The Economic Crystal Ball in Charlotte

Every quarter, The Business Growth Index is published in partnership between UNC Charlotte and the Charlotte Chamber. 

As stated by the Chamber, the  publication is “an initiative designed to provide analysts and decision makers in the private and public sectors with timely information about the current and near-term health of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg economy”.

Said another way, it could be considered a crystal ball (using reason and logic) to help those of us on the DARTON team to predict the economic future (near-term) here in metro Charlotte.

The most recent Index was released a couple of weeks ago on 11.24.08. 

Some key factoids?

1. The outlook for the local economy is flat to slow, modest decline through March 2009.
2. The pace of job loss in Charlotte is half the national pace.
3. Help wanted linage (a measure of local hiring plans) declined 5.4% in September 2008 (with a 13.4% loss year over year).

So what does it all mean?

Per UNC Charlotte and the Charlotte Chamber, “..we expect the Charlotte region to out-perform the nation”. 

Sure, skeptics will claim that is it the Chamber’s job to present a sunny outlook.  That said, it is DARTON’s perspective that UNC Charlotte and the Chamber do an admirable job of presenting a balanced view of the Charlotte economy in the quarterly Index.

Read the Index at http://www.charlottechamber.com/index.php?src=gendocs&ref=EconomicForecast&category=Business_Profile&submenu=Business_Profile.

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NEWSWEEK Ranks Duke’s Jim Rogers Among “50 Most Powerful People In the World”

NEWSWEEK magazine is kicking off  the first issue of 2009 with a list of the “Global Elite – the 50 most powerful people in the world”.

And who made the list at #50 – just 3 positions behind Oprah Winfrey?

Charlotte’s own Jim Rogers, the Chairman, President and CEO of Duke Energy.  Duke is one of the USA’s largest power companies and one of several Fortune 500 firms headquartered in the Charlotte region. 

Jim Rogers made the list on the basis of his belief in renewable energy and the need to cut CO2.  NEWSWEEK cited the investments that Duke, under Jim’s leadership, is making to support renewable energy initiatives and to reduce CO2 emissions.

Other power players on NEWSWEEK’s list?

Steve Jobs (CEO, Apple) at #34 (We DARTON-ites love our iPods!)

Mike Duke (CEO-Designate, Wal-Mart) at #26

Warren Buffett at #19

And who made the #1 ranking?

You guessed it.  Barack Obama.

Read NEWSWEEK’s article on the Global Elite and the profile of Jim Rogers at http://www.newsweek.com/id/176300.

Learn more about Jim Rogers on Duke Energy’s web site at http://www.duke-energy.com/about-us/leaders/jim-rogers.asp.

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The FORTUNE 500 in the Carolinas

The DARTON team likes FORTUNE magazine’s online rankings of the USA’s top 500 corporations by state.

Here in the Carolinas, the Tar Heel state is home to 26 of the FORTUNE 500 corporations.  4 additional firms claim the Palmetto state as home.

View North Carolina’s roster of FORTUNE 500 companies at  ://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune500/2008/states/NC.html.

See the South Carolina roster at http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune500/2008/states/SC.html.

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Factoids R Us

We like our factoids here at DARTON GROUP.

And we like NationMaster.com, a fun, fact-based site that allows users to compare statistics on countries across the globe.

Wondering who holds the title of “richest” country on the planet?  (It’s not who you think it is!).

Wondering how the world’s countries rank using the “Big Mac” index? (Yes, there is actually a ranking of countries by price of a McDonald’s Big Mac in USA dollars at current exchange rates).  Save your pennies if you plan to order your Big Mac in Iceland. 

The DARTON team isn’t alone in our fondness for NationMaster.com. 

Harvard Business School http://hbswk.hbs.edu/ undertook an exercise using NationMaster.com to see how various exporting countries ranked in terms of bribes.  Harvard researched countries on the degree to which their companies are perceived to be paying bribes. 

The findings?

Swedish companies are least likely to play the bribe game, while Chinese firms were most perceived as willing to participate.

Amaze your family and friends this holiday season with your mastery of country-by-country statistics.

Visit NationMaster.com at http://www.nationmaster.com/index.php.

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AFP and Wachovia Recognize Charlotte-Based Belk

Kudos to Belk.

Based in Charlotte, Belk is the largest privately held department store in the USA with more than 300 stores and annual sales of $3.8 billion.

The Association for Financial Professionals (AFP) and Wachovia recently awarded Belk the 2008 AFP Pinnacle Award Grand Prize Winner.

The Grand Prize recognizes innovative cash management solutions designed to solve complex treasury and financial management challenges.

Belk was chosen from among winners in three categories:

• Strategy
• Innovation
• Risk

Belk won the Risk category for the retailer’s implementation of a risk mitigation program that facilitated change across the enterprise.

For More Information

Learn more about Belk’s award-winning risk mitigation program at http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/10-20-2008/0004907332&EDATE=.

Association for Financial Professionals:  http://www.afponline.org/

Belk:  http://www.belk.com/

Wachovia:  http://www.wachovia.com/

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DARTON GROUP Welcomes Scott Sterling

We are growing!

DARTON GROUP announces the addition of Scott Sterling to our Charlotte team.  Scott joins DARTON in a Business Development role. 

“Scott is simply one of the best in the industry,” noted Mark Weber, Managing Partner and Co-Founder at DARTON.  

“In addition to his five years of experience in the financial recruiting industry, Scott brings eight years of expertise in public accounting.  DARTON’s clients and consultants will benefit from Scott’s diverse, and successful, experience in the staffing industry and at Arthur Andersen and KPMG,” stated Weber.

Scott is a CPA (inactive) and member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.  Scott attended North Park University in Chicago, IL where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting. 

Learn more about Scott by visiting his LinkedIn profile at http://www.linkedin.com/in/scottsterling.

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About DARTON GROUP

DARTON GROUP provides highly experienced accounting and finance professionals for project consulting and interim engagements.  Based in Charlotte, NC, DARTON GROUP services diverse clients representing a cross-section of industries in the greater Charlotte region.   

 

Whether you are an experienced professional looking for a rewarding consulting career or a business with project or interim staffing needs, DARTON GROUP’s expertise and broad network can work to your advantage.

Visit DARTON GROUP online at www.dartongroup.com.

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“Back to Basics” for Middle Market Companies

For those of you who know our internal team here at DARTON GROUP, it is understood that we place a priority focus on serving the needs of mid-market companies in the greater Charlotte region. 

CFO Research Services, in collaboration with American Express, surveyed 129 qualified USA finance execs last month with a focus on the middle market (95% of respondents were from mid-size companies with revenues between $10 million and $2 billion).

The focus of the survey was to understand the actions that senior finance execs are taking to ensure sufficient capitilization to support growth over the next 12 months.

With the credit markets still tight and the economy in a state of recession, many finance execs stated that they are leading a movement to get “back to the basics”.  The focus is on re-setting priorities to uncover every opportunity to manage expenses and increase working capital.

So what activities will most mid-market finance execs spend more time on over the next year (compared with the past year)?

• 85% of respondents will spend more time on cutting cost of operations.
• 83% are dedicating more time on improving cash management processes.
• 81% will allocate more time on developing better budgets, plans and forecasts.

Other methods to be used by mid-market finance execs to meet their liquidity requirements?

• Reducing DSO and better cash flow projections as well as reduce capital spending
• Slow payments, aggressively collect AR
• Improve DSO, DPO and inventory turn
• Tighten cash management/forecasts
• Aggressively reduce working capital (inventory/receivables)
• Exercise tighter control over working capital components
• Audit billing and collection processes
• Rein in extended terms to customers
• Adhere to benchmarks better
• Tighten AR and drop poor paying customers
• Reduce G&A

The objectives of mid-market companies over the next 12 months reinforce the value that DARTON’s highly-experienced project consultants deliver in helping to drive process improvements and bottom-line results.

Download the the full report “No Stone Unturned:  Strategies for the Cash Management in Hard Times” (courtesy of CFO Research Services) at  http://www.cfoconferences.com/research.htm.

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Creating the USA’s Largest Financial Services Company

For Bank of America, it is time to flex its new muscle.

So says Tim Catts at Financial Week in an article posted on Friday (12.5.08) about Charlotte’s own Bank of America.

Now that the bank’s shareholders have officially approved its acquisition of Merrill Lynch, Tim writes that it is now time for Bank of America to prove that it can handle all the weight.

The Merrill Lynch deal leaves Bank of America with a $2.7 trillion balance sheet — compared with rival banks J.P. Morgan Chase ($2.25 trillion in assets at the end of the third quarter) and Citigroup ($2.09 trillion).

Read the full article at http://www.financialweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081207/REG/812049981/-1/FWIssueAlert01.

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DARTON Bell Ringers Today in South Charlotte

Planning to do some holiday shopping today in metro Charlotte?

Help a great cause and donate your spare change to the friendly bell ringers who are assisting with the Salvation Army’s annual Red Kettle Campaign, the oldest annual charitable fundraiser of its kind in the USA. 

The children of DARTON founders Rochelle Rivas and Mark Weber are ringing bells this morning in south Charlotte to help raise money for the Red Kettle Campaign. 

The money raised ($118 million in 2007) provides toys for kids, coats for the homeless, food for the hungry and countless social service programs year-round across the nation.  The DARTON kids are joining 25,000 volunteer bell ringers across the USA this holiday season to support the annual campaign.

Planning to avoid the holiday shopping crowds?

Great news…you can also support the Red Kettle Campaign by supporting your own Online Red Kettle Campaign .

Visit the Salvation Army of Greater Charlotte online to learn more about the organization and its famous annual campaign at http://www.salvationarmycharlotte.org/.

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“There’s always going to be people hiring”

Yesterday (12.05.08), the Associated Press confirmed what we, at DARTON GROUP, know to be true. 

Despite the continued challenges in the economy, USA businesses continue to hire.

The AP yesterday quoted Carl Van Horn, director of the John J. Heldrick Center for Workforce Development at Rutgers University, as follows:

“It’s a big economy; 350 million people – there’s always going to be people hiring.”

The AP also quoted John Tirinizonie, Connecticut’s state Labor Economist, who states:

“You can’t say no one is hiring…they’re hiring very specific types of people and they’re hiring a lot less numbers than they were.”

Words of wisdom from DARTON?

• You have to know where to look
• You have to network
• And you have to network with the right people

Read the article from the Associated Press and see what industries are hiring at http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2008/12/05/ap5787938.html

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