Category: Home

To read all of JAMES Magazine Online’s daily news, SUBSCRIBE HERE. *Subscription includes a complimentary subscription to JAMES Magazine.

Georgia has faced significant challenges in its healthcare workforce for years, particularly in the number of physicians per capita. However, a remarkable transformation is underway, bringing renewed hope and optimism to the state’s medical landscape.

James has been at the forefront of covering this evolving story, documenting the shift from a bleak outlook to a promising future. Over the past six months, we’ve witnessed an unprecedented level of cooperation and collaboration among key stakeholders in addressing Georgia’s physician shortage

The Department of Community Health, University System of Georgia, Georgia Hospital Association and, crucially, the state’s executive and legislative branches are now working in concert to expand Graduate Medical Education (GME) opportunities. This united front marks a significant turning point in Georgia’s approach to healthcare workforce development.

A key focus of this collaborative effort is strategic leveraging of federal dollars through Medicaid— the second most significant source of GME funding nationwide. Georgia has identified a golden opportunity to maximize these resources, potentially achieving a 2:1 match (or better) for invested funds, like other Southern states.

The implications of this approach are profound:

• Increased residency positions are likely to result in more physicians choosing to practice in Georgia.

• Improved quality of residency programs could encourage Georgia medical school graduates to remain in-state.

• The state stands to significantly enhance its position in leveraging crucial federal dollars for healthcare education.

To fully capitalize on these opportunities, prominent experts recommend a four-pronged strategy:

• Secure requisite funding.

• Modify medical school admission strategies to best serve Georgians.

• Implement contracts, scholarships, and other mechanisms to ensure Georgia’s medical students have seamless pathways to practice in the state.

• Transform the culture in Georgia medical schools to improve GME and retain undergraduate students.

This approach is immediately implementable and allows for annual measurement of progress.

The collaborative spirit extends beyond just funding. Stakeholders are coming together to “grow the pie,” ensuring enough opportunity for all involved parties. This approach, coupled with productive discussions on resource allocation, sets the stage for a thriving healthcare ecosystem in Georgia.

So, the outlook for Georgia’s physician workforce is brighter than ever. With continued dedication and cooperation, the state is well-positioned to overcome its historical challenges and emerge as a leader in healthcare workforce development. James remains committed to reporting on this exciting progress, keeping Georgians informed as we enter this new era of focus, mechanisms and measurements of Peach State healthcare strategies.

Phil Kent is the CEO & Publisher of James & James Magazine Online.

Q2 Fiscal Year 2025 Highlights

• Net income attributable to our common shareholder of $128 million, down 18% YoY; Net income attributable to our common shareholder excluding special items was $179 million, down 1% YoY

• Adjusted EBITDA of $462 million, down 5% YoY; up 1% excluding negative $25 million net impact from Sierre flooding

• Rolled product shipments of 945 kilotonnes, up 1% YoY

• Adjusted EBITDA per tonne shipped of $489, down 6% YoY

• Restarted production at Sierre, Switzerland, plant following severe flooding in June 2024

Novelis Inc., a leading sustainable aluminum solutions provider and the world leader in aluminum rolling and recycling, today reported results for the second quarter of fiscal year 2025.

“Our global footprint allowed us to achieve record beverage packaging shipments in the quarter and also mitigate the impact to customers from the flooding-related outage at Sierre,” said Steve Fisher, president and CEO, Novelis Inc. “We also remain committed to sustainability and our goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2050. Our recently released fiscal year 2024 sustainability report highlighted the progress against this target and the 63% average recycled content rate in our products – a leading figure for the industry. Our success in these areas is the result of innovative approaches and technologies, and strong relationships with our customers who increasingly demand high-recycled content, lower-carbon aluminum products.”

Second Quarter Fiscal Year 2025 Financial Highlights

Net sales for the second quarter of fiscal year 2025 increased 5% versus the prior year period to $4.3 billion, mainly driven by higher average aluminum prices and a 1% increase in total flat rolled product shipments to 945 kilotonnes. Strong demand for beverage packaging sheet was mostly offset by lower shipments to some specialty end markets as well as lower automotive shipments due primarily to the impact from the flooding-related production interruption at our Sierre, Switzerland, plant during the second quarter this year.

Net income attributable to our common shareholder decreased 18% versus the prior year to $128 million in the second quarter of fiscal year 2025. The current year period includes $61 million in charges associated with the production interruptions at Sierre, as well as higher restructuring and impairment expense and lower operating performance, partially offset by a favorable change in metal price lag and unrealized derivatives year-over-year. Net income attributable to our common shareholder, excluding special items, was down 1% year-over-year to $179 million. Adjusted EBITDA decreased 5% versus the prior year to $462 million in the second quarter of fiscal year 2025, primarily driven by less favorable metal benefit due to a relatively rapid increase in aluminum scrap prices, unfavorable product mix, and a $25 million impact at Sierre as a result of the flood. These factors were partially offset by higher beverage packaging shipments. Adjusted EBITDA per tonne was down 6% year-over-year to $489.

Net cash flow provided by operating activities was $374 million in the first six months of fiscal year 2025 compared to $290 million in the prior fiscal year period, primarily due to favorable changes in working capital. Adjusted free cash flow was an outflow of $345 million in the first six months of fiscal year 2025, higher than the prior year period outflow of $300 million due to higher capital expenditures and partially offset by higher cash flow from operating activities. Total capital expenditures were $717 million for the first six months of fiscal year 2025, a 16% increase versus the prior year period, primarily attributed to strategic investments in new rolling and recycling capacity under construction, most notably in the U.S. for Bay Minette. The company had a net leverage ratio (Adjusted Net Debt / trailing twelve months (TTM) Adjusted EBITDA) of 2.5x at September 30, 2024.

“We are more focused than ever on diligently managing the balance sheet as we continue to progress the growth investments we have underway and navigate shifting market dynamics,” said Devinder Ahuja, executive vice president and CFO, Novelis Inc.

The company had a total liquidity position of $2.1 billion, consisting of $1.1 billion in cash and cash equivalents and $1.0 billion in availability under committed credit facilities, as of September 30, 2024.

Sierre Flood Update

On June 30, 2024, our plant located in Sierre, Switzerland, was impacted by exceptional flooding caused by unprecedented heavy rainfall. All employees were safely evacuated; however, water entered the plant premises and plant operations were halted. During the six months ended September 30, 2024, the Company recognized charges of $101 million resulting from this event, including fixed asset and inventory charges, idle fixed costs, repairs and clean-up costs, and excess costs to fulfill customer contracts. The plant is insured for property damage and business interruption losses related to such events, subject to deductibles and policy limits. We will record an insurance receivable based on the anticipated insurance proceeds when they can be reliably estimated. Production at the facility has been partially restored at the end of the second quarter of fiscal 2025 and is expected to return to normal production capability in the third quarter of fiscal 2025. We continue to estimate the total net cash impact from this event, after insurance, to be $80 million. The net impact to Adjusted EBITDA is estimated to be $30 million, of which $25 million is estimated to have occurred in the second quarter.

Second Quarter Fiscal Year 2025 Earnings Conference Call

Novelis will discuss its second quarter fiscal year 2025 results via a live webcast and conference call for investors at 7:00 a.m. EST/5:30 p.m. IST on Wednesday, November 6, 2024. The webcast link, presentation materials and access information can also be found at novelis.com/investors. To view slides and listen to the live webcast, visit: https://event.choruscall.com/mediaframe/webcast.html?webcastid=w4QE2UFd. To participate by telephone, participants are requested to register at: https://services.incommconferencing.com/DiamondPassRegistration/register?confirmationNumber=13749754&linkSecurityString=1d8acccfb8.

Realtors: How To Convert More Leads

Solving the Challenge of Converting Leads to Sales In every business sector, in real estate, travel, or SaaS software, visitors abandon their shopping carts for many reasons. So let’s use that as our metaphor for losing leads — abandonment. Because if they don’t become qualified prospects in your pool — you were abandoned. At any…

What Are the Top Real Estate Lead Conversion Factors?

How to Increase Your Real Estate Lead Conversion Rates If you were to double or triple your online real estate lead conversion rate, how would that factor into your commissions? You’ve likely asked “how do I convert more of my Website leads?” so here’s a number of things you need to do. establish a great…

Create Your Marketing Powerhouse for 2025

Real Estate Marketing for 2025 Boom The election of Donald Trump as US president is expected to generate a booming US economy, and the housing market will definitely benefit. You can feel the enthusiasm already, and I’m looking forward to working in the real estate sector again. As a real estate agent or broker, you’re…

Americans staying in the U.S. this Thanksgiving have their sights set on major domestic cities, while others are trading in cozy blankets and fall foliage for international palm trees and warm beaches, according to the 2024 Allianz Partners USA’s Top 10 Thanksgiving Destination Index.

New York City continues to lure travelers back to its busy streets and celebratory parades as it once again claims the number one spot on the domestic destinations roster. Following in its footsteps, Seattle continues its foothold as the second most popular Thanksgiving destination for the fourth year in a row. Meanwhile, Dallas makes its debut as a top three destination (previously sixth), signaling an influx of travelers heading to the Lone Star State for Turkey Day festivities. Not shying away from the country’s warm-weather states, Americans are also flying to Phoenix (#4), known for its year-round sun.

Fan favorite Orlando (#5) continues to reign as a top choice for Americans, though slipping slightly down two spots after holding third place for two years in a row. Notably, Miami (#10) made its first-ever debut in the top 10 list, highlighting a major uptick in travel to Florida. Other major cities filling out the top 10 include Atlanta (#6), Los Angeles (#7), Boston (#8) and Chicago (#9).

Americans traveling internationally are trading traditional turkey stuffing and pumpkin pie for warm weather and fruit cocktails as they head to their favorite beach destinations for this year’s Thanksgiving celebrations. With a four-year streak in place, Mexico’s ever-so-popular Cancun, San Jose Del Cabo, and Puerto Vallarta were once again named the top three most popular international destinations. Meanwhile, Americans also are catching longer flights as they head across the pond to London (#4) and Paris (#6).

Moving on up the top 10 list, Nassau, Bahamas, locks in fifth place (rising two spots from last year). Falling three spots but not forgotten, Montego Bay, Jamaica, holds eighth place while Punta Cana, Dominican Republic (#7) and Oranjestad, Aruba’s (#9) crystal clear waters continue to lure travelers who need a city escape. Rounding out the list, after being on a 5-year hiatus, Mexico City is back in the game, landing tenth on the international roster.

“Holiday travel is back, and airports are gearing up for their busiest time of the year with Thanksgiving kicking it off,” said Daniel Durazo, director of external communications at Allianz Partners. “Don’t let the excitement of the season stop you from being prepared for potential travel disruptions. A travel protection plan can reimburse pre-paid, non-refundable costs associated with a number of covered, unexpected events such as trip cancellations or interruptions, lengthy travel delays, lost baggage and even medical emergencies.”  

Allianz Partners offers travel protection plans through most major U.S. airlines, leading travel agents, online travel agencies, hotel companies, cruise lines and directly to consumers. For more information on Allianz Partners and available travel policies, please visit http://www.allianztravelinsurance.com/.

Southern Linc, a subsidiary of Southern Company (NYSE: SO), has announced that Alan McIntyre has been named the Vice President of Engineering and Operations by the Southern Linc Board of Directors. He will lead a team that is known for providing highly reliable, highly resilient wireless voice and data services for Southern Company systems and users and for local and state government customers.

With 30 years of experience in wireless telecommunications, McIntyre brings significant expertise and proven success to his new role. Formerly, as Engineering Director at Southern Linc, he led the company’s LTE technology transformation, including development of the plan and construction of two fully geographically redundant core data centers, 1,300 LTE cell sites, and the installation of VoLTE and mission-critical push-to-talk (MCPTT) sub-systems that resulted in thousands of conversions of voice and data devices to LTE. He also participated in the international 3^rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standards organization that adopted new specifications to facilitate Southern Linc’s move to LTE technology.

“We are thrilled to announce Alan’s promotion at Southern Linc,” said Bentina Terry, president and CEO of Southern Linc and Southern Telecom. “Alan’s vast experience, his significant contributions to our company and the telecom sector, along with his humility and dedication to Southern Company values, make him an excellent addition to our executive team.”

McIntyre has an extensive understanding of wireless spectrum. He worked on the FCC’s 800 MHz rebanding proceedings in the early 2000s which provided Southern Linc with contiguous spectrum as well as the FCC proceeding during 2011-2012 that enabled broadband operations in Southern Linc’s spectrum band. More recently, he was a member of auction teams within Southern Company that successfully won licenses in multiple FCC-conducted spectrum auctions.

McIntyre holds a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and a Master of Business Administration degree in Management Information Systems from Auburn University. In 2017, he began serving on the Auburn board that provides strategic advice for the university’s Wireless Engineering Research and Education Center.

Farmer sentiment saw an unexpected surge in October ahead of the upcoming U.S. election, according to the latest Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer. The index rose to 115, marking a 27-point increase from September. This boost in sentiment was primarily driven by a rise in producers’ confidence in the future, with the Future Expectations Index jumping 30 points to 124. While the Current Conditions Index also improved, reaching 95, it still reflected farmers’ concerns that economic conditions this year are worse than last year and weaker than the barometer’s base period of 2015-16 during the early days of a multiyear downturn in the U.S. farm economy. Despite current challenges, the October survey indicated some optimism among producers that economic conditions may strengthen, avoiding an extended downturn in the farm economy. This month’s survey was conducted from Oct. 14-18, 2024.

“Examining responses to the barometer’s individual questions helps us understand the producers’ shift toward a less pessimistic view of the U.S. agricultural economy,” said James Mintert, the barometer’s principal investigator and director of Purdue University’s Center for Commercial Agriculture.

In October, only 53% of producers anticipated challenging times for the U.S. agricultural economy in the year ahead, a decrease from 73% in September. Similarly, concerns about the next five years eased, with just 33% of producers expecting tough times ahead, down from 48% the previous month. Additionally, fewer producers expect worsening financial conditions on their farms over the next 12 months, dropping to 23% in October from 38% in September.

“While producer sentiment improved in October, many respondents indicated they are still feeling financial strain due to the deterioration of their financial situation throughout 2024,” said Mintert. “Over half of the producers we surveyed reported that their farm’s financial condition was worse than a year ago, which underscores the ongoing challenges producers face despite their more optimistic outlook for the year ahead.”

Each month’s survey ends with an open-ended question, allowing respondents to share their thoughts and concerns. For October, politics emerged as a frequent topic of discussion, likely influenced by the upcoming elections. Many producers expressed worries about potential policy changes impacting their farms and the agricultural economy, with regulation, environment and taxes featured prominently alongside price concerns. When specifically asked about their worries for the upcoming year, respondents continued to point to higher input costs and lower output prices as their primary concerns. The trend of producers’ decreasing concern over interest rates continued this month, with only 15% citing it as a top worry in October, down from 26% in late 2023.

One of the most surprising findings from this month’s survey was the increase in the Farm Financial Performance Index. This index measures producers’ expectations regarding their farm’s financial performance over the next 12 months compared to the past year. In October, the index surged to 90, reflecting a 22-point jump from September and falling just 2 points shy of last year’s level. Though not solely accountable for the rise in the index, contributing factors likely include high fall crop yields and a stress-free harvest season in the Corn Belt and Plains states. The index’s improvement also suggests a growing optimism among farmers about their financial outlook, with expectations for better performance in 2025 compared to 2024. Producers seem to view 2024’s weak income prospects as transitory, as there was also a modest improvement in the Farm Capital Investment Index, which reached 42 — a 7-point increase from September.

Both Farmland Value Expectation indices rose this month, indicating that producers are maintaining a level of optimism about the agricultural economy’s future strength, which could, in turn, support farmland values. The Short-Term Farmland Value Expectations Index, which often correlates with financial performance expectations and the Current Conditions Index, climbed to 120, 25 points higher than the September reading. The long-term index improved to 159, up from 147 the previous month.

Michael Wahlstrom with UnitedHealthcare talks about the Surest Health Plan and the importance of making health insurance easier to understand .