to sall-town expansions as well as big-city blockbusters. More Students, More Progras Georgia's counity and technical college syste, working through Quick Start and the state's Work Ready progra, Siultaneously forges strong individual skills, strong counities and stronger perforance fro the copanies sart enough to take advantage of what they have to offer. Across the board, the schools are seeing increased enrollent, reflecting a nationwide trend. And they are both consolidating and expandi.ng to rneet copany and work-force deands, including a new $1O.3-illion transportation, logistics and anufacturing center at the Acworth capus of Chattahoochee Technical College (CTC) north or Atlanta. That school in particular saw a 17- percent rise in enrollent at its seven capuses in [all 2010, after undergoing a erger of three institutions in suer Its newest capus will open in early 2011 in Canton. Its ost popular Certified to Help You Succeed Georgia's Certified Work Ready Counities deliver the talented w orkforce that business deands and the educational infrastructure to create a pipeline of future workers to drive econoic growth and success. Find out why Georgia is ready to work for you. Visit for ore inforation. capus is in Marietta, near the operational base of Lockheed.Martin. That's where the college recently renovated a for er transission shop adjacent to its capus to house a new intensive training course in aircraft structure for Lockheed. Successful students receive ManuJ ~lcttlrin g Skills Standards Council (MSSC) certircations in safety and quality. "vve just graduated our flrst class fro there, and only one did not get a job at Lockheed," says CTC spokesperson Rebecca Long of the new certirca- A SITE SELECTION INVESTMENT PROFILE: GEORGIA NOVEM BER

8 tion location. " vve're now funning t wo of those classes at the sae tie." Across towil, Nick Masino counts Gwinnett Tech alllong the fl agship technical colleges in the state, so popular in the idst of a popular suburban county that it had to turn away "6,000 people in the healt h scie nces," he says. Meanwhile, it's not turning away growth in such areas as digital gae developent, data center professional certification (Atlanta has quietly becoe a data center hub) and photovoltaic solar anufacturing, which involved the school's close coopera tion with Suniva, a solar copany that located its headquarte rs in Gwinnett County's Technology Park in Why Work Ready Works CTC, Gwinnett Tech and the state's other counity and technical colleges serve as the gateway for the Georgia Certified Work Ready Counities _ Certified Work Ready Counities Achieved Certificate Goals Certified Work Ready Counities In-Progress vvork Ready progra, which serves individuals, copanies and counities with va rious skills certification progras based 0 11 the \i\torkkeys assesse nts developed by ACT, Inc. Sixteen new counties achieved the designation in Septe n1- ber, not long afte r the agency launched vvork Heady Con nect, the state's new onl ine eployent arketplace. Dr. Randall "Randy" Peters, newly in- We have a work force that is fantastic and the bulk of the are local. - Larry Brown, Manager of Huan Resources, Mitsubishi Power Systes Aericas' Savannah Machinery Works stalled this hll1 as president of the newly consolidated Southe rn Crescent Technical College south of Atlanta, previously served as president of Heart of Georgia Technical College in Dubli n. He says his forer institution began by conducting Work Ready assessents of individuals, then branched out to copanies. One, a lighting copany in Cochran, iediately saw its eployee turnover decline by a double-digit percentage. Then the Best Buy Southeast di stribution cente r in Dublin found out about the progra, says Pete rs, "and started very quckly thereafter using the Work Ready assessent not only as an eployee selection tool, but as a consideration for eployee prootions." Peters says Heart of Georgia also worked with Quick Start to help Best Buy, recreating at the school's confe r ence center the rack syste used in a Best Buy warehouse. "They knew how to ake it work the day they opened the doors," he says. "You can't ove restiate the ipact 0 11 the botto line for a copany." Last but not least, says Peters, Pa."ker Aerospace, which akes guidance asseblies for issiles in Dubli n, has begun using the profiles. "Their plant anager, Phil Dowd, got so excited about what we were doing with \i\tork Ready, he's now the chai r of a steering coittee at the technical college working on a career acadey." The newest to locate in Dublin is Gerrnan fir Mage Solar, which is investing 830 illion and creating 350 jobs at its new North Aerican headquarters and solar panel anul~lctu r ing operation. Peters says another still undecided international copany has visited Dublin si nce, precisely because Mage has located there. \ivhile the Heart of Georgia region is focused on advanced anufacturing, Peters says his new institution's region ay be pursuing a special focu s on logistics. He says creating a vvork Ready Region can be a catalyst. "It allows LIS to bring in siilar industries around a table: As soon as those people start havi ng lunch together, rubbing elbows, hearing briefings, a synergy starts to take place. Once those plant anagers see the value, and the HH anagers start seeing the savings, it pretty uch grows itself" "We also o rie r a job profile, a job analysis syste created by ACT as a counterpart to the assessents," says C hris Bauco, business develope nt anage r for the Governor's Office of vvorkforce Developent. "vve eet with job incubents at copanies, and 804 NOV EMBER 2010 A SITE SE LECTION INVESTMENT PROfi LE: GEORGIA

9 FACT: Georgia's HOPE (Helping Outstanding Pupils Educationally) Scholarship progra, created in 1993 and funded by Geo rgia's lottery, rewa rd s in-state students w ho aintain a "B" grade average w ith full tuition, approved andatory fees (such as health and stu dent activity fees). and a $150 per seester book allowance for study at any of the state's public higher education institutions. At private colleges, the HOPE Scholarship provides $4,664 per acadeic year. " I was with a copany in Te xas, we had an hour, and we gottothe HOPE slide," re count s Georgia Econoic Developent Coissio ner Heidi Green. " For t he next 30 inutes, we answered questions about the HOPE Scholarship. The copany was floored by this concept. It is a real asset to this state. We don't lose our best and brightest. They stay here, and we get the opportunity to put the in our w ork force." learn how these foundational skills can apply to a specific job. This allows larger copanies to use a content-validated pre-screening syste for their eployees. They love it: ' Debra Lyons, director of the Governor's Office of \>Vorkforce Developent, says Georgia vvork Ready has certified over 150,000 people in two years, or soe 12 pe rce nt of the national total. It gives soe 7,000 assessents a onth. More than 540 copa nies are li sted on the Georgia Work Ready "Veb site as preferring or requiri ng the certircate as part of their hiring process. "For the person who is \ivork Ready certiiled, we're giving the conrde nce," says Lyons. "vve cannot build a skilled work force unless the people who are doing the work understand their skills, and relative to a job. That's the ost powerful thing we are doing." vvork Ready-savvy operations in Georgia are telling their hoe orates about it, siultaneously helping the nr conside r siilar changes in other locations, and helping that FIr see its Georgia site as a dear leade r. Bridging the Talent Gap for Copanies \~lork Ready has certainly done its work in Middle Georgia. The e nd of suer brought ultiple projects to the Macon-Bibb County re- "I tell everyone I can at any opportunity I get - had it not been for Ouick Start, we would never have been able to get our facility off the ground," says Bruce Malov, director of operations for Angiodynaics in Manchester, Ga. "When we oved the product here, we were seeing 50-percent yields on lots. Every device we lose can ean hundreds of dollars, which could add up to thousands per lot. Now we have 95 to 97 percent vields, and the training is what helped us get over the top." GwinnettChaber E C ON O M I C DE... ELOPMENT success I lives here gwlnnett county georgla re.co 6500 Sugarloaf Parkway Duluth. Geo(Qla gwjnnettchaber.orglecds1aff A SITE SELECTION INVESTMENT PROFILE: GEORGIA NOVEM BER

10 gion, with announceents by aerospace parts aker.make Manufacturing, TIMCO Aviation Services (130 jobs) and Pirst Quality (150 jobs, 8200 illion investent). The First Quality expansion will feature a new 835-illion diaper anufacturing plant, as well as a new wave of high-tech equipent. "Their site here in Macon was the first vvork Ready certified site in the state, baek in 2000," says Pat Topping CEeD, senior vice president of the Macon Econoic Developent Coission. "The forer plant anager had been transferred to a plant in Pennsylvania. He ade the case that they needed to look at doing their expansion in Macon because of the work force. \Vithout that support fro hi they would have been breaking ground in Pennsylvania." Topping says First Quality anagers were able to deonstrate substantial savings to their botto line as a result ofvvork Ready: Lower waste, higher productivity, and a shorter training cycle when they started new product lines or hired new people. "All of their eployees were vvork Heady certi fied," he says, but even when soe had a gold-level certification, "they all wanted to get the next level. The work force was actively involved in trying to iprove their skills." TIMCO has been no less pleased with the results it's seen. "vve are proud of the quality of services our tea has delivered at our Macon, Georgia, location for the past twelve years, and our decision to invest in wide- IB World Schools Proliferate In the Peach State The spreading International Baccalaureate school oveent, which ephasizes "world-indedness," a positive, high-quality education, foreign language astery and counity service, got its start in 1968 because of deand fro corporate executives abroad. Today, says IB spokesperson Sandra Coyle, "We're hearing fro ore corporations and copanies that they're looking for ore of those skills students acquire through lb." The IB network now counts 3,070 schools in its rapidly growing roster, including 1,199 in the United States and 58 in Georgia, placing the state at No, 7 in Ihe nalion. Technical College Syste of Georgia Georgia Northwestern - * Nortflweste I:apus Nortfl Georgia I:hanabooche * Technical I:ollege- Georgia Nortflwestern Appalachian I:apus Lanier I:hatlahoochee * - Nortll Metro I:epus Gwinnetl Technic ~ ll:ollege Athens I:hanahoochee Technicall:ullege. OeKalb Technical College Georgia. Atlanta Technical College Colubus Technicall:Dllege Bainbridge I:ollego Southern I:restent Technical College Flint RiYer I:apus * SOlllhe I:restent South Georghl Technical College Albany I:entral Georgia Technicall:Dllege Middle Georgia Moultrie Technicall:ollego Southwest Georgia body capability will position Macon as a viable source for coercial aircraft aintenance for any years to coe," said Kevin Carter, who along with ROll Utecht shares the CEO office for TIM CO. Georgia ranks eighth aong U.S. states for aviation industry eployent, with ore than 80,000 eployees in ore than 500 operations. The state's totaj aviation exports worldwide topped 83.4 billion in Located on the capus of the Middle Ceorgia Regional Airport, TIMCO's Macon coplex includes two hangars, with capacity for three siultaneous lines of work. Not fa r away, Bobardier in January announced it would take over the ASA MHO operation and increase its payroll to 180 echanics. Topping says the quality of service TIMCO was seeing fro its Macon site allowed it to copete successfully against sites in Alabaa and South Aerica for this latest package of work. Behind the success lies a web of teawork involving Quick Start, the Georgia Dept. of Labor, the Georgia Center Hurt of Georgia WiregraS$ Georgia - East Central Capus Technical College Main Capus University Syste College with Technical Division * Satellite Capus of Technical College Augusta. Sandersville Southeastern * Sweinslloro Capus Ogeechee SuLllheastern Technical College * Altafllilha Tecbnical College WireglaSl Georgia OkefenGkee Tathnital College ofinnovation for Aerospace and the area's two tech schools, Central Georgia Technical College ancl rvliddle Georgia Technical College. As of the end of July, Topping says the Macon etro area had nearly 3,000 people who had been assessed in the \~Jork Ready progra, and he says the counity is aking a strong push to be Work Ready Certi fi ed. "Even in this tough econoy, there are still skills and skill levels that people are having difficulty finding," says Topping. "Once we get further into the \Nork Ready progra, it will help us quantify to prospects and existing industries what the wo rk force looks like." Topping says Central Georgia Technical College has an enrollent of 11,000, one of the state's largest, and is bursting at the seas. Aong its new progras is a hybrid vehicle anufacturing technician certification, conducted via the National Alternative Fuel Training Consortiu. The area is also fortunate to have both Mercer Uni versity and Macon State 806 NOVEMB ER 2010 A SITE SELECTION INVESTMENT PROfILE: GEORGIA

11 University, both of which often accopany Topping's tea when talking to prospective copanies. "Yesterday \ve had the dean of the engineering school at Mercer with us to talk to a prospect," says Topping. "The copany's project tea was led by a VP of engineering, so they were able to talk the sae language." Capitalizing on Knowledge July 2010 saw the beginning of 12 onths of intensive executive leadership developent fo r 380 executives selected by NCR. Its provision was just another part of Georgia's coprehensive incentive package. "vve put together a progra with Georgia State, the University of Georgia and Georgia Tech," says Econoic Developent Coissioner Heidi Green. "People think about the university syste on the R&D side, but we went a step further on the leadership training. That's an area that ost copanies probably don't reali ze we can help the with." The 35-capus University Sys te of Georgia (USG) has supported copany projects since 1996 with a unique progra called [CAPP (Intellectual Capital Partnership Progra). Though it has seen its funding cut in recent years, with soe projects now Funded directly Go to the Head of the Class Since the school year, Georgia has seen a 97-percent increase in students scoring a 3, 4 or 5 on Advanced Placeent exas, copared to a 52-percent increase nationwide. The six-yeartrend also shows Georgia has experienced a 106 percent increase in the nuber of AP public school test-takers, copared to a 56 percent increase nationwide. NCR's experience with Georgia's range of work-force and training tools has included leadership training (pictured) through the ICAPP progra and assistance in assebly process design for the copany's kiosk products at a new plant in Colubus. through the Governor's office, its investents have shown a handsoe return. A 2003 report showed ore than a 12-to-l return for the state on ICAPP investents. Fro FY 2003 to FY 2008, ICAPP leveraged nearly $16 illion in private investent. The progra worked with NC B before, in 2002, when the copany had a steady need to update its kiosk and POS software for clients. Through ICAPP, NC B donated that software to Georgia Southern University in Statesboro and Georgia Southwestern State Uni versity in Aericus, so they could get the contracts with NCR or their clients to do the updating and custoization work. "Students were getting great experience, they were being paid, and the school \vas getting revenue," says Terry Durden, assistant vice chancellor of the University Syste's Office of Econoic Developent. ICAPP was born in Colubus when credit card processor Total Systes (TSYS) needed to expand. and couldn't find colleges still teaching the Cobol coputer language. Thanks in part to ICAPP. TSYS stayed in Colubus, and created thousands of jobs in the late 1990s. ICAPP juped in again to assist another Colubus ainstay, Afiac, with IT needs. And its support for NC R in Colubus has gone beyond leadership training, with Georgia Tech faculty and students assisting with systes analysis and coputer odeling and siulation for the plant's production line. The Colubus connection extends through Colubus State Uni versity, where a graduate certification progra in coputer odeling and siulation has been created in order to help eet the explosion of'deand coing fro the expanding Fort Benning and its cluster of contractors. In response to bioscience industry requests, ICAPP funded the creation of th ree graduate progras in regul atory science and clinical trials at the Uni versity of Georgia's College of Pharacy. Since January 2006, 144 students fro 33 Georgia copanies and bioedical institutions (and fou r fro out-or-state) have enrolled in olle of the progras. And when General Electric decided to 10- cate its sart grid research center in Atlanta, it provided toward enhancing an existing professional aster's in applied syste s engineering at Georgia Tech, with a curriculu focused on sart grid technologies. At the state's request, ICAPP also contributed to the attraction of the S70-illioll, 300-job Dendreoll biotech coplex in Union City, providing a report on 14 different life sciences progras at eight Atlanta-area schools, and researching graduates across the USC in a nuber of relevant di SCiplines. Dendreon was just one of the 42 econoic developent projects that ICAPP worked in In October, the USG received the Governor's Custoer Service Agency/ Institution of the Year Award. High Quality, Low Cost The Augusta area receives a substantial econoic benefit fro the presence of the Medical College of Georgia (MCG) and Augusta State University. Together, these two institutions have a S1.2-billion econoic ipact on the Augusta econoy and produce 11,176 jobs. That's a bit ore substantial than the SIlO-illion ipact fro the annual Masters Tournaent. Life sciences is one 01" the area's target industries, in part because of the presence of MCG, 11 hospitals and two business incubators, says \i\'alter Sprouse, executive director of the Developent Authority of Augusta-Richond County. Aviation, IT and data centers are other strong targets, as is the ilitary (thanks to the presence of Fort Gordon). How strong is the available work force? As ADP continues to expand, says Sprouse, A SITE SELECTION INVESTMENT PROFILE: GEORGIA NOVEM BER

12 Dalton Stale Colil ge Oalilin State University Syste of Georgia Georgia Highlands College itj. Roe North Georgia College & Stata Uninrsity Oahlonega Gainesville Stale College 1lI Gainesville Unive rsity of Georgia JI. Athens Kennesaw State Unl versltv honllsilw Geolgia Gwinnett College SQulllern Polytechnic Geolgia Perieter lawrenceville State University ld. College Mariena Decatur Georgia Inslitllle Georgia Stale University 1ft of T:~~~~!Ogy AtJanlB UnintSity of Atlanta Metropolitan el S U. WIII1 Gllorgia Colle!!, ilyton tale verslty Carrollton Atlanta Morrow Gonion College Barnesville Macon State University Jb. Milcon ld. Research Universities Jb. Regional Universities.dI. Slate Universities State Colieges ilj. Two Year Colleges J1J. Research Unit Augusta State University Augusla ID. Medical Coilege of Georgia Au&ustil Georgil College &0 III Stilte University Milledgeville Fort Valley State University Colubus Stilte University 111. FortValiev Colubus Middle Georgia College Cochran Georgia Southweste State University Aericus Darton College Albany 111 Bainbridgl College Bainbridge Albany Stilte University Albany he was told that soe 1,500 applicants appl ied for the ost recent wave of 60 hires, which brought the A DP payroll in Augusta to approxiately 700, on its way to 1,000 eventually. According to ADP, says Sprouse, about 1,000 of those applicants were qualified. "Augusta is totally surrounded by excellent sources of available workers, trained in a variety of technical professions," says Sprouse, citing the nuclear technology fi eld that's so iportant to the Savannah River Site just across the river in South Caroli na as well as the expanding nuclear power plant at Georgia Power's Plant Vogtle. "Plus we have the Hull School or Business at Augusta State University." Augusta Technical College plays a ajor role too, as it did in working with Quick Start in getting a new Te]eperforance custoer service faci lity up and running last year. "Seven onths after we an nounced," says Sprouse, "1 got a call fro the and they said, '\ ivalter, we want you to Abraha Baldwin Agricullural College lilian Valdosta State University Valdastil Sollth Gaorgia College Douglas 808 NOVEMB ER 2010 A SITE SELECTION INVESTMENT PROfiLE: GEORGIA Waycrlss College Waycross Ent Georgia College III Swainsburo Georgil Sallthe University Statesboro know we're going to hire about another 200 people.''' The fir also said it was considering closing another f ~lc ility and oving the work to Augusta, Sprouse says, because of the superior work force. "Vork force quality and the lower cost of living (housing is 38 percent of the national average) also helped KeUogg decided to expand the forer Keebler plant in Augusta for the second tie in fou r years, this tie with a $30-illion, 225-job investent. "It's one of the ost efficient plants in their entire syste," says Sprouse. Sprouse says that out of all the technical colleges in the state, Augusta's is the third largest. "However, they graduate ore people than anybody That one fact eans a lot. It eans the people going through the technical college syste in Richond County stick with it, have that drive, and want to finish thei r degree. "] tell that to industrial prospects all the tie," he says, "and you see their eyes light lip." The eyes of talented Georgians are lighting up too, thanks to the state's growing network of global connections. "The ost exciting thing about Georgia's proinence on the international stage is the ability for our hornegrown talent to stay here, close to faily, and have the sae opportunities that are available anywhere," says Gov. Perdue. "The econoic downturn notwithstanding, we are worki ng hard to ensure we have those opportunities for our citizens to thrive. ]1" they do well, so will we." <' SEE THE SITES Georgia Quick Stt Georgia Work Ready Metro AthUlta Chaber Gwinnett Chaber of Coerce Wtvw.gwinnet.tc!whet:org Augusta Econoic Developent Authodty Greater Colubus Chaber! The Valley Partnership Macon Econoic Developent Coission LVww.aconworks.co Savannah Econoic Developent AuthoIity org Georgia Dept. of Labor Technical College Syste ofceorgia University Syste of Georgia intellectual Capital Ptnership Progra LVww.icapp.org GeOYBia USA This Investent Profile of Georgia was prepared underthe auspices of the Georgia Departent of Econoic Developent. For ore inforation, visit Write in #80 for free info.