[Read more…] about Greater Memphis Chamber Announces Young Memphis Class of 2020
Monitoring Recovery | Indicators to Watch 11/3/2020
November 3, 2020 – To build an understanding of the current market trends that are impacting the Memphis Metro area, the Chamber has been releasing monthly updates to our economic recovery.
To best gauge and position insights related to market activity, we are looking at the region through two lenses. The first is through the lens of traditional monthly indicators. These measures include the lower frequency jobs and unemployment figures and are often seen as lagging indicators of labor market activity. The second lens is through higher frequency weekly indicators. These measures include weekly unemployment insurance claims and job postings. Often, the higher frequency indicators are seen as leading indicators and can signal worsening or better employment outcomes for the region against the monthly reports.
With the release of the September 2020 unemployment numbers on October 28, these updates will provide a key snapshot of where the Memphis market sits as it relates to a recovery from the March/April 2020 contraction.
[Read more…] about Monitoring Recovery | Indicators to Watch 11/3/2020
Young Memphis Honoree: Alex Stringfellow
Get to know Alex Stringfellow, Vice President with Colliers International, Memphis and Greater Memphis Chamber 2020 Young Memphis Honoree.
What event or accomplishment has been the most impactful for your career so far?
I’ll never forgot receiving the call from Don Drinkard and Kevin Adams saying they might have an open position with CBRE in Memphis. I was working in Nashville at the time, but anxious to get back to Memphis and ideally find a job in commercial real estate. At that point, I would have been open to anything, but when Don said it was a position focused on Downtown Memphis, I couldn’t get here fast enough. It was 2011, so not the best time to be hiring or starting in real estate, but CBRE gave me a chance, and it turned out to be the best decision I ever made.
Young Memphis Honoree: Karlisa Cheris Cryer
Get to know Karlisa Cheris Cryer, Digital Content Specialist at ALSAC/ St. Jude and Greater Memphis Chamber 2020 Young Memphis Honoree.
What event or accomplishment has been the most impactful for your career so far?
The most impactful event of my career has been mentorship by one of my previous chiefs. Mentorship in the workplace has made a huge influence on my career and I am looking forward to mentoring a young person in the same capacity.
[Read more…] about Young Memphis Honoree: Karlisa Cheris Cryer
RECAP: 2020 UpSkill901 Workforce Summit
On Tuesday, November 10th, the Greater Memphis Chamber held the second annual UpSkill 901 Workforce Summit virtually. Sponsored by FedEx, the summit this year focused on understanding the current state of workforce, how social responsibility is playing a larger role, and an outlook on how Memphis will be reshaped in this new climate.
Young Memphis Honoree: Ali Jaffery
Get to know Ali Jaffery, Associate Manager of Grants and Innovation, Memphis Education Fund and Greater Memphis Chamber 2020 Young Memphis Honoree.
What event or accomplishment has been the most impactful for your career so far?
The most impactful accomplishment in my career would be the COVID-19 Response programming we have headed at Memphis Education Fund (MEF). The ‘MEF Family Grant Program’, a micro-grant program for Memphis families with school-aged children designed to encourage and support their students’ daily attendance in a virtual learning environment and the ‘South Memphis Tech Project’, a technology project for high school seniors from South Memphis via a cross-sector collaboration with schools, philanthropy and community organizations. These programs taught me about creating public policies, designing a large, multi-faceted process and so much more. I am honored to lead this work alongside Memphis Education Fund board, staff and leadership.
Young Memphis Honoree: Sarah Jemison
Get to know Sara Jemison, Acquisitions and Development Project Management at Alco Management, Inc. and Greater Memphis Chamber 2020 Young Memphis Honoree.
What event or accomplishment has been the most impactful for your career so far?
I spent the first two years of my career providing residents of government assisted housing (public housing and section 8 voucher holders) avenues to advocate for their housing needs within the federal government. This allowed me to see the disconnect between policy makers and those impacted by federal housing policy. While my current work has shifted away from policy formation to program implementation, the understanding I gained about the impact and causes of the lack of quality affordable housing forms how and why I choose to work to develop affordable homes.
Young Memphis Honoree: Jeremy Calhoun
Get to know Jeremy Calhoun, IT Project Manager, International Paper and Greater Memphis Chamber 2020 Young Memphis Honoree.
What event or accomplishment has been the most impactful for your career so far?
As a first-generation college student, the event or accomplishment that has been the most impactful for my career is landing my first internship with Memphis Light, Gas, and Water (MLGW). This opportunity was critical to my growth, confidence, and involvement in the City of Memphis. I joined MLGW in the summer of 2011 and interned in their Residential and Commercial Engineering division with my now mentor and big brother JT Malasri. JT introduced me to various programs that allowed me to become directly involved here in Memphis. Those activities included connecting me with New Memphis’ (Summer Experience) to introducing me to Mayor Mark Luttrell Young Professional’s Council, to serving on the Countywide Juvenile Consortium (CJJC). JT helped me realize that I could make an impact here in the City of Memphis. He also helped me convert my Summer Internship into a Co-op where I began to work full-time as a co-op for MLGW’s IT division. This was made possible by JT Malasri and City Council Chairwoman Patrice Robinson (during her time at MLGW). Over the next two years, I had the opportunity to work year-round for MLGW while learning from professionals in a comfortable yet challenging environment. This environment allowed me to hone my professional and personal skills. My work with MLGW eventually created an opportunity for me to travel to Indiana for an Internship opportunity with Cummins at their Global Headquarters in Columbus, Indiana, which ultimately helped me earn four Fortune 500 offers upon graduation. I eventually chose to return to Memphis and take a role at International Paper (IP), where I’ve now spent the last seven years working for one of the world’s best companies while also changing my family’s economic earning potential. I’m forever grateful for that opportunity with MLGW.
Young Memphis Honoree: Chessie (Biggam) Hayes
Get to know Chessie (Biggam) Hayes, Director of Development at Meritan, and Greater Memphis Chamber 2020 Young Memphis Honoree.
What event or accomplishment has been the most impactful for your career so far?
The most impactful accomplishment of my career was achieving my Certified Fundraising Executive credential in May of 2019. I am one of the youngest fundraisers in the country to receive this prestigious credential. Recently, I presented at the Association of Fundraising Professionals St. Louis Regional Conference. My peer, Nick Kulik and I presented about “The Next Generation of Donors: Motivating Millennials to Give Now.” The most meaningful part of my job at Meritan has been working with donors and community members that want to push our mission forward and help us achieve our goals and vision. [Read more…] about Young Memphis Honoree: Chessie (Biggam) Hayes
Meet the Chairman’s Circle: Anthony Clark
Anthony Clark is the Managing Partner of Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP for the Memphis, Dallas, and Los Angeles offices. Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP is the largest certified public accounting firm headquartered in the Southern U.S. and the 17th largest in the United States.
With more than 30 years of public accounting experience, Clark has served both for-profit and not-for-profit organizations. His primary focus at DHG is hospitality, including hotels, resorts, and management companies. Hospitality companies seek his guidance on potential property acquisitions, strategic growth plans, and operational accounting practices.
After graduating from Ole Miss in 1983, the Ripley, Mississippi, native moved to Memphis, and began his career as a CPA at Rhea & Ivy, one of the oldest public accounting firms in Memphis. He was Chief Manager of Rhea & Ivy, P.L.C. when it joined DHG in 2008.
DHG recently launched new branding that is future-focused and places an emphasis on creating the ultimate client experience. “We want our brand to resonate and emotionally connect with our clients, prospects and people. A connection that is supported by a modern, fresh, sophisticated visual approach,” Clark says. “I tell our team, that it’s not always about having an answer. Often, it’s about having all of the right questions that lead you to THE answer.”
When he’s not working, he enjoys spending time with his wife, five children, and his grandson. And while he doesn’t get to do it as often as he would like, the sports enthusiast enjoys golfing and duck hunting.
One of his guiding principles is “You can’t change without changing” and when it comes to marketing the Bluff City, he says “We need to learn how to be cheerleaders for Memphis. We have a lot to be thankful for, and a lot to be proud of, and I think we need to learn how to articulate that clearer and louder.”
[Read more…] about Meet the Chairman’s Circle: Anthony Clark
Young Memphis Honoree: Marcus Cox
Get to know Marcus Cox, Director of Community Relations for Playhouse on the Square and Greater Memphis Chamber 2020 Young Memphis Honoree.
What event or accomplishment has been the most impactful for your career so far?
I am the most excited now for my role at Playhouse on the Square, connecting our professional and community organizations to our mission of telling the stories that represent the heart and soul of our community. In that role, representation matters. I have recently begun connecting our theatre with theatre programs at Historically Black Colleges and Universities as well and colleges with majority Latinx populations. It is our goal to create pipelines with young professional artists with a worldview that may be different from our own. As a theater charged with telling the story of our community, I want that story to be told in a way that is organic and real.
Young Memphis Honoree: Kelsey Duckett
Get to know Kelsey Duckett, PPLC as an Associate Attorney in Harris Shelton Hanover Walsh and Greater Memphis Chamber 2020 Young Memphis Honoree.
What event or accomplishment has been the most impactful for your career so far?
Working with Baptist Hospital to secure a multi-million-dollar bond transaction and also working with a group of investors to help erect Union Row Memphis has been the most impactful for my career so far.