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Recent Articles from Charlotte Rene Woods
Profits follow culture at Williams Mullen
Williams Mullen is having a good decade. In the past 10 years, the Richmond law firm has seen its annual revenues swell from $106 million to $171 million and its annual profits have risen by 11.2%. What’s more, the firm’s president, CEO and chairman of the board, Calvin W. “Woody” Fowler Jr., is bullish on […]
2024 Virginia Women in Leadership Awards: Leading Ladies
For the fourth annual Women in Leadership Awards, Virginia Business hosted a photo shoot at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, where eight of this year’s winners struck poses for Richmond photographer James Lee. Given the surroundings, Lee took inspiration from the museum’s collection and other artwork in staging the photos. The results display a […]
Breaking the rules
For lawyers, time has always been money, which has made the billable hour standard practice for the profession since the 1960s. But with the rise of artificial intelligence, which already can cut the time required to complete rote tasks from days or hours down to seconds, a once-inconceivable event just might come to pass — […]
New options, new audiences
As more students and their families question which colleges present the best return on their big investments, many are choosing to play it safe. That often means starting at community college or public universities while living at home, with others postponing post-secondary education or considering other options. The impact of college loan debt and soaring […]
‘A culture of caring’
Speaking to an audience of more than 20,000 human resources professionals gathered in Las Vegas for his organization’s June 14 annual conference and expo, Society for Human Resource Management President and CEO Johnny C. Taylor Jr. said that HR execs are ready to meet the array of challenges created by the “new abnormal” of post-pandemic […]
Keeping their own counsel
Of the 1.3 million attorneys practicing in the United States — more than 35,500 of them licensed to practice in Virginia — the American Bar Association reports that more than half are based at law firms, while only about 10% serve as in-house general counsels. That disparity is not because general counsel jobs are unwanted […]
Wonder women
At an early June networking reception to celebrate this year’s Virginia Business Women in Leadership Awards winners, many in attendance pointed out how unusual it was for dozens of women executives from across various industries to join together in the same room. Held at law firm Troutman Pepper Hamilton Sanders LLP’s Richmond office, the event […]
Pivot points
Talk to those on the front lines of startups — entrepreneurs, investors and those running incubators and accelerators — and one word comes up over and over: pivot. If an entrepreneur isn’t able or willing to be flexible, chances are poor their business will succeed. “Those unduly connected to what they started with must understand […]
Tech support
With the combination of new tech businesses and older companies employing artificial intelligence and other innovations, Virginia needs lawyers who know the difference between bitcoin and blockchain. As the commonwealth becomes home to more defense contracting giants, along with Amazon.com Inc.’s HQ2, law firms and law schools are busy bringing attorneys and students up to […]
Falling short
In the accounting field, the books are out of balance. Demand for the profession’s services is rising, which is one for the assets column, but on the debit side of the ledger, the number of people willing and able to provide those services is dropping so alarmingly that some firms are being forced to turn […]
MARCIA CONSTON
TCC president since 2020, Marcia Conston strives to be both a role model and a mentor. “I wanted to be an administrator where I could make the most difference in the lives of people,” she says, and that has been her unwavering focus throughout her 30-year career in education. As a Black woman, Conston is […]
TRACY GREGORIO
Nine years ago, Tracy Gregorio and two business partners realized the military needed better technology to protect its communications systems from cyberattacks. G2 Ops was among the first small businesses to apply digital engineering to safeguard military communication systems, Gregorio says. The company plays a pivotal role in helping weapons and ship navigation systems communicate […]
LATITIA McCANE
Growing up in Alabama, Latitia McCane was inspired by the work of her father, a mechanic at Ciba Geigy Chemical Corp. (now BASF), and her uncle, an electrician at Ingalls. So, she forged her own career path in STEM and manufacturing fields. A throughline in her work, however, has been to support and encourage women […]
DIANNE JEWELL
Dianne Jewell’s work as a physical therapist and administrator has not just been about helping patients but also her colleagues. In 2011, Jewell founded the Rehab Intelligence Network, which helps rehabilitation practices use data to demonstrate the value of their services, and served as its CEO for a decade. “Health care is awash in data […]
CECILIA HODGES
Outside of her three-decade career in banking, in which she currently manages more than 60 branches, Cecilia Hodges enjoys volunteering for community organizations and charities. “I can see in the work that those dollars really make a difference to people,” she says. One organization she’s involved with, Women Giving Back, is a boutique that provides […]
BUFFY BAREFOOT
BUFFY BAREFOOT President — Virginia Beach, TowneBank, Virginia Beach Buffy Barefoot describes herself “as a pretty steady Eddie.” During her 27-year career in finance, she has worked for only two companies, and she credits her steady rise to staying in her lane, keeping her nose down and doing the best job she could. “End of […]
DEBORAH JOHNSTON
Deborah Johnston’s father inspired her career path. When she was a child, he encouraged her to pursue a job in nursing for the opportunities it could afford her. “He said, ‘You’ll always have a job. You could join the Air Force and travel the world. But no matter what happens, you’ll always have a job, […]
GWEN HURT
Gwen Hurt spent more than 15 years working in the tech industry. Then, unexpectedly, days after being laid off from her job in 2013, Hurt and her daughter were in a car accident. During their months of recovery, Hurt decided to start her own winemaking business in 2014. Her daughter suggested she name it for […]
JYLINDA JOHNSON
Jylinda Johnson sees the world for what it could be. That’s why she thrives in a role that requires her to solve complex problems facing the federal government. Johnson oversees a 2,000-person team for General Dynamics Information Technology, a business unit of Reston-based Fortune 500 global aerospace and defense contractor General Dynamics Corp. Her team […]
JENNIFER HUNTER
Education and mentorship are important to Jennifer Hunter. “If you want to create change and create opportunities … you’ve got to bring people to the table,” she says. “And that means supporting folks, equipping them, preparing them and then pulling them to the table with you.” Outside of mentoring others, she was appointed by former […]
