With more than 650 firms and 43,000 professionals engaged in research, development and commercialization of innovative healthcare, medical device, industrial, environmental and agricultural biotech and products, life sciences in South Carolina is booming. The Palmetto State increasingly earns a prominent seat at the table of this $1.5 trillion industry. Yet at its core, life sciences is personal – focused on improving health and quality of life for each of us as individuals. Hear from 3 leaders how their work and the industry is impacting your own health and future here at home… and how the growing cadre of life sciences leaders and entrepreneurs across the Palmetto State are making waves around the world.
Join the World Affairs Council Upstate and our co-hosts, the European American Chamber of Commerce-Carolinas and Upstate Alliance as we welcome Sheri Kaiserman. Sheri is an accomplished finance professional with over 30 years of Wall Street experience. Over the last several years she has been increasingly focused on early stage investing within the technology, healthcare and blockchain sectors. Prior to this, Sheri spent sixteen years as the Head of the Equities Division at Wedbush. Under her leadership, Wedbush published the first Wall Street research report on the topic of Bitcoin and Blockchain in 2013 and was one of the first financial services firms to start investing in the sector. She began her career at Oppenheimer, rising to Senior VP, and spent ten years there doing Institutional Equity Research Sales.
Join WACU as we welcome Dr. Jeff Becker, an expert in U.S. – China relations. Over the past two decades, China has gone from a minor actor on global issues to one of the world’s most influential countries. PRC government actors, as well as Chinese state-owned and private firms, now operate around the globe. Meanwhile, China’s military, particularly the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLA Navy), has been tasked with protecting China’s growing overseas interests, which include protecting the nation’s maritime energy security, maintaining access to markets for international trade, and protecting China’s growing overseas assets, including a growing number of Chinese citizens living and working abroad.
How should we understand China’s growing overseas presence and emerging international influence? How is China’s role as a global actor evolving, and what does this mean for U.S.- China relations?
From 2014-2018, Dr. Becker supported the U.S. Navy with regard to China’s participation in the multilateral “Rim of the Pacific” exercise. As part of these efforts, he has worked alongside U.S. and Chinese exercise planners, and has spent time at
sea aboard multiple Chinese navy warships.
Dr. Becker’s book, From Peasants to Protesters: Social Ties, Resources, and Migrant Labor Contention in Contemporary China, was published in 2014 by Lexington Books. He has a Ph.D. in political science from the George Washington University, an M.A. in political science from Columbia University, and a B.A. from Colgate University. To learn more about Dr. Becker please click here.
In October, a luncheon in Columbia, hosted by South Carolina Business Awards and presented by The Capital Corporation, celebrated the top 25 fastest-growing companies in South Carolina—and twelve of those companies are here in the Upstate.
The qualifications for the awards are that
the company must be headquartered in South Carolina, have been in operation for
at least 3 fiscal years, and have reported revenues of at least $3 million in
the most recent year; judging is based on financial and employee growth over a
3-year period.
Those Upstate companies that were honored at
the luncheon reflect the larger trend of growth in our area. The companies
include:
a financial services firm: WCM Global Wealth (Greenville), a diversified financial services firm specialized in providing exclusive financial products and services
two staffing firms that cater to technology groups: The Hiring Group (Greer), a technical staffing and recruiting firm, and Intellectual Capitol (Greenville), a staffing and technology services company that provides technology assessment and consulting, strategic staffing, and application development
three companies in the technical/engineering/manufacturing sector: Clear Touch Interactive (Greenville),a leading provider of multi-touch interactive flat panels for education,government, and businesses; NextGen Supply Chain (Greenville), providing consulting, engineering support, andsupply chain management services to advanced manufacturing industries such as aerospace, automotive, and medical devices; and Thomas Mechanical (Laurens), a mechanical contractor specializing in commercial/industrial HVAC services, fabrication, process piping, engineering, and maintenance services.
two contracting and construction companies: Harper General Contractors (Greenville), a full service general contracting and construction management firm offering preconstruction, building information modeling, design-build, construction management at risk, LEED construction, and design-assist services; and Clayton Construction Company (Spartanburg), a general contractor that will provide preconstruction planning, project coordination, post-construction follow-up, and a range of other services based on the project.
two real estate companies: RealOp Investments (Greenville), a commercial real estate investment company; and National Land Realty (Greenville), a full-service real estate brokerage company specializing in farm, ranch, recreational, plantation, timber, equestrian, waterfront, and commercial land across the country.
a fitness company: 9Round (Simpsonville), specialized fitness centers that bring kickboxing fitness training to the average person in a convenient, affordable, 30-minute, full-body circuit format.
and a food company: Duke Brands (Greenville), the holding company for Duke Foods, a manufacturer of ready-to-eat dips, spreads (most notably Duke’s Mayonnaise), and bakery items, as well as the Duke Sandwich Company restaurants.
Additionally, the following awards were
handed out: Harper General Contractors, headquartered in Greenville, was
presented with the South Carolina Economic Impact Award. The Rising Star was
awarded to Global Sales Group (Easley). South Carolina Excellence in Business
Awards went to A3 Communications (Irmo), Duke Brands (Greenville), PCI Group (Fort
Mill), and Quality Business Solutions (Travelers Rest).
Congratulations
to all of these companies for their growth and for their contribution to the
grown of the Upstate and of South Carolina.
