Savannah Chamber

19 2 Assurant, CryusOne, Switch PRIME, Sysnet Global Solutions, Global Technology, Better Cloud, GE Digital, Honeywell, NCR, VIX Global Solutions, ADP, Keysight Technologies, VIX Verify, Merchant e-Solutions, Applied Systems, Courion, Sage, and Stefanini. Fintech is becoming a major cluster in the Atlanta MSA. For example, in 2019, Invesco – an investment management company – announced plans to add 500 jobs at its global headquarters in midtown Atlanta. In 2019, OS National announced plans to expand its headquarters operations in Gwinnett County, adding over 1,000 jobs. In late 2018, BlackRock announced the creation of an innovation hub in Atlanta, creating 1,000 jobs over several years. The Georgia FinTech Academy will provide the talent needed to attract more financial technology companies to Georgia. Cyber security is becoming a major cluster in the Augusta MSA. The Georgia Cyber Center in Augusta will provide the talent needed to attract even more cyber security firms. In 2019, Parsons Corp – a cybersecurity technology provider – announced that it would open a new office in the Georgia Cyber Center to train operators supporting the U.S. Army Cyber Command and its operational units at Fort Gordon. Healthcare IT is an industry that promises to create thousands of high-paying jobs in Georgia over the next decade. In 2019, BioIQ – a health IT company – announced that it would create 500 jobs in Cobb County at its new headquarters. In 2019, Edifecs Inc. announced plans to create 200 healthcare IT jobs over the next three to five years in Atlanta. Animal healthcare is also a source of economic growth. For example, Boehringer Ingelheim, which has located its North American headquarters in Duluth, will create over 225 jobs at three locations in Georgia – Gwinnett, Clarke, and Hall counties. The build out of headquarters projects announced over the last several years will be an important force powering Georgia's economic growth in 2020. At this stage of the business cycle, not as many new headquarters projects will be announced, but recently announced projects will continue to spur growth as they build out more fully and become more interwoven into the business fabric of the state. Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport and Georgia's ideal geographic location makes Georgia a good hub from which to serve operations in the Americas. Access to talent and the strength of the business community also are important drivers of headquarters locations in the Atlanta MSA. According to FEMA, Georgia has a very low risk for business disruption due to natural disasters, which is an important consideration for headquarters locations. Twenty-six companies' headquarters in the Atlanta MSA rank among the 2019 Fortune 1000, placing Atlanta behind only New York City and Houston among U.S. metros headquartering Fortune 1000 companies. Projects announced in 2019 that will bring jobs at headquarters operations include OS National, Invesco, BioIQ, Dematic, Sangsin Technology, Newell Brands, Student Bridge, Acoustics & Insulation Tech, ZKTeco, and Variotech. Projects announced in 2018 with headquarters operations include Norfolk-Southern, Fox Factory Holding Corp, Floor & Décor, Inspire Brands, Thyssenkrupp, Groupe PSA, Elastron, and VDL Grope. Unfortunately, recent mergers cost Georgia two major corporate headquarters – Fiserv merged with FirstData and moved headquarters to Milwaukee and SunTrust merged with BB&T and moved headquarters to Charlotte. The outlook for Georgia's healthcare providers is good, but not exuberant. There is widespread agreement that Georgia's growing and aging population will demand more healthcare services, but intractable disagreement about who will pay the bills is a headwind for the industry's growth. More specifically, uncertainties regarding the long-term viability of the ACA as well as Georgia's nonparticipation in the expanded Medicaid program cloud the outlook for the healthcare industry, especially rural hospitals. Between 2018 and 2017, the uninsured rate for Georgians increased from 13.4 percent to 13.7 percent, which is the third highest uninsured rate in the nation. The U.S. uninsured rate was only 8.9 percent. Despite the fact that 1.4 million Georgians do not have health insurance, this sector will be one of the better performers. The large numbers of baby boomers are reaching the age where the incidence of heart attacks, strokes, cancer, and other care-intensive problems begin to rise rapidly. In essence, the population of persons with multiple chronic health conditions that require ongoing healthcare continues to grow rapidly regardless of the vicissitudes of the business cycle or healthcare policy. Factors encouraging providers of high-tech and highly specialized professional services to favor sites in Georgia – especially the Atlanta MSA – include the good business climate, logistical advantages in terms of serving far-flung clients, and the available professional workforce. Providers of business services that either lower costs or provide necessities should do well. The recovery of housing and nonresidential real estate markets will boost money spent on

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