About SCCCIn the late 1990s and early 2000s, South Carolina's business leaders began to look for new approaches to the state's economy. The recruitment of BMW to upstate South Carolina in 1992, the loss of the textile industry to overseas locations, and the recognition of the importance of the South Carolina Ports Authority to the state's economic health triggered a new discussion of how South Carolina competes in the global economy. South Carolina's business leaders began to meet and discuss how to position the state as a global competitor. In 2004, the group commissioned a detailed analysis of South Carolina's economy and formed a non-profit organization called the South Carolina Council on Competitiveness. The formation of the Council marked the first time South Carolina’s business, government, and academic leadership came together to address long-term competitiveness factors. The Council was branded under the name New Carolina until 2014.For nearly 50 years, from the 1950s to the early 2000s, South Carolina's policymakers used an economic development strategy that centered on attracting manufacturers to our state with its flexible workforce, business-friendly environment, and responsive government. Low-wage, low-tax incentives enhanced South Carolina's agricultural and textile manufacturing base. This strategy worked for about 30 years. From the 1950s to the early 1980s, per capita income in South Carolina rose nearly 400 times in real terms and increased to nearly 80 percent of the national average. But for the following 20 years, per capita income stagnated at this 80 percent level. South Carolina began to see a rise in competition from countries offering even lower wages and lower taxes.South Carolina Council on CompetitivenessSCCC_3bb3cfac-1bda-11e8-9808-f5b56b556326The South Carolina Council on Competitiveness is a nonpartisan, business-led non-profit organization committed to advancing the long-term economic competitiveness of our state, industries, and citizens.South CarolinaSouth Carolina Business LeadersSCCC Executive CommitteeED SELLERSCHAIRMAN -- M. Edward Sellers is Chairman of BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina and the Companion group of companies. The Corporation’s businesses include health insurance, administrative services contracting, Medicare intermediary functions, Department of Defense TRICARE intermediary functions, a life insurance company, a property and casualty insurance company, computer technology businesses and an HMO. Mr. Sellers joined BlueCross as President and Chief Operating Officer in September 1987. He was elected to the board of directors in 1989, became Chief Executive Officer in 1992 and was named Chairman in 2001. Today, BlueCross and BlueShield of South Carolina has over $2.9 billion in annual revenue and 13,000 employees located in sixteen states. In prior assignments, Mr. Sellers worked for Westinghouse Electric Corporation (Pittsburgh), the Boston Consulting Group (Boston), and the BlueCross and BlueShield Association (Chicago). A native of Kentucky, Mr. Sellers is a graduate of Vanderbilt University with a B.A. in Physics, and he has an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.Paula Harper BetheaFormer Executive Director, SC Education LotteryJoe BlanchardPresident & CEO, Blanchard Machinery CompanyTed CreechDirector External Affairs, AT&TDon HerriottChair of Board of Directors, South Carolina Research Authority (SCRA)Tecumseh (Tee) Hooper, Jr.Chief Executive Officer, General Wholesale Distributors, LLCS. Hunter Howard, Jr.Upstate Managing Partner, Scott and CompanyPamela LackeyPresident, AT&T South CarolinaJohn Lumpkin, Jr.Columbia, South CarolinaEd SellersChairman, BlueCross BlueShield of South CarolinaJoel A. Smith, IIIDean Emeritus, Moore School of Business, University of South CarolinaGeorge WolfePartner, Nelson MullinsM. William "Bill" YoungbloodShareholder, McNair Law FirmSue-Ann "Susie" ShannonEx Officio Member* -- President & CEO, SC Council on Competitiveness -- *non-voting memberSCCC TeamSusie ShannonPRESIDENT & CEO -- Susie joined the Council from BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina, where she served as senior public policy counsel. She previously worked as Director of Research for Palmetto Institute, an independent research foundation whose recent issues include Teach For America, The Benefit Bank® of South Carolina, tax reform, commercialization, agri-business, entrepreneurship training in rural areas, and workforce quality. She also practiced law for many years in the Columbia office of McNair Law Firm, P.A., in its Administrative-Regulatory section. In 2015, she was appointed by Governor Haley to serve on the Board of Commissioners for the South Carolina State Housing Finance and Development Authority. She currently serves as board chair of SC Thrive and is a member of the board of directors for Central Carolina Community Foundation. She is a graduate of the Riley Institute Diversity Leaders Initiative, the Nonprofit Leadership Institute of Francis Marion University and is a Liberty Fellow. Shannon is a native of Loris, a farming community located in Horry County, South Carolina. She served in the U.S. Army Reserves and is a Veteran of Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm. She received her undergraduate and law degrees from the University of South Carolina and has worked as adjunct faculty at Midlands Technical College and University of South Carolina School of Law.ADRIANNE L. BEASLEYDIRECTOR OF AEROSPACE INITIATIVESSUZANNE DICKERSONDIRECTOR OF LOGISTICS INITIATIVESDR. PEGGY TORREYDIRECTOR OF TRANSFORMSCWAYNE FRITZAEROSPACE SENIOR PROJECT MANAGERROB BOCKMANSENIOR PROJECT COORDINATORKAELA HARMONCOMMUNICATIONS MANAGERTIFFANY JONESCOMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR_3bb3d060-1bda-11e8-9808-f5b56b556326To advance the long-term economic competitiveness of South Carolina, its industries, and its citizens._3bb3d0e2-1bda-11e8-9808-f5b56b556326CompetitivenessPartnershipWe execute our work through partnerships recognizing that our state's economic success is secured through sustained collaboration among the private, public, academic and non-profit sectors.CollaborationResearchConduct actionable research on opportunities and threats to South Carolina's competitiveness._3bb3d15a-1bda-11e8-9808-f5b56b5563261_3bb3d1dc-1bda-11e8-9808-f5b56b556326Industry ClustersSupport industry clusters that provide South Carolina a competitive advantage._3bb3d254-1bda-11e8-9808-f5b56b5563262_3bb3d2d6-1bda-11e8-9808-f5b56b556326Education & Workforce DevelopmentConduct education and workforce development initiatives that ensure all South Carolina's citizens are equipped to compete in a global economy._3bb3d3b2-1bda-11e8-9808-f5b56b5563263South Carolina Citizens_3bb3d434-1bda-11e8-9808-f5b56b5563262018-02-27http://sccompetes.org/about/OwenAmburOwen.Ambur@verizon.net