Search Results for
Amazon delays construction on HQ2
Amazon.com Inc. is delaying construction on the second phase of HQ2, its $2.5 billion East Coast headquarters in Arlington County. The news comes as Amazon plans to open HQ2's first phase, Metropolitan Park, in June, and as the Fortune Global 500 tech company laid off a record 18,000+ workers amid concerns over slowing revenues an[...]
Crying wolf?
It’s “the most predicted potential recession in memory,” Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond President and CEO Tom Barkin quipped in January, but it hasn’t happened yet. Maybe. During the first half of 2022, surveys of consumers and CEOs showed they were worried about a recession coming on the heels of a 40-year peak in inflation and o[...]
Take a load off
One thing Brian Dail noticed as he spent a day and a half in February 2020 participating in step van manufacturer Morgan Olson’s new hire training in Loudon, Tennessee, was the physical strain. After the first hour, he told his colleagues, “‘Gosh, I’m not used to being on my feet. I’m ready to sit down.’” But Dail wasn’t going thr[...]
On the move
Megan Baker, economic development director, Roanoke County In October 2022, Baker was hired to step into the big shoes of Jill Loope, the county’s longtime economic development director who is set to retire in July. A North Carolina State and Indiana University graduate, Baker came to the Roanoke Valley from the Atlanta area, where[...]
It’s complicated
Going by media coverage alone, you’d be forgiven for thinking that 2021’s Great Resignation turned into “quiet quitting” in 2022, but as always, the national mood is more complicated than any two-word phrase could convey. There are still significant labor shortages in certain sectors — notably health care, education and skilled trad[...]
Richmond restaurant refuses service to Family Foundation
A German-inspired restaurant in Richmond canceled a reservation for a conservative political organization’s private event last week, saying in a statement posted online Thursday night that the decision was made to protect their staff, many of whom are women and/or part of the LGBTQ community. The Family Foundation, the organization t[...]
Pharrell brings Mighty Dream to Norfolk
In November, Grammy-winning music superstar Pharrell Williams hosted the three-day Mighty Dream forum in Norfolk and broke some news about his Something in the Water music festival and the status of his team’s proposal to redevelop Norfolk’s Military Circle Mall site. Mighty Dream, a sequel to his 2021 Elephant in the Room business[...]
Mighty Dream Day 1 focuses on diversity, equity
Grammy winning music superstar Pharrell Williams put on his business hat Tuesday in Norfolk, welcoming attendees to his Mighty Dream forum, which he likened to an event like the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, “but for marginalized communities.” The three-day forum kicked off with spoken-word poetry and a mighty boom o[...]
Vested interest
Eleven months into his first term in elected office, Gov. Glenn Youngkin can boast of several economic development successes and a few legislative wins, but one thing a lot of observers are discussing is his national profile and what it could mean in 2024. Youngkin — and his careful campaign to win over not only Trump fans but moder[...]
FOR THE RECORD NOVEMBER 2022
CENTRAL VIRGINIA Richmond Community Hospital — owned by Bon Secours Mercy Health — has the highest profit margins of any hospital in Virginia, generating as much as $100 million a year. The secret to its success lies with a federal program that allows clinics in impoverished neighborhoods to buy prescription drugs at steep discount[...]
Pharrell’s Mighty Dream forum coming to Norfolk Nov. 1-3
Executives from Google, H&M, Universal Music Group, Yelp and McDonald's will join Grammy winner Pharrell Williams Nov. 1-3 in Norfolk for his Mighty Dream forum, a sequel to last fall's Elephant in the Room event. Along with panel discussions and networking events focused on making work and business opportunities more equitabl[...]
For The Record: October 2022
CENTRAL VIRGINIA Fortune 500 used car online retailer Carvana Co. is more than halfway to its 400-employee hiring goal for its $25 million, 191,000-square-foot Chesterfield County inspection center, General Manager Robert Sheets said in August at the center’s ribbon cutting. Carvana has hired 240 employees and expects to reach 400 w[...]
Google Public Sector taps Booz Allen exec as CEO
Karen Dahut will be the CEO of Google Public Sector, Google LLC's subsidiary focused on government and educational contracting work. Dahut starts Oct. 31 and will be based out of Google's Washington, D.C., and Reston offices, according to a news release. She takes the place of Will Grannis, Google Public Sector's founding CEO, who[...]
Google completes $5.4B Mandiant acquisition
Google LLC has completed its acquisition of Reston-based cybersecurity company Mandiant Inc. in an all-cash transaction valued at $5.4 billion. Google is paying $23 per share for Mandiant, which is joining Google Cloud while retaining its branding. The companies announced the deal in March. Together, Google Cloud and Mandiant w[...]
2022 Virginia 500: Federal Contractors | Technology
CRAIG P. ABOD PRESIDENT, CARAHSOFT TECHNOLOGY CORP., RESTON REGGIE AGGARWAL FOUNDER AND CEO, CVENT HOLDING CORP., McLEAN MAHFUZ AHMED CHAIRMAN, CEO AND PRINCIPAL FOUNDER, DIGITAL INTELLIGENCE SYSTEMS LLC (DISYS), McLEAN R[...]
Real Estate: JEFFREY S. ‘JEFF’ DETWILER
Detwiler guides Long & Foster’s seven business lines: real estate, property management, mortgage, settlement services, insurance, corporate real estate services and new development real estate sales and marketing. Long & Foster has 2,506 total employees, 869 of whom are in Virginia, and reported revenue of $1.58 billion in f[...]
Economic Development: BUDDY RIZER
Under Rizer, Loudoun attracted $6.55 billion in new commercial investment in 2021, and in June, Irish energy management company Hanley Energy announced an $8 million expansion of its electrical division in Ashburn, a move expected to create 343 jobs. The self-styled “godfather of data center alley,” Rizer, who became Loudoun’s eco[...]
Federal Contractors/Technology: LYNN MARTIN
Martin joined Google Cloud in December 2021 after spending eight years as vice president of government, education and health care at another cloud services provider, VMware Inc. In June, Google announced the creation of Google Public Sector, a subsidiary focused on bringing Google Cloud technologies, including artificial intelligenc[...]
Real Estate : RYAN T. McLAUGHLIN
In 2021, NVAR celebrated its 100-year anniversary and earned the 2021 Diamond Council Global Award from the National Association of Realtors for being among the most active associations in global business. With 34 employees in Virginia and revenue of $8.25 million in 2021, NVAR is one of the largest regional Realtors’ associations i[...]
‘The Wild West’
From an outsider’s perspective, it may appear as if technology is improving and changing almost daily — especially sparked by pandemic-driven remote work. But according to a 2021 study by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, more than 80% of technologies improve in performance at a rate of less than 25% per year. Virginia Tech[...]








