The Voice of Business in the Charlotte Region

As Hugh McColl approaches his 90th birthday, he shows no signs of slowing down. 

“As long as you’re busy, you don’t have a lot of time for dying,” said McColl, the co-founder and chairman emeritus of Falfurrias Management Partners and former chairman and CEO of Bank of America. 

In this special episode of The Voice of Business in the Charlotte Region, a podcast miniseries brought to you by CLT Alliance and the CBJ, McColl sits down with Andrea Smith, strategic advisor for the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance, and Kieth Cockrell, president of Bank of America Charlotte, for a wide-ranging interview. In the conversation, McColl discusses the grand opening of McColl Park, shares stories from early in his career, as well as the lessons and philosophies that continue to drive him to this day. 

Listen to this episode to learn more about: 

• How the Marine Corps became McColl’s “graduate school” in management 
• Why McDonald’s inspired McColl’s vision for banking expansion 
• What makes Charlotte unique — and the people shaping its legacy of community impact 
• Bringing an NFL team to Charlotte 
• Attracting and retaining young talent
• McColl’s secret to success
• The impact of the Wake Forest University School of Medicine on the Queen City 

To learn more about the Charlotte Region and discover why business is better here, visit charlotteregion.com. 

Andrea Smith, interim president and CEO of the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance, recently interviewed two powerhouse leaders and trailblazers in the sports industry:

• Shelly Cayette-Weston, president of business operations, Hornets Sports & Entertainment 
• Kristi Coleman, CEO, Tepper Sports & Entertainment and president, Carolina Panthers

In this episode of The Voice of Business in the Charlotte Region, a podcast miniseries brought to you by CLT Alliance and the CBJ, Cayette-Weston and Coleman talk about being among a select group of women in senior positions in the NBA and NFL.  

Listen to this episode to hear about:

• Their career journeys in the business of sports 
• The role of public-private partnerships in growing professional sports in Charlotte 
• Updates on the renovations of Spectrum Center and Bank of America Stadium
• A decision that helped shape the direction of the organizations 
• How these women integrate work life with family life  

To learn more about the Charlotte Region and discover why business is better here, visit charlotteregion.com. 

Explore why the Charlotte Region is so attractive to young talent with three members of the CLT Alliance Young Professionals (YP) Board:

• Nora Richmond, manager, Grant Thornton’s risk advisory services practice
• Meaghann Dunlap, finance director, Ally Financial
• Austin Lowrey, lead treasury analyst, Duke Energy’s treasury team

In this episode of The Voice of Business in the Charlotte Region, a podcast miniseries brought to you by CLT Alliance and the Charlotte Business Journal, these local professionals share their individual takes on living and working here.

Tune in to hear about: 

• Where Richmond, Dunlap and Lowrey are from, where they went to college and what drew them to the Charlotte Region (1:05)
• Advice for young professionals considering a move here (5:03)
• Extracurricular activities in the area, from major league sports to concerts and pickleball courts (7:51)
• What makes the Charlotte Region a leader in attracting young professionals (12:43)
• How being on the CLT Alliance YP Board has given Richmond, Dunlap and Lowrey a voice for influencing change (15:26) 

To learn more about the Charlotte Region and discover why business is better here, visit charlotteregion.com. 

The influx of foreign capital into the Charlotte region has significantly strengthened the local economy, and Germany leads foreign direct investment (FDI), according to T.J. McCullough, Charlotte Business Journal president and publisher, who pointed to new research by the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance.  

DEHN — a German electrical engineering and manufacturing company — recently chose Mooresville in Iredell County for its U.S. headquarters after considering about 400 other locations.

In this episode of The Voice of Business in the Charlotte Region, a podcast miniseries brought to you by CLT Alliance and the Charlotte Business Journal, McCullough interviewed the following leaders to discuss the significance of international business and FDI in the region:

Hannah Little, managing partner, Garfinkel Immigration Law Firm

• Christian Mies, senior area manager, Americas, DEHN
• Ingo Rutenberg, CEO and director of business unit Americas, DEHN

Listen to this episode to learn about:

• How Garfinkel Immigration Law Firm helps international companies conduct business here, from temporary work visas to employment-based green cards (2:59)
• Why the Charlotte region is attractive to international companies like DEHN (3:53)
• The advantages of Charlotte and what makes it diverse from the perspective of a native Charlottean (13:38)
• What international business leaders considering the Charlotte region should know (15:46)
• The future for international businesses in the Charlotte region (19:01)

To learn more about the Charlotte Region and discover why business is better here, visit charlotteregion.com. 

To explore one of the fastest growing areas in the U.S, Andrea Smith, interim CEO for the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance, interviewed two CEOs of Fortune 1000 companies headquartered in the Charlotte region:

• Bill Christensen, CEO of JELD-WEN, a manufacturing company with global operations
• David Smith, CEO of Sonic Automotive, a large automotive retailer that does business across 20+ states

In this premier episode of The Voice of Business in the Charlotte Region, a podcast miniseries brought to you by CLT Alliance and the Charlotte Business Journal, Christensen and Smith share their perspectives on the advantages of doing business here and what the region needs to overcome.  

Listen to this episode to learn about:

• Their stories — one CEO recently relocated from Zurich while the other grew up in the area  (1:15)   
• The Charlotte area’s unique qualities (2:59)
• What types of companies thrive in this region (5:32) 
• Addressing growth and what challenges need to be conquered (8:36) 
• What the Fortune 1000 company ranking means to each CEO (12:52)
• The importance of community involvement (15:40)
• What they see in the Charlotte region’s future (19:32)

To learn more about the Charlotte Region and discover why business is better here, visit charlotteregion.com. 

Coming soon, the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance and the Charlotte Business Journal will launch a new podcast miniseries called The Voice of Business in the Charlotte Region.

Join us for enthusiastic conversations with leaders in Charlotte and the surrounding 14-county, bi-state region. We’ll talk growth, talent, key industries, infrastructure and more. You won’t want to miss it.

Episodes will drop every other month. Subscribe now! 

To learn more about the Charlotte Region and discover why business is better here, visit charlotteregion.com.