EDITORIAL: Publishing milestone yields thoughts on regional economic growth
By Bill Settlemyer
Executive Publisher
This month marks the beginning of our 10th year of publishing the Business Journal, so it strikes me as an appropriate time for reflection, both on the success of this particular business venture and the economic growth of the Charleston region.
First, a brief history. In 1995 I founded (and still own) the company that publishes the paper. It was a prototypical small business startup with meager funding.
The first five years were tough, financially and otherwise. And then, just about the time we were beginning to get some traction, the 2001 recession arrived. To my relief and surprise, however, we continued to grow right through the recession and began to turn the corner in terms of profitability. In the summer of 2002 we entered a period of rapid growth that continues to this day.
In good company…
During the 10 years we’ve been covering the local business scene, we’ve had the pleasure of reporting on many entrepreneurial success stories that make our own achievements pale by comparison. That, of course, is something to celebrate, not bemoan, because the success of those companies underpins our own success.
Since 1999 our Roaring 20 event has recognized the region’s fastest growing companies, marking the success of such standouts as Blackbaud, Automated Trading Desk, Sticky Fingers Restaurant Group, First Federal of Charleston, Coastal Glass Distributor and many others.
The success of each of these businesses, and our own, is driven by people, ideas, commitment and integrity. People, because in the end human capital is the only capital that matters. Ideas, because you have to recognize opportunity, understand how to pursue it and how to adjust your tactics and strategy to maximize success. Commitment, because there are few overnight successes in business. Sheer persistence is a fundamental requirement, especially for entrepreneurial startups. And finally, integrity, because if you are not true to yourself and others, the chances are good that you and your business will ultimately stumble and fall.
Did I mention luck? Luck is always a good ally, but I also agree with the saying that “people who work harder tend to have more luck.”
Can the Charleston region “get lucky?”
When it comes to regional economic development, are we working hard enough to “get lucky?”
Well, for starters, our luck’s been pretty good. In 1988 we got hammered by Hurricane Hugo. Bad luck, of course, yet the post-disaster reconstruction triggered a building boom that continues to this day.
We lost the Navy base and shipyard in 1994, but in 1995 the Nucor Steel announcement kicked off a fast-paced string of economic development announcements that triggered what may well have been the fastest growth in the region’s history.
Since the 2001 recession and the trauma of 9/11, we’ve experienced some of the economic malaise and stagnation that affected the nation, but we’ve fared better than many other regions, and the current economic picture here looks pretty good.
We didn’t attract AirTran to help lower airfares, but we did get Independence Air, and I expect we’ll see more low fare carriers enter our market over the next several years.
So, yes, you could say we’ve been lucky here in the Lowcountry, but I also think there is currently a sense of frustration and a belief that we can, and should, do better in our economic development efforts.
From good to great?
I’ve written in previous columns about Jim Collins’ book Good to Great, in which he describes how some companies quietly lay the foundation for rapid growth over a period of years and then, at some point, the fruits of those efforts seem to kick in all at once, producing growth that far outstrips their peers in their industry.
I think there’s a chance (a hope, at least) that our region is engaging in some of that foundation building work right now, with big payoffs not far down the road. Here are some of the bright spots.
– We’ve identified and reached consensus on the fundamental underpinnings of growth: Education improvement, urban planning, entrepreneurial support systems, a more diverse and open leadership structure for economic development and better coordination in branding our region and reaching the rest of the nation and the world with our message.
– The Charleston County School District has hired a first class chief executive in Dr. Maria Goodloe. Dr. Goodloe has presented and is preparing to execute a carefully designed plan to produce real change in the performance of Charleston County’s public schools. With adequate support from the school board and the community, look for more good news on this front.
– The Lowcountry Graduate Center and its tireless director Skip Godow are making progress in realizing the goal of offering the graduate programs that working professionals in the region need to continue their education and maintain their skills and credentials.
– The passage of the Life Sciences Act by the state legislature and the pact announced earlier this year between MUSC, USC and two upstate hospital systems to support expanded medical research is a very positive sign, both for the state and our region.
– ThinkTEC, the group focused on technology development in the region, continues to promote some modest but well-targeted programs designed to support technology-oriented entrepreneurs. There is increasing cooperation and communication between ThinkTEC and others in the region trying to push for knowledge-based economic development.
– Conversations are taking place between groups focused on growth management, environmental protection and economic development. People are beginning to see that these goals can be compatible and even reinforcing.
The Noisette project in North Charleston and efforts to redefine and redevelop Charleston’s Neck area continue to move forward, each holding great promise for promoting the “Smart Growth” agenda in the region.
We are by no means where I think we need to be in our efforts to increase the prosperity of our citizens and balance economic growth and the preservation of our quality of life. As we assess our progress, let’s remember that the keys to success are people, ideas, commitment and integrity. If we keep our eyes on the prize, we’ll get there.
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