GBJ Staff

Taxing energy used in manufacturing

by Chuck Eaton

Georgians have made it clear that attracting and retaining jobs should be the No. 1 priority of every elected official. Late last fall, my colleagues on the Georgia Public Service Commission and I sent a letter asking the Georgia General Assembly to consider removing the sales tax manufacturers pay on energy, including electricity, used in the manufacturing process. Governor Nathan Deal supports this idea, as do Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle and Speaker David Ralston.

Manufacturing employs hundreds of thousands of skilled workers in Georgia. Like virtually every other state, Georgia does not tax raw materials used in manufacturing. Instead, one sales tax is applied to the finished product to avoid a pyramiding scenario where sales tax is paid on top of embedded sales tax. Georgia is one of only 10 states, and the only state in the Southeast, to charge full sales tax on energy.

Continue reading →

 
  •  
  •  
 
GBJ Staff

How to choose a janitorial service

Photo credit: Stephen Coburn

Hiring a janitorial cleaning service can be very cost effective for small businesses that don’t have enough work to justify employing a janitor.

The trick is to nail down your most important issues before beginning your quest.

Then take your time and follow these steps to find the right fit for your company and facility.

  1. What specific cleaning services do you need? Separate your ‘must have’ list from a ‘nice to have’ list.
  2. How often and what time of day will you require these services?
  3. How much are you willing to pay?
  4. Look for a company that will maintain the philosophy and professional image of your business.

Continue reading →

 
  •  
  •  
 
GBJ Staff

Gwinnett transit fares increase

A ride on Gwinnett County Transit (GTC) now costs more.

The fare hike accomplishes Gwinnett’s goal that riders pay about a third of the entire cost to provide bus service with federal and state subsidies funding the remainder. This fare increase will prevent cuts to transit service.

GTC will monitor ridership and make minor service adjustments as necessary to maintain cost-effective operations.

GTC serves Gwinnett riders with express, local and paratransit services. To purchase a Breeze Card for easy transfers with MARTA, or for more details about Gwinnett County Transit routes and fees, visit www.gwinnettcounty.com.

Continue reading →

 
  •  
  •  
 
GBJ Staff

New state law changes business license process

Businesses in Gwinnett County will soon receive occupation tax certificate renewal forms in the mail, but before certificates can be renewed, applicants must comply with new state requirements that went into effect on Jan. 1. During the 2011 legislative session, the Georgia General Assembly passed the Illegal Immigration Reform and Enforcement Act (House Bill 87), placing new requirements on local governments and businesses to ensure they comply with federal and state immigration laws.

The first requirement calls for any person, corporation or LLC seeking a public benefit—such as an occupation tax certificate (business license), alcohol license or contract—to submit a Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) affidavit and present a secure and verifiable document as approved by the state Attorney General. Examples of the approved documents include a driver’s license, passport or legal immigrant documentation.

Continue reading →

 
  •  
  •  
 
GBJ Staff

Catering to complainers?

Listening to a disgruntled customer can often times seem like hearing fingernails scratching a chalkboard. You flinch and cringe in anticipation of the fallout – they trash your product, service or how your company handles customer issues. And thanks to social media, it’s not long before these unhappy souls have trumpeted their dislike far and wide. But have you ever considered they just might be doing you a favor?

Customer complaints highlight areas of vulnerability. No, you don’t have to agree with their methods, isn’t it worth finding out if there is a genuine grievance driving their angst?

Silence, on the other hand, is more deadly because you may never know what caused your loyal customer to walk away. When you take stock of your customer activity and examine customer lists, what always jumps out are those clients you haven’t seen or heard from in a while. That’s a red flag that the relationship derailed somewhere along the track, but you didn’t realize it.

Continue reading →

 
  •  
  •  
 
GBJ Staff

Local franchise promotes healthy snacking

Everyone starts the New Year with a resolution to eat better or some variation on that theme. So the concept of eating healthy snacks from vending machines is somewhat alien. Vending machines aren’t typically associated with the words ‘healthy,’ ‘fresh’ or ‘nutritious,’ but Fresh Healthy Vending hopes to change your perception.

View the Gwinnett Magazine Special Report about this innovative concept and the new local franchise of this popular national company is starting a revolution by replacing candy bars with nutritious ‘on the go snacks’ like whole grain chips, fruit juices and snack mixes.

Nearly a dozen local schools and businesses have embraced this culture change. Cornerstone Christian Academy in Norcross installed a Fresh Healthy Vending machine in their lunchroom close to two months ago. Headmaster Colin Creel admits the new machine is now the talk of his school and so popular, the machine is restocked at least once a week.

Continue reading →

 
  •  
  •  
 
GBJ Staff

Catalyst for economic transformation

Calibratior II Stella Fritschi, WIKA Instrument Corporation

Gwinnett County ushered in 2012 as a Georgia Certified Work Ready Community. A master vision set in motion five years ago laid the groundwork for Georgia counties, like Gwinnett, to transform their economies. The first metro Atlanta ‘core’ county and the largest county in the state to achieve this designation, Gwinnett continues to attract new businesses by cultivating the talent necessary to staff existing jobs and to master future innovative technologies.

Georgia Work Ready began in 2006 when then Governor Sonny Perdue launched a statewide initiative to establish a purposeful link between industry and education to create a regional talent pool. The State’s commitment is three-pronged: provide a mechanism to understand skills of a company’s current workforce, develop training programs and establish reliable hiring criteria. To become certified, counties must meet education benchmarks and certify a percentage of the available and current workforce.

Continue reading →

 
  •  
  •  
 
GBJ Staff

State unemployment taxes rise in 2012

by Bill McDermott

Attention Georgia business owners: your state unemployment taxes increased at the start of 2012. Whether or not you have been notified of your ‘experience rating’ for 2012, budget now to pay more.

A $21 per employee per year increase in the state unemployment tax will be assessed in 2012 to help repay a loan that the state of Georgia made with the federal government to cover unemployment benefits payments. According to Sam Hall, director of communications for the Georgia Department of Labor, “The $21 per employee per year increase will continue until the loan is fully repaid.”

The state of Georgia borrowed $672 million from the federal government to pay benefits to tens of thousands of unemployed Georgians. Georgia is one of 30 states to borrow money from the federal government for this purpose. The State’s double-digit unemployment combined with insufficient tax contributions from employers has depleted the trust fund.

Continue reading →

 
  •  
  •  
 
GBJ Staff

Eight steps to effective communication

And the survey shows…communication in the workplace is deteriorating.

Ineffective communication or lack thereof will set off a chain reaction that puts operations in jeopardy: poor cooperation and internal coordination, decreased productivity, increased tension, absenteeism and turnover. These repercussions seriously undermine any organizational efforts to facilitate change.

Follow these eight steps to improve your interaction with everyone in the workplace.

  1. Don’t indulge in a monologue. Make communication a two-way process that involves both giving information and receiving feedback.
  2. Make it personal. Rely on personal exchanges and insist on face-to-face meetings where possible to interpret nonverbal facial expressions and body language.
  3. Be specific. Vague messages or instructions are open to a variety of interpretations, allowing confusion to reign.

Continue reading →

 
  •  
  •  
 
GBJ Staff

Build a business plan you can execute

by Mike Levengood

As the New Year’s dawn is starting to fade on the horizon, now is as good a time as any to review your existing business plan and to set your goals for success in 2012.

Like many resolutions and other good intentions, however, your plan will only be as good as your execution.

  • Focus on what you’ve been doing for the past year and your objectives for the year ahead.
  • Identify where you’re headed. 
  • Address the challenges and market opportunities that you face.
  • Think about the assets you bring to these challenges and opportunities.
  • Describe your existing customers and business relationships.

Continue reading →

 
  •  
  •