The Georgia High School Association is optimistic about a potential return of high school football this summer and beyond.
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Just 5% of small business owners report achieving all their business goals in the past 12 months, according to a new survey from Clutch, a B2B ratings and reviews platform.
Clutch found that although 95% of small businesses fall short of meeting their goals, 77% are somewhat or very confident in their ability to execute their strategy.
“I think the best goals are realistic but slightly optimistic,” said Malte Scholz, CEO and co-founder of project management tool airfocus. “If you don’t aim high enough, you risk setting unambitious goals, but if you aim too high, you may never hit your goals and feel discouraged.”
Overall, 65% of small businesses achieved at least half their goals in the past 12 months.
More Than One-Quarter of Small Businesses Didn’t Do Any Formal Planning in 2019
Small businesses should create a business plan that breaks down their goals and plans to achieve them, yet few businesses actually do.
Clutch found that just 15% of small business owners report fully documenting a strategy in the past year — and 27% developed no strategy at all.
Companies can benefit from a documented strategy to meet objectives and motivate employees. Business owners should, however, be flexible to changing their plans, especially during the coronavirus pandemic.
E-commerce site iHeartRaves, for example, changed its focus to selling activewear and loungewear from selling festival apparel due to the current lack of in-person events.
“Luckily, we’ve been successful with the pivot,” CEO Brian Lim said “We’ve learned that necessity is the mother of change.”
iHeartRaves is surviving the current economic downturn because of its flexibility to reshape its formal plan.
Small Businesses Focus on Creating Strategies for Sales, Marketing, and Customer Service
No matter their industry, Clutch found that small businesses tend to create strategies in three areas:
Sales (46%)
Marketing/advertising (41%)
Customer service (36%)
A sales strategy places businesses’ products in front of target customers, while an advertising and marketing strategy reaches those customers and persuades them to make a purchase. Finally, a customer service strategy keeps customers happy.
All three strategies go hand-in-hand with one another.
“If the marketing department is failing, so will the sales department, and so will customer service,” said Rueben Yonatan, CEO of VoIP research database GetVoIP.
To create a successful business strategy, Clutch recommends the following five approaches:
Set actionable and clear business goals.
Focus your efforts on the business areas that matter most.
Find a mentor to help guide your business strategy.
Draft a formal, documented business strategy.
Follow your business plan, but revise it regularly.
Read the full report here:
https://clutch.co/consulting/resources/strategy-development-tips-small-businesses
Lt. Governor Duncan issued the following statement on the reconvening of the 2020 legislative session.
“Per the adjournment resolution the Speaker and I must agree on a reconvening date, and that process is ongoing,” said Lt. Governor Geoff Duncan. “We continue to work closely with the Senate Administrative Affairs team to create procedures that allow us to return safely to the Capitol. I am diligently working to implement a Senate-wide testing program for all Senate members and staff prior to session reconvening. June 15 will give members enough time, after the primary election, to be tested for free at their local health departments, which all Georgians are able to do.”
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The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 stands at 35,427 and the death toll at 1,511, according to to the evening report from the Georgia Department of Public Health.
MARTA joined other major transit authorities, including New York, New Jersey and San Francisco, calling on Congress to deliver urgent federal aid in the next coronavirus relief package. “Public transit is a critical component to the economic vitality of the regions that we serve, said MARTA General Manager and CEO Jeffrey Parker. “While the initial funding from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act staved off worst case scenarios, more relief is needed to close the enormous budget gap created by unprecedented declines in ridership and revenue caused by this health crisis.” MARTA expects a five-year deficit of $380 million and said federal relief would be needed to maintain its current level of service and keep employees and customers safe.
The Georgia Power Foundation has donated $100,000 to help Augusta University continue ramping up statewide COVID-19 screening and testing efforts to fight the pandemic. Gov. Brian Kemp recently asked Augusta University Health to partner with the Georgia National Guard to coordinate centralized scheduling for multiple COVID-19 specimen point of collection sites around the state. Since March, when Augusta University began its COVID-19 response efforts, over 13,000 hotline calls have been answered, more than 14,000 telemedicine screenings have been completed through the AU Health ExpressCare app and nearly 7,000 specimen collections have been made at drive-thru locations around the state.
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The Atlanta Botanical Garden in Midtown will reopen to members on May 18 and to the public on May 23 after being closed for two months due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
The Garden will be open to the public daily with new extended hours, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., while Monday’s will be reserved for members only.
As part of its safety precautions, all guests and members will need a timed ticket for entry, which can be reserved on the website.
Garden President and CEO Mary Pat Matheson said in a video (watch below) that all guests must wear a face covering and be mindful of directions signage since many areas will have one-way traffic to avoid crowding.
Matheson said the Garden is beautiful right now and there are new additions to the Alice’s Wonderland Reimagined topiary.
The Gainesville location of the Garden will remain closed until further notice.
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The Midtown Development Review Committee got a virtual look at its May 12 meeting of Portman Holdings’ plans for a three-tower, mixed-use development that will make the historic H.M. Patterson & Son’s Spring Hill Chapel its focal point.
Located at 1020 Spring Street, the development will include a hotel, residential, and office towers along with retail space. The development team is led by Portman Holdings, with HKS providing the master plan for the 4.1 acre site atop one of the highest points in Midtown.
The historic H.M. Patterson & Son-Spring Hill Chapel building and garden are the focal point of the master plan, and would be surrounded by the three towers – the first of which could break ground as early as the first or second quarter of 2021.
The 36-story residential tower would have 375 units with ground floor retail at the southeast corner of the site. A year or so later, a 34-story, 700,000 square foot podium office tower along the western side of the site would be developed in combination with a 350-key, 24-story hotel with ground floor retail at the north edge of the site.
Vehicular access is proposed from one existing curbcut along Spring Street and five new curbcuts: two on Spring , one on 10th Street and two along Williams Street. Parking is provided in two separate decks at the base of the residential and office towers. Both would be fully screened and together they will accommodate 1,650 parking spaces and internal loading areas.
The presentation was well-received by the DRC, but the committee identified several issues in need of additional study and further consideration including:
- streetscape configuration
- number of curb-cuts along Spring Street
- the setback along the north property line
- a pedestrian connection through the site
- façade details.
The size and density of the project will require a Developments of Regional Impact (DRI) review, so the DRC anticipates an updated follow-up presentation in the coming months.
What will be inside the chapel structure hasn’t been decided, but Portman has experience with incorporating old structures into its futuristic designs. Portman preserved the exterior of the circa-1926 Crum & Forster office building at its nearby CODA development at Technology Square for use as a restaurant space.
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