MBJ_Jun01_2018

INSIDE — Fate of Po’ Monkey’s hinges on settlement of estate — Page 4 MBJ FOCUS

BANKING & FINANCE {Section begins P13}

» Change is theme of 130th Mississippi Bankers Association Convention » Waycaster a steady hand leading Renasant

www.msbusiness.com

June 1, 2018 • Vo. 40 No. 22 • 20 pages

GAMING

{The List P16-17} » Oldest Credit Unions

AGRICULTURE

National forests brace for next pine beetle onslaught — Page 9

Reporter’s Notebook {P8}

New product, new day for Tunica gaming — Page 4 AGRIBUSINESS

DELTA COUNCIL TO HOLD MEETING, BUT WITHHOLDS KEYNOTE SPEAKER’S NAME

By JACK WEATHERLY jack.weatherly@msbusiness.com It’s evidently a first in the Delta Council’s 83 years.

The identity of the keynote speaker at its annual meeting on Friday in the Bologna Performing Arts Center of Delta State University will not be revealed in advance.

The program only lists a Trump administration official.

The Trump administration requested that the per-

son’s name not be told beforehand.

Chip Morgan, executive vice president of the council, which represents the Delta in agricultural and other economic matters, is complying with the request.

The White House “just told us that our keynote gets protection about anywhere he goes,” Morgan said in an interview.

Morgan said council members know the identity but made the commitment.

Such was not the case last year as another Trump

» Sadly, there goes that man who invented New Journalism

http://msbusiness.com/events/health-care-heroes/

See DELTA COUNCIL, Page 11

2 Q Mississippi Business Journal Q June 1, 2018 PUBLIC TRUST

New chairman of the NEH a Mississippi native

By BECKY GILLETTE mbj@msbusiness.com

Jon Parrish Peede, the new chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), is a native of Mississippi who moved to Washington D.C. 15 years ago when President George W. Bush appointed him to a position at the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA).

“Virginia has been my state of residence since and is where my wife Nancy and I raised our daughter,” Peede said “But when the Trump White House asked me to write down the state to be affiliated with on my official nomination before the U.S. Senate, I did not write the Commonwealth of Virginia. Rather, I wrote: “Jon Parrish Peede of Mississippi.”

Founded in 1965, NEH is an independent grant-making institution of the U.S. government dedicated to supporting research, education, preservation, and public programs in the humanities.

Peede was born and raised in Brandon. Since his father was a surgeon and his mother was director of medical records, he loved medicine during his youth and went to Vanderbilt University to prepare for a medical career. During high school, he interned at Rankin General Hospital in the surgery ward. During college, he worked for a summer at the VA Hospital in Jackson and worked part-time at the nephrology lab at Vanderbilt during the school year.

But he eventually decided that his calling was to a writer and editor, not a doctor.

“I believe that the works of the great writers of Mississippi—Welty, Faulkner, Richard

Wright, Margaret Alexander Walker, Shelby Foote, Will D. Campbell, Willie Morris—influenced me to pursue a literary career,” Peede said. “Being away from home at college, I came to understand Faulkner and the Deep South at a personal level.” Peede “A sheltered life can be a daring life as well,” Welty wrote. “For all serious daring starts within.”

Peede claims those words as his own view.

“I may have studied the sciences, but I lived the arts in Mississippi, and what we live is almost always a stronger factor in shaping our lives,” he said.

After graduating from Vanderbilt with a B.S. in English, he accepted a fellowship for the Southern Studies master’s program at the University of Mississippi. He studied with Bill Ferris, Tom Rankin, Charles Reagan Wilson, Bob Brinkmeyer, and many other gifted professors. Ferris, who served as NEH chairman himself, remains an important mentor.

Although President Donald J. Trump originally proposed eliminating the NEH, in April Trump signed into a law a budget of $153 million for the NEH, which is the largest NEH budget level in six years.

“The agency has bipartisan support in the U.S. House and Senate,” Peede said. “Approximately 40 percent of NEH funding goes directly to our state partners, including the Mississippi Humanities Council led by Stuart Rockoff. I can’t say enough great things about the state’s humanities

team, and its commitment to reaching every county.

“Of particular note, the new NEH infrastructure and capacity-building grants have been well received across the aisle on Capitol Hill and across the country. These grants leverage federal dollars to spur increased private investment in our nation’s libraries, museums, and cultural centers to ensure the long-term health and growth of these institutions. Equally important, NEH grants—such as our support of the new twin history museums in Jackson and the new Mississippi Writers Trail—drive economic development and cultural tourism.”

Each year more than 2,400 teachers participate in NEH-sponsored workshops and institutes on topics ranging from ancient Roman society to the literature and culture of Appalachia, translating into a more enriching educational experience for some 350,000 students across America. Peede said NEH grants have enabled the development of the country’s art conservation education programs, producing graduates who have applied their expertise to the conservation of precious heritage items such as the Star-Spangled Banner and the Declaration of Independence.

NEH initiatives such as a partnership with the First Nations Development Institute are helping revitalize endangered Native American languages. And NEH emergency grants to museums, libraries, and archives in areas affected by Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria are helping small cultural institutions recover quickly from natural disaster. Peede said through these projects and thousands of others, the NEH

PUBLIC COMPANIES

SANDERSON EARNINGS FALL IN SECOND QUARTER

By JACK WEATHERLY jack.weatherly@msbusiness.com Sanderson Farms Inc. reports net income of $41.9 million, or $1.84 per share, for its second fiscal quarter, which ended April 30, compared with net income of $67 million, or $2.95 per share, for the second quarter of fiscal 2017.

The release in premarket trading on May 24 drove Sanderson shares on the NasdaqGS market down as the company did not meet the FactSet consensus of $2.22 earnings per share and sales of $834 million.

Net sales for the quarter were $813.5 million, compared with $802 million a year earlier.

Sanderson shares fell that day to nearly 23 percent for the year, according to MarketWatch.

The 52-week range is $176.43 to $100. Shares were trading at $102.92 at 1:45 p.m. on Tuesday, up $1.96, or 1.94 percent.

The price for boneless breast meat and jumbo wings fell as food-service demand pushed downward in April as a cold wet spring “kept con-

sumers indoors,” Chairman and Chief Executive Joe F. Sanderson Jr. said in a release.

“Lower average sales prices were offset during the quarter by more pounds sold, as our new St. Pauls, [N.C.] facility is running at full capacity.

Poultry pounds sold increased 3.1 percent during the quarter compared to last year’s second quarter,” added Sanderson.

Net sales for the first six months of fiscal 2018 were $1.59 billion, compared with $1.49 billion for the same period of fiscal 2017. Net income for the first half of the year totaled $93.2 million, or $4.08 per share, compared with net income of $91 million, or $4 per share, for the first six months of last year.

Prices in retail grocery store sales remained relatively strong during the quarter, and continue to reflect good demand, but compared with the second fiscal quarter of 2017, boneless breast meat market prices were approximately 5.3 percent lower, the average market price for bulk leg quarters increased approximately 6.2 percent, and jumbo wing market prices were lower by 23.6 percent, according to the release. Market prices

has inspired and preserved what is best in American culture.

Peede was sworn in as the 11th chairman of the NEH at a May 3 ceremony at the White House.

“It is a distinct honor to be nominated by President Trump and confirmed by the U.S. Senate to serve as chairman of the NEH,” Peede said. “I particularly value this vote of bipartisan support and will work with my NEH colleagues to ensure that all Americans have access to our country’s cultural resources.”

Peede joined NEH in April 2017. Peede’s previous positions include publisher of the Virginia Quarterly Review at the University of Virginia, literature grants director at the NEA, counselor to NEA Chairman Dana Gioia, director of the NEA Operation Homecoming: Writing the Wartime Experience program, director of the NEA Big Read program, director of communications at Millsaps College, and editor at Mercer University Press.

He is the coeditor of Inside the Church of Flannery O’Connor: Sacrament, Sacramental, and the Sacred in Her Fiction (Mercer, 2007) and editor of a bilingual anthology of contemporary American fiction (Lo que cuenta el vecino: cuentos contemporáneos de los Estados Unidos [UNUM: Mexico City, 2008].) He has published widely in newspapers, magazines, academic journals, books, and encyclopedias. As a speechwriter, he has written for a U.S. president, first lady, and librarian of Congress.

More information about the NEH and its grant programs is available at: www.neh.gov.

for chicken breast tenders averaged 4.7 percent lower than a year ago.

The company’s average feed costs per pound of poultry products processed decreased by 3.3 percent. .

“Looking ahead to the second half of the fiscal year, we expect grain prices to be somewhat higher as we move through the crop growing season,” added Sanderson. “While there are ample supplies of both corn and soybeans worldwide, a slow start to the United States planting season for 2018 corn and soybean crops as a result of the cold, wet spring in the United States grain belt put upward pressure on market prices. Farmers quickly made up that early deficit, and planting progress is now on pace with historical averages. Grain market participants will now turn their attention to trade issues and weather during the growing season.”

“While the USDA reports that the United States broiler breeder flock is 4 percent larger than a year ago, the agency also reports that egg production, hatch rates and livability are trending below last year. The current USDA forecast for United States broiler production during calendar 2018 to increase approximately 1.6 percent over calendar 2017 seems reasonable, but even this lowered estimate could prove to be high should these production trends continue. We expect our production during our third and fourth fiscal quarters of 2018 to be up 2.8 percent and down 4.7 percent, respectively, compared to the same quarters of fiscal 2017,” Sanderson concluded.

Shining more light on solar.

Entergy Mississippi is committed to providing affordable, reliable and clean power to Mississippians for generations to come. So we’re making it easier for our customers to self-generate solar electricity and incorporate solar power into our power grid. Thanks to net metering, registered solar users earn credit for excess solar energy sent back to the grid.

The Mississippi Public Service Commission is making it easier to understand how solar can work for you. “A Consumer’s Guide to Solar Power in Mississippi” provides information on how solar and net metering work, and the details you need to consider before purchasing or leasing hardware.

Get the working group’s guide for free at entergybrightfuture.com.

A message from Entergy Mississippi, Inc. ©2018 Entergy Services, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

4 Q Mississippi Business Journal Q June 1, 2018 GAMING

A new product and new day for Tunica gaming

» Sports betting gives Delta casinos an opportunity to regain lost business

By TED CARTER mbj@msbusiness.com

Tunica County casino executive R. Scott Barber’s long wait for the light to change is almost over.

Legalized sports betting is about to materialize in Mississippi and with it prospects for a change of fortune for the Delta’s gaming sector.

Barber, Caesars Entertainment regional vice president, attributes years Barber of decline in the region’s casino business partly to the absence of a new product. “Imagine if you are a 25-year-old amusement park and haven’t added a new ride or anything,” he said.

But with sports books, Tunica County is back in the game as a draw for visitors from as far away as Jackson, Tenn., Birmingham and Little Rock, Barber said. “We’ll be able to attract them,” he added, and noted there’s no lack of interest in sports, especially football. “We’re in the heart of SEC Country.”

Something shiny and new for the Delta gaming sector – without it Barber was unsure what might stop annual revenue declines of 3 percent to 4 percent that started in 2007-2008. Those declines marked the end of a gaming bonanza that came as Mississippians and others with a hankering to wager flocked to Tunica County, the birth-

place of Magnolia State gaming a quarter century ago, while the Mississippi Gulf Coast casinos rebuilt after Katrina.

Today, the 12 gaming venues on the Gulf are the prosperous cousins to those of Tunica. April revenues showed just how well they are faring. Earnings at gambling centers there hit an all-time high of $108.6 million last month, the Associated Press reported.

That’s $1.4 million more than the previous high set in April 2007 when volunteers and contractors were flooding the coast after Katrina.

In recent months, Barber and gaming executives across the country expected the U.S. Supreme Court to rule against a federal ban on sports betting. Allowing sports books to operate in Nevada and three other states but no other states didn’t pass constitutional muster, the justices said.

Mississippi lawmakers also anticipated the court’s action by enacting legislation that legalizes sport gambling that occurs on a casino gaming floor.

The immediate task for the two casinos Barber oversees in the Delta – Horseshoe Tunica and Tunica Roadhouse – is to install temporary sports betting areas while making plans for larger, permanent sports book rooms.

“We want to have temporary facilities by football season,” he said.

So far, Caesars has identified space inside the Horseshoe for a permanent sports book, according to Barber, who said he expects the new spaces to open within 12 to 14 months of Caesars breaking ground..

He envisions the permanent Harrah betting rooms to be smaller versions of what Caesars has in Las Vegas. But he noted nonetheless, “I think you are looking at some very large-scale investments in the

facilities.”

He said he expects owners of other Delta casinos and resorts to make similar investments.

In addition to the two Harrah’s casinos, Tunica gaming properties are: *Casino Strip Properties *Hollywood Casino *Resorts Casino Tunica *Sam’s Town Casino Resort *Casino Center Properties *Gold Strike Casino Resort *North End Casinos *1st Jackpot Casino *Fitz Casino & Hotel Renovations, including $10 million in upgrades to the Horseshoe, have occurred at the casinos and resorts over the last 25 years. “We’ve kept them in shape,” Barber said.

But what they haven’t done is duplicate the Mississippi coast’s success in adding new properties and the visitor and industry buzz they create, Barber said.

“They’ve done some large capital investments down there,” he said.

The important thing for Tunica, Barber said, is at long last it can offer a visitor “an expanded experience.”

Sports books are not highly profitable as a stand-alone, the gaming executive said, but that changes when they’re put in a casino and resort setting. With them, Barber said, “We can get some markets we haven’t touched for some time.”

Like the state gaming officials who will write the new rules for sports betting, Barber expects the offerings and the way the wagering is done will evolve with time.

That could include Mississippians and others placing sports bets from their portable devices wherever they are. The caveat: People making the wagers would need to

have online accounts with a casino in the state.

“I think at a time in the future that would be allowable,” said Barber, who also oversees a pair of Caesars casino properties in Cherokee, N.C. More immediately, he expects visitors to Mississippi casinos will be able to use their phones, tablets and other portable devices to make sports bets while on casino properties.

He said he also thinks in-game betting is worth exploring. Alan Godfrey, executive director of the Mississippi Gaming Commission, agrees. “We may get there but we are starting off slow,” Godfrey said in a recent interview.

Larry Gregory, executive director of the Jackson-based Mississippi Gaming & Hospitality Association, said he expects sports betting to be a much-needed tonic for Tunica’s economic lethargy. “This may be the silver bullet to get Tunica back on its feet,” he said in a recent interview.

Both Gregory and Barber think the Delta flood of 2011 marked the start of gaming’s decline in Tunica County. That forced the casinos to close for a few weeks, losing customers they never regained.

Opening of casinos in Alabama and Louisiana further diminished visitor numbers and gaming revenues in Tunica. Closer to home, Southland Park Gaming and Racing in West Memphis, Ark., lured gamblers away from Delta gaming venues.

But with the head start Mississippi will have in debuting sports wagering, look for Tunica to regain some of that trade, Barber said.

“We’re very excited,” he said. “The Tunica market is hungry for a new product.”

TOURISM

Fate of Po’ Monkey’s hinges on settlement of estate

By JACK WEATHERLY jack.weatherly@msbusiness.com There are two questions about a historic Delta juke house: 1.) Can Po’ Monkey’s work without Po’ Monkey?

2.) Can the house be moved from the cotton field where it sprang up in the rich soil and culture of the Delta?

Willie Seaberry, aka Po’ Monkey, died July 14, 2016. He had a life estate at the shack.

Seaberry’s heirs own the distinct and colorful contents in the Bolivar County shack and the equally artful signs on the outside.

The Hiter family owns the shack about a mile outside of Merigold (population roughly 400) and the land it sits on,

which is part of their large farming operation.

Andrew Westerfield, attorney for the Hiter family and 45-year mayor of Merigold, said that he is simply waiting on the Seaberrys to reach a settlement.

Meantime, Merigold will hold the second blues festival on the anniversary of Seaberry’s death, which the town declared Po’ Monkey Day. The first festival was well-attended, Westerfield said.

Preserving Po’ Monkey’s is important for the Delta culture because of the dwindling number of such places, Westerfield said. It is on the Mississippi Blues Trail, a key tourist component in the state.

Daniel Morris, attorney for the Seaberry heirs, said settlement of the estate is a matter of a few weeks away.

Park Hiter, manager of the Hiter Farms Partnership,

said there has been discussion of moving the shack into Merigold.

He said any move such as awaits the estate settlement.

A member of the Mississippi Press Association www.mspress.org

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MBJPERSPECTIVE June 1 2018 • www.msbusiness.com • Page 5

OTHER VIEWS

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Website: www.msbusiness.com June 1, 2018 Volume 40, Number 22

VOTE M

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ississippians will head to the polls next week to participate in one of the bedrocks of modern democracy – elections.

Statewide, voters on Tuesday will select Republican and Democratic nominees to several congres-

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No material in this publication may be reproduced in any form without the written consent. Editorial and advertising material contained in this publication is derived from sources considered to be reliable, but the publication cannot guarantee their accuracy. Nothing contained herein should be construed as a solicitation for the sale or purchase of any securities.

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Entire contents copyrighted © 2018 by Journal Inc. All rights reserved.

» INSIDE MISSISSIPPI

Wrong school fixes will keep our children shamefully behind

E

merging initiative “Empower Mississippi” is right that many children do not “flourish” in Mississippi public schools. But the fix it wants is wrong. Just as the fix proposed by the “Better Schools, Better Jobs” initiative was wrong.

Neither creating a new entitlement program in the guise of school choice nor making Mississippi Adequate Education Program (MAEP) funding mandatory will help our children flourish in school.

Given all the conservatives jumping on the Empower Mississippi bandwagon, you would think it provides a conservative fix. Nope. Instead it would give parents an entitlement to tax dollars (not a conservative thing at all). It would let them take money away from public schools to spend on private schools, home schooling, tutoring, or any educational activities they might prefer. The rhetoric declares this would allow students to “flourish.” Perhaps some would, but mostly this would simply transfer public funds to private schools where many students really don’t flourish academically. It would also erode education for students left behind at schools losing funds.

Given all the liberals who jumped on the Better Schools, Better Jobs bandwagon, you would think it would have provided a liberal fix. Nope. Oh, it would

Bill Crawford

have liberally thrown more money at schools, but would have done nothing to fix what’s broken. If money alone were the solution, some of our D rated school districts would be A+ districts.

For a high poverty state like Mississippi, the fix lies elsewhere.

Why do you suppose Kentucky, which has an 18.5 percent poverty rate just below Mississippi’s 20.8 percent rate, has a better high school graduation rate (88.6 percent to 82.3 percent) and far higher 8th grade reading and math proficiencies than Mississippi (36.1 percent and 27.7 percent to 20.0 percent and 21.8 percent respectively)?

School choice? Nope, though a similar initiative has popped up there. Per pupil spending? Not really, Kentucky spends $10,945 compared to Mississippi’s $9,885.

Unlike Mississippi, however, Kentucky is committed to early childhood education, particularly for at-risk children. In Kentucky, preschool programs are available for all four-year-old children whose family income is no more than 160% of poverty and all three and four-year-old children with developmental challenges.

“Studies show that children who attend high quality early learning enviSee CRAWFORD, Page 6

sional seats.

While some of these races have not attracted as much attention as others, they are all vastly important in the larger picture of who we, as Mississippians, are electing to represent us in Washington, D.C. Every election matters, and the primary races next week are no different.

Here’s a breakdown of the races Mississippi will cast a ballot in on Tuesday: On the Republican side, incumbent Roger Wicker faces a primary challenge from Richard Boyanton, a businessman from the Gulf Coast.

Wicker’s primary has drawn much less attention since the outspoken Chris McDaniel dropped his challenge to the incumbent and entered a special election race instead.

Boyanton, however, has articulated similar criticisms of Wicker as did McDaniel, questioning Wicker’s conservative credentials.

On the other side of the political aisle, a handful of Democrats are competing, including state legislators David Baria and Omeria Scott.

Howard Sherman, married to Mississippi native and actress Sela Ward, is also on the ballot, along with little-known candidates Jensen Bohren, Jerone Garland and Victor Maurice Jr. In the 1st Congressional District, there are no contested primaries races next week.

The 3rd Congressional District, which includes Starkville, features a hotly-contested Republican Primary race between six candidates seeking to replace Gregg Harper, who is not seeking re-election.

The candidates are Sally Doty, Morgan Dunn, Michael Guest, Whit Hughes, Perry Parker and Katherine “Bitzi” Tate.

Two Democrats are competing in the 3rd Congressional District: Michael Aycox and Michael Evans.

Candidates competing in a special election to replace former Sen. Thad Cochran won’t be found anywhere on the ballots next week.

That election will happen in November.

Mississippi special elections dispense with party primaries and pit all candidates against each other on a single ballot with no party affiliation listed, with a runoff if needed.

Voters who will be out of the county for work reasons are eligible to absentee vote, as are voters of a certain age and those with certain medical conditions. Saturday is the last available day for citizens to cast an absentee ballot. As required by state law, circuit clerk offices across the state will be open on Saturday from 8 a.m. until noon for that purpose.

We encourage all Mississippians who are registered to vote to spend the next week educating themselves on the candidates who will be on the ballot and the important issues being discussed in these races. Remember that voting is one of the fundamental roles you have as an American and one that should be exercised only after careful deliberation and consideration.

— Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal

PERSPECTIVE

6 I Mississippi Business Journal I June 1, 2018 » RICKY NOBILE

CRAWFORD

Continued from Page 5

ronments have better math, language and social skills,” according to Kentucky’s Department of Education.

That’s the stuff that helps children to flourish. That’s the stuff that will attract good teachers back to struggling schools and make weak schools stronger. That’s what Mississippi’s conservative, liberal, and just regular folks should pursue together as our education fix.

Regrettably, that’s not where the big money action is in Mississippi. Empower Mississippi is building a $400,000 war chest to buy political support during the 2019 elections; it contributed roughly $300,000 to candidates in 2015 according to the Clarion-Ledger. Better Schools, Better Jobs spent over $5 million to support their constitutional amendment vote in 2015.

Dr. Cathy Grace, who has spent most of a lifetime championing early childhood education efforts in Mississippi, says, “True conservative leadership across the country has recognized the value in early childhood education.” She added that Mississippi has designed a high quality voluntary program, but, legislative funding for it “is shamefully behind.”

Pursuing the wrong fixes for our schools will keep our children shamefully behind too.

Bill Crawford can be reached at crawfolk@gmail.com.

»INSIDE MISSISSIPPI

Pay gap and cost of child care create obstacles

A

new report reinforces what many Mississippi residents already know, but legislators don’t often discuss: affordable child care is vital to the state economy.

Parents can’t work outside the home if they can’t find a safe place for their babies and young children to stay and learn. But high-quality child care can cost thousands of dollars a year, and that forces many families to calculate whether it’s even worthwhile for someone to take a relatively low-paying job if a big chunk of income is going to be eaten up by child care. It’s an issue that particularly affects single mothers.

The report , “Boosting Economic Growth in Mississippi through Employment Equity,” was released last week by the Mississippi Low-Income Child Care Initiative and a national group called PolicyLink, which has offices in New York, Washington, and Oakland, California.

“If full employment was achieved across all gender and racial groups, Mississippi’s economy could be $2.5 billion stronger each year,” the report says. “Investing in women and in critical support systems for Mississippi’s workforce will disrupt Mississippi’s current pattern of economic exclusion and place the state on a course to greater prosperity for all.”

Like many reports from interest groups, this one comes with a point of view. This one is from liberal-leaning groups, which means it might not receive deep consideration from many conservative lawmakers who dominate the state House and Senate.

For the past several months, Republican Gov. Phil Bryant has noted that Mississippi is enjoying healthy employment numbers. The state’s unemployment rate was 4.6 percent in April. That was only a small increase from 4.5 percent

March, which tied for the lowest level since current employment surveys started in 1976. The unemployment rate in April 2017 was 5.3 percent.

The report from the child care initiative and PolicyLink acknowledges that Mississippi is experiencing low unemployment, but it notes that more than 20 percent of Mississippi women live in poverty – the highest rate in the U.S. “Women of color continue to be overrepresented in lowwage work, and black workers continue to experience higher unemployment rates, even when they have higher educational attainment,” the report says.

It also notes that 40 percent of women of color have lowwage jobs and are considered “working poor,” while 13 percent of white men are in that category.

The report says that “only a small fraction” of workingpoor families who are eligible for child care financial assistance are receiving it. It also recommends that Mississippi policymakers take steps to eliminate pay disparities between women and men. It says that black women earn 57 cents and Latina women earn 54 cents for every dollar earned by a white man.

There was a bit of discussion during the 2018 legislative

Emily Pettus

session about addressing the pay gap for men and women, but no legislation passed. House Bill 1241 was originally written to ban local governments from creating their own employment laws, such as setting a higher local minimum wage.

“If full employment was achieved across all gender and racial groups, Mississippi’s economy could be $2.5 billion stronger each year.”

Democratic Rep. Alyce Clarke of Jackson persuaded the House to insert an equal pay requirement. However, there was a dispute over an amendment by another lawmaker, and that delayed a vote on the bill. Several days later, Republican Rep. Mark Baker of Brandon persuaded the House to revise Clarke’s equal pay proposal and pass the bill. He said he was trying to help Clarke’s cause. The bill eventually died in the Senate.

The report says the state economy would benefit from eliminating the gender pay gap: “If employed women in Mississippi were paid the same as comparable men, their poverty rate would be reduced by half and poverty among employed single mothers would drop by about one-third.”

Emily Wagster Pettus covers Capitol matters for the Mississippi Associated Press in Jackson.

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8 Q Mississippi Business Journal Q June 1, 2018 REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK

Sadly, there goes that man who invented New Journalism

W

hen I started working for newspapers 45 years ago, Tom Wolfe turned me on to something.

It wasn’t a drug, though it did alter my writing sensibility, permanently.

“There Goes (Varoom! Varoom!) That Kandy Kolored (Thphhhhhh!) Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby...” was the name of one of his early pieces that went a long way in establishing New Journalism.

That piece about the custom-car world of Southern California, along with wildly entertaining takes by Wolfe on American culture, – such as “Mau-mauing the Flak Catchers and Radical Chic” -- showed me and a whole generation that – wow -- this journalism can be fun!!!

(Yeah, the dread never-use exclamation point was not only allowed, but encouraged.)

Wolfe and other members of the New Journalism movement, such as Hunter Thompson, Gay Talese – and even Truman Capote, who wrote the sensationally received “In Cold Blood,” a nonfiction novel – ignited the most innovative aspects of what could be called — and I am — the Golden Age of Newspapering — circa 1970 to 2005.

Wolfe died May 14 at age 88. The man in his trademark white suit (a la Mark Twain, except tailored just so), left his style on what I have been involved in for decades.

I have had Wolfeian fun (if you’ll please forgive the comparison) and, from time to time, continue.

Following are excerpts from one of my first pieces attempting to convey what Wolfe called “the joys of detailed

realism and its strange powers.”

Here is how I began my 1,400-word report on the Rolling Stones’ concert in Memphis Memorial Stadium on July 4, 1975 in triple digit heat: An emergency medical technician lays a cold, green oxygen bottle between the young girl’s legs and puts the clear plastic piece over her nose and mouth. Her bare midriff is fish-belly white. Her eyes are closed.

And later: In the 1970s Mick Jagger of the Stones has emerged from the shadow of the defunct Beatles as the Nijinsky of Cavort. Jagger (the name sounds like a threat), androgynous street-punk extraordinaire . . .

The plan was for the Stones to arrive onstage astride elephants. It is said the next day that Mick’s elephant would not climb a ramp onto the stage — and that is explained as the major cause of the delay which was to

stretch to two-and-one-half hours.

The sun has fallen below the northwest side of the stands before the opening of Aaron Copland’s “Fanfare for the Common Man” and Mick flashes onstage in lavender cape, feather headdress, a red-and-white, figured two-piece jump suit—all the while coquettishly twirling a bamboo parasol in front of him in a parody of Chinese formality.

Jack Weatherly The rest of the Stones come on, plug in and blast out the first notes of “Honky Tonk Women.”

“I met a gin-soaked, bar-room queen in Memphis She tried to take me upstairs for a ride.

She had to heave me right across her shoulder Cause I just can’t seem to drink you off my mind.”

My piece in the Courier News of Blytheville, Ark. (of all places, you say? Not if you knew Hank Haines, the brilliant editor, publisher and encourager) was my first attempt to stretch the limits of feature writing, though sections with such subspecialities were part of the Golden Age, encouraging those with talent to spread their wings.

Before that era, it was news, all news, with sports being about the only place for freedom of expression aside from spot criticism. The sports pages were fertile ground for greats such as Red Smith, Jim Murray and Grantland Rice and an untold number of others who broke free from the See WEATHERLY, Page 11

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June 1, 2018

Q

Mississippi Business Journal

Q

9

AGRICULTURE

National forests brace for next pine beetle onslaught

By JACK WEATHERLY jack.weatherly@msbusiness.com

Early signs are that national forests in Mississippi will face a second consecutive year of a severe Southern pine beetle outbreak, threatening to damage tens of thousands of acres, according to the National Forest Service.

The national forests were hit harder last year than private stands. Approximately 23,000 acres were affected in the national forests, according to Jim Meeker, entomologist with the federal service. There are 1.2 million acres total in all six forests, including lakes, streams and open land.

The outbreak in 2017 was the worst since 1995 on federal and private lands, Meeker said in an interview. The infestations were primarily in the national forests.

Forest Service scientists found large numbers of the beetles in the three national forests of central and southwest Mississippi – Homochitto, Tombigbee and Bienville. There are six national forests in the state.

“In the next few weeks, after we conduct additional aerial surveys, we expect to have a clearer picture of the overall level of the outbreak, but it doesn’t look good,” Meek-

Mario Rossilli/U.S. FORESTRY SERVICE

Last week, crews cut and haul infected timber in Bienville National Forest. The cut-and-remove method helps to prevent spread of the Southern pine beetles, including to adjacent private lands.

er said.

Last year, the Forest Service found nearly 4,000 spots of infestation by the beetles on the Homochitto, Bienville, Tombigbee, and Holly Springs forests. A native insect, the beetle is the most destructive forest pest in the South, both in economic and

ecological impacts.

Forest workers are cutting infested trees and creating buffer zones. “Our priorities are to stop the bugs from spreading to private forest lands and red-cockaded woodpecker clusters,” said Carl Petrick, acting forest supervisor for the National Forests

in Mississippi. The red-cockaded woodpecker is an endangered species.

To date, the Forest Service has had 16 sales and sold 14 million cubic feet of timber. Cut and remove is the most effective measure to suppress the spread of the beetles.

Of the 23,000 acres of pines damaged in the national forests last year, 5,200 acres of trees were cut and left and 2,500 acres were cut and removed, Meeker said.

The Mississippi Forestry Commission, meantime, completes flyovers twice a year to monitor forest health issues.

A map provided by the commission shows 169 suspected infestation spots thus far this year. The commission confirmed about 250 last year as of mid-August.

The commission has a Southern pine beetle cost-sharing prevention program.

Landowners interested in the program should contact their area forester at www. mfc.ms.gov/offices.

“Healthy stands of timber that have been properly thinned and managed are less susceptible to . . . beetle damage,” said Todd Matthews, urban forestry and forest health coordinator for the commission.

You, Your Health,

Your Life.

10 Q Mississippi Business Journal Q June 1, 2018 COMMERCIAL FINANCE 701

The new federal banking sheriffs Molly Jeffcoat Moody & Ben Williams

CFPB, an independent bureau housed in the FRB, examines banks over $10 billion in assets. The director, paid $189,600 per year, oversees approximately 1,600 employees and a $600 million budget.

Mulvaney, dually serving as Trump’s Director of the Office of Management and Budget, took custody of the Warren-brainchild-agency despite a DFA succession plan designed to ensure the Obama-appointed director could appoint his own successor. Warren has twice tweeted her characterization of Mulvaney as a “middle finger” to consumers. The presidential appointment is mired in a controversy with constitutional implications. A federal district judge (appointed by Trump and confirmed in 2017) has twice ruled in favor of Trump’s authority to fill the vacancy. The lower court ruling has been appealed and a federal appellate court heard arguments on April 12.

Mulvaney’s temporary appointment is tentatively set to expire on June 22, but could be extended if the president submits a nomination (other than Mulvaney) to the U.S. Senate for consideration.

O

n May 24, 2018, 489 days after his inauguration, President Donald Trump finally succeeded in placing appointees at the helms of the four major federal banking regulators. The prospective immediate and longer term changes to be brought about by these new federal banking sheriffs bode well for banks, commercial lenders, and developers.

BACKDROP: Barack, Elizabeth & Donald During the Obama Years (2009-2017), the regulatory landscape hardened. The passage of the corpulent Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (DFA) served as a blueprint to expand oversight. Codified regulations burgeoned and a new agency – the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB) – joined the anti-lender frenzy sparked by the Great Recession (2007-2012).

In 2010, Obama named liberal law professor Elizabeth Warren as an Assistant to the president and special adviser to the Secretary of the Treasury to set up the newly formed CFPB. Passed over for the lead role at the new agency, Warren chose to seek political office. In January 2013, she became a U.S. senator (D-Mass) and immediately joined the U.S. Senate Banking Committee in the then-Democratically controlled Senate.

Trump’s campaign platform included promises of a DFA rollback, a withdrawal

of regulations, and replaced agency heads.

THE MAJOR FEDERAL BANKING REGULATORS The acronyms of the major federal banking regulators read like a long string of expensive typos: FRB, OCC, FDIC and CFPB. Each of these overlapping Big Four watchdogs comes with its own presidentially appointed head, tax or fee-based budget, thousands of employees, myriad regulations, and a snazzy logo. A hodgepodge of lesser known federal agencies augments the stifling bureaucracy.

THE NEW SHERIFFS The Federal Reserve Board (FRB). On February 5, FRB Governor Jerome Powell succeeded Obama-appointee Janet Yellen (2014-2018) as the chairman of the FRB Board of Governors. The FRB, an independent agency, plays a major role in supervising bank holding companies and controlling interest rates. At Powell’s hearing before the U.S. Senate Banking Committee, Warren cast the lone vote opposing his confirmation. The full Senate approved the nomination on a 84-13 vote. The new position, paid $210,700 per year, oversees approximately 3,000 employees and a $779 million budget (excluding Federal Reserve Banks and currency operations).

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). On November 27, 2017, long-time banking executive Joseph Otting took

over as Comptroller of the Currency, filling the seat formerly held by Obama-appointee Thomas Curry (2012-2017). The OCC, an independent bureau in the U.S. Treasury Department, supervises national banks. At Otting’s hearing before the U.S. Senate Banking committee, the Senators voted along party lines, 13-10, which advanced the nomination to the full Senate where it was approved 54-43. The Comptroller, paid $174,500 per year, oversees approximately 4,000 employees and a $1.15 billion budget.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).

On May 24, Yugoslavia-immigrant and former Fifth Third Bank chief legal officer Jelena McWilliams was approved by the U.S. Senate as chairman of the FDIC. In addition to providing deposit insurance, the FDIC examines banks for safety and soundness. At McWilliams’ hearing before the U.S. Senate Banking Committee, Warren cast the lone vote opposing her confirmation. The full Senate approved the nomination on a 69-24 vote. The position, paid $174,500 per year, oversees approximately 8,700 employees and a $2.2 billion budget.

Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB).

On Nov. 24, 2017, former Congressman Mick Mulvaney (R-S.C.) became Acting Director of the CFPB, succeeding Obama-appointee Richard Cordray who resigned to run for governor of Ohio. The

OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES Trump appointees also head banking-related federal departments and agencies including Treasury, HUD, IRS, SEC, CFTC, SBA, FCA, and EPA. On January 6, 2019, Trump will have an opportunity to replace the Obama-appointed director of FHFA, an agency that regulates Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the FHLBs.

Summary Regardless of your political leanings, Mulvaney summed up the situation well at a Nov. 27 press conference: “Anybody who thinks that a Trump administration CFPB would be the same as an Obama administration CFPB is simply being naive. Elections have consequences at every agency . . . .”

Sixteen months after taking office, Trump finally has his new sheriffs supervising the banking industry.

Molly Jeffcoat Moody and Ben Williams are attorneys at Watkins & Eager PLLC, and are both recognized by Chambers USA and Best Lawyers in America. Molly and Ben were selected as Best Lawyer’s 2018 Lawyer of the Year (Jackson, Mississippi) in, respectively, Commercial Transactions /UCC Law and Project Finance Law. Additional information is available at www.watkinseager.com. Ford Williams, the artist, is a rising junior at the Savannah College of Art & Design in Georgia.

June 1, 2018

Q

Mississippi Business Journal

Q

11

ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN MISSISSIPPI

Finding white space

W

hen I work with startups that are analyzing market opportunities and existing firms that are exploring other opportunities, I try to frame the discussion in terms of white space. There is nothing proprietary about the term “white space” – it has been around at least since the dot-com frenzy of the 1990s, if not before then. White space essentially means that place where unmet needs are discovered that enable the creation of innovative products and services.

White space is somewhat of a relative term though, and it is largely dependent on where a company is in its lifecycle.

For earlier-stage companies, defining white space may be a very external exercise, meaning that the firm is trying to determine whether a new product has any market potential. This is a pivotal juncture for startups, and the co-founder of Twitter, Evan Williams, expertly advises entrepreneurs for this initial white space stage well, stating, “User experience is everything.

It always has been, but it’s undervalued and underinvested in. If you don’t know user-centered design, study it. Hire people who know it. Obsess over it. Live and breathe it. Get your whole company on board.”

On the other hand, for more mature firms, defining white space may be a very internal exercise, meaning that the firm may be looking to create a complementary product or service, repurpose an existing product or service, or discover a new audience for an existing product or service.

So, what are some examples of startups or more mature firms discovering white space?

I think a very relevant example of a start-

up discovering white space is Waitr, an innovative food delivery service capitalizing on the on-demand and concierge-oriented needs of consumers. Waitr, a company hatched out of Startup Weekend New Matthew McLaughlin Orleans, launched its food delivery and carryout service so customers can order, and have delivered, their favorite foods from local restaurants. This service not only provides customers with a new level of convenience for a nominal fee, it also provides restaurants who are not in the business of food delivery a new revenue stream while building a nontraditional customer base.

Waitr was founded in 2013 in Louisiana and, to date, has expanded into multiple cities throughout nine states. The company, by seeking out and valuing customer feedback, has continued to successfully evolve with the needs and desires of their customer base and their service partners.

For instance, the leadership’s focus on white space has led them to recently add a complementary new service in certain markets, grocery delivery. They are also in the process of adding an alcoholic beverage delivery service in select locations as well, another example of vetting and pursuing strategic growth opportunities.

Earlier this month, it was announced that Waitr was sold to Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta for $308 million. This is an exceptional example of how finding – and defining – white space can be very profitable, especially for startups and early stage companies.

DELTA COUNCIL Continued from Page 1

administration official, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, was the featured speaker.

Morgan’s long career at the council will come to a close at the end of the year. He has been in his current position for 39 years, and with the council for 44 years.

Frank Howell, who has been with the council for 23 years and is the former director of the economic development department, will succeed Morgan.

Morgan said that one of the highlights during the nearly 50 years he has been employed by the council is the state fourlane highway system, approved and funded by the Legislature in 1987, which he said put a four-lane highway no more than 30 minutes away anywhere in the state.

Roads and bridges are still a priority, and the council has taken its position on that.

The council favors increasing the gasoline and diesel tax to

Finding white space can also be incredibly profitable for more mature firms as well. Apple is an example, having found white space with a complementary product or service when it introduced the first version of the iPhone in 2007. Apple put the power of a personal computer, phone, and camera in the hands of ready and willing early adopters. There are no words descriptive enough to measure the transformative impact the iPhone has had on the way we live, work, communicate, document, and record our lives.

The discipline of analyzing white space is not without risks, however. For startups, finding white space can be a make or break decision. For more mature firms, discovering white space can be risky and extremely expensive. Regardless where a firm falls on the lifecycle spectrum, pursuit of white space should be a crucial focal point of any organization’s strategy.

In addition, we live in a time where federal, state, and local government should be implementing business solutions that have long been leveraged by the private sector.

This fact leads to the question: Can state and local economic development organizations apply white space strategies to further

raise the money for the state’s roads and bridges. He said that tax is in effect a “dedicated” fund and cannot be used for any other purpose.

“For 22 years, we had one of the top 5 highway programs in the United States after that program was passed.”

“Unfortunately, we’ve passed up some opportunities to reinvigorate roads and bridges. We’ve got more wooden bridges than any state in the nation.”

The Mississippi Economic Council, which is the state chamber of commerce, has maintained that the state needs $375 million a year to improve and maintain roads and bridges.

The program on Friday begins at 10:30 with opening remarks by George King, president of the council, recognition of the “Good Middling” lady, as part of Wear Cotton effort, high school honors graduates and introduction of the next slate of council officers.

Gov. Phil Bryant will introduce the keynote speaker. Following the meeting, the catfish luncheon will be held on the quadrangle lawn.

enhance economic growth?

The answer to this question is yes. I would argue that not only should state and local economic development organizations implement internal white space analysis strategies, they should be one of, if not the most, pervasive. After all, economic developers are vital to the business growth of both public and private entities, and the resources they can provide – from educational to financial – are essential tools in ultimately creating strong industries and a robust workforce.

Is your organization finding – and defining – its white space?

Matthew P. McLaughlin is an attorney with McLaughlin, PC in Jackson, Mississippi, and serves as the executive director of the Mississippi Brewers Guild.

Matthew’s passion is working with creative and entrepreneurial-minded people and organizations, having worked with and advised hundreds of entrepreneurs, startups, and social innovators throughout the Southeastern United States. He may be contacted at matthew@mclaughlinpc.com or 601-487-4550, or you may visit www.mclaughlinpc.com for more information.

WEATHERLY

Continued from Page 8

constraints of straight journalism, some eventually becoming, well, novelists.

Which is what Wolfe turned to, with his “Bonfire of the Vanities” and “A Man in Full,” though he never forgot his partner at the Big Dance.

That evolution – though that is not quite the right word since it suggests moving to a higher realm – is Wolfe’s way of showing what the art of the novel had turned its back on the real world out there, with all its outrages, fears and pretensions.

It was my dumb luck and good fortune to not have my creativity squelched by a tone-deaf first boss. That allowed me get a nomination for a Pulitzer for feature writing at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette 10 years ago.

New Journalism – does it still live? Yes, though its descendants have different names: Long-form Writing, Creative Nonfiction and Narrative.

The DNA is still there. » Contact Mississippi Business Journal staff writer Jack Weatherly at jack. weatherly@msbusiness.com or (601) 364-1016.

Newsmakers

12 Q Mississippi Business Journal Q June 1, 2018

Bradley counsel Graves honored by ABA Legal Tiffany M. Graves of Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP has been chosen for the ABA Legal Technology Resource Center’s distinguished Women of Legal Tech list of 2018.

This annual acknowledgement celebrates women who stand out in the legal tech field, and Graves reinforces the ABA’s commitment to diversity by encouraging more women to join. Graves was selected based on her accomplishments in legal tech.

Graves is Bradley’s pro bono counsel, overseeing the development and administration of the firm’s pro bono programs.

Graves is a former executive director of the Mississippi Access to Justice Commission, and previously was interim director and adjunct professor for the Pro Bono Initiative at the University of Mississippi School of Law, and as executive director and general counsel for the Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project.

Graves also is active with the Mississippi Commission on the Status of Women and the Community Advisory Board of the MIND Center at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. She is a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation and an Inaugural Fellow of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation Community Leadership Network. Graves received her J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law and her Bachelor of Arts from Hollins University.

Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council names executive director The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council announces the selection of Dr. Carrie Simmons at its executive director. Simmons, currently the Council’s Deputy Director will take the helm on June. She will replace Doug Gregory who will be retiring after the June Council meeting in Key West, Florida.

“Dr. Simmons’ deep understanding of our Gulf fisheries has already proven to be an asset to the Council process,” said Leann Bosarge, Chairman of the Gulf Council. “Her experience with the fishery management process, coupled with her fisheries science expertise, will most certainly propel the Council towards success as she takes on the Executive Director role.”

Simmons worked as a fishery biologist for the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council from 2008 through 2013 when she was appointed Deputy Director. Simmons is a native Floridian who grew up fishing and SCUBA diving on both coasts. In high school, she started the marine biology club and raised enough money to go to Sea Camp in Big Pine Key in the Florida Keys and Dauphin Island Sea Lab on Dauphin Island, Ala. She received her Ph.D. in Fisheries from Auburn University. While working on her degree, she studied gray triggerfish reproductive behavior, early life history, and early settlement to benthic structures as well as competitive interactions between red snapper and gray triggerfish in the Gulf of Mexico. Much of Simmons’ work was on artificial habitats in the northern Gulf of Mexico, but she studied natural habitats in St. Croix and the Florida Keys while pursuing her Master’s degree in coral ecology.

JCJC employees celebrate retirees

Courtesy of Jones County Junior College

JCJC President Dr. Jesse Smith (far left) congratulated the four retiring employees who have served in various roles at Jones at the annual Retirement Tea. Pictured from left are: Dr. Jesse Smith, Danny Wooten, Linda Fortenberry, Sandy Flynt and Paul Johnson.

Jones County Junior College held its annual “Retirement Tea” for four employees retiring this May. When combined, these employees provided 91 years of service to JCJC and other educational institutions.

The 2018 retirees are: Sandy Flynt has worked at Jones for a total of 19 years.

She moved from the business and office technology classroom after 14 years, to the Office of Recruitment. For the last two years, she served as the director of the department. Paul Johnson leaves after working 19 years in Workforce and Development. He was promoted to be the Director of the Jasper County Center She received her undergraduate degree from the University of North Carolina at Asheville and spent summers at Mt. Desert Island Biological Laboratory in Maine studying the physiology of spiny dogfish sharks.

Simmons is eager to take on her new position.

“The opportunity to serve as the Executive Director of the Gulf Council is truly an honor. I genuinely look forward to continuing to contribute to the Council’s mission and to improve our management process.”

Simmons, an active SCUBA diver and recreational angler is married, and has two boys, age 7 and age 3.

Miller joins Bradley’s Jackson office as associate Julian D. Miller has joined Bradley Arant Boult Cumming LLP’s Jackson office as an associate.

A member of Bradley’s Litigation Practice Group, Miller focuses his practice on a variety of civil litigation matters.

Most recently, Miller was an attorney at Butler Snow LLP in Jackson. Previously, he served as judicial law clerk to Judge T. Kenneth Griffis Jr. of the Mississippi Court of Appeals. In 2017, Miller was recognized

by The National Black Lawyers as a “Top 40 Under 40” attorney.

Miller received his J.D. (cum laude) from the University of Mississippi School of Law and his Bachelor of Arts from Harvard University.

Stephen Huwe joins Butler

in Bay Springs, two years ago. Danny Wooten spent the last 28 years keeping the grounds on campus looking pristine. Linda Fortenberry worked 25-years in the Maintenance-Physical Plant building doing secretarial duties, managing the work-order system, making copies for faculty/staff, and she filled in for the receiving/delivery person when necessary. Fortenberry sums up the feelings for everyone retiring this year.

“I loved it all!! Every day there with our family in that big tan building was GREAT!!” said Fortenberry.

Snow in Ridgeland Butler Snow has announced that Stephen P. Huwe has joined the firm’s Ridgeland office, and will practice with the firm’s pharmaceutical, medical device and healthcare litigation group.

Most recently, Huwe was an Assistant Vice President and Legal Officer for a regional bank.

Prior to that time, he practiced with a Jackson firm and handled product liability, personal injury, Huwe construction and commercial litigation matters. He currently serves as an Assistant Staff Judge Advocate for the U.S. Air Force Reserves at Hurlburt Field, Fla. Huwe is a magna cum laude graduate of the University of Mississippi School of Law and was a member of the Mississippi Law Journal and Journal of Space Law. He earned his undergraduate degree from Mississippi College and was named an Army ROTC distinguished military graduate.

SECF appoints Jane Alexander to Board of Trustees Jane Clover Alexander, president and CEO of the Community Foundation for Mississippi, was recently appointed to the Southeastern Council of Foundations (SECF) Board of Trustees, joining a roster of philanthropic executives and leaders from organizations across the southeastern region.

SECF is the nation’s second largest regional association of grantmakers, representing 360 philanthropic

organizations in 11 states.

Under Alexander’s leadership, the Community Foundation has doubled its number of funds and experienced an increase to more than $53 million in total assets.

Along with her newest appointment, Alexander also serves as Treasurer for the Mississippi Association of Grantmakers and is on the board of directors of the Rotary Club of Jackson. She is the past president of the Mississippi chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals and recently rotated off the board of directors of the Mississippi Center for Nonprofits.

Bartran joins Hattiesburg Clinic Weight Management Lori H. Bartran, CNP, recently joined Hattiesburg Clinic Weight Management.

Bartran works with patients who are dealing with weight issues to provide treatment and help them implement strategies for lifelong management of their condition.

Bartran received a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the University of Mississippi in Jackson, and a Master of Science Bartran in Nursing from The University of Southern Mississippi. She is board certified by the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners.

June 1, 2018 • MISSISSIPPI BUSINESS JOURNAL • www.msbusiness.com

AN MBJ FOCUS: Banking & Finance

Change is theme of 130th Mississippi Bankers Association Convention

By BECKY GILLETTE mbj@msbusiness.com

A lot has changed in the banking world since the Mississippi Bankers Association (MBA) held its first convention 130 years ago. The theme of the recent 130th annual convention of the MBA held at Sandestin Resort in Destin, Fla., May 9 to May 12 was “Changes in Latitude, Changes in Attitude” reflecting the many significant changes and challenges in the banking world today.

“The convention program featured speakers who discussed the need for banks to adapt to massive changes taking place in the industry and economy,” said MBA President Mac Deaver. “Additionally, the association membership adopted changes in MBA bylaws designed to make the association leadership more representative of its members. And there were changes to the format of some convention events.”

MBA Chairman Jerry Host, CEO of Trustmark National Bank, presided over the convention that attracted 625 attendees including bankers and spouses, sponsors and exhibitors, industry professionals, bank regulators, public officials and other guests.

Deaver said speakers in the general sessions included Colonel Arthur Athens, director of the Stockdale Center for Ethical Leadership at the U.S. Naval Academy.

Col. Athens addressed the importance of adhering to the “three Cs” of leadership in modern times. He emphasized the need for competence, courage and compassion in being a successful leader.

“If something isn’t going well, the successful leader will do an assessment and take immediate action,” Athens said.

“At that moment, they can ask themselves what’s missing: ‘Is their message clear? Do they need to be bolder? Are they relating with whoever is receiving the message?’”

Cam Marston of Generation Insights addressed factors faced by financial institutions in dealing with new generations of bank customers and employees. Marston addressed issues in dealing with “matures” (born between 1909 and 1945), “baby boomers” (born 1946 through 1964), “Generation X” (born 1965 through 1979)

and ‘”new millennials” (born 1980 and after).

“It is critical that managers recognize and understand the differences between the people they are trying to attract and themselves, and how to use that new understanding to attract and satisfy customers and attract and keep the talent they need,” Marston said.

Dr. David Altig, executive vice president and director of research for the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, spoke about economic trends and how they might impact the banking and other business sectors.

Specifically, he discussed the potential impact of governmental actions and the effect of automated stock trading.

Chairman Host facilitated a discussion with Rob Nichols, president of the America Bankers Association (ABA), and Paul Merski, executive vice president of the Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA), regarding potential Congressional action to provide regulatory relief for traditional banks. Nichols and Merski discussed the joint efforts of ABA and ICBA to pass S. 2155, which enjoyed bipartisan support in Congress. The bill

passed the House on May 22, and has now been signed by President Trump.

The annual MBA trade show was held on Wednesday and Thursday and featured 55 exhibitors.

A third annual silent auction was held to raise funds for the MBA Education Foundation, which supports financial literacy training across Mississippi and awards scholarships to Mississippi high school and college students. The auction netted over $16,000 for the Foundation.

“This was our largest auction event to date,” said Deaver said. “Thanks to the many banks and bankers who supported this event, and the dozens who contributed auction items.”

On May 12, the MBA membership elected new leadership for 2018-19. Mary Childs, CEO of The Peoples Bank, Ripley, was elected MBA chairman, becoming the first woman to lead the association.

Greg McKee, CEO of The Citizens Bank, Philadelphia, was elected vice chairman, and Andy Anderson, CEO of Bank of Anguilla, was elected treasurer. Also, on Saturday, the association recognized bankers who had served the industry and state

for 40, 50 and 60 years.

Host discussed the progress being made to implement the MBA’s strategic plan to increase services to member banks. As part of this plan, the membership considered and approved changes to MBA bylaws which revise the organization of the association’s board of directors and the process for electing bankers to leadership positions. The membership also heard report on various association activities and programs, including the Mississippi Young Bankers, the MBA Education Foundation, the Mississippi School of Banking, and others.

The convention concluded with a special closing event which featured remarks

by Host and Childs, introduction of new officers and board members, and special recognition of past MBA chairmen who were in attendance.

Major sponsors of the 2018 MBA Convention were Trustmark National Bank, First National Bankers Bank, Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas, and Stockett & Thomas Agency.

For more information on MBA, see the website msbankers.com.

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1Ɵ Q Mississippi Business Journal Q June 1, 2018

Banking & Finance

Waycaster a steady hand leading Renasant

TUPELO – For the first time since the turn of the millennium, Renasant Corp. will have a new chief executive.

On Tuesday, Mitch Waycaster steps into the role of chairman and CEO of the the financial holding company that is the parent of Renasant Bank. Robin McGraw, who announced a year ago that he would retire from those positions he’s held since 2000, will be executive chairman.

It will be the smoothest of transitions, as Waycaster moves into the top spot of the 114-year-old bank comfortably and easily, having spent nearly 40 years with Renasant.

The vision of the company, he said, remains the same.

“Our vision is to be the financial ser-

vices provider in each of the markets we serve,” he said. “We do that by focusing on our four constituents.”

Those constituents are the Renasant’s clients, its employees, the communities in which the company has a presence and its shareholders.

The clients of the bank – otherwise known as customers – are crucial to the continued growth off the institution.

“You must first understand their needs and then you just meet their needs,” Waycaster said.

The company’s 2,100 employees also play an integral part of Renasant’s past, current and future success, and, “We want to create security and opportunity for them because they’re the company’s great-

Courtesy of Daily Journal

Mitch Waycaster will step into the role this week of chairman and CEO of the the financial holding company that is the parent of Renasant Bank. Waycaster moves into the top spot of the 114-year-old bank comfortably and easily, having spent nearly 40 years with Renasant.

est assets,” he said.

And when it comes to community banking, Renasant has long held firmly to the idea that it can offer “big bank” services while maintaining the feel of a hometown bank. Doing so also means being part of the towns and cities in which it has some 180 locations across five states.

“It means giving back and reinvesting to our communities, and we do well in every one of them, we believe,” Waycaster said. “The result of doing those three things well – focusing on our clients, our employees and our communities – will result in serving our fourth constituent well, and that’s giving an optimal return to our shareholders.”

And by all measures, Renasant has followed its vision well.

BECOMING RENASANT

After starting out with less than $100,000 in assets in 1904 as the People’s Bank & Trust Co., it kept its core business in and around Tupelo and Northeast Mississippi. It wasn’t until a century later before it made it’s first out-of-state acquisition, merging with Renasant Bancshares of Memphis.

Not long after this merger, Peoples rebranded itself as Renasant. Following mergers and acquisitions between 2003 and 2007, Renasant grew from a little more than $1 billion in assets to more than $3.4 billion in assets.

Renasant now has more than $10 billion in assets for the first time in its history. And it’s getting bigger.

In March, Renasant announced its fifth acquisition in as many years. In its largest-ever merger, Renasant will acquire Georgia-based Brand Group Holdings for $453 million and add more than $2 billion in assets.

A bank reaching $10 billion in assets also means taking on all new levels of regulatory scrutiny and risk management. Waycaster doesn’t see that as a challenge, however.

“I call them opportunities,” he said.

“Through growth we have focused on those things that position us to do so, particu-

larly over $10 billion. We have invested greatly in the company in infrastructure, information technology, risk management and delivery of products and services. As we approached that mark, we knew in the industry there were things we needed to do to prepare for that, and we began that several years ago.

“But I think it’s a function of growth, whether you’re at $10 billion or as we approach $15 billion or whatever that next marker may be. It’s looking to the future and anticipating that.”

Kevin Chapman is among the experienced team members who will stand alongside Waycaster as Renasant moves to its next chapter. Having been chief financial office since 2011, he was named the company’s chief operating officer last week.

He, too, welcomes Renasant’s continued upward trajectory.

“One of the challenges as you get bigger is making sure the employees feel plugged in, making sure their voices are heard and navigating that culture,” he said. “It’s very critical to us.”

Ultimately, it will be the employees who will shape the company’s future and meeting customers’ needs.

And Waycaster said the big numbers don’t change who and what Renasant represents.

“Now the question is, how do you improve upon that vision of Renasant?” he said. “It’s grounded in our culture, which is a big part of who we are. It’s why people choose to bank here, it’s why people choose to work here.”

Waycaster said there will be no revolutionary changes at Renasant under his watch.

“I like to consider the path we’re on as an evolution of our current direction,” he said.

“It is about continuous improvement in the things we talked about earlier, and we’ll be intentional … We are on a proven course, we continue to improve upon that direction and we’ll remain very focused on that.”

— Dennis Seid Daily Journal

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Banking & Finance OLDEST CREDIT UNIONS <<

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9

THE SPIN CYCLE

Ways to show PR value to your organization

S

howing the PR value of your brand, campaign or strategy is increasingly difficult in our digital age – and because today’s consumer journey is so complex.

Constantly connected and often drowning in a tidal wave of information, audiences and decision makers become aware of your brand across multiple channels and content platforms. How do you show PR value (earned media) in an increasingly distracted audience?

Arguments over which type of content is “better” reflect soloed thinking, according to the Public Relations Society of America’s Content Connection.

Instead, leverage the power of digital to measure and demonstrate your PR efforts.

When you understand what content customers value, PR can work to create additive, influential experiences that set brands apart.

Here are ways to demonstrate PR’s value to your organization according to PRSA: 1. Modernize how you organize your PR efforts.

The communicator’s funnel is a way of organizing things the PR practitioner already knows to track, as they understand the importance of measuring social amplification, influence, pipeline conversions, revenue, mentions, total coverage, etc. But those need to be organized on a modern framework if you are going to make them comprehensible across an organization.

That’s the purpose of the communicator’s funnel.

This framework organizes things into three levels. The first is brand impact, which focuses on capturing an organization’s impact on awareness, mindshare, and reputation with metrics like headline mentions, share of voice, and sentiment.

All very familiar territory. It’s the next step is the funnel that adds a new level of digital but still builds on the same measurement principles practitioners have always used.

Now, it’s just a bigger conversation about website traffic and other digital properties.

The final level of the funnel, the bottom-line, is the piece that has the strongest tie to your efforts, but the parts above are necessary foundational metrics to prove bottom-line impact. Frame around each of these levels, brand, digital, and bottom-line, creates a crisp and straightforward conversation that even a C-level executive can understand.

2. Align PR outcomes with company goals.

The first step to demonstrating PR’s value is to understand what the company’s goals are for the year and then map your PR strategy (and spend) to those objectives. Overall company objectives for the year are often broad and vary greatly by organization.

Once you know what data points are

important to your org, you can craft a narrative of how PR can help accomplish the objectives, the data points you need to report on to ensure the plan is working and the budget/technology you will need to deliver both the results and the data.

3. Provide Strategic Insights & Actionable Data.

Public Relations can provide strategic insights that no other discipline can because earned media is the most trusted source of information (yes this is still true in today’s world of ‘fake news’). PR is also uniquely positioned to be an unexpected source of both industry and competitive information.

With the right tools, PR practitioners can provide insight into industry trends, popular topics, competitive plays, key influencers, and more.

In demonstrating value across an organization, PR also has the ability to define and identify key influencers that can be targeted not just for news pitches but also for content pieces, partner marketing, and more.

4. Partner with your marketing team.

Can’t afford the tools necessary in today’s rapidly evolving environment? Borrow the strategy behind proving ROI of the marketing tech stack to help prove the value of technology for PR. Here are a few ways to can leverage existing marketing technology for your PR efforts: Publish News Releases to a Blog As discussed above, publishing news releases over the wire is one of the easiest activities that a PR pro can participate in. But pay attention. Rather than sticking to just the wire, post them to a company blog or start a new blog just for news releases. The digital/SEO person will love it because it creates high quality on-site content that can be shared and backlinked to. The PR team can then use links to the news release in targeted outreach.

Use Email Outreach Software to Automate Pitching Sales, market development, or sales development teams are probably using an email outreach program like Hubspot Sales (free version you can use) or Outreach.io that PR practitioners should leverage for targeted journalist outreach.

Email outreach tools like Hubspot Sales will allow you to upload an email pitch template and a list of news contacts to target.

Partner with the Web Analytics Team The web analytics team has a treasure trove of information on who is visiting the organization’s website, what they do once they get there, and what drove them in the first place. Check out this insightful presentation on “Web Analytics Vital Role in Communications” to dive deep into the ways PR can leverage this data to prove

their ROI and refine their strategy.

5. Prove Earned Media ROI. The strongest point to make is, “what will I get for the money I spend?” Or, what will the ROI of this investment be? Key Metrics like share of voice and AVE (Ad Value Estimates) are good tools, but you still need to drill down a level deeper and connect your efforts to the KPI’s your organizations know will drive results.

Here are a few ways to prove the ROI of your PR efforts: » Website referral traffic driven by earned media » Website goal conversions driven by earned media » PR attribution: measurement of all traffic driven by media mentions (no backlink needed) » Deals influenced by earned media With the rapidly changing public relations environment, it’s becoming more important for to demonstrate value, but attribution is no small task.

Bilious Mic | White House aide punches Sen. John McCain below the belt White House aide Kelly Sadler unscrupulously punched below the belt when she took a rhetorical swing at Sen. John McCain after the ailing senator publicly criticized President Donald Trump’s pick for the CIA, Gina Haspel. Haspel had earlier raised some eyebrows for refusing to say whether she believes the use of torture is immoral.

According to multiple unnamed sources cited by various news outlets, Sadler said it “doesn’t matter” what McCain thinks because “he’s dying anyway.” The White House did not dispute the remarks, but issued a statement in support of McCain, who is fighting brain cancer, and his family at the time.

The White House has not yet publicly apologized to McCain, nor has it said whether Sadler would keep her job. In-

stead, White House spokespeople, including Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Raj Shah – and, on Monday, Trump himself – have chastised “leakers.”

Conway doubled up on that line, saying the Todd Smith Trump administration has had a problem with staffers “using the media to shiv each other.”

However, Conway hinted there may be a shakeup at the White House after the fallout from the aide’s mocking remarks.

During a Fox News interview on Monday, Conway pointed to internal leaks – like those which led to the revelation of Sadler’s remarks – as being unhelpful to the administration. And when asked whether she thinks some heads would roll because of it, Conway said, “I do, actually.

Yes, I do.”

This whole episode is a lesson in bad PR. Just because a colleague questions a choice is not a license to get mired down in a swamp that the administration vowed to drain. The White House can do better than this!

Each week, The Spin Cycle will bestow a Golden Mic Award to the person, group or company in the court of public opinion that best exemplifies the tenets of solid PR, marketing and advertising – and those who don’t. Stay tuned – and step-up to the mic! And remember … Amplify Your Brand!

Todd Smith is president and chief communications officer of Deane, Smith & Partners, a full-service branding, PR, marketing and advertising firm with offices in Jackson. The firm — based in Nashville, Tenn.

— is also affiliated with Mad Genius. Contact him at todd@deanesmithpartners.com, and follow him @ spinsurgeon.

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