News

Small Business Council Member Spotlight: Pinellas Technical College

      We sat down with Dr. Jake Prokop with Pinellas Technical College to ask three important questions: What does your business do? Post – Secondary Technical College What is your biggest concern as a small business owner? The biggest challenge we face is the recruitment of teachers. There is a special skill set which is required for a quality teacher. These folks are usually the top performers in their industries. This makes it difficult to recruit…

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Leading Voices: Leading Voices: Three Questions with Kathy Thomas-Beck, Florida Market Leader, Partner, RSM US LLP

We sat down with Florida Chamber Board of Directors Member Kathy Thomas-Beck, Florida Market Leader, Partner, RSM US LLP, to answer three important questions: Q: What is one piece of advice you would share with your peers? A: We must remain committed to securing the future of Florida by uniting resources, collaboration, agility and focusing on important issues that will impact our trajectory. Q: What keeps you up at night? As our clients face an increasingly…

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Member Spotlight: Busy Bee

We sat down with Elizabeth Waring, CEO, Busy Bee, to ask four important questions: Q: What does your business do? A: Convenience stores, travel center and quick serve restaurant operator. Q: What is one thing Floridians may not know about your industry? A: Many operators in our industry are generational family businesses like ours! The fourth generation in our family is coming to work full time this December after graduating from college! Q: What is…

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BREAKING NEWS: Florida Childhood Poverty Down Under 738K

By: Kyle Baltuch, SVP of Equality of Opportunity, Florida Chamber Foundation Join the continued conversation on cutting Florida childhood poverty in half HERE>. The Florida Chamber Foundation is uniting the business community behind a bold stance: childhood poverty is one of the greatest economic challenges we face, and if not combated, it will impact not only the economic well-being of Florida’s residents but also Florida’s future economic growth. Let’s make this a business issue. Since then, the Florida…

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Rachel Ludwig, Florida Chamber Foundation Senior Director for Future of Work, Selected for U.S. Chamber Foundation Education and Workforce Fellowship Program

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation today announced Rachel Ludwig of the Florida Chamber Foundation was selected to participate in the ninth cohort of its premiere business leadership program. The Business Leads Fellowship Program trains and equips leaders from state and local chambers of commerce, economic development agencies, and trade associations with resources, access to experts, and a network of peers to build their capacity to address the most pressing education and…

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Small Business Council Member Spotlight: PowerSouth

      We sat down with Scarlett Phaneuf, Economic Development Representative for Florida with PowerSouth, to ask a few important questions: What does your business do? PowerSouth is a generation and transmission (G&T) electric cooperative that serves the wholesale power needs of 20 distribution members — 16 electric cooperatives and four municipal electric systems — in Alabama and northwest Florida. What is your biggest concern as a small business owner? Our industry is facing…

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BREAKING NEWS: Florida’s GDP Growth Now Makes it 14th Largest Economy in the World

By: Sheridan Meek, Senior Research Economist, Florida Chamber Foundation Register for the 2024 Florida Economic Outlook & Jobs Solution Summit to dive into Florida’s record movement to 14th largest economy in the world and other metrics impacting the future of Florida and your business> In 2018, the Florida Chamber Foundation set off towards the goal of aligning businesses, policy leaders, and philanthropic partners around a strategic plan to create an environment that fosters growth in support of Florida becoming…

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Infrastructure’s Role in Fueling Florida’s Economic Growth

By: Ananth Prasad, President, Florida Transportation Builders’ Association and Florida Chamber Infrastructure Coalition Chair Register yourself and your leadership team for the virtual 2023 Florida Transportation, Growth & Infrastructure Solution Summit featuring in-depth conversations on prioritizing the future of infrastructure in Florida> Florida has long been a beacon of opportunity, attracting businesses, tourists, and residents alike. Its remarkable growth and economic success can be attributed, in part, to its world-class infrastructure. However, as Florida experiences…

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Autonomous Florida Member Spotlight: MEAMI

We sat down with Professor GeCheng Zha, Director of MEAMI to ask a few important questions: What is one thing Floridians may not know about your evTOLs? MEAMI, the Miami Engineering Autonomous Mobility Initiative at the University of Miami, is a comprehensive and holistic effort in partnership of universities, corporates, government and community organizations at advancing and making advance autonomous mobility a reality. One key aspect of it is related to developments in electric propulsion,…

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Leading Voices: Three Questions with Eric Green, CEO of JAXPORT

    We sat down with Florida Chamber Board of Directors Member Eric Green, CEO of JAXPORT, to answer three important questions: Q: What is one piece of advice you would share with your peers? A: Continue to be a student in your profession. Be committed to learning and studying your craft every day. If I could pick a second piece of advice, it would be to surround yourself with great people. From professional work to…

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Member Spotlight: Castle Group

We sat down with Jordan Goldman, CEO of Castle Group, to ask a few important questions: Q: What does your business do? A: Castle Group is the premier choice for property management; specializing in serving the finest residential communities. With over 2,500+ dedicated team members, Castle is the preferred service provider for over 500+ associations. Our philosophy stays the same no matter where we are – putting the resident first. At Castle, we call it…

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New Florida Chamber Statewide Poll Shows Florida Voters Say Florida is Heading in the Right Direction, While the United States is on the Wrong Track

The latest Florida Chamber statewide poll finds a plurality (47%) of Florida voters believe things in Florida are headed in the right direction, while almost 8 out of 10 (77%) believe the United States is heading in the wrong direction. Florida has created 19,600 jobs in the last month and 241,200 jobs in the past year. The Sunshine State’s rolling annual growth rate of 2.5%, which is nearly a half a percent higher than the…

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A Statement from the Florida Chamber of Commerce

The Florida Chamber of Commerce strongly condemns the terrorist attacks being perpetrated against Israel. We stand with the people of Israel as they defend their country and right to exist. We pray for the end of senseless violence impacting all innocent citizens in the region as a result of these terrorist attacks.

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Member Spotlight: GE Vernova

Mo Mattocks is the Executive Plant Manager at GE Vernova. Focused on accelerating Florida forward and creating long-term investments in Florida’s energy, water, transportation, telecommunications and rural infrastructure, Mo and GE Vernova are involved in the Florida Chamber Infrastructure Coalition. What is one thing Floridians may not know about your industry? Wind is a quickly growing industry and a reliable, affordable source of renewable energy that powers approximately 10% of commercial utilities in our country. GE…

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Small Business Council Member Spotlight: ARM Institute

We sat down with Suzy Teele, Chief Strategy Officer with ARM (Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing) Institute to ask a few important questions: What does the ARM Institute do? The ARM Institute is the nation’s leading manufacturing innovation institute for robotics and artificial intelligence, funded by the federal government. As a national consortium, we accelerate the development and adoption of innovative robotics technologies that are the foundation of every advanced manufacturing activity today and in the…

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