Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin to announce results of EngenuitySC’s 2016 Midlands Regional Competitiveness Report on Jan. 13 at 2 p.m.
December 23, 2016
Mayor Steve Benjamin and the EngenuitySC board will announce results of the economic development organization’s third annual Midlands Regional Competitiveness Report at a gathering of regional leaders on Friday, Jan. 13, 2017, at 2:00 p.m. at the USC Alumni Center in Columbia, S.C. The Midlands Business Leadership Group (MBLG), led by David Pankau, president and CEO of BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina, will make a special announcement as well. The report shows how the Columbia, S.C., area compares to nine other economically competitive metropolitan regions in the Southeast, including Raleigh, North Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina and Lexington, Kentucky.
EngenuitySC will publish the report as an insert in Columbia Regional Business Report’s January 16 issue. Event attendees will be able to take a hard copy of the report at the Jan. 13 announcement event.
The 2016 Midlands Regional Competitiveness Report measures progress based on five indicators of economic competitiveness: talent, entrepreneurial and business environment, innovation, industry clusters and livability. For each indicator, the report will highlight what the Midlands economic community is doing well, outline areas of improvement and suggest areas of focus that will improve the Midlands’ relative rank. As this is the third annual report, progress is measured against baselines set in the first report released in 2014.
Speakers will include founding co-chair of the EngenuitySC board, Mayor Steve Benjamin; Dr. Doug Woodward, Professor & Director of Division of Research at USC’s Darla Moore School of Business; David Pankau, President and CEO of BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina; and Lou Kennedy, Owner of Nephron Pharmaceuticals Corporation. They will be joined by the EngenuitySC board, MBLG members and other regional leaders from business, government, nonprofits and education.
“The importance of this report is really three-fold,” says Meghan Hickman, executive director of EngenuitySC. “First, it provides an annual gut-check as to where the region stands compared to our peer and aspirant regions. Secondly, it tells us where we’ve made progress and where we need to focus more resources. Lastly – and most importantly – it provides a road map to inform decision making and catalyze action across the Midlands.”
New and current EngenuitySC board members include the following:
Steve Hall, Chair & Executive Committee – Ovation Partners, LLC
Councilman Paul Livingston, Chair-Elect & Executive Committee – Richland County Council
Dr. Keith Shah, Past Chair & Executive Committee – FTI Consulting
Mayor Steve Benjamin, Founding Co-Chair – The City of Columbia
Dr. Harris Pastides, Founding Co-Chair – The University of South Carolina
Lee Bussell – Chernoff Newman
Councilman Todd Cullum – Lexington County Council
Councilwoman Tameika Isaac Devine – Columbia City Council
Bill & Lou Kennedy – Nephron Pharmaceuticals
Bill Kirkland – The University of South Carolina
Lasenta Lewis-Ellis – LLE Construction, LLC
John Lumpkin
Ted Nissen – First Community Bank
Mayor Elise Partin, City of Cayce
Dr. Ron Rhames, Midlands Technical College
Chairman Torrey Rush, Richland County Council
Date, Time and Location: Friday, Jan. 13, 2017, at 2:00 p.m. at the USC Alumni Center, 900 Senate St., Columbia, S.C., 29201 in the Congaree Vista district.
About EngenuitySC
Headquartered in Columbia, S.C., EngenuitySC is an economic development nonprofit focused on enhancing our region’s competitiveness and prosperity. In partnership with business, government, education and community leaders, EngenuitySC specializes in regional collaboration and project management, the activation of local industry clusters and regional research, analysis and marketing. For more information, visit http://www.engenuitysc.com.
Follow @EngenuitySC on Twitter or via Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/engenuitysc.
