Nearly 600 business community and civic leaders from across the Charlotte Region joined the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance Tuesday for its signature events, the 2023 Annual Outlook, and the inaugural Tate Awards. From Fortune 500 CEOs to standout startups and entrepreneurs, the community came together at The Revelry at Camp North End for dual events celebrating excellence in business.
Annual Outlook
Annual Outlook is the premier economic forecast event in the region, spotlighting the innovative business minds of some of the region’s top CEOs.
Brian Moynihan, chair of the board and CEO of Bank of America; and Marvin Ellison, chairman and CEO of Lowe’s; headlined the event this year, offering their thoughts on the current and future state of the economy, and highlighting their personal and professional commitment to helping ensure business of all sizes flourish across the region.
The conversation was moderated by Ric Elias, CEO and co-founder of Red Ventures, whose personal connections to Moynihan and Ellison created a dynamic amongst the trio that felt familiar, and at times, playful and congenial.
When asked about the likelihood of a recession, Moynihan and Ellison both predicted a soft landing.
“Our team has the economy slowing down but staying in a positive growth mode for the first, second, and third quarters” before picking back up at the end of 2024, Moynihan said.
When asked about inflation, Moynihan said: “Consumers have slowed down, they’ve adjusted their behavior.”
On the topic of interest rates, Ellison said the home improvement industry is unique. Most of the spending by Lowe’s consumers is “non discretionary,” meaning they are making purchases out of necessity. Consumers, therefore, are making most of their purchases regardless of whether their budgets are tightening.
Ellison and Moynihan agreed they believe Charlotte is incredibly resilient and remain optimistic about the future of the region.
Ellison highlighted the personal connections and relationships that often allow business partnerships to blossom in Charlotte, offering a nod of appreciation and respect to longtime Charlotte Hornets President Fred Whitfield, who received a round of applause from the crowd.
When asked what the community needs in order to grow over the next 10 years, Ellison and Moynihan called for continued investment in education, workforce development and infrastructure. All three agreed about the importance of focusing on upward mobility and commitment to ensuring everyone has the resources to thrive.
“The reality is, the business community is working closely,” Moynihan said, adding that is something rarely found in cities of Charlotte’s size. “The cooperation level is incredibly high. There’s a spirit of working together. Charlotte is a place that actually lets you go to work.”
President of Bank of America Charlotte Kieth Cockrell expressed similar sentiments during his opening remarks. Cockrell, who served as the CLT Alliance 2023 board chair, said he is “tremendously proud” of the partnerships that the CLT Alliance and the broader community have been able to bridge.
“I have full confidence we’re on a solid path to success,” Cockrell said. “And I believe the Alliance is well positioned to build on its momentum with its great leadership and commitment to be a catalyst of change across our region.”
Incoming chair Ali Summerville agreed. “We want to ensure this region grows in a way that’s sustainable, that our efforts are truly responding to the needs of the entire business community, and the people who are the driving force in this community have the resources they need to thrive,” she said. Summerville serves as Ally’s business administration executive.
CLT Alliance President and CEO Janet LaBar highlighted some key successes for the organization and the region.
Year to date, the region has seen nearly 5,500 jobs and $4 billion in capital investment from announcements by companies like Pallidus, alpitronic, and Captron, that are choosing to grow, expand, and relocate here.
With the successful passage and expansion of Medicaid, $2.9 billion in new business and health care activity, and 37,000 new jobs will follow the 600,000 people and working families who will benefit from this historic measure.
In addition, voters in Mecklenburg County passed the largest bond package in North Carolina’s history: $2.5 billion to invest in Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools, modernizing facilities, strengthening anchors in our neighborhoods, and ensuring our teachers and leaders of tomorrow know they are valued and are better positioned to thrive.
For the second year in a row, North Carolina is America’s Top State for Business. And the CLT Alliance was once again named among the nation’s best-in-class regional economic development organizations.
“This year marked a key, five-year milestone in the century-plus history of this organization,” LaBar said. “Five years following the merger of predecessor organizations, the Charlotte Chamber and Charlotte Regional Partnership, we’ve emerged a more focused, more resilient, and more effective CLT Alliance.”
As the organization moves into the next phase of growth, LaBar said there will be a people-centered approach to “elevate a more competitive, impactful, and thriving economy for the Charlotte Region.”
LaBar outlined three areas of focus:
- Future proofing: attracting, retaining, and growing jobs in industries that enable people to perform and thrive.
- Resilience: leveraging our public-private partnership to shape business, economic, and regional resilience for sustainable and inclusive growth.
- Economic prosperity: putting people at the heart of placemaking, creating a more purposeful community, stronger social capital, and broader civic engagement.
“Our dream for the Charlotte Region is to create the most vibrant, innovative, and healthy economy for all,” LaBar said. “Small business. All business. Business is better here.”
The Tate Awards
LaBar concluded the event, and immediately the curtains in the back of the room opened to a transformed space with vibrant purple hues and floor-to-ceiling banners. The crowd moved into the reimagined space for the inaugural Tate Awards, celebrating excellence in business leadership and highlighting the accomplishments of outstanding change agents, entrepreneurs, and businesses of all sizes in the Charlotte Region.
Speaking to a crowd of several hundred small business owners, entrepreneurs, and leaders from the broader business and civic communities, CLT Alliance Foundation President Nate Hogan said he is committed to ensuring the Foundation is the number one resource for small businesses in the region.
“We aim to catalyze transformative growth in the Charlotte Region, where dynamic small businesses and business leaders thrive,” Hogan said. “We want to help you create customers, connections and capital. We will do that through leveraging our people, unique and innovative programming, and technology to scale our impact.”
“It’s incredible we get to honor the trailblazers that inspire our city and us all,” Ohavia Phillips, media personality and co-host of the event, said. “I am a small business owner and entrepreneur who had the audacity to dream of a better future for myself, for the community that I love so much and for my family to have opportunities they could never have imagined. This award ceremony aligns directly with my purpose and passion and I’m grateful to be here.”
The awards honored individuals in the categories of Community Impact, Legacy Leaders, and Tech & Innovation.
- Dr. Shante Williams, CEO of Black Pearl Global Investments, received the Community Impact Award for her work to create funding resources for local entrepreneurs, as well as her private investment in several small businesses helping to fund their dream.
- Cathy Bessant and Ruth Shaw were co-recipients of the Legacy Leaders Award. Bessant, an executive at Bank of America for decades, was recognized for her countless contributions to the financial institution and the broader community. Cockrell called her “a financial powerhouse, community inspiration, and regional advocate.” Bessant is poised to helm the Foundation For The Carolinas in January 2024. Shaw, the former president and CEO of Duke Power Company, and former president of Central Piedmont Community College, challenged everyone in the crowd to contribute to Charlotte in a meaningful way, saying civic engagement has long been an expectation and requirement of leaders in Charlotte, and helps to make the city unlike anywhere else in the country.
- David Hunt, founder of Framewrk, received the Tech & Innovation Award for leaning into the entrepreneurial community and leveraging their know-how to solve local challenges. Hunt supports the growth of tech start-ups and has demonstrated innovation in his use of technology to drive significant community impact. He reminded the crowd that each person can be the “architect of their own future.”
The ceremony also honored the 2023 Citizen of the Carolinas Mike Lamach. This award is the organization’s most prestigious award, given to a Carolinian who has made great strides for our region and our nation.
Lamach has been a steadfast leader in the Charlotte Region for more than a decade. As the retired chair and CEO of Trane Technologies, Lamach is best known for transforming the company from a diversified industrial manufacturer, formerly Ingersoll Rand, to a global industry leader on climate with consistent top-tier performance. Lamach also led the creation of the company’s purpose-driven sustainability strategy, its proprietary business operating system, and its widely recognized culture of engagement and inclusion.
As chair of the Charlotte Executive Leadership Council (CELC) and co-chair of the Mayor’s Racial Equity Initiative, Lamach is a strong advocate for education and economic mobility. Lamach has led CELC’s involvement with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, working to improve information technology, human resources, and safety and security across the school district. For Lamach, there is a desire to see Charlotte set the standard for economic mobility and urgency to develop the region’s future workforce.
“Communities really create that vibrancy around companies to help them grow and shape their success, and I think there’s an obligation back the other way to make the community a better place for everybody,” Lamach said.
The Tate Awards will support the work of the CLT Alliance Foundation to build a brighter future for the Charlotte Region’s small business ecosystem and achieve our shared goal of economic prosperity for all.
“We were excited about the opportunity to celebrate small businesses and business leaders, but celebrating them is only one part of the equation,” Hogan said. “We’ll continue to roll our sleeves up to do the work our community needs us to do, and are committed to taking a holistic approach to the overall wellness of the small businesses community.”
