Greater Charlotte Biz 2010.04

Hickory Construction Company

•

Hilldrup Moving & Storage

•

UNC Charlotte EPIC

•

Ivey Exterminating

april 2010

!""#$%%&'(

$%')*+ Iverify.us is a Capable Guardian of People and Place

Mike May President and CEO Iverify.us Inc.

CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED 5601 77 Center Dr., Ste. 250, Charlotte, N.C. 28217

PRSRT STD U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 505 Charlotte, NC

YOU FIRST. THE TECHNOLOGY FOLLOWS. At Time Warner Cable Business Class, we take a somewhat atypical approach. First we learn all about your business. Once we truly understand how you work, we develop a best-in-class technology solution to help you be more efficient. Our goal is to keep your business up and running, and you focused on running it. Call us today at 1.877.615.4332. Technology is best when it meets your needs.

1.877.615.4332 | TWCBC.COM

Internet | Phone | Cable TV | Ethernet Products and services not available in all areas. Some restrictions apply.

Time Warner Cable Business Class is a trademark of Time Warner Inc. Used under license. Š 2010 Time Warner Cable, Inc. All rights reserved.

in this issue

f

e

a

t

22

u

s

cover story

Mike May has combined his policeman’s knowledge of crime-fighting tactics and surveillance, with cutting-edge technology, to turn Iverify into a premier security service for retail, banking and public-utility properties. Iverify couples the sophisticated technology of remote video and audio surveillance, with the analytical skill and quick response of human monitoring, as a capable gaurdian for real-time protection. !Lenoir Rhyne Living-Learning Center

!Piedmont Cardiology Center

Hickory Construction Company “This is not just a business; it’s a family,” says Mark Baucom.

Although he admits it’s a hard profession, he says the satisfaction comes in making a difference— building tangible structures that will provide lasting benefits to the community for generations. “It means people can trust us.”

2

e

Iverify.us

16

28

r

!"#$ ap r i l 2 0 1 0

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

!The Ramble Clubhouse

!The Ramble Clubhouse

!Abernathy Laurels Tower

!Belk Cannon Building Gaston College

!Billy Graham Training Center

!ASU Boiler Plant

!Walnut Cove

!Hickory Police Department

!Hickory Municipal Building

16

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

28

UNC Charlotte EPIC

The new Energy Production and Infrastructure Center is being constructed to unite industry and education to help address a critical shortage in the intellectual capital necessary to modernize current energy production operations and facilitate the development of alternative energy sources.

34

Hilldrup Moving & Storage

Since 1903, extraordinary service and customer care have been this company’s defining qualities.

In addition to its full spectrum of moving capabilities, it also offers climate- and humidity-controlled storage for local companies. It is committed to employees as well as the community.

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

departments publisher’spost

4

legalbiz

5

Transforming the Business of Law to Meet the Needs of Business

webbiz

7

Discerning Distinct Digital Directions

bizfigures

9

Smart Salvos, Select Strategies and Succinct Solutions

employersbiz

bizoutlook

42

Regional Economic Analyses and Forecasts

biznetwork

on the cover:

43

Hickory Construction Company

•

Hilldrup Moving & Storage

•

UNC Charlotte EPIC

•

Ivey Exterminating

april 2010

Mike May President and CEO Iverify.us Inc.

!""#$%%&'(

38

$%')*+ Iverify.us is a Capable Guardian of People and Place

Ivey Exterminating

Ten minutes listening to Marty Ivey talk about a termite, and you’ll understand that his company’s expertise in exterminating is founded in genuine admiration, a keen understanding of the enemy, and a passion for the lessons that enemy (the bug) can teach us about the world we live in.

14

Legislative and Regulatory Highlights for Area Employers

Photography by Wayne Morris

Mike May President and CEO Iverify.us Inc.

YEARS

2000 - 2010

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

[publisher’spost] 704-676-5850

Woogling…Wooing Google Our Way “Imagine sitting in a rural health clinic, streaming three-dimensional medical imaging over the Web, and discussing a unique condition with a specialist in New York. Or downloading a high-definition, full-length feature film in less than five minutes. Or collaborating with classmates around the world while watching live 3D video of a university lecture. Universal, ultra high-speed Internet access will make all this, and more possible.”

This is how Google describes its Google Fiber for Communities iniJohn Paul Galles tiative that it hopes will make Internet access better and faster for everyone. Google is planning to build, and test ultra-high speed broadband networks in a small number of trial locations across the country that will deliver Internet speeds more than 100 times faster than what most Americans have access to today, with 1 gigabit per second fiber-to-thehome connections, at a competitive rate, using a variety of providers.

As a first step, they’ve put out a Request for Information to identify interested communities of between 50,000 and 500,000 people, welcoming responses from local government and members of the public.

They would like to see what developers and users can do with ultra high speeds—whether it’s creating new bandwidth-intensive “killer apps” and services or uses not yet imagined. They also want to learn new deployment techniques, testing ways to build fiber networks and best practices for operation. They promise to operate in an “open access” network—open, non-discriminatory and transparent—with multiple service providers.

Nationwide the attempts to woo Google have gone over-the-top. The mayor of Duluth, Minn., threw himself into the icy waters of Lake Superior. The mayor of Sarasota, Fla., immersed himself in a shark-filled tank. The mayor of Wilmington, N.C., has volunteered to jump out of an airplane.

The mayor of Topeka, Kan., has renamed the city Google for the month of March. Duluth has gone even further and videotaped a mock press conference offering to name every male born in the town Google Fiber and enlisted comedian Al Franken to make a humorous video.

Madison, Wis., created a “Google Fiber” ice cream flavor—vanilla ice cream with granola and M&Ms matching Google’s logo.

Cities across the nation have gathered en masse to garner the attention of Google. It’s given a whole new meaning to “March Madness,” and done an impressive job of advertising Google’s fiber network. [Not at their expense; did you notice that?]

In the greater Charlotte region, Hickory and Lenoir have teamed up to make a pitch for Google’s super fast fiber network. Their budget for wooing Google is $40,000; the estimated price tag for the Google investment is at $750 million to serve one city. Given the collapse of the furniture and textile industries, Hickory and Lenoir view it as an opportunity to transform their economies.

Gastonia and Mooresville have thrown their hats in the ring as well. Our region has competition from other cities in the Carolinas including: Durham, Chapel Hill-Carrboro, Raleigh, Greensboro, Asheville, Winston-Salem and Greenville, S.C., all performing antics of one sort or another.

Charlotte itself rejected the idea of vying for Google fiber because “it wouldn’t likely be picked.” Although Charlotte broadly defined is above the 500,000 population limit, rather than summarily reject participation, it might have been wiser to narrow its defined area and take a stab at the fiber offering.

It is surprising that the Charlotte Regional Partnership has not taken the lead to coalesce regional resources behind the interested cities or otherwise offer assistance or resources. With the Google and Apple facilities already in the N.C. Data Center Corridor, any Google fiber location proximate to Charlotte would really make the entire region a cyber powerhouse. We can only hope that the Partnership is supportive of the Hickory/Lenoir, Gastonia and Mooresville proposals or will become so.

Opportunities like this Google fiber initiative are crucial to support the growth of new businesses and the recovery of existing businesses in our community, as well as the attraction of new businesses to our region. It truly would be a blood infusion to so many of our local economies. biz

Let me know what you think - jgalles@greatercharlottebiz.com

April 2010 Volume 11 • Issue 04 Publisher John Paul Galles x102 jgalles@greatercharlottebiz.com

Associate Publisher/Editor Maryl A. Lane x104 mlane@greatercharlottebiz.com

Creative Director Trevor Adams x103 tadams@greatercharlottebiz.com

Account Executives sales@greatercharlottebiz.com Marsha Bradford x106 Dave Cartwright x107 Bradley Jackson x107 Sandra Ledbetter x106

Contributing Writers Ellison Clary Zenda Douglas Heather Head Casey Jacobus

Contributing Photographers Wayne Morris Richard Ivey Trevor Adams Galles Communications Group, Inc. 5601 77 Center Drive • Suite 250 Charlotte, NC 28217-0737 704-676-5850 Phone • 704-676-5853 Fax www.greatercharlottebiz.com • Press releases and other news-related information: editor@greatercharlottebiz.com.

• Editorial: mlane@greatercharlottebiz.com.

• Advertising: jgalles@greatercharlottebiz.com.

• Subscription inquiries or change of address: subscriptions@greatercharlottebiz.com.

• Other inquiries: please call or fax at the numbers above or visit our Web site www.greatercharlottebiz.com. © Copyright 2010 by Galles Communications Group, Inc. All rights reserved. The information contained herein has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. However, Galles Communications Group, Inc. makes no warranty to the accuracy or reliability of this information. Products named in these pages are trade names or trademarks of their respective companies. Views expressed herein are not necessarily those of Greater Charlotte Biz or Galles Communications Group, Inc. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission from the publisher. For reprints call 704-676-5850 x102.

Greater Charlotte Biz (ISSN 1554-6551) is published monthly by Galles Communications Group, Inc., 5601 77 Center Dr., Ste. 250, Charlotte, NC 28217-0737. Telephone: 704-676-5850. Fax: 704-676-5853. Subscription rate is $24 for one year. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Greater Charlotte Biz, 5601 77 Center Dr., Ste. 250, Charlotte, NC 28217-0737.

*Google is a registered trademark of Google Inc.

4

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

Wishart Norris Henninger & Pittman

Wishart, Norris, Henninger & Pittman, P.A.

AT T O R N E Y S AT L AW

[legalbiz]

Transforming the Business of Law to Meet the Needs of Business

!Senate Jobs Bill In March, Congress moved forward to provide two incentives for employers to hire new employees. The first incentive is a “get out of tax free” card for the employer portion of payroll taxes. If an employer hires a “qualified individual” after February 3, 2010, and before January 1, 2011, that employer will not have to pay a certain amount of the employer portion of federal payroll taxes from the date this incentive becomes law through the end of 2011.

A “qualified individual” is a new employee hired after February 3, 2010, who: " has not worked more than 40 hours during the 60 days prior to being hired by the employer; " has not been hired to replace another employee unless that employee voluntarily quit or was fired for cause; and " is not related to the employer.

These standards are not going to be easy to meet for many employers.

The second incentive provides a tax credit for employers that retain a “qualified individual” as defined above for the “payroll tax holiday.” The employer must retain the qualified individual for at least 52 weeks and pay such person compensation during the last 26 weeks he or she is employed that is at least 80 percent of the compensation paid to such individual during his or her first 26 weeks of employment.

Meeting these criteria would provide you with a $1,000 increase in your “general business credit.”

Another benefit proposed in this legislation is a continuation of the Section 179 expense limit at $250,000 for 2010 instead of $134,000.

»The Case of the Stolen Wages Miami Dade County in Florida now prohibits “wage theft.” Wage theft occurs when employers do not pay their employees within a reasonable time. This law sounds like the North Carolina Wage and Hour Act in how it is attempting to protect employees’ rights to get paid. However, there is one critical difference. In Miami Dade County, a reasonable time is 14 days from the date the employee does the work, and it is not based on what your traditional, formerly legal payroll practices were. This means that employers in that county have

to pay an employee his or her wages due for work done each day within 14 days of that day. You can get written agreements with your employees to extend the 14 day period to 30 days, if the employee agrees.

This law means that businesses that operate there are having to revise their payroll periods and practices to comply with this law. This law also shows how a county can decide to take actions to protect employees’ rights that are much stricter than the state law in effect.

Can They?

!Creditors Can’t Take Away My IRA,

According to a Bankruptcy Court, sometimes they can. Traditionally, money and investments invested in an Individual Retirement Account, 401(k) Plan or other qualified plan are exempt from the claims of your creditors in bankruptcy. However, a Bankruptcy Court in Texas has recently decided that a retirement account you inherited (not created and maintained by you) does not have that same protection. The basis of that decision comes from the account not being your retirement account. The timing and availability of distributions from an inherited IRA are not based on the new beneficiary reaching retirement age. Also, the tax laws applying to an inherited IRA are different than the laws applying to an IRA you create with your own funds.

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

!When It’s Not Age Discrimination The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has just released proposed regulations to clarify a defense that employers have to age discrimination claims. The defense centers on whether “reasonable factors other than age” were used to evaluate employees. The EEOC has proposed a “facts and circumstances test” where an employer must show that it “acted prudently in light of those facts.”

The rule would require that the decision making process be reasonably designed and administered to achieve a legitimate business purpose. This rule covers both what the written process says as well as how you implement it. Training your supervisors how to implement the process and make decisions fairly, accurately and consistently are extremely important.

A determination of “reasonableness” considers: • is the decision making process a common business practice; • did the employer take steps to assess and lessen the adverse impact on older employees; • is the factor related to the employer’s expressly stated business goals; • is the factor defined accurately; • how severely does the factor impact older workers and how is the employer addressing that impact; and • why did the employer select the option it did versus other options.

The process must be based on “objective, non-age factors.” Points to consider here are: • whether supervisors have unchecked discretion to assess employees subjectively; • the extent supervisors are asked to evaluate employees on factors that are subject to age-based stereotyping; and • the training supervisors were given on how to apply the factors and avoid discrimination.

These considerations are only being proposed at this point.

They do not represent the “final say” of the EEOC. At the end of the day, you should have already been doing what has been proposed.

You must evaluate employees fairly on criteria that have a legitimate business purpose, and you must train the people performing the evaluations on how to complete evaluations fairly, accurately, and without

discrimination or stereotyping. ~Eric Bass

Content provided by Wishart, Norris, Henninger & Pittman, P.A., which partners with owners of closely-held businesses to provide comprehensive legal services in all areas of business, tax, estate planning, succession planning, purchases and sales of businesses, real estate, family law, and litigation. For more information, contact Robert Norris at 704-364-0010 or visit www.wnhplaw.com.

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

5

.

UNIFY YOUR

No Matter Where You Are or What Device You Use, It's Just Like Being There!

COMMUNICATIONS

TO CONNECT SEAMLESSLY

Voice • Video • Data

Making IT Work!

962 5- D So u t h ern Pin e B lv d . • Cha rl ot te , NC 28 2 73 P h on e: 704. 831. 2 50 0 • To ll F r e e : 866. 70 8 .0 8 8 6

! " # $ % & '(' ) * $ + ! '(' , - & - % "

w w w. a t - n e t . n e t

»

CC Communications

[webbiz]

Discerning Distinct Digital Directions

!Pay-Per-Click Advertising Secrets With the economy improving, it is important to get your business out in front of the competition as quickly as possible. One of the fastest and most cost-efficient ways to produce new sales is through “pay-per-click” advertising (PPC). While a PPC campaign does not replace the need for ongoing search engine optimization (SEO), it can provide an immediate boost for your call-to-action initiatives.

If you have experimented with such services as Google AdWords, Bing and Yahoo Search, you already know that an initial PPC campaign on your own can be a hit-or-miss experience. What are some of the secrets the pros use to accelerate their pay-per-click results? Think “Quick Click.”

Build Immediacy Into Your Ad Message… Give the customer a compelling reason to click on your specific ad listing right away, before they get distracted by other ad postings. Consider prompts such as: “Time is running out…” “Free Trial Available Today…” “Limited Time Offer...” “An Expert is Online Now to Answer Your Questions…” “Click For Immediate Assistance…”

The “Key” to Selecting Effective Keywords… Don’t waste time or money purchasing overly broad phrases. Instead, narrow your word choice to very specific product solutions. Longer word combinations tend to offer greater control over ad placement and can improve productive exposure to more qualified prospects. Limit ad posting to exact geographic locations (and decrease your bidding rates at the same time).

Monitor and Adjust your PPC Campaign Every Day… Review your progress every day. Drop underperforming key words quickly, shifting available budgets to those phrases that are performing better. Consistent monitoring can also alert you to fraudulent click activity and provide you with the opportunity to suspend the campaign and limit losses until the service provider can investigate.

Gain Faster Insight by Analyzing Competitor Activity… If you not sure where to start, track which keyword combinations your competitors appear to be using within their own PPC activity. Consider both paid ad placement as well as listings that may appear within the generic search engine listings.

Free (or Almost Free) PPC Resources... There is a wealth of online tools to help jump-start your pay-per-click campaigns.

Receive $25 in free clicks when you open an account with Yahoo Search Marketing (Overture), which covers numerous search engine leaders, including Yahoo!, Bing, AltaVista and others. Other offers include: free account setup and a $50 PPC credit at Ask.com, $100 matching credit for PPC advertising at ABCSearch.com, as well as a $5 new account click credit at Kanoodle. com, featuring online partners like CBS MoneyWatch.com, Dogpile.com, Go2Net. com and Microsoft Internet Explorer Autosearch. ~Kip Cozart

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

10 SEO Tips

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is an ongoing process that can determine how your Web site is classified and found within the free listings appearing within leading search engines, such as Google.com.

Whether you are an online marketing veteran, or just getting started, consider these 10 SEO Tips for 2010: 1. Consider your audience.

Who is your target? How do they search for your products? Think like your customer.

2. Research and use your keywords.

Get feedback from keyword research tools regarding your targeted keyword phrases and plan your Web site content around these phrases.

3. Minimize Flash. Maximize CSS. Although technology is evolving, search engines still have challenges indexing Flash Web sites. Utilize CSS (cascading style sheets) during the design process for code that is more accessible to search engines.

4. Develop unique page titles and descriptions.

Each page of your Web site needs a unique page title and description utilizing keyword phrases that help search engines determine what the page is about.

5. Use heading tags.

Most Web site code provides the opportunity to emphasize your keyword phrases using h1-h3 heading tags. Use these tags wisely to define and reinforce key terms. 6.

Add alt tags to Web site images.

QUESTION & ANSWER

Use the alt attribute to name images on your Web site pages with key phrases describing the image.

7. Develop internal and external links.

Cross-link related and relevant pages on your Web site. Use your keyword phrase as the link, rather than “click here” or other similar phrases. Also, work diligently to generate inbound links to your Web site pages from external sources such as blogs, directories, press releases, syndicated articles, clients, partners, and other authoritative sites.

8. Generate ongoing high-quality content.

Search engines are constantly looking for fresh, relevant Web site content for indexing. Give them opportunities by adding high quality content on a regular basis such as articles or blog postings.

9. Set up and use Google Webmaster Tools.

Google Webmaster Tools offers great feedback on site visibility and diagnosing challenges. Simply add this free tool to your Google account and verify your Web site to start collecting information.

10. Track and interpret your search traffic.

Set up and consult Google Analytics for free easily interpreted reports on search traffic and keywords driving visitors to your Web site.

Have a question about Web design or online marketing? Submit your question to www.greatercharlottebiz/ webbiz. Questions & Answers may be reprinted here in upcoming editions of Greater Charlotte Biz!

!Facebook Visits Surpass Google In something of a milestone in the Internet transitioning to a sociallydriven rather than purely task-driven environment, visits to Facebook for the week ending March 13 surpassed those to Google’s Web site.

According to Hitwise, Facebook has on occasion beat Google traffic for a given day (usually holidays), but this was the first time that its average full week’s traffic exceeded visits to the leading search engine. Facebook visits have increased 185% since the same period a year ago, while Google’s rose 9%. Facebook now accounts for 7.07% of all Web traffic measured by visits, and Google gets 7.03%.

Content provided by CC Communications, a Web design, programming and Internet media company providing a full array of services to businesses and organizations to enhance and produce effective Web, e-mail, multimedia marketing initiatives and business process improvements. For more information, contact Kip Cozart at 704-543-1171 or visit www.cccommunications.com/webbiz.

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

7

THE NEW NORMAL...

Are you working harder?

Are you working smarter?

Is your company vital?

esnopser ni degnahc sah sgniht tuoba skniht dna ,sgniht tuoba sleef ,sgniht sees ynapmoc ruoy yaw eht fI —ssel htiw erom gniod dna retrams gnikrow ,redrah gnikrow er’uoy fi—lamroN weN eht ot .uoy morf raeh ot tnaw ew ,llet ot yrots doog a evah uoy kniht uoy dna a niw lliw uoy dna enil tcejbus etairporppa eht htiw woleb sserdda liam-e eht ot dnopser ot nosrep ht05 eht eB .enizagam ziB ettolrahC retaerG ni dlot yrots ynapmoc ruoy evah yllaitnetop dna ,da xob 3/1 eerf Some rules apply: one entry per company, qualified companies only (5+ years in business, 7+ employees, Web site), no cash value, ad submitted to digital specs.

4

E-mail us at jgalles@greatercharlottebiz.com with Greater Charlotte Biz Free Ad in the subject line!

Print

5

///0!"#$%#"&'$"()%%#*+,0123

Mobile

Engage your market with automated texting.

Empowering Your Visual Marketing Print2Mobile is a service of The Hickory Printing Group, a leading privately held print marketing provider. www.hickoryprinting.com | 1-800-HICKORY 725 Reese Dr SW | Conover, NC 28613

5DWS )*$,03: SN MNV SN RDD ENQ XNTQRDKE 4S@MC@QC Q@SDR @OOKX

Blair, Bohlé & Whitsitt, PLLC Smart Salvos, Select Strategies and Succinct Solutions

[bizfigures]

!The New Entrepreneur: Home-based business tax considerations In the wake of the current recession and its massive layoffs, the rate of unemployment has risen to a level not experienced in this country for more than 30 years. Even more distressing, unemployed individuals are faced with an economy that continues to lose more jobs than it creates.

In many cases, unemployed individuals have chosen to operate on their own, offering the same services they performed as an employee to several different companies under negotiated terms as an independent contractor.

Others have used unemployment as an opportunity to explore an area of personal interest, completely unrelated to their prior employment.

“So for some, a home-based business brought about by unemployment may have real advantages financially—and may even open new avenues of work and/or new ways of working!” ~John D. Blair Sr.

In either case, the individual’s business is usually being operated out of their home as a matter of economy or necessity. Significant financial advantages of conducting a business out of the home include the bvious: zero cost for office space, zero time spent in commuting (opportunity cost).

However, the income tax benefits are less clear. One reason for this is Section 280A(a) of the Internal Revenue Code which states, “Except as otherwise provided in this section, in the case of a taxpayer who is an individual…, no deduction otherwise allowable under this chapter shall be allowed with respect to the use of a dwelling unit which is used by the taxpayer during the taxable year as a residence.”

Interpretation: No tax deduction is allowed for the cost to maintain or live in your home except for those allowable under the Internal Revenue Code.

Costs that are allowable can be categorized as (i) those deductible regardless of whether your business is based in the home, and (ii) those deductible because it is, called home office expenses. Let’s explore the latter.

Home Office Expenses Satisfy the strict rules that govern home office deductions and you can deduct the “direct expenses” of the home office—e.g., the costs of painting or repairing the home office, depreciation deductions for furniture and fixtures used in the home office, and the “indirect expenses” of maintaining the home office—e.g., the properly allocable share of utility costs, depreciation, insurance, etc., for your home, as well as an allocable share of mortgage interest, real estate taxes, and casualty losses.

In effect, the home office expense provision converts what would otherwise be non-deductible personal expenses to deductible business expenses.

The properly allocable share of the indirect expenses of your home is determined by the portion of your home that qualifies as a home office. So if 10 percent of your home qualifies as a home office, 10 percent of the indirect expenses are deductible.

Home office expenses are not permitted, however, to conduct a hobby in your home. A hobby is an activity you pursue

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

because it primarily gives you pleasure and not because it is profitable. The presumption is that if an activity makes a profit in 3 out of 5 years, it is a business. If it continuously losses money, it is a hobby.

If you use your home office, exclusively and on a regular basis, as your principal place of business, that use qualifies for the home office deduction.

It is your principal place of business if it satisfies either a “management or administrative activities” test, or a “relative importance” test.

The management or administrative activities test is satisfied if you use your home office for administrative or management activities, and you meet certain other requirements.

You meet the relative importance test if your home office is the most important place where you conduct your business, in comparison with all the other locations where you conduct that business.

A scenario which also entitles you to deduct home office expenses is using your home office, exclusively and on a regular basis, to meet or deal with patients, clients or customers who are physically present in your home office.

Additionally, a separate unattached structure on the same property as your home—for example, an unattached garage, artist’s studio or workshop, used exclusively and on a regular basis for business, qualifies as a home office.

Finally, if you’re in the business of selling products at retail or wholesale, and if your home is your sole fixed business location, you can deduct home expenses allocable to space that you use regularly (but not necessarily exclusively) to store inventory or product samples.

While your home office deductions are subject to limitations based on the income attributable to your use of the home office, any home office expenses that can’t be deducted because of these limitations may be carried over and deducted in later years.

So for some, a home-based business brought about by unemployment may have real advantages financially—and may even open new avenues of work and/ or new ways of working!

!More Information on Home Office Deductions Although IRS publications can be confusing for most readers, the IRS does provide a great deal of additional information on issues involving the home office deduction, including: • You should make it a point to secure IRS Publication 587 for more details on claiming Home Office tax deductions.

• If you want to claim the business use portion of depreciation on a home that is your primary residence, you will also want to get IRS Publication 551 that discusses Adjusted Basis, which is used in calculating depreciation of your home.

• You’ll want IRS Publication 946 if you need to correct inaccurate depreciation deductions in prior years.

• If you plan to sell the home that was the principal location of your business and you’ve claimed depreciation deductions on the home, you’ll want to consult IRS Publication 523, which discusses business use of your home when it’s sold.

Content provided by Blair, Bohlé & Whitsitt, PLLC, a CPA firm that provides accounting, assurance, tax compliance and planning services in addition to strategic planning and tax minimization strategies to privately held businesses. For more information, contact managing partner John D. Blair Sr. at 704-841-9800 or visit www.bbwpllc.com.

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

9

2%&%3 C3'*8'*@

[bizfigures]

F

G%*% C3'='*@H E'/2 F*G%F H"9"$I#J)KL

smart business

!"# !"#$! $%&'( )*+ !"#$ %&&'() *+#',-)./ 0$)). 1(2)-) 3$"4#()5 #, /" 678 9)55 :;5/) /2;. /".)$ -;(2'.)5 1,"/ ("9"$ &"$ < ,)..= >;5'( ("9"$ &"$ ? ()./5 @5 -#(2 ("9"$ ="# (;.

A)/ ". ; ,;A) &"$ B7C76D

B 9'859C D5E79@ 'F()= 4:67()66 67(8) GHH,

<7(= $:; >'2) ?'=5@A %&'() *+,-./*-..,* 0 1'12))(3456786%9:6-(); ,-./,01 2%&%3456"07 89" :;9"3" %< =%**"=8'>'8? (":'@* A3" A&& 83A("BA3+: %< ,-./, 2/.C/.DE)/!

“your business development advisors”

trust+strategy+integrity+planning+insight+experience

it all adds up!

Daniel, Ratliff & Company

301 S. McDowell St., Ste. 502, Charlotte, NC 28204 704.371.5000 • www.danielratliff.com 10

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

!Homepreneurs: A Vital Economic Force (A recently released Small Business Success Index Research Note, compiled by Emergent Research, a research and consulting firm that identifies, analyzes and forecasts the trends and forces impacting small businesses and their role in the global economy, provides some valuable insights into the growing Homepreneur movement. Some excerpts are provided here.)

Homepreneurs, small business owners running viable enterprises from their home.

Some—interior designers, pool cleaners and performance musicians, for example—perform their core services elsewhere. Others, like freelance writers, artists, or online retailers, do the majority of work at home. In either case, they share one key common denominator: Their headquarters—their operational control center—is based in their home, anything from a bedroom or garage to a barn or a studio. What’s more, they’re building successful small businesses that provide at least 50% of their household income by selling products and services not just locally, but nationally and, often, around the globe.

Although roughly 6.6 million home-based businesses fit the homepreneur description—43% of the over 15 million homebased businesses in the U.S.—they’re the Rodney Dangerfields of the small business world, rarely regarded as significant players in the U.S. economy. Instead, the common perception is that home-based businesses are merely hobbies or side businesses contributing little to the business owner’s income or the overall economy.

Yet, data from the Network Solutions Small Business Success Index (SBSI) survey reveals a very different story: Homepreneurs are operating significant businesses that are as successful as non-home based businesses. Even more noteworthy, their home-based businesses are important contributors to employment and the overall U.S. economy. And, due to everything from advances in technology to demographic and economic shifts, the number of homepreneurs is likely to surge over the next few years.

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

!More than Glorified Hobbyists According to the SBSI data, homepreneurs comprise a seldom recognized economic force, accounting for about 34% of all small businesses that provide more than half of the owner’s household income. The vast majority—75%—report they work full-time in their home business. Plus, many generate substantial revenue. About 35% have revenues of more than $125,000 and 8% more than $500,000.

What’s more, median household income is substantially higher than it is for the population as a whole: roughly $75,000 for homepreneurs vs. $50,233 for households in general.

These businesses are also typically wellestablished and long-lasting. Almost half of the homepreneurs surveyed in the Network Solutions poll had been in business for more than 15 years. Only 20% of those surveyed had been in business for less than five years.

VoIP one company | one call

Unified Communications !Business Telephone Systems !Structured Cabling Systems !Office & Warehouse Paging !Data Networking Build & Design !Telecom Management & Consulting !"#$%& '()*+,&-. %/ 0'+0, %/ &,/.0% / 1-,.2++0 3%'/%#"#!4 56$789"7$566%% : : : 7 + 0 .:- , 0 7 / 2 ;

Key findings about homepreneur businesses include: ""There are about 6.6 million home businesses that generate at least 50% of the owner’s household income. ""Homepreneur businesses employ over 13 million people. ""35% of homepreneur businesses generate more than $125,000 in revenue; 8% more than $500,000. ""Homepreneur businesses are competitive, scoring roughly the same on the Small Business Success Index as small businesses based outside the home. !Competitive and Successful An analysis of the SBSI index measuring small business competitiveness and success along six key functional dimensions—capital access, marketing and innovation, work force, customer service, computer technology and compliance— revealed that homepreneur businesses are as competitive and successful as businesses located outside the home. In fact, homepreneurs and non-home based small business owners #

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

?

704-540-2255

www.ballantynedentistry.com ap r i l 2 0 1 0

11

O

Executive Looks. Exceptional Prices. [bizfigures] Space Planning Reupholstery

NEW

& PRE-OWNED

704-399-1948 | www.LarnersOffice.com 3111 Freedom Drive | Charlotte, NC 28208

WE PROMISE TO PROVIDE OUR CUSTOMERS WITH QUALITY NEW AND PRE-OWNED OFFICE FURNITURE AND ACCESSORIES AT AFFORDABLE PRICES. OUR CUSTOMERS SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES. “I gladly give my highest recommendation of Larner’s Office Furniture to any firm that cares about their professional image. For the finest quality office furniture, I only do business with Larner’s.” ~ DAVID R. CAUDLE, MANAGING ATTORNEY THE CAUDLE LAW FIRM, P.A.

12

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

FFICE

Rental

Refinishing

Woodworking

Move Coordination

Office Furniture Brokering

scored roughly the same across the sub-indices of competitiveness. !Engines of Job Creation Of course, homepreneur businesses provide employment and income to their owners.

But, more than that, they also help create a significant number of jobs. In fact, half of all homepreneurs have employees. While the average homepreneur business has two employees (including the owner), 39% have between two and five employees and 10% have more than five. Using these numbers, it is estimated that homepreneur businesses currently employ roughly 13.2 million Americans.

That number is greater than the U.S. employment generated by two important industrial segments: venture-backed firms like Intel, Microsoft and Apple at 10.4 million in 2006 and the oil and gas industryat 9.2 million full and part-time jobs in 2007. !A Vital Economic Role Home-based ventures are important for a number of other reasons, regardless of their size and contribution to household income. First, homes often nurture the initial step in business creation. Homes increasingly serve as do-it-yourself business incubators, providing a low-cost and convenient place to test business ideas. Most knowledge-based small businesses can be started at home with just a personal computer, printer and an Internet connection. For unintentional entrepreneurs in particular—people who turn to self-employment due to job loss—small homebased businesses provide a quick way to get their new ventures going.

What’s more, entrepreneurs hoping to build larger businesses also often start their business at home. A recent study released by the Small Business Administration shows that about 50% of the growth-oriented small businesses surveyed that started in 2004 were home-based. The study also found that almost all of the growth-oriented businesses which started at home in 2004 stayed home-based through 2006.

Even smaller, part-time hobby or sideline businesses play an important part in the U.S. economy. While not generating a majority of the household income, these hobbypreneurs and part-timers still augment family income and provide opportunities for work/life balance that might be unavailable otherwise.

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

!Increasingly Important in the Future A number of trends and economic shifts are likely to accelerate the growth of home-based businesses: »The lower costs and risks associated with starting a home-based business The Internet and new, lower cost technologies have made starting home businesses easier and cheaper than ever before. Also, with employer benefit packages being cut and the chances of losing a corporate job increasing, many view starting a home business as no more risky than traditional employment. »Demographic and social shifts Aging baby boomers, women, Gen Y and others are all seeing home business ownership as an increasingly viable work option. An interest in achieving work/life balance, flexibility, the opportunity to pursue a passion and working for yourself are some of the reasons given for starting a home business.

• Corporate • Advertising • Industrial • Editorial

• Web Images • Architectural Interiors & Exteriors • Executive Portraits

wayne@wmphoto.biz www.wmphoto.biz

704.545.7001

Executive Portrait Services

Jane McIntyre, United Way of Central Carolinas, Inc. Carol Hardison, Crisis Assistance Ministry

Who are Homepreneurs? ""Homepreneurs tend to be male, middleaged and white. Specifically, according to the 2009 Network Solutions survey: ""69% of homepreneurs are male, 31% female ""88% of the respondents identified themselves as non-minorities and 11% identified as minorities ""52% were over 55 or older and only 6% were less than 35. "$46% of homepreneurs reported completing college. »A lack of corporate jobs Large corporations have been battered by the recession. Even if the economic recovery is strong, it is unlikely these companies will dramatically increase hiring. Instead of hiring full time staff, they will stay flexible and lean through the increased use of technology, contractors, partnerships and outsourcing. As a result, starting a home business will be the best, and in many cases, the only option for corporate refugees.

The message is clear. Homepreneurs play a crucial role in income, job and business creation. It’s time they got the respect they deserve.

(Small Business Success Index Report, October 2009, commissioned by Network Solutions, LLC and the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business; Rockbridge Associates, Inc. conducted the survey; www.GrowSmartBusiness.com)

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

13

»

[employersbiz]

Legislative and Regulatory Highlights for Area Employers

THE EMPLOYERS ASSOCIATION Trusted HR Advice, Tools & Training

Social Networking Activities in the Workplace Are Postings on MySpace Grounds for Termination?

Facts: While not at work a restaurant waiter maintained a MySpace account, which included a public home page and a private invitation-only chat group. Access to the chat group required an electronic invitation from the employee. If a user accepted the invitation, that user could access the group using his or her individual e-mail address and personal password.

Once inside the private site, the first page contained a statement that the group was private and that it was a place for workers at their restaurant location to talk about all the “drama” and “gossip occurring in our workplace, without having to worry about outside eyes prying in.” The chat group posts also included discussions about wages, union activities and political issues.

No member of upper management was invited to join the group, and employees did not access the group on work computers or during work hours.

A greeter at the restaurant, who was a group member, accessed the private chat group and showed it to a restaurant manager while visiting the manager’s home. The greeter provided her chat group access password to another restaurant manager, and it was later provided to a regional manager. The greeter later said she believed she would have gotten in trouble with management if she had failed to provide the requested password.

After management repeatedly accessed the site using the greeter’s password, it determined that the postings—which included sexual remarks about management and customers—were offensive. The waiter and another employee belonging to the chat group were fired. They sued, alleging that the employer had violated the federal Stored Communications Act (SCA)

and the parallel state wiretapping and electronic surveillance control act, and that the restaurant had violated their privacy and fired them in violation of public policy under state law.

Result: In U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey , a jury returned a verdict in favor of the fired employees on the SCA claims and also found that the employer had acted maliciously, entitling the plaintiffs to punitive as well as compensatory damages under the SCA. Discussion: Under the SCA, the court said that the jury had reasonably inferred from the greeter’s “critical” testimony that her purported authorization was not voluntary, but was coerced, or provided under pressure from management, and therefore concluded that restaurant managers “knowingly, intentionally, or purposefully accessed [the chat room] without authorization.”

In addition, the employees showed evidence that management had accessed the chat room repeatedly, and did so even though they acknowledged knowing of the greeter’s discomfort about having provided them with her access information.

The court rejected the employer’s argument that the plaintiffs were not entitled to punitive damages, finding that the jury had sufficient evidence from which it could reasonably infer that the employer acted maliciously in repeatedly accessing the chat room via the greeter’s password.

Pointers: While employers have a hard time controlling their employees’ off-duty internet activities, many are attempting to put limits on social networking activities in the workplace. According to a recent survey by Robert Half Technology, more than half (54 percent) of employers do not allow employees to visit social networking sites for any reason while at work, 19 percent permit worker social networking activities for business purposes only, 16 percent allow limited personal use, and 10 percent permit unlimited use.

(Bulletin to Management)

!Handbook Audit: Learn From the Mistakes of Others A vague phrase here or a contradiction there has the potential to sink an employee handbook in court.

Don’t let a slip of the pen be your organization’s legal undoing. Jim Collison, president of Employers of America, reviews some of the common mistakes employers make when writing their employee handbooks. " Mistake: Undefined Terms Example: “workweek.” Too many employers define it in terms of their regular business hours (e.g., Monday-Friday). The problem: For overtime pay purposes, a workweek is defined as seven consecutive 24-hour days. Try: “Our workweek begins at 12:01 a.m. on Sunday and runs to 12:00 a.m. the following Sunday.” " Mistake: Contractual Language If wording in a policy looks like a contract, reads like a contract, and sounds like a contract, then a court will probably interpret the policy as a contract.

Employers should comb through every word in their

14

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

handbook for anything that could be construed as contractual language or a promise. Don’t use the words “will” or “shall” to describe employer actions.

Be flexible as to what the employer will do. Be specific as to what the employee will do. For example, kick off a section on dress codes by stating: Employees will conform to these standards. Conclude by writing: The Company may discipline violators up to and including termination. " Mistake: Outdated Policies Believe it or not, policies requiring female employees to wear skirts or dresses are still found in business handbooks today. Review your organization’s handbook on a regular basis (e.g., every three months, twice a year) with an eye out for irrelevant, obsolete, or legally incorrect rules and procedures. Stick to this

schedule, even if you doubt updates are necessary.

Consult with management when reviewing the handbook. Since they are the ones that implement many of the policies on a daily basis, they’ll have suggestions for updates or revisions that might not have crossed your mind.

Anytime you make a revision, place a note at the front of the handbook, right after the initial disclaimer, that includes the date the revised manual became effective, as well as a statement that the revised edition supersedes all previous editions.

And finally, if the introduction to your handbook doesn’t already clearly state that the organization retains the exclusive right to alter the procedures contained within, insert such a clause ASAP. (Personnel Legal Alert)

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

Reducing the Risk of Termination-Related Violence

SPECIALISTS IN VOICE NETWORKS FOR 31 YEARS.

Understandably, employees have emotional reactions to termination. It’s more than about money; it’s about identity, self-worth, who you are, your value. Strong reactions are to be expected. However, certain employees raise concerns beyond the ordinary. Here is some advice about what to do when terminating an employee who may be a safety risk.

!

Five Keys to Safe Terminations: 1. Pause. Before proceeding with the termination, make sure you have determined what the risks are because, once the termination happens, it can invite an event that you cannot undo.

2. Confer with colleagues. This is a way to break through denial, and validate (or not validate) your concerns.

3. Assess the situation with personnel who are critical to the process. Assemble a team of HR, management, and security. The main thing to remember is that you can’t do this by yourself.

4. Plan the termination. Thoroughly attend to all the details, possible consequences, and potential employee responses/behaviors.

5. Rehearse. Ensure that every member of the termination team is on board with the procedure.

!

The Logistics of Termination: »Do you need security? Where should they be located? Should they be in plain clothes or uniform? What about the police? Be aware of how the employee may react to security or law enforcement in uniform. »Who is going to conduct the termination?

Depersonalize it, if possible, by removing the employee’s manager from the process. »Where will it take place? Conduct the termination in a neutral setting (not the employee’s supervisor’s office), and sit close to the exit. »When? Terminate in the middle of the week. Right before the weekend is risky because the weekend is too unstructured time; the employee’s whereabouts would be harder to predict. »What is the exiting process? Plan how the employee is going to leave the building. Prepare them by verbally walking them through the process before you actually do it. »Are there future security issues? Do we need to do a “be on the lookout” notice? What should security know about this person? »Do you have a duty to warn? Is there a particular person within the organization that the employee has threatened? If so, they need to know their level of risk. »What are the employee’s boundaries?

Before the employee leaves, they should know what the rules are after separation, whom they are allowed to contact, etc.

(Personnel Legal Alert)

Content provided by The Employers Association, providing comprehensive human resources and training services to a membership of over 865 companies in the greater Charlotte region. For more information, please call Laura Hampton at 704-522-8011 or visit www.employersassoc.com.

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

• IT Outsourcing

As a small business owner working with premier global brands, I need to be confident that the server is a 24/7 workhorse. Because of Scott’s attention to detail, I know that our network will work whether conducting a webinar for a UK client or social media monitoring for an NBA team. ~Kathleen Hessert Owner, Sports Media Challenge

• Network evaluation, design, installation and growth planning • Microsoft and Exchange Server implementations and support • Terminal Services and Thin Client Computing • Microsoft Small Business Server design, installation and support • Wireless, LAN, WAN and VPN design and implementations • Firewall, Security, SPAM and IM solutions • Disaster Recovery planning

Mention this ad for a FREE 1 hour initial consultation on more effective ways to manage your organization’s IT system availabiity, resources, services and budget.

!"#$%&'!&("%)#*"+, Progressive Networks, Inc. 2910 Selwyn Ave., Ste. 271 Charlotte, N.C. 28209 704-246-5590

pronetsit.com ap r i l 2 0 1 0

15

!Lenoir Rhyne Living-Learning Center

!Piedmont Cardiology Center

!The Ramble Clubhouse

!The Ramble Clubhouse

!Abernathy Laurels Tower

!Belk Cannon Building Gaston College

!Billy Graham Training Center

!ASU Boiler Plant

!Walnut Cove

!Hickory Police Department

!Hickory Municipal Building

16

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

!Corinth Steeple

by casey jacobus

[bizprofile]

!Vineyard House

“

~Mike Odom Utility Division Manager

!Walnut Cove

“Hickory Construction is not just a business; it’s a family. It’s a place where you can work together and share your ideas. It’s a very stable, consistent company, filled with high performance people.”

BuildingRelationships

{

HICKORY CONSTRUCTION COMPANY PARTNERS IN PROJECTS

S

ince its founding in 1941, Hickory Construction Company has honored its motto of ‘Where Quality and Integrity Still Exist,’ building its business by delivering a consistently highquality, reliable service at prices that are fair and competitive.

“It’s not just a slogan on our business cards,” says President Mark Baucom. “We believe it; it’s our way of doing business. It means people can trust us.”

For 69 years, Hickory Construction Company has consistently raised the standards of the construction industry. While always on the cutting edge of new construction and management techniques, it has never wavered in its commitment to its customers.

Its goal is to deliver top quality, trouble-free product within an efficient timeframe.

“I’ve known Hickory Construction since the 1990s when they built the 34-unit townhome project at The Cliffs at Walnut Cove,” says Rusty Pulliam, president and CEO of Pulliam Properties, Western North Carolina’s largest full-service commercial real estate firm.

“Things like the perfect fit of complex moldings and other architectural features, the perfectly installed marble and granite floors and counter tops, and the best exterior stone work I’ve seen, exemplify the firm’s expertise and attention to detail. You don’t

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

}

pay extra for this exceptional quality; it just comes with Hickory Construction,” Pulliam affirms.

Hickory Construction has become one of the largest general contractors in North Carolina, building residential, commercial and utility projects throughout the Southeast. Projects include the Hayes Performing Arts Center in Blowing Rock, The Ramble Living Well Center in Biltmore Forest, the Billy Graham Training Center at the Cove in Black Mountain, the Rock Barn Golf & Spa in Conover, the Corinth Reformed Church in Hickory, and the Catawba River Raw Water Pumping Station in Charlotte.

“We’ve enjoyed a great relationship with Hickory Construction for over 10 years,” says Arnold Jarrell, Charlotte Mecklenburg Utilities Department project manager. “They’ve done projects for us ranging from small improvements to large new construction projects such as the Catawba River Raw Water Pumping Station.

Hickory Construction’s one of the most ethical, dependable and highly skilled general contractors we’ve worked with.”

Throughout its history, Hickory Construction has established long-term relationships with its clients, counting repeat customers for much of its success. The company has worked with Appalachian State University in Boone for over 40 years now, building approximately 25 percent of its campus. #

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

17

Their work wins praise from university partners like Alison Kemp-Sullivan, interim associate director of design and construction: “Of course Hickory Construction is large enough to build virtually any project, but it is small enough for their top management to be involved in every project and truly care about each one. They do top quality work and are very professional.”

High Performance Construction is a risky business. However, Hickory Construction has been able to thrive and grow largely because of the relationships it has forged with its customers, employees and subcontractors. The company has more than doubled its revenues since moving into its third generation of ownership about 10 years ago.

“Four out of five construction companies don’t make it into the third generation,” asserts Baucom.

“It’s a very hard profession and the risk is very high.”

The current ownership team came together in the early 1990s. Baucom, along with Aaron Beam, Jeanna Flowers and Mike Odom, joined Graham Hunsucker, who has been with the company for 33 years, and Chuck Moss, grandson of company founder Robert V. Moss, to set the company’s course for the future.

Historically, company revenues peaked at approximately $75,000,000 in 2005. In recent years, Hickory Construction has managed to weather the current economic recession despite declines in construction volume of 25 to 30 percent.

Chief Financial Officer Jeanna Flowers says that diversification plays a key role in Hickory Construction’s success. While residential construction work has almost disappeared in the past year, Hickory Construction’s commercial and utilities divisions are holding up well. The utilities division is currently bringing in 30 percent of the company’s business, while the building division accounts for about 70 percent.

“We don’t have a particular niche in the industry,” declares Baucom. “We don’t do highway work or build 10-story high-rises. But we do practically everything else.”

Hickory Construction’s body of work includes virtually every type of commercial, institutional and residential building as well as public works. The company is especially well known in the areas of health, church, education and public utilities construction. Recently completed works include a $9.6 million renovation of Abernathy Laurels, a United Church Homes and Services Ministry facility in Newton, a $2.9 million pump station for the City of Lenoir, and a $9.7 million medical education facility for Gaston College in Dallas, N.C. Abernathy Laurels is one of Hickory Construction’s valued repeat customers. The company’s most recent project for the continuing-care

18

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

(standing l to r) Graham A. Hunsucker, Project Manager; C. Mark Baucom, President and CEO; Mike E. Odom, Utility Division Manager; (seated l to r) Aaron C. Beam, Building Division Manager; Jeanna C. Flowers, CPA,CFO; Charles W. Moss Jr.,Vice President

“It’s a very hard profession. The satisfaction comes in making a difference. We build tangible structures that will provide lasting benefits to the community for generations, and everyone in the Hickory Construction family takes a great deal of pride in that.” !"

SIN

C E 19 4

1

~Mark Baucom President and CEO

retirement community was a 40,000-square-foot community center that includes a comprehensive fitness center with indoor pool and a juice bar on the lower level, a bistro, kitchen, and large multipurpose room on the first floor and a lounge and media area on the second floor.

Although the magnitude of the project and the fact that the site was a tight one presented challenges, Hickory Construction was able to complete the project on time and under budget.

The company’s a partnership approach to projects won praise from the customer.

“Hickory Construction was able to work professionally and collaboratively with our management team, the architects and interior designers,” says Douglas Fleegle, president and CEO of United Church Homes and Services.

“We’ve enjoyed a strong partnership.”

The City of Lenoir is another repeat customer for the company. The latest project was to build a new water pump station to replace an outdated system that was failing. The new Whitnel High Service Pump Station serves the Lenoir, Sawmills and

Hudson areas. Mark Edmistein, director of public utilities for the City of Lenoir, who has worked with Hickory Construction on previous jobs, says he was pleased with the company’s work and the people assigned to the pump station project.

“They’ve got some good folks,” Edmistein attests.

The David Belk Cannon Health Education Institution was the company’s first job for Gaston College. Hickory Construction began work on the 85,000-square-foot facility in January 2008 and turned the project over to the owner in August 2009. The state-of-the-art building has 12 classrooms, laboratories, an auditorium, two conference rooms, two exercise rooms, a therapeutic pool and treatment facility, as well as office space.

“I have nothing but good to report,” says Kenny Hunt, who monitored the project for the State Construction Office. “Everything went smoothly.”

Competitive Strength In addition to a reputation for quality and the strength of its relationships with customers, Hickory Construction has an additional asset.

Travelers Insurance Company, the nation’s largest bond underwriter, has underwritten a $100 million bonding capacity. This provides the company with a high ceiling on work that can be bonded and provides one more competitive edge in today’s tough market.

The lifeblood of a construction company is its bonding capacity,” asserts Baucom. “And we’ve been with Travelers for 29 years.”

Another competitive advantage Hickory Construction enjoys is its leadership in sustainable or “green” construction.

“The construction industry has long been seen as an environmentally destructive and often unhealthy force”, says Chuck Moss, vice

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

president and LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Accredited Professional.

LEED certification is the recognized standard for determining building sustainability, and the optimum indication that a building project is truly green. Hickory Construction currently has four projects in progress that are seeking LEED Silver, Gold and Platinum certifications.

“The demand for LEED certified projects will undoubtedly continue to grow,” Moss adds, “and the industry will continue to invest in LEED Accredited Professionals and green building techniques. At Hickory Construction we were early in embracing this eco-friendly endeavor and have invested significantly in green construction. As the green construction movement matures, we’ll help the construction industry become more efficient, reduce the impact projects have on the environment, and noticeably improve indoor air quality, thereby improving health.”

THIS

OR THIS

YOUR CHOICE! Discover Worry Free IT Support from Charlotte Tech Care Team. You’ve got better things to do, we’ll worry about your network.

!ASU Boiler Plant

Call or visit our website today for a free 2 hour consultation (704) 248-8328 x33 • www.techcareteam.com

!Catawba River Raw Water Pumping Station

When your print deadlines are swarming, we’re a

!Abernathy Laurels Pool

6789':2;'<99='>?;=@'<:'7'A;>B9C'DAE=?'DA2F91?G'H9'17=' 399?' 7@@A9>>E89' C97CIE=9>0' &9J?' ?E39' :2;' @9?' E=?2' 7' >?E1K:'>E?;7?E2=L'@E89';>'7'17II'2A'8E>E?';>'2=IE=9M

People Make the Difference Project Manager Graham Hunsucker worked his way up the management ladder at Hickory Construction—all the way to owner. During his tenure, he has watched the company go “from calculators to computers” and attributes their success to their willingness to go “the extra mile, to ensure the customer gets a quality product.”

“We build a good building,” he says. “We do a good product. We let the owner, our #

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

!Brochures !Flyers !Booklets !Business Cards !Posters !Signs !Banners

---./)-#"')01#&)()".&)2 345.678.649: ap r i l 2 0 1 0

19

employees and our subcontractors know we care about the project.”

As a full-service general contractor, Hickory Construction completes work on a design/build, negotiated or hard-bid basis. For its design/ build and negotiated clients, it has developed a process it calls the Team Build Approach (TBA) in which the owner, architect and Hickory Construction staff work together, beginning in the design phase. This allows the company’s construction experts to offer cost-saving ideas during the planning stage that wouldn’t otherwise arise until time and effort were wasted in the construction phase.

“TBA provides owners with a product that better fits their needs, as well as cost savings from improved efficiency, minimization of change orders and business interruption, and faster project completion,” says Baucom. “We approach our projects from a partnership perspective.”

As an example, when the company built the Fine and Performing Arts Center for Western Carolina University in 2003, problems with the project developed as a result of the defaulting of multi-prime contractors. Joe Walker, Associate Vice Chancellor for Facilities Management at the university, praises Hickory Construction’s approach to solving the problems.

“Hickory stayed the course and worked

with us and the project team in a professional manner,” says Walker. “Many contractors would have stopped worked, but Hickory Construction persevered. The Fine and Performing Arts Center still looks like new and is one of the most recognizable and beautiful buildings on the Western Carolina University Campus.”

Every project Hickory Construction undertakes is assigned both a manager and a superintendent. Both know the project inside out and they are always available to the customer.

Many of the employees have worked at the company for their entire career. Two veteran employees were honored at an awards banquet last summer for their 40 years of service.

“The most critical factor on a jobsite is the general contractor’s superintendent”, says Fred Hoyle, president of Hoyle Plumbing, a subcontractor who’s worked with Hickory Construction for decades. “The successful projects we’ve worked with Hickory on speak for themselves as to the professionalism and quality of Hickory superintendents. You just can’t beat experience.”

Hickory Construction has 20 superintendents who average over 20 years with the company.

“This level of skill, experience and loyalty translates into unmatched quality, efficiency and professionalism on our projects,” adds Flowers.

Mike Odom, who heads up the Utilities division, says the company culture is one of the things that attracted him to the company in 1995.

“Hickory Construction is not just a business; it’s a family,” he says. “It’s a place where you can work together and share your ideas. It’s a very stable, consistent company, filled with high performance people.”

Above all else, however, Hickory Construction Company builds the schools, the churches, the YMCAs, the power plants and pump stations that provide people with the services they need. Buildings like Hickory’s landmark Corinth Reformed Church, built in the 1960s, and the recently completed Snow Creek Elementary School in Catawba County (the first LEED Silver project of its kind in North Carolina) reflect the company’s commitment to quality and stand as the company’s legacy.

“It’s a very hard profession,” says Baucom.

“The satisfaction comes in making a difference.

We build tangible structures that will provide lasting benefits to the community for generations, and everyone in the Hickory Construction family takes a great deal of pride in that.” biz Casey Jacobus is a Charlotte-based freelance writer.

Hickory Construction Company 1728 Ninth Avenue NW Hickory, N.C. 28601 !"

Phone: 828-322-9234 Owners: C. Mark Baucom, President and CEO; Charles W. Moss Jr.,Vice President; Jeanna C. Flowers, CPA, CFO; Aaron C. Beam, Building Division Manager; Mike E. Odom, Utility Division Manager; Graham A. Hunsucker, Project Manager Founded: 1941 Employees: Approximately 100 Awards: Pinnacle Award for the Best General Contractor in the Carolinas, 1995-96; Pinnacle Award for the Bee Tree Dam Project, 2003; Charlotte Business Journal’s Top 25 General Contractors, Charlotte Business Journal’s Fast 50, and the Grant Thornton NC 100 Business: Full-service general contractor; projects include commercial buildings, industrial plants, schools, hospital/medical facilities, retirement communities, churches, waste/water treatment plants, multi-family residential projects and high-end single-family residences across the Southeast. www.hickory-construction.com SIN

20

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

C E 19 4

1

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

21

Photo:Wayne Morris

(l ro r) Mike May President and CEO Angela Hardison Executive Vice President, Operations and Human Resources Iverify.us Inc.

22

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

by ellison clary

[bizprofile]

( ' & % % ""#$

!

+ * ) ' % $

Iverify.us is a Capable Guardian of People and Place

While visiting a colleague’s security monitoring facility in Texas back in 2002, Mike May watched via live remote monitor as an enraged customer berated a diminutive employee behind a convenience store cash register. Through an on-site speaker, May’s colleague spoke directly to the ranting customer, convincing him to leave.

It was May’s “a-ha moment.”

“I said, ‘This is it! This is where security really needs to be,’” May remembers. “This is the culmination of services and systems coming together.”

May bought the company.

That led to May establishing what is now Iverify.us Inc., a Charlotte-based security services company that applies breakthrough technologies that embed remote video and audio surveillance equipment in every corner of their clients’ businesses nationwide. From its state-of-the-art monitoring facilities off Nations Ford Road, highly-trained protection specialists issue voice commands at the first sign of internal or external threat. In the event of an emergency, Iverify responds instantaneously, dispatching appropriate local response to their clients’ sites.

The result: Iverify deters robbery, shoplifting and internal theft. The company’s innovative security solutions result in an over 70 percent reduction in robberies, 60 percent-plus reduction in guard costs, and virtually zero false alarm fines. It’s results like these that won Iverify a listing on Inc. magazine’s 500 fastest growing private companies.

Kenny Kahn, Iverify’s chief strategic officer, characterizes the company’s offerings as shrink, robbery and burglary reduction, guard supplementation and business perimeter monitoring.

On-site signage clearly seen at every Iverify-protected location warns that the premises are being monitored live with audio and video. Those intent on committing crime can readily see cameras and sometimes even monitors, both outside and inside. Suspicious activity is addressed immediately through on-site speakers by Iverify personnel who monitor the live feed around the clock.

“We make you aware that we’re watching you,” says Kahn. “We’re preventing you from doing # something. So it’s not necessarily about catching someone, although that happens.”

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

“The concept is, if there is a lack of a capable guardian, you will be inclined to commit a crime.” ~Mike May

President and CEO

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

23

Not So Secure Beginnings May grew up as a third-generation law enforcement professional in Shrewsbury, Mass.

He was drawn to surveillance after nearly 10 years as a policeman in his hometown, but abandoned plans to join the FBI to help his late father operate his security business.

After his father’s death, May built his own company, May Systems, but eight years later his lender, a Swiss company, shut down its U.S. operations and part of May’s business was sold and part was liquidated. He woke up one day and his company was gone, he was separated from his then wife, and he was living in an apartment over a barn.

Instinctively, May began the process of rebuilding.

He approached a former client about funding a new company and SecurityEast was born with the stipulation that the business would eventually be sold to provide a return to the investor.

Five years later, May sold to First Security of Boston, a high-quality security guard provider for New England technology companies.

While at First Security, May worked with industry luminaries such as Bob Johnson, CEO of First Security and a founder of ISMA, Ken Jenkins, former regional president of Pinkerton, and Marty Guay, current president of Niscayah, one of the largest security integrators in the country.

May was recruited from First Security by industry icon ADT, which was quickly bought

by Tyco International. At Tyco, he operated a business unit that managed 80,000 customers, over 500 employees and covered three states.

May also gained considerable insight into the mindset of the large corporate buyer through his involvement in the acquisitions of Wells Fargo, Alarmguard and Holmes Protective. Luckily, he got out before the Dennis Kozlowski scandal.

For the next year, May worked with a brother in loss prevention and then bought the Houston monitoring business that provided his “a-ha” experience.

May visited Charlotte in 2004 at the invitation of MCG Capital Corporation of Arlington, Va., owners of Interactive Business Systems (IBS). MCG knew May from the Houston surveillance firm and another he was operating in Massachusetts.

It sought his guidance in fixing the Charlotte IBS company that had fallen on hard times.

May saw that IBS was doomed. He told the owners as much, but offered to buy it if he could consolidate his two companies into the Charlotte location. The purchase was finalized in 2005 and May named the new endeavor Iverify.

Seeking revenue stream assistance, May found highly experienced equity investor Richard Driehaus of Chicago, who helped with

24

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

For example, a concerned cashier can pick up a phone that is immediately connected with Iverify and Iverify will enable all cameras in the store to get a full view of the situation. An Iverify specialist will broadcast over store speakers that there is potential trouble and that the store is being monitored and police are on standby.

initial liquidity and continues to hold an interest in the company.

It wasn’t long before May came across Charlottean Bill Boyd, the former chief executive of Fort Mill-based Muzak. He is now chairman of Iverify’s board. Boyd had worked with Kahn, whose Muzak strategic and branding efforts he had admired, and was responsible for bringing Kahn into the fold.

“Bill very quickly became my mentor,” says May. “We just clicked. He’s a guy who has vision and loves the concept of the business.”

Boyd, with no monetary investment in Iverify, likes the mentor thought. “We trust each other,”

says Boyd. “I understand the type of issues he’s facing. I’ve been through most of them.”

A Capable Guardian May calls Iverify a security/guard system hybrid. It’s built on a solid foundation. “Our principles are prevention, awareness and deterrence,” he says simply.

“The concept is, if there is a lack of a capable guardian, you will be inclined to commit a crime,” May explains.

“How do I create a capable guardian remotely?” he asks rhetorically. “First there’s simple signage to notify of surveillance.” He clicks off more. “You always put cameras outside the store. Then there are speakers. As you walk up to the store, you may hear an announcement that starts, ‘Good afternoon…Any criminal activity will result in police dispatch.’ You walk in and there’s your image on a flat screen TV. And there are more announcements inside. There are 16 cameras inside a 7,000-square-foot store.”

The protection specialists monitoring the cameras at Iverify in Charlotte have the capability to alert authorities at a moment’s notice. And they can tell police if someone is armed and give a detailed description. And they have, on more than one occasion, assisted in an arrest.

The concept changes if somebody pulls off a robbery.

“If we don’t get you,” May says, “then it becomes intervention, documentation and evidentiary. We’re going for apprehension.”

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

Iverify monitors a location 24 hours, inside and out. Parking lot cameras watch the front door, the back door and the perimeter.

May targets retail companies and, early on, struck up a relationship with Matthews-based Family Dollar Stores. Of its 6,700 stores, the chain experienced a recurring robbery issue in a small percentage. Once the Iverify monitors were in place in those high-risk stores, the robbery issues were resolved.

Between 2006 and 2009, Iverify’s service for Family Dollar grew from one store to 307.

The chain has eliminated several million dollars a year in guard expense and the Iverify service costs a fraction of that.

Store workers like it, too. For example, a concerned cashier can pick up a phone that is immediately connected with Iverify and Iverify will enable all cameras in the store to get a full view of the situation. An Iverify specialist will broadcast over store speakers that there is potential trouble and that the store is being monitored and police are on standby.

“It was unbelievable to see the reaction from the employees—for that person earning $8 an hour, they don’t have to wait until there is a gun in their face,” May says with furrowed brow.

The savings for Family Dollar mount when you add a reduction in shrink—losses from both internal and external theft.

“We use intelligent video,” May explains.

“You can focus on a high-shrink item. When you pick that item up, it can trigger someone

“Iverify employees are very passionate people. They live for the protection of other people.

They bring a great amount of experience. They are very knowledgeable about what to do in a moment of crisis.” ~Ken Kahn Chief Strategic Officer from Iverify to say something, or it can trigger a message that gets an associate to come over and assist you.”

Family Dollar executives like what they’ve seen. “They said, ‘We’re getting a byproduct here we weren’t even looking for,’” May says.

He estimates savings of $50,000 annually per store on guard costs alone for stores like Family Dollar.

Citi Trends, a value-priced urban-inspired apparel chain, also tried out Iverify. Iverify helped create a significant reduction in shrink and Citi Trends has become an important client to Iverify.

Securing Its Future All told, in 2009 Iverify signed agreements with five national retail companies. Recurring

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

monthly revenue for Iverify jumped almost 40 percent in 2009 and May pegs revenues for the year at $13.2 million. The company has experienced 50 percent growth in the last six months of 2009. Now at five years, the company has reached profitability.

A down economy doesn’t affect Iverify, because the company typically saves its clients so much money. “For a $10,000 to $15,000 a year expenditure, it’s the same as putting in a guard at $50,000 or $60,000,” May points out.

The company added 60 employees last year, bringing the total to 200. Most monitor video screens and interact with store employees and customers. They know how to contact law enforcement in a snap. And they work in shifts.

The protection center, called The “I”, never closes.

For the former law enforcement and loss prevention types he hires, May offers attractive benefits, heavy on health care payments. He also allows four weeks of vacation. There’s a robust training program that features sessions sanctioned by the Retail Loss Prevention Association of the Carolinas.

But Angie Hardison, executive vice president of operations and human resources, points to another reason people sign on with Iverify. “Mike is a natural leader,” Hardison says, “and an expert in this industry. When people hear him speak, they follow him.”

May recognizes that dynamic. After studying law enforcement at Northeastern University, he was president of his class at the Massachusetts State Police Academy. In his twenties, he rose to shift sergeant at the Shrewsbury Police Department and gained the respect of the “grizzled veterans” he supervised.

He feels his leadership source is sincerity. “If there’s a belief in what you do, if you’ve committed your life to it, and you’re passionate about it, I think people get behind you,” May says.

Boyd offers a slightly different take. “I think he’s a really good business guy and he has a good head on his shoulders,” he says. “He cares about the culture of his business.”

Indeed, Kahn sees commitment among the troops.

“Iverify employees are very passionate people,” Kahn says, noting the law enforcement background of many. “They live for the protection of other people. They bring a great amount of experience. They are very knowledgeable about what to do in a moment of crisis.”

For the next two years, May wants to recruit new retail clients, and then branch into other sectors. Already, Iverify is serving some banks and Duke Energy uses their services, particularly at construction sites, to guard against thefts of copper.

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

25

May’s sure of continuing organic growth, but will also be acquisitive. Two years ago, he bought a competitor, Smart Interactive Systems, for $8.5 million, which boosted revenue in the retail and banking sectors.

That led the firm to a need for more space, so May bought the 45,000-square-foot building on 15 acres at Regency Executive Park.

That building had once housed technology titan Osprey Systems, so it benefits from big connections to TimeWarner and AT&T bandwidth. Although May initially expected to lease out unused space, this year Iverify will occupy the entire building.

At 55, May’s hair is jet black, belying the grind of his weekly commute to a south Charlotte condo from the 57-acre farm he and wife Tricia own in central Massachusetts. They’ve tried to move from their Boylston home to Charlotte, but with five children—two in college—it’s difficult.

So most weekends, May is in Massachusetts with family.

Yet he and Hardison are on call 24 hours a day. For a serious incident, one or both gets notified. That happens maybe twice a week, but escalates dramatically during the holidays.

Recently, someone walked out of an Iverify-protected store wearing an unpaid-for

Rolex with a price tag of $35,000. Because the video images are razor sharp and in color, authorities had an excellent chance to catch the culprit.

As technology continues to improve, it bodes well for Iverify’s future.

With its multi-acre campus, Iverify could expand and even build new structures. Or it could bring in another company interested in a secure site.

Meanwhile, May has started a channel partner program in which a few members of the Honeywell Dealer Network offer the Iverify services.

An alternative that May vows he won’t consider for Iverify is franchising. “I would lose control of quality,” he explains simply.

“I want to make sure we always execute on our promise,” May says. “Reputation is so important. When we do make a mistake, we have to step up. We will write a check for the loss and say we’re sorry.

“One of the problems in the security industry is the terrible reputation for lack of professionalism and for self-serving behavior,” he adds. “I want stuff to work, and it’s got to work right. I just want to make sure we deliver.” biz

Iverify.us Inc. 150 Iverify Drive Charlotte, N.C. 28217 Phone: 704-970-2324; 800-763-0314 Principals: Mike May, President and CEO; Kenny Kahn, Chief Strategic Officer Established: 2005 Employees: Approx. 200 Revenue: $13.2 million (2009 gross revenue) Recurring Monthly Revenue: $725,000 (2009) Recognition: No. 405 on Inc. magazine list of 500 fastest-growing private firms; No. 5 on the Charlotte Business Journal’s Fast 50 Business: Innovative security company that uses breakthrough surveillance technologies that put virtual eyes, ears and voice commands in every corner of a business to reduce loss from internal theft, shoplifting and robbery, creating a more secure environment and more productive employees. www.iverify.us

Ellison Clary is a Charlotte-based freelance writer.

“Understanding is Power”

You are invited to engage in an interactive conversation with one of the most creative minds of our time

Richard Saul

WURMAN

Information Architect Author of 82 books Award-winning Architect and Designer Cartographer creator of the ACCESS guides Intellectual Hedonist Provocateur Extraordinaire

The legendary Founder of TED, TED MED and eg Conferences Two Unique Events

Charlotte NC

April 7 – The Ritz Carlton Hotel

5:30 – 8:00 PM

April 8 – The Great Aunt Stella Center

5:30 – 8:00 PM

Register at www.sirconferences.com 26

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

Exponential growth. World-class scholarship. Leaders in research and innovation. It’s no wonder that UNC Charlotte was recently recognized by U.S. News and World Report as a university to watch.* 24,700 strong and growing, we’re the home of award-winning faculty, notable alumni, and the next generation of leaders who have what it takes to set the world on fire. Stake your claim to a university that’s got the whole world watching.

Tim Ernst, Student Body President, Class of 2009 * U.S. News & World Report 2008 University to Watch, 2009 Best College.

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

27

!"#$

The new Energy Production and Infrastructure Center (EPIC) is being constructed on the Charlotte Research Instituteâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s campus.

These are Narmour Wright Creech Architects renderings of the building which will house the departments of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Electrical and Computer Engineering in a collaborative teaching and research facility.

The anticipated completion date is July 2011. The building will be LEED-certified at the silver level.

!EPIC is LEED-Certified

Important project elements of the EPIC include rain gardens to treat storm water runoff; underground cisterns for all site irrigation; condensate reuse for water closets; simplicity of design with emphasis on timely and economical construction; effective and efficient HVAC, electrical, and communication systems; and the application of building design standards for LEED-certified buildings. In addition to green technology, monitoring stations throughout the development will allow students and faculty to research the sustainability of its architectural features such as the water quality of building runoff before and after water is filtered through the rain gardens.

28

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

by zenda douglas

W

ith just a glance through the windows of his office in Duke Centennial Hall, College of Engineering Dean Robert Johnson can watch UNC Charlotte and the Charlotte economy growing.

Construction on the new 200,000-square-foot building, the Energy Production and Infrastructure Center (EPIC), is underway. The project applies brick and mortar to a program that promises expanded and enhanced collaboration between the university and the energy industry in the Charlotte region, yielding academic and economic growth for the benefit of engineering students, energy research, energy and power companies, employers and new professionals.

The ongoing result is anticipated to be an ever-vigorous Charlotte energy hub that is underpinned by energy industry and university partnerships, cutting-edge research, state-of-the-art facilities and an ample industry-ready work force. Together these will further economic development for the region as well as safer, more efficient power for the region, nation and world.

Dr. Steve Patterson, SPX Distinguished Professor of Engineering and the EPIC’s interim director, describes the fundamental nature of the collaboration between the regional energy industries and the university as “one that is truly a joint industrial and university activity.”

UNC Charlotte’s parenting of the EPIC is very much coupled with the growth of Charlotte itself.

“UNC Charlotte is the right place for this,” declares Dhiaa Jamil, chief nuclear officer for Duke Energy and chair of the EPIC Advisory Board, “Charlotte is a true national hub for energy.”

Patterson points out energy companies operating in the area including AREVA, Westinghouse, Toshiba, URS/Washington, and Siemens.

Project manager for the Charlotte Research Institute’s “Open for Business” initiative, Scott Carlberg, puts it this way: “We have a world premier power generator in Duke Energy, a world class gas utility in Piedmont Natural Gas, numerous other power companies and a world-known research institute (EPRI)—the last piece of the puzzle is having a strong university presence in energy research education.”

Through “Open for Business,” Carlberg has engaged scores of businesses to develop a model for universities to use in forming partnerships with business communities.

“The EPIC is unique, but the Charlotte region with its combination of business, civic and educational components is also special,” says Patterson. “The region has great potential because it combines all of those elements in a manner that trades on a high caliber of ethics and a high caliber of people.”

A Powerful Start The first seed for the EPIC was planted in 2004 when two members of the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department Advisory Board met with Dean Johnson. Duke Energy’s Jamil and Tessera’s (formerly Digital Optics) Mark Boomgarden, expressed awareness and concern that after the power industry stopped building in the 1970s through the ’90s due to decreased demand, students had given their attention to other areas. #

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

[bizprofile]

!"#

#$%&'())* 0<=>?@A=B% CD=%,=?@E<

EPIC Unites Industry and Education for Energy

(l to r) Dr. Steve Patterson Interim Director, EPIC Dr. Robert E. Johnson Dean of the College of Engineering, UNC Charlotte

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

29

“The EPIC is unique, but the Charlotte region with its combination of business, civic and educational components is also special.

The region has great potential because it combines all of those elements in a manner that trades on a high caliber of ethics and a high caliber of people.” ~Dr. Steve Patterson Interim Director, EPIC

“Engineers with an energy background were very few and far between,” says Jamil, “We needed to figure out how to remedy that to avoid a huge shortage in work force.”

The breakthrough came at a power breakfast in 2006 among UNC Charlotte Chancellor Philip L. Dubois, Provost Joan Lorden, Dean Johnson, Tom Christopher (then CEO of AREVA USA, a French nuclear power company) and several faculty members.

“Tom Christopher was concerned about the size of the work force in light of increased demand, and warning of a looming energy crisis,” recounts Johnson. “Christopher was from the industry sector saying this is a real crisis to hit America very soon—saying the brownouts of California will hit the Southeast in the next five years. You’re going to get home and turn the lights on and not have any power.

“When they heard the same story from the CEO of a major power company as we had been warning of, it really got their attention,” continues Johnson.

Shortly thereafter, Jeff Merrifield from Shaw Power Group, Jamil from Duke Energy and Jim Little from URS/Washington were dispatched to Raleigh to meet with Marc Basnight and other legislators to essentially say, “this is something you need to fund because the energy and power industry is important for this region, the state

and the country,” says Johnson.

“The concept of a (physical) EPIC began to gel when the state of North Carolina allocated construction funds,” affirms Johnson. State funds were allocated in two pieces with an initial $19 million for design and site work which was occurring by the summer of 2007. The following year the state funded the remaining $56.2 million. Some $4 million was later lost to budget cuts.

“I’m really pleased to see the investment that North Carolina is making in the infrastructure of the project and in the economic development of the Charlotte region,” expresses Robert Wilhelm, associate provost for Strategic Research Partnerships and executive director of the Charlotte Research Institute.

“Industry communicated strongly with the legislative delegation,” he explains. “They were key to having state funds directed to UNC Charlotte for the building and faculty recruitment.” An additional $5 million in recurring funds was requested for hiring new faculty, $2 million of which has been received by the EPIC. The University will request the balance in the next budget cycle.

“We need lots of people,” declares Johnson. “In order to graduate several hundred engineers in this area every year, we’ve got to scale up our efforts dramatically.” Jamil echoes this opinion: “Our desire is to have the best energy-focused engineering school in the country if not the world. We need a worldclass faculty for that.”

According to Carlberg, the state funding of the EPIC represented the only new project money in the university system last year. All funds for brick and mortar are from the state; federal funds will be sought to support various research activities.

Wilhelm reports that UNC Charlotte faculty and R&D staff from area companies are in discussions

about research projects that may be funded by the federal government.

A Solid Foundation The pouring of concrete follows other foundations laid down in recent years through essential intellectual, political and funding groundwork.

In some sense, the EPIC has been up and running for about six years now,” offers Patterson.

“Once the building is completed, the program will have more of a presence because having a building gives a program a certain cache,” he admits.

The EPIC Advisory Board, formed in 2008, is comprised of senior executives from many of the large power companies in the region including Duke Energy, AREVA, EPRI, Shaw Group, Seimens, Tessera, URS/Washington and Westinghouse. It is charged with insuring that curriculum design and research objects are in keeping with the industry’s need for work force and advancement.

Each member has put in approximately $10,000 to sustain operations. This fund covers conferences, outreach and recruitment searches.

The EPIC is currently recruiting for nine new faculty members and a Center director. Many of the member companies have contributed by establishing scholarships.

The Board is now seeking more support from industry to establish endowments for professors.

“The reality is that if North Carolina doesn’t build more conventional power plants, the state will run out of energy very fast. We cannot rely on wind and solar in the foreseeable future. If you’re going to have a strong economy, you have to have conventional power plants.

I think the state recognizes this, but it’s a pretty hot potato.” ~Dr. Robert E. Johnson Dean of the College of Engineering, UNC Charlotte

30

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

!"#$

Support is expected for physical facilities as well, according to Patterson. “Some state-of-the-art equipment for students may be sponsored,” says Patterson.

The number one goal is an industry-ready, interdisciplinary work force; number two, research. UNC Charlotte has a terrific reputation for applied research,” says Carlberg, adding, “EPIC wouldn’t be here without industry; industry wouldn’t be as robust without EPIC.” Conventional and Alternative “The EPIC attracts strong interest from nuclear, oil, coal and gas—the conventional sectors of the energy industry,” says Wilhelm. “Together with our other research centers, we have the opportunity to work with alternative interests including biomass, solar, smart-grid technology, wind, and others.”

“The reality is that if North Carolina doesn’t build more conventional power plants, the state will run out of energy very fast,” says Johnson. He goes on to say that we cannot rely on wind and solar in the foreseeable future. “If you’re going to have a strong economy, you have to have conventional power plants. I think the state recognizes this, but it’s a pretty hot potato.”

Regarding the nuclear power debate, Patterson offers: “People tend to make relatively quickly-formed opinions almost always based on relative ignorance regarding nuclear power.

It requires thought and understanding of the issues.” Patterson notes the irony of significant factions of Greenpeace now supporting nuclear energy because it doesn’t emit carbon dioxide—a sea change in thinking.

Some companies that you expect to be narrowly slotted to conventional means are in fact quite interested in working across a wide range, according to Patterson.

Having a lot of technical expertise, they are able to recognize how these pieces will play together.

“This is apparent in the faculty as they work on photo voltaic or interesting conservation measures because conservation is effectively the same as generation at some level.” Patterson says, “AREVA provides an example of this. While they feel that they can do a great job making entirely safe nuclear power plants, they have a great interest in other energy forms because they can also create large bioenergy installations.”

“That’s why I like my “Technology in Society class”,” shares Patterson. “It teaches people how to think for themselves on these issues. A very major

service to the state is to broadly educate a more discerning and critically thinking population.”

With nearly 25,000 students, UNC Charlotte is the fourth largest of the University of North Carolina system’s 16 institutions. There are 3,000 students in the College of Engineering. UNC Charlotte has the 30th largest mechanical engineering (M.E.) program in the country.

“If we have the well-trained graduates and the energy businesses here, we have a very important base for economic development,” says Carlberg. A successful tool for economic development is giving industry and students access to each other. Studies have shown that students with ties to the community are more likely to remain in the Charlotte region; engineers who are trained locally will seek employment locally.

“We’re open to both small and large companies but know that most economic growth comes with startups or expansions in the region,” he continues.

“However, large companies have the capacity to transfer the new knowledge in large quantities by hiring our students.”

Wilhelm explains that small companies want to be close to ongoing research and development projects of faculty and students: “They want to be close to analytic or prototype or fabrication facilities; we want them to work with our students and faculties.”

Space is set aside for industrial offices in the new EPIC building. The Charlotte Research Institute is the portal for industry to work with the university. In all, 100 acres on campus are state authorized to have business tenants.

A thoughtful search for a director of the EPIC is in full swing, according to Johnson. “We’re looking for a very unique person,” he says, “one with industry connections but who understands academia; one with technical expertise but who has good people skills.”

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

Although currently in the strategic planning cycle for the 2010-2015 University Plan, Johnson is waiting for the new director to include the EPIC. There is no shortage of interest in the job.

In February 2010, Turner Construction Company was awarded the $61.5 million dollar contract to build the EPIC facility. The building will provide laboratory, classroom and office space.

The departments of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Electrical and Computer Engineering will relocate to the new building with close to 1,000 students.

“One good benefit is that it will bring colleagues back together again,” says Patterson.

The EPIC building is scheduled to open in late 2011. In the meantime, if you are near the UNC Charlotte campus, don’t take your eyes off the rising EPIC…you might miss a surge in the Charlotte area economy. biz Zenda Douglas is a Charlotte-based freelance writer.

University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNC Charlotte) The William States Lee College of Engineering 310 Duke Centennial Hall 9201 University City Blvd.

Charlotte, N.C. 28223 Phone: 704-687-8272 [College of Engineering] Principals: Philip L. Dubois, UNC Charlotte Chancellor; Dr. Steve Patterson, Interim Director for EPIC; Dr. Robert E. Johnson, Dean of the College of Engineering Initiative: Energy Production Infrastructure Center (EPIC) to house future energyrelated programs in electrical, computer, civil and environmental engineering in a collaborative teaching and research facility Started: Summer 2009 Completion: Scheduled late 2011 Anticipated Cost: $76.2 million Facility: 200,000-square-foot, three-story EPIC building on the grounds of the Charlotte Research Institute’s campus housing laboratories, offices and classrooms Features: State-of-the-art EPIC facility will include a 4,000-square-foot clean room, a 3,500-square-foot material growth lab, and a high-bay research area; constructed as a LEEDS Silver certified facility www.epic.uncc.edu

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

31

Leadership Insights 2010 Spring Sessions | By Invitation Only

This is an exclusive series of roundtable discussions for CEOs, CFOs and business owners who are looking to bring creative solutions to business problems.

Come build relationships with each other.

April 21, 2010 4:00-6:00 PM How to Simplify Organizational Leadership Breon Klopp | Performance Instruction & Training

May 26, 2010 4:00-6:00 PM Maximizing and Preserving Business and Personal Wealth Robert Norris, MBA, JD | Law Firm of Wishart Norris Henninger and Pittman

Please contact Dana Williams of Knauff Insurance at 704.405.0076 or dwilliams@knauffins.com for more information

andrewroby.com Your home.

It’s the one investment you can’t ignore no matter what else happens.

When the time is right, we’re ready to help you invest in your home’s future – in the kitchen or bath, with a value-adding addition, or an ROI renovation.

When you invest in your home, your daily returns are better.

Helping people invest in home since 195O. 7O4.334.5477

Remodeling !"New Construction !"Handyman

making it home since 1950

General Contractor

Jack Hickey General Manager - Charlotte Hilldrup Moving & Storage

34

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

by heather head

[bizprofile]

Excellence destination:

Hilldrup Moving & Storage Goes the Extra Mile

J

ust as I’m settling into a comfortable leather chair for a chat with Jack Hickey, general manager of the Charlotte location of Hilldrup Moving & Storage, we’re interrupted by sales rep Mike Sandell, arms full of files and notebooks. He’s rushing out to meet a potential customer, but first wants to tell me how much he loves this company.

“I’ve been with a lot of moving companies over the years,” he professes. “A lot.

But none of them is anything like this one.”

He pulls out a bulging binder and begins to show me photos demonstrating the quality of work performed by the company. “When I show this to the customer, it’s usually a sell,” he explains. “And I love knowing that the company is going to deliver exactly what I promise. Most companies aren’t that way.”

A Moving History Since 1903, when R. G. Hilldrup first offered horse and carriage transportation in Fredericksburg, Va., extraordinary service and customer care have been the company’s defining qualities. When Hilldrup himself retired in 1940, he chose a devoted employee, C. B. McDaniel, to take on ownership. The company has remained a privately owned and run enterprise, and is now run by a third generation of McDaniels.

In the 1960s, the company joined forces with United Van Lines in

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

order to expand their offerings and gain the ability to offer coast-to-coast moving. The 1990s saw new branch locations added across the Southeast and as well as international capabilities, plus the addition of a commercial moving line that now represents 30 percent of the company’s revenue. Through it all, the company has maintained its family-owned status and its high level of customer care.

Storing Up Goodwill Close your eyes for a minute and think about the word “warehouse.” Chances are you are not imagining anything like the Hilldrup warehouses on Carrier Drive next to I-85 in Charlotte.

Gleaming polished floors, comfortable temperatures, and tidy stacks of wooden vaults reaching to the ceiling. On one edge of the space are stacks of construction materials awaiting use by a contractor for Bank of America. Down several aisles are carefully packed Christmas decorations for Northlake Mall. At the far end, there is even a jet ski and a 1911 REO Touring automobile, complete #

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

35

with leather carriage-style seats and a canvas canopy. All is catalogued, scrupulously clean, and neatly ordered.

One of the company’s two warehouses represents the only true climate-controlled facility of its kind in the area, Hickey says. It’s offered for delicate material storage, as an optional service or, when available, as a free upgrade to thank a customer for their patronage. Sometimes, they’ll back an entire truckload of short-term storage goods into the climate controlled space and hold it for a customer that has run into a temporary delay and doesn’t want their possessions exposed to the elements.

The way Hilldrup stores the cargo entrusted to it exemplifies the company’s approach and is all the more impressive because it happens at a point in the service cycle that the customer rarely sees. The cleanliness, the care taken (one forklift even utilizes optical technology to prevent accidental bumping of racks or boxes), and the evident organization all contribute to an overall impression of quality.

Personnel attend regular training sessions either on-site or at central company locations where they receive instruction and practice in the handling of valuable items, from artwork to antiques to oriental rugs that have to be stored in a special area and handled in a particular manner to prevent damage during transport and storage.

The photos in Sandell’s sales binder demonstrate the same attention to detail at every point of the cycle. Every door frame, every stair rail, every potential point of contact with the customer’s furniture is carefully padded before the loading begins.

Sandell closes his binder and asks me to come outside for a moment. He wants to show me the stacks of used moving boxes in the back of his car.

He’s on his way to a sales appointment, he says, but along the way he’s going to drop these boxes off at a customer’s house. They are doing the packing themselves, and Sandell is going to save them the expense of buying boxes by giving them some from a previous customer’s move.

“That kind of personal attention to details and going beyond the call of duty exemplifies the attitude expected of all Hilldrup employees,” Hickey points up.

And Hilldrup returns that same care to the employees through exceptional employee policies and attention to worker needs. Sandell and Hickey are not alone in expressing their loyalty for the company—throughout our tour of the grounds, Hickey frequently stops for pleasant exchanges with various employees, several of whom express their appreciation for the company’s treatment.

One example of the company’s attention to employee and environmental concerns is an ongoing shift from the use of cardboard boxes to plastic crates that boast the double benefit of being both

36

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

re-useable and safer for workers. Employees can set an empty crate onto a rolling cart, fill it, close it, and set another empty crate on top. Once filled, the entire stack can be rolled to the loading area where a forklift is used to transfer the crates to the truck.

The new method saves workers the strain of lifting boxes and significantly reduces worker’s compensation claims. It also adds considerably to the environment as significantly less cardboard is used.

Conveying Community Spirit Hilldrup’s commitment to service and quality extends beyond customers and employees and out into the community. They are especially proud their membership in a program developed

by United Van Lines called “Move Rescue” that rescues people who have been scammed by shady moving companies.

The scam occurs when a family has hired a moving company for an agreed-upon price, but at the destination the company demands significantly more before they will release the goods. Upon hearing of a case like this, United deploys a crew to locate the family’s goods, obtain a release from the storage company, and move the family into their new home—oftentimes at no charge.

Another program, called “Discover America,” teaches school children about geography and math through a unique in-person, interactive curriculum. In this program, a Hilldrup Moving & Storage employee nicknamed “Driver Dave,” talks to children in grades two through five about his job responsibilities and conducts a tour of his vehicle.

The children then follow his travels through 10 cities across the United States through letters, picture books, postcards, and various other souvenirs from the driver. They are encouraged to discuss the material, calculate mileage, and trace his route on a map provided by the company.

Other Hilldrup community services include a portable stage that the Charlotte location maintains and offers for use, free of charge, to any organization that requests it. The stage consists

essentially of a tractor trailer from which one side has been removed. It has, for example, been employed downtown during music festivals. The company delivers the stage and helps to set it up pro bono.

Transcending Obstacles Despite their impeccable record and outstanding service, the company has its share of challenges.

“In the early years,” comments Hickey, “the greatest challenge was finding employees who fit our model.” They have never hired just anyone off the street—drug testing and background checks were standard at Hilldrup long before it was standard in the industry. Additionally, their criteria for hiring include a level of commitment and care that exceeds the expectation of many candidates.

However, over the years they have developed a staff and a reputation that has made recruiting and retention a relatively simple matter now.

Lately, their challenge has been the same as that of many companies: The economy. In particular, fewer companies are now offering moving

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

Relocating Business Commercial moves represent 30 percent of Hilldrup’s business, and an effective buffer against the current recession.

“During down times,” Hickey explains, “companies are more likely to move in search of lower rents or better lease packages.” That effect counterbalances the natural decline in business due to companies either going out of business or choosing not to move for economic reasons.

For over 20 years, Hilldrup has handled commercial moves for small companies, massive corporations, and everything in between. They offer relocation management, budget/cost analysis, installation, warehousing, IT services, and even

avoid that costly effect, on each end someone has written “March, June, September, December,” at each of four compass points. When I visited, the month “March” was facing up. A few months from now, a pulley system will have been assembled, employed, and then disassembled, and the word “June” will face up.

The warehouse also holds additional equipment for this project, including a generator and other equipment that is so large it requires a portable crane to be moved.

Whether it’s commercial, residential, corporate, international or military, Hilldrup is proud of their history and commitment to quality moves and fair treatment of everyone from customers to employees. Hickey has worked for Hilldrup for eleven years. He says he has stayed in Charlotte and with Hilldrup because he loves this city and he loves Hilldrup.

The care the company takes of the customer is second to none,” he affirms. “They treat the employees with that same care, and that’s worth sticking around for.”

Sandell concurs. “Now that I know what a quality company is like, I don’t ever want to work anywhere else.” The reason: What Hilldrup promises, Hilldrup delivers, even if it means going an extra mile (or three thousand). biz Heather Head is a Charlotte-based freelance writer.

{

}

Hilldrup Companies, Inc. dba

For the last 20 years, century-old Hilldrup has also handled commercial moves for small companies, massive corporations, and everything in between. They offer relocation management, budget/cost analysis, installation, warehousing, IT services, and even liquidation services for companies downsizing their offices and stock.

Additionally, their turnkey approach is unique in the industry and provides a high level of convenience and efficiency for commercial customers. packages to new or relocated employees, or they are offering a lump sum payment rather than paying for the move altogether.

As a result, the end customer has become much more price sensitive. And although Hilldrup always prices competitively, Hickey points out that their higher level of service means that they are not usually the lowest priced option: “And when you’re paying out of pocket, those few hundred dollars make a difference.”

Still, many customers continue to choose Hilldrup for the higher level of service, especially after they visit the warehouses or see the extra care their possessions will receive. Hilldrup has met the challenge by also diversifying their services, specifically by focusing more heavily on the commercial end of the business.

liquidation services for companies downsizing their offices and stock. Additionally, their turnkey approach is unique in the industry and provides a high level of convenience and efficiency for commercial customers.

They also offer storage of large, unwieldy, and unusual commercial materials that no one else can handle. On the day of my visit, one end of the climate-controlled warehouse holds four enormous pillars up on wooden stands. They belong to Duke Energy for a hydroelectric plant they are building nearby. They are lying on their sides—about eight feet long and a foot and a half in diameter—and made of heavy-duty metal. They are hefty.

In fact, Hickey explains, they are so heavy that if they sit in one position for more than a few months, the industrial-strength metal alloy will warp. To

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

Hilldrup Moving & Storage [Charlotte Location] 1325 Carrier Drive Charlotte, N.C. 28216 Phone: 704-395-4621; 800-333-3849 Principals: Charles W. McDaniel, President; Jack Hickey, General Manager Locations: Stafford,Va. (headquarters, serving Washington, D.C.); Manassas,Va.; Richmond,Va.; Raleigh-Durham, N.C.; Charlotte, N.C.; Greenville, S.C.; Atlanta, Ga.; and Orlando, Fla. Founded: 1903 by R.G. Hilldrup as a horse and carriage operation serving Fredericksburg,Va.; in Charlotte since 1999 Affiliation: United Van Lines (since 1964) Employees: 28 full-time, plus contractors (Charlotte only) Warehouse Space: 80,000 square feet, 40,000 of which is climate- and humiditycontrolled Business: Office and industrial moving, corporate relocation, international moving, residential moving, and storage services. www.hilldrup.com

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

37

[bizprofile]

by heather head

Understanding )$*+*"*,Ivey Exterminating Knows How Bugs Think

F

or most people, the smell of freshly mown grass is a favorite scent of summer. But Marty Ivey would rather be smelling dust, plastic and humidity.

“I know I’m weird,” he admits, “But I’m very comfortable in a crawl space.” And that’s not even the weirdest thing about Ivey. He also loves bugs, and not just any bugs—he’s passionate about the most hated insect criminals in the history of mankind. Termites, cockroaches, ants, and mosquitoes.

It would be easy to imagine that he loves them primarily because they keep his company in business.

After all, if it weren’t for insect pests, the 56-year-old Ivey Exterminating, Inc. wouldn’t even exist. But spend 10 minutes listening to Ivey talk about a termite, and you’ll understand that his company’s expertise in exterminating is founded in genuine admiration, a deep, keen understanding of the enemy, and a passion for the lessons that enemy (the bug) can teach us about the world we live in.

38

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

Burrowing into the Past William G. Ivey, Marty’s father, was a high flying salesman for Orkin in the 1940s and ’50s. He made better commissions than most Orkin salespeople in a three-state radius. And he loved the company so much, he gave his oldest son (Marty’s brother Richard) the middle name “Pressman” after Jake Pressman, the man who owned the area’s franchises at that time.

But making a lot of money and loving the company wasn’t enough for Bill Ivey. He was sure he could do better on his own, and it was even worth spending a year selling mosquito bait along the coast (while he waited out his non-compete agreement) just to give it a shot. When he finally opened Ivey Exterminating in 1954, by his side was the bookkeeper he had swept away from Orkin, Mary, the woman he would spend the rest of his life with and who would mother his two sons.

“They complemented each other very well,” Marty Ivey remembers. “Mom was good with money and with organizing things and getting them done, and Dad was good at selling. They both were adamant that things be done right.” #

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

Spend 10 minutes listening to Ivey talk about a termite, and youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll understand that his companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s expertise in exterminating is founded in genuine admiration, a deep, keen understanding of the enemy, and a passion for the lessons that enemy (the bug) can teach us about the world we live in.

Photo: Richard Ivey

Marty Ivey President and Founder Ivey Exterminating, Inc.

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

39

“Insects, like people, follow predictable patterns and lines of energy.

When you have temperature stacking effects like in most homes, those cool temperatures in the crawl space are going to create an energy flow upward into the home. And the insects will follow. Vapor barriers and moisture control solutions can change the energy flow and reduce insect infiltration.” ~Marty Ivey President and Founder

Growing up the son of a driven businessman wasn’t always easy. When Ivey Sr. wanted a fence built, it was the Ivey Jr.s who dug the post holes, prepared the boards, and constructed the fence.

“It was normal for us when we got out of school, or even before, for him to put us to work,” Ivey remembers. By the age of five, he would go out on rounds with the “termite crew” helping with waterproofing and related tasks.

“I have a picture of myself at seven years old, white-headed, just filthy from head to toe from digging a trench, with the rubber gloves those guys used to wear pulled up to my armpits,” Ivey muses. Another image that sticks in his mind is how he and his brother looked at school on the Monday after constructing the fence.

They had been dipping the boards in a green preservative that stained their skin. “We looked like two little green leprechauns for days.”

Ivey’s diverse clientele spans everything from commercial space to Section 8 housing to high end homes with wine cellars. In addition to exterminating all the big, bad pests—termites, roaches, fleas, and so on—they also install vapor barriers and moisture control solutions.

40

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

When Ivey took over the family business in 1982, the childhood training didn’t leave him.

In fact, he admits, it’s hard for him to take a vacation. And why would he want to, when he loves his work so much?

Buzzing with Activity Unlike many business owners, Ivey is not content to sit in the office and run the business. He spends most of his day in crawl spaces communing with the enemy. “I’ve got three outstanding ladies here in the office and they excel at what they do. I can manage what I need to manage from the field.”

The company’s customers appreciate the devotion Ivey puts into his work. They know when he or his staff says something is true, it’s true. The company’s culture is based in hard work and honesty, and it always has been. For instance, while most companies offer “inspections” by salespeople who are motivated by a high commission structure—and sometimes sell things the customer doesn’t need—Ivey has always done it differently.

“Dad and Mom’s theory was that we’d be better off sending a technician out that was trained to know what he was doing, and whose compensation was not based on commission,” Ivey attests. “We’re well-known in Charlotte, especially in the real estate trade, because they know whatever we say is accurate.”

The company has grown steadily over the years and now employs 15. The diverse clientele spans everything from commercial space to Section 8 housing to high end homes with wine cellars. In addition to exterminating all the big, bad pests—termites, roaches, fleas, and so on— they also install vapor barriers and moisture control solutions. Ivey explains the connection: “Insects, like people, follow predictable patterns and lines of energy. When you have temperature stacking effects like in most homes,

those cool temperatures in the crawl space are going to create an energy flow upward into the home. And the insects will follow. Vapor barriers and moisture control solutions can change the energy flow and reduce insect infiltration.”

It’s this deep and intense understanding of how insects behave that makes Ivy exceptional in the industry. He doesn’t just use some chemical formula to destroy insects.

He gets to know them intimately so he can treat them with greatest effectiveness. “We can learn a lot about life through the world of insects, if we just pay attention.”

He explains, for instance, why termites most often enter and damage a home at its most important structural points. It’s not just Murphy’s Law at work. It’s because termites are lazy.

A termite spends most of its life building tunnels. The tunnels give the insect access to resources while allowing it to avoid the drying effects of sunlight and keep it hidden from potential predators.

When traveling through bare ground, a termite builds a round tunnel, using it’s mandibles to mix soil with saliva and fecal matter to use as cement for the walls. If it can build against a hard line, like a piece of lumber or a concrete driveway, it can reduce the workload by a half, using the hard line as one side of its tunnel.

Even better, if it can find two boards connected closely together, it reduces the workload by less than half because all it has to do is provide coverage for the gaps between the boards.

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

The important structural points of a building— around windows and in corners—are by necessity built with multiple boards nestled together, providing the termite with the safest, easiest, laziest path to forage. And in return, the termite provides the homeowner with the biggest headache.

Understanding the essential laziness of the termite and other intimate details of its life gives Ivey an almost clairvoyant knack for finding the elusive creatures so he can eliminate them.

Feeling the Bite Currently, Ivey’s team is paying a great deal of attention to a denizen of a child’s nighttime rhyme—the bedbug. In an unpleasant example of how human economics can impact the life of a bug, this pest is back thanks to the sagging value of the dollar. Eliminated from the U.S. in the 1950s with DDT, the bedbug sited its comeback in high-end resort hotels. The reason: Tourists from countries with endemic bedbug populations, taking advantage of the depressed dollar to stretch their vacation budget, bring the pest with them and kindly deposit them in American hotels.

Of course Ivey is intrigued by the almostmythical creature: “When this little guy walks, he walks on his toenails; he’s a very methodical little insect who just manages life at a slow rate.” So slow, in fact, that he can live for a year or more without eating, just biding his time until the next meal—mammalian blood like yours—comes along. Ivey was so fascinated by the return of the bedbug, that he brought a pair back to the office in a jar, and kept an eye on them for two weeks, just to see what he and his staff could learn. Mostly they learned that the little buggers like to copulate.

Building His Nest You might get the impression that a man like Ivey is just a little too cozy with the enemy.

And it is true that he loves bugs. But actually, he admits, he loves everything. “The world is truly an amazing place,” he says, “if we take the time to look at it.”

His love for people comes through as clear as his love for bugs. One example: Despite the fact that he spends very little time there, Ivey has devoted significant energy to designing a comfortable, artistic office space for his employees to enjoy. His passion—and sense of humor—comes through loud and clear.

Tasteful sepia tones, classy beadboard wainscoting, and framed artistic renderings of traditionally admired insects serve as a tasteful backdrop to whimsy. A rock-and-wire

termite graces a countertop. One bathroom mirror appears to have had a bite taken out of its corner by a very large insect. And by the front door—an enormous mousetrap clenches the crushed snout of a giant fake rat.

Photo: Richard Ivey

“We don’t make it complicated.

We show up on time, we tell the truth, and we relate it in simple terms. We create a comfort zone. And, if a customer calls with a problem, I’m wrecked until I can get it straightened out. I lose sleep about it.” ~Marty Ivey President and Founder Also by the front door is a large curving window that looks in on a comfortable conference room. It looks like the kind of space where you might install a fish tank. Not in this office though. That space is reserved for the giant ant farm Ivey is designing.

More importantly, the 7,000-square-foot space is in a safe, comfortable location so that his employees can feel good about coming in to work, and so that they can bring their children with them when they need to. They made the move four years ago to get away from a neighborhood where kids had regularly broken windows in employee cars.

The company works just as hard to offer customers a sense of comfort and

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

safety. “We don’t make it complicated. We show up on time, we tell the truth, and we relate it in simple terms,” Ivey explains. “We create a comfort zone. And, if a customer calls with a problem, I’m wrecked until I can get it straightened out. I lose sleep about it.”

And as for the economy, the company is working to create a comfort zone around that too. “More than anything,” Ivey says, “the economy has affected peoples’ morale. Everything is bad news because bad news sells.” In response, Ivey offers loyal customer discounts and extra services. “People need a break in hard times. It’s old school stuff my parents taught me.”

Crawling into the Future Ivey is not overly concerned about the future of the economy. For one thing, his company’s bottom line hasn’t changed much. But he also attributes his nonchalance to lessons he’s learned from the insects: Positive energy attracts negative, and vice versa. In crawl spaces, for instance, warm air is attracted to cool air, which creates an energy path that insects follow. Empty niches (negative energy) attract new species (positive energy) to take advantage of the opportunity. It creates a continuously cycling pattern of change.

Ivey has watched the Noda area, in his lifetime, transition from vibrant mill town to depressed poverty zone to hip artist village, following the natural flow of energy attraction.

Likewise, he says, the current negative economic energy in our country creates opportunity for positive energies to flow in and bring the cycle around again.

Besides, regardless of which point in the cycle we may travel through, people have always hated termites and roaches and probably always will. Which means there will always be plenty of crawl spaces to occupy Ivey’s summer afternoons. biz Heather Head is a Charlotte-based freelance writer.

Ivey Exterminating, Inc. 228 Atando Avenue Charlotte, N.C. 28206 Phone: 704-334-1616 Principal: Marty Ivey, President Founded: 1954,William M. Ivey (father) Employees: 15 Business: Termite, pest and rodent control. www.bugivey.com www.iveyexterminating.com

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

41

[bizoutlook]

Regional Economic Analyses and Forecast

North Carolina Recovery Underway

Recession Ends in 2010; Job Growth After Two Years of Decline

T

he North Carolina economy is forecast to increase by 3.5% in 2010, according to UNC Charlotte economist John Connaughton in his quarterly forecast for the state. This marks the first year of expected growth following two years of decline and job loss.

In 2010, Connaughton expects first quarter Gross State Product (GSP) to increase by an annualized real rate of 4.0%. During the second quarter, GSP John Connaughton, should again increase by an annualized real rate of 4.0%. In the third quarter, GSP Ph.D. is expected to slip slightly and record an annualized real growth rate of 3.6%.

In the fourth quarter of 2010, GSP is also expected to grow at an annualized real rate of 3.8%.

4

QUARTERLY GROWTH RATES IN FORECASTED REAL GSP

3 2

4.0

4.0

2010 I

2010 II

3.6

3.8

2010 III

2010 IV

1 0

Year-End Seasonally Adjusted North Carolina Unemployment Rates 14 12 10 8 6 4 2

4.7

5.0

2006

2007

8.1 2008

10.9

10.8

2009

2010f

Annual Growth Rates In Real GSP

2010 Sector Outlook: Seven of the state’s 11 economic sectors are forecast to experience output 6 4 increases during 2010. The sectors with the stron6.5 2 3.5 -2.8 gest 0expected growth 1.3 are: -0.6 • Construction with a projected real increase of 7.2%; -2 -4 • Services with a projected real increase of 7.1%; 2010f with a 2009f (FIRE) 2007 and2008 • Finance,2006 Insurance Real Estate projected real increase of 5.2%; QUARTERLY GROWTH RATESof IN4.8%; • Government with a projected real increase REAL GSP • Retail Trade with a projected real increase of 4.0%; 4 6.8 • Transportation, Warehousing, Utilities and 2 -1.5with a-0.7 Information (TWUI) projected real increase 0 -2 of 2.2%; and -7.6 -4 • Wholesale Trade with a projected real increase -6 of 0.3%.

2009 I

2009 II

2009 III

2009 IVf

2010 Employment Outlook: For 2010, North Carolina establishments are expected to gain 36,200 net jobs. Connaughton predicts that job growth began in January, ending 24 months of decline.

Seven of the state’s 10 nonagricultural sectors of the economy are expected to experience employment increases during 2010. The sectors with the strongest employment increases in 2010 are:

42

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

• Wholesale Trade at 4.9%; • Construction at 3.4%; and • Services at 2.7%.

“While a modest recovery is underway, job growth is still lacking,” Connaughton says. “After two years of consistent job losses, we still haven’t seen a month of job growth either nationally or in North Carolina.

“Once job growth begins, it will be very slow.

It’s likely take several years for the state’s economy to replace the almost 250,000 jobs lost over the last two years of recession.”

North Carolina’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate began in 2009 at 9.7%, over two percentage points higher than the U.S. rate. By December 2009, the North Carolina rate had risen to 11.2%, while the U.S. rate was at 10.0%. Both the U.S. and North Carolina unemployment rates are expected to decline during 2010, and by December 2010 the North Carolina unemployment rate is expected to drop to 10.8%.

recovery, particularly in the financial sector.

“We are still seeing banks holding excess reserves of more than $1 trillion. This is a tremendous amount of money that could be lent out to facilitate the recovery.”

2009 Sector Analysis: Eight of the state’s 11 economic sectors are expected to experience declines during 2009. The sectors with the strongest expected declines are: • Construction with a projected real decline of 18.6%; QUARTERLY GROWTH RATES IN • Mining with a projected realREAL decline of 9.0%; FORECASTED GSP 4 • Wholesale Trade with a projected real decline of 3 8.3%; 4.0 4.0 2 • Durable Goods Manufacturing projected real 3.6 with a3.8 decline of 5.8%; 1 • Nondurable Goods Manufacturing with a projected 0 2010 Iof 5.1%; 2010 III 2010 IV 2010 II real decline • Retail Trade with a projected real decline of 4.6%; Year-End Seasonally Adjusted North Carolina • Finance, Insurance and Real Estate (FIRE) with a Unemployment Rates projected real decline of 3.8%; and 14 12 • Services with a projected real decline of 1.9%.

10 8In 2009, North Carolina establishments lost 10.8the 2008 10.9 over 6 145,700 net jobs, a decrease of 3.6% 8.1 4 5.0 level.

2009 job loss follows the loss of 120,100 2 The 4.7 jobs during 2008.2007 2006 2008 2009 2010f Annual Growth Rates In Real GSP 6

Recovery began in late 2009: While definitive government data is still several months away, Connaughton expects the North Carolina economy to have declined by 2.8% during 2009. This follows the decline of 0.6% experienced during 2008.

The North Carolina economy declined during the first three quarters of 2009. In the first quarter, GSP decreased by an annualized real growth rate of 7.6%.

During the second quarter, GSP again declined, but only by an annualized real rate of 1.5%. This represents a considerably smaller decline than was reported in the December 2009 forecast. In the third quarter, GSP again declined for the fifth consecutive quarter. For the fourth quarter 2009, North Carolina GSP is expected to increase for the first time as the recovery begins. GSP is expected to expand by an annualized real rate of 6.8%.

“The question now is, how strong and sustained will this recovery be?” Connaughton says. “I continue to see mixed signals concerning the strength of the

4 2

6.5

0

3.5

1.3

-0.6

-2.8

2007

2008

2009f

-2 -4

2006

2010f

QUARTERLY GROWTH RATES IN REAL GSP 4

6.8

2

0

-2

-4

-6

-1.5

-0.7

2009 II

2009 III

-7.6

2009 I

2009 IVf

Content provided by John Connaughton, professor of economics in the Belk College of Business at UNC Charlotte and director of the UNC Charlotte Economic Forecast published quarterly by the University of North Carolina at Charlotte since 1981.

The full UNCC Economic Forecast (March 16, 2010) is available at www.belkcollege.uncc.edu/forecast.

w w w. g re a t e rc h a r l o t t e b i z . c o m

[biznetwork] Thank you to our advertisers who make this publication and its distribution to over 100,000 readers possible! Enjoy their products and services as Charlotte’s leading business-to-business suppliers.

32

Andrew Roby andrewroby.com

15

ATCOM atcombts.com

06

At-Net at-net.net

11

Ballantyne Center for Dentistry ballantynedentistry.com

10

Basics Plus Office Products basicsplus.net

20

Business Success Institute business-success-institute.com

12

CC Communications cccommunications.com

03

Central Piedmont Community College cpcc.edu

10

Daniel, Ratliff & Company danielratliff.com

IFC

Davis Capital Group daviscapitalgroup.com

BC

Diamonds Direct SouthPark diamondsdirectsouthpark.com

43

Dry-Pro Basement Systems dryprosystems.com

08

Greater Charlotte Biz greatercharlottebiz.com

44

Hampton Inn Oceanfront hamptoninnoceanfront.com

08

Hickory Printing hickoryprinting.com

33

Hood Hargett Breakfast Club hoodhargettbreakfastclub.com

IBC

James, McElroy & Diehl jmdlaw.com

32

Knauff Insurance Leadership Insights knauffins.com

12

Larner’s Office Furniture Outlet larnersoffice.com

19

Powerhouse Color powerhousecolor.com

15

Progressive Networks pronetsit.com

26

SIR Conferences sirconferences.com

19

Tech Care Team techcareteam.com

11

TelWare Corporation telware.com

43

Tereck Office Solutions tereckoffice.com

13

The Employers Association employersassoc.com

21

The Hunstad Center hunstadcenter.com

01

Time Warner Cable - Business Class carolinas.twcbc.com

27

University of North Carolina at Charlotte uncc.edu

42

Wayne Morris Photography wmphoto.biz

!'NO-H+'# P-N"# !'Q+RRO'S R$#T# !',R$#T*O"'N R&TOR+

After%

%Before

!')-#","&T'H -T"OPORRQ$&%

No matter what type of foundation you have, Dry-Pro Basement Systems can develop permanent solutions to keep your home dry.

Isn’t your family worth the peace of mind?

!'QR*&!-T$R&'O"P-$O

Serving North Carolina for Basement Waterproofing, Crawl Space & Foundation Repair

#1B9C;I9'7';<=='">?E37?9

1-866-437-9776 ///0>"?/")1?1%#210123

!"#"$%

!""#$%&'!()*#!+'

-.%(/01.23+Largest+ 45#6(%07$8+ -.1(1+-(90$%+:$./$% -./!01'23

-.1(1+;<=<+-52#(,$%+ >$#$1#0(1+?%(@%.,2+.%$+1(!+ 01+$))$&#A -.//+#(8.B+#(+/$.%1+6(!+ B(5+&.1+%$85&$+&(2#2+!60/$+ &(1#01501@+#(+%$&$0C$+@$1501$+ -.1(1+2$%C0&$"

!!!"#$%$&'()*+&$"&(,

p u r s u i n g a b a l a n c e o f b u s i n e s s a n d l i fe

Tereck Charlotte 704-525-5390

Tereck Greensboro 336-225-3032

Canon’s newest product line brings revolutionary features at a competitive price - all from the world’s leading manufacturer.

Tereck Durham 919-484-9270

Tereck Fayetteville 910-425-6881

ap r i l 2 0 1 0

43

THE 100% VALUE-PACKED VACATION ON MYRTLE BEACH’S OCEANFRONT.

From our breathtaking oceanfront location and superb amenities, to the most comfortable and inviting guest rooms and suites, there’s something here for everyone to love.

And we’re the only area resort with a 100% satisfaction guarantee!

• Top-rated Myrtle Beach hotel by TripAdvisor.com • “Best in Hospitality” by Myrtle Beach Area Hospitality Association • Spacious accommodations include 2-BR family suites with full kitchen and separate kids’ bedroom with bunk beds • 6 oceanfront pools • New! Sanctuary Spa • New! 240-foot lazy river • New! Precor fitness facility • New! Radical Ropes high ropes course with extreme zip lines • Golf • New! LG flat-screen TVs in all rooms and suites • New! 90-seat conference & meeting facility • New! Free wireless Internet throughout • Over 300 feet of direct ocean frontage (twice as much as before!)

In addition to those shown here, our beautiful accommodations include Oceanfront King Rooms and Sideview Rooms.

Oceanfront Double Queen Room

Oceanfront King Suite

“Family Suite” Oceanfront 2-Bedroom / 1-Bath Suite features separate kid’s room with bunk beds and full kitchen.

Also 2-Bedroom / 2-Bath available.

1801 South Ocean Boulevard / Myrtle Beach, South Carolina 29577 / Toll-free 1.877.946.6400 or 843.946.6400

Visit our live interactive beach cam ! www.HamptonInnOceanfront.com

DON’T LET THE NAME FOOL YOU.

Yes, we have a reputation for doing things differently. But that’s how you protect your client’s reputation. Drafting agreements so that prominent executives can leave their posts quietly. Negotiating contracts that help troubled businesses without embarrassing fanfare. Conducting internal investigations that limit negative exposure.

For 50 years James, McElroy & Diehl has helped individuals and businesses avoid problems, overcome obstacles and minimize consequences – fairly, efficiently and economically. So call us what you will. Many of the results we’ve obtained for our clients have never gone public.

AND OUR LIPS ARE SEALED.

FOR DETAILED INFORMATION, CALL 704.372.9870 OR VISIT WWW.JMDLAW.COM.

© 2010 NACE Marketing, New York, All Rights Reserved.

If dreams came in shapes…

Crisscut ® Diamond * * The

Patented 77 Facet Crisscut® Natural Diamond exclusively by Christopher Designs