Issue link: http://savannah.uberflip.com/i/939381
15 information and government. Local government rather than federal or state government will account for all of the increase in government employment. Fortunately, none of the major sectors of Georgia's economy will lose jobs in 2018. Services-Producing Industries The forecast indicates that all major categories of services-related businesses will expand, with the broader base of growth reflecting the upturn in housing markets, growing demand for information and high technology services, and competitive economic development incentives. Fintech, transactions processing, data processing, cybersecurity, and development of software and mobile apps will power Georgia's economic growth. IT companies that announced major projects include Switch PRIME, Sysnet Global Solutions, Global Technology, Better Cloud, GE Digital, Honeywell, NCR, VIX Global Solutions, ADP, Keysight Technologies, VIX Verify, Merchant e-Solutions, and Applied Systems. Despite the Equifax data breach, fintech will continue to become a major cluster in the Atlanta MSA. Fiserv, a provider of financial services and technology solutions, will add 500 jobs over five years, bringing its total employment to about 2,500 workers. Similarly, cybersecurity is becoming a major cluster in the Augusta MSA. The Georgia Cyber Training and Innovation Center in Augusta will provide the talent needed to attract even more cybersecurity firms. Healthcare IT is an industry that promises to create thousands of high-paying jobs in Georgia over the next decade. For example, athenahealth will add 500 jobs over three years, doubling its workforce in the Atlanta area. Anthem, Inc. has a services hub in midtown Atlanta that will employ 1,800 healthcare IT professionals. In addition, Kaiser Permanente announced that it will create 800 jobs in the Atlanta MSA (in addition to the 900 jobs announced earlier) at its new IT facility in Midtown. In 2018, the buildout of headquarters projects announced over the last several years will be an important force powering Georgia's economic growth. 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. (Fifteen companies headquartered in the Atlanta area are among the 2017 Fortune 500.) According to FEMA, Georgia has a very low risk for business disruption due to natural disasters, which is an important consideration for headquarters locations. Projects announced in 2015-2017 that brought, or will soon bring, job gains at headquarters operations include Lidl's regional headquarters which will bring 250 jobs to Bartow County, Mercedes Benz USA, Honeywell (division headquarters), Jindal Films (national headquarters), Merchant e-Solutions, VIX Verify, Sage (North American headquarters), mLevel, Comcast (regional headquarters), Wells Lighting, CSM Bakery Solutions, Courion, and Osmose Utilities Services. In addition, Global Ministries, the philanthropic arm of the United Methodist Church, moved its headquarters from New York to Atlanta, creating 168 jobs. The outlook for Georgia's healthcare providers is good. 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 Medicare program cloud the outlook for the healthcare industry, especially rural hospitals. Nonetheless, this sector will be one of the better performers because large numbers of baby boomers are reaching the age where heart attacks, strokes, cancer, and other care-intensive problems begin to rise rapidly. Factors encouraging providers of high-tech and highly specialized professional services to favor sites in Georgia—and 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