Companies staking a claim in the Upstate include accounting, international staffing, construction and corrugated packaging and shipping solutions.

The Global Competitiveness Council will include four focus areas that are contained within the export and FDI plans.

Creative enterprise in the state engenders a core impact of $9.2 billion and 78,682 jobs and a full impact of $13.3 billion and 107,614 jobs.

“What are you doing about headquarters?” That question comes up time and again during events geared around economic development, asked in the recognition that corporate headquarters operations are a highly sought business operation for most metropolitan communities.

South Carolina’s Technical College System is a role model for our nation and has shaped both the people and the economy of our state since its creation 55 years ago.

More than 55 Japanese companies have carved a presence in the Upstate, representing more than 11 percent of our foreign-affiliated firms. These companies employ 16,300 people, creating products and services from electronic components to logistics.

As the United States manufacturing sector grows, the labor shortage and future demand for high-skilled workers are critical issues nationwide that are also on the radar for South Carolina business and government leaders.

When Walgreens opened the doors in 2007 to its $180 million Anderson County distribution facility, the pharmacy retailer ushered in a new model for industrial staffing: recruiting workers with disabilities.