April 2009
June Meeting to Feature AT&T Chairman/Oklahoma Native
Randall Stephenson, Chairman, CEO and President of AT&T will be the guest speaker at the Roundtable Membership meeting on June 16, 2009 at Southern Hills in Tulsa. The meeting will begin at 4:30 followed by a reception and dinner.
About Randall L. Stephenson
Randall L. Stephenson is chairman of the board, chief executive officer and president of AT&T Inc. He was appointed to the position in June 2007.
Before being named chairman, CEO and president, Mr. Stephenson served as chief operating officer and was responsible for all wireless and wireline operations. He was named chief operating officer for SBC Communications Inc. in April 2004 and continued as COO after the acquisitions of AT&T Corp. in November 2005 and BellSouth in December 2006.
During his tenure as COO, the company outperformed its peers in nearly every category. Today, AT&T leads the industry in wireless, business, broadband, voice and directory and is gaining momentum in the TV market.
Born in Oklahoma City, Mr. Stephenson began his career with Southwestern Bell Telephone in 1982 in the information technology organization in Oklahoma.
Mr. Stephenson holds a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting from the University of Central Oklahoma and a Master of Accountancy degree from the University of Oklahoma.
Executive Committee Meets/Reviews Programs & Activities
Members of the Roundtable Executive Committee met in Oklahoma City on April 1. The committee reviewed budgets and heard reports from Governor Henry, Lt. Governor Askins and Commerce Secretary Shirley. The group also reviewed future project recommendations put forth by Past Chairmen at their Feb 18 meeting. Those recommendations are under further review and will be presented to the full membership at the June membership meeting.
Roundtable Members Judge Governor’s Cup Finalists
Special thanks to Al Dearmon, Tom Legan, Sam Anderson, Dave McLaughlin, Brad Krieger, and Robert Heard – for serving as judges for the Don W. Reynold’s Governor’s Cup competition on April 3. The Governor’s Cup program is a nationally recognized collegiate business plan competition coordinated by i2e. Winners will be announced at the annual Don Reynolds Awards Dinner on April 14 in Oklahoma City.
Roundtable Supports Business Recruitment Activities
The Commerce Department and statewide economic development partners will participate in several business marketing events in the coming weeks, including:
- Lt. Governor’s turkey Hunt – April 15-17 – hosting site consultants and company executives.
- CoreNet Dallas reception – April 26 – hosting top regional corporate real estate executives and site consultants
- IAMC – May 2-6 – hosting top national corporate real estate executives
- American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) – May 3-8 – Exhibiting to targeted to corporate executives
- European Wind Energy Conference – A special 7-member Oklahoma recruitment team, headed by the Department of Commerce, targeted global wind energy executives and key suppliers at the European Wind Energy Conference in Marseilles, France in March. Several business leads have developed as a result of this activity.
GOOD NEWS ABOUT OKLAHOMA
Personal Income Growth!
Oklahoma ranked No. 4 nationally in percentage growth of personal income last year, according to the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Oklahoma’s personal income grew 6.4 percent last year compared with 8 percent in 2007.
By contrast, U.S. personal income growth slowed to 3.9 percent last year, the lowest since 2003, the bureau reported.
Most Liveable Cities!
Tulsa and Oklahoma City recently received high marks from a new survey by Forbes that ranks them among America’s most livable cities. Tulsa ranked 5th, while Oklahoma City was ranked 6th.
The Forbes survey examined a variety of figures including cost of living, crime, unemployment, and culture.
Top 10 Cities were:
- Portland, ME
- Bethesda, MD
- Des Moines, IA
- Stamford, CT
- Tulsa, OK
- Oklahoma City, OK
- Cambridge, Mass.
- Baltimore, MD
- Worcester, Mass.
- Pittsburgh, PA
Best Places for Business
A new survey by Forbes ranks Oklahoma City 12th and Tulsa 47th on its list of “Best Places for Businesses and Careers.” Lawton was ranked 102nd among small metropolitan areas.
Expansions/New Locations
Spirit AeroSystems Expands
Roundtable member Spirit AeroSystems recently completed a $17.4 million renovation of Building 119 (B119), a hangar used by the company at Tulsa International Airport.
Company officials say the renovated hangar has lead to additional contract work creating 500 new jobs.
Spring Air Chooses Durant
The Spring Air Company, one of the world’s largest mattress manufacturing companies announced today it would open a state-of-the-art production center in a shuttered 351,000-square-foot facility in the Durant Industrial Park. The new plant is expected to employ up to 300 and be operational by the summer of 2009.The company said that after an extensive search, it selected the Durant site for its access to major interstate highways that will better enable it to service its growing customer base in the Midwest. When operational, the facility will be Spring Air’s largest manufacturing facility in the United States.
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