Virginia Economic Review

Beth Macy is a three-time New York Times-bestselling author. She is the author of “Factory Man,” “Truevine,” and “Dopesick,” books that tell separate stories, but all stories through which the challenges, issues, prospects, and hopes of rural America are studied in different ways.

Seth Martindale is a senior managing director with CBRE Consulting. He has extensive experience in real estate strategic planning, working with both private and public sector clients.

Ben Davenport has been a champion for economic development in rural Virginia for decades. Davenport is chairman of First Piedmont Corporation as well as Davenport Energy.

Companies Find Tech Talent in the Mountains and Valleys of Virginia Big cities have long been synonymous with economic opportunity. But what if that's not universally true?

Virginia Talent Accelerator Program Delivers Custom Workforce Solutions to Companies How does a company find and train the skilled employees that will ultimately determine whether it succeeds or fails?

Virginia looks to increase the availability of development-ready sites with a two-pronged approach of characterization and development, working to bring business-ready sites online with greater speed and transparency than ever before.

...and How One State Has Set Out to Tackle It The Brookings Institution recently published a troubling analysis highlighting an expanding economic divide between metro areas (especially large ones) and rural areas in the U.S., as large metro areas have enjoyed considerably faster growth than smaller metros and rural localities.

Tom Barkin is the president and chief executive officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Barkin joined the Richmond Fed in January 2018. In his time in Richmond, Barkin has taken an interest in the issues leading to a divide between urban and rural areas in the Fed’s Fifth District.

Matt Poe always had an affinity for technology and cameras. Yet it wasn’t until he purchased a drone four years ago that he realized how much he enjoyed photography and videography. To hone his skills, the Abingdon resident began shooting footage of the mountainous region’s picturesque scenery.

Exports give small business global reach The Great Recession held nothing in the way of good timing, but in late 2011 Prairie Capital and Vierville Capital felt the pinch of retraction with particular pain.

When Continental Corp. announced its decision to invest an additional $10.3 million in its Winchester manufacturing facility in November 2018, its goal was to expand operations to speed production of its O’Sullivan brand surface products to market.

Former Textile Stronghold has Pivoted to Fuel the Future of Advanced Manufacturing The globally lauded comeback story of Southern Virginia hinged on taking on a task that many communities attempted, but few have achieved: reinventing its workforce.

When memory chip maker Micron Technology, Inc. committed to expand its operations in the City of Manassas in Northern Virginia, the headlines rattled off one impressive number after another: 1,100 new high-skilled jobs. Some 100,000 square feet of additional space. A $3-billion investment.

Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems, formerly known as Orbital ATK, headquartered in Dulles, builds and delivers space, defense, and aviation-related systems including the Antares launch system, which handles resupply services for the International Space Station launched from Wallops Flight Facility on Virginia’s Eastern Shore.

Liebherr manufactures large trucks for the mining industry, including the world’s largest diesel-electric mining truck. These gigantic machines are partly assembled, tested, and certified at the plant in Newport News with complete assembly carried out at the mine.

Nestlé USA is a subsidiary of Nestlé S.A., a leading global nutrition, health and wellness company. Nestlé USA operates 79 manufacturing facilities and employs 48,000 people in the U.S.

WestRock is one of the world’s largest paper and packaging companies, with multiple locations in Virginia, including corporate offices in Richmond and manufacturing facilities in West Point and Covington.

With headquarters in Manassas, Aurora Flight Sciences is a leader in the development and manufacturing of advanced unmanned systems and aerospace vehicles.