Uniquely Charlotte Gift Ideas
With Christmas less than 2 weeks away and Hanukkah in progress, we know you may be scrambling to find that perfect gift. Why not try out some uniquely Charlotte treasures?
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In November 2017, 
Looking for a unique leather gift from a local company? Check out 
Welcoming Week
Welcoming America returned to Charlotte on Friday, September 15th, for a week long series of events to celebrate National Welcoming Week. The events during Welcoming Week are focused on bringing together immigrants and U.S.-born residents to raise awareness of the benefits of welcoming everyone – including new Americans. Croixstone’s founder, Mark Weber, is Chairman of the Board of Directors for ourBRIDGE for KIDS, a nonprofit afterschool program for immigrant and refugee children here in Charlotte that provides an inclusive and welcoming environment.
During Welcoming Week, ourBRIDGE is opening its doors and inviting the community to the inauguration of the organization’s new afterschool center in east Charlotte on Sunday, September 17th from 3 – 6 p.m. at 3925 Willard Farrow Drive, Charlotte, NC, 28215. The public is welcome to attend!
- Learn more about ourBRIDGE for KIDS here.
- Read about ourBRIDGE for KIDS’ new home and partnership with Aldersgate here.
- See how ourBRIDGE for KIDS won Amazon’s #TickSaveMyCity contest here.
What’s Happening in the Financial Services Sector?
Those of us who live in the Queen City know that Charlotte is the third-largest banking center behind New York City and San Francisco. According to S&P Global Market Intelligence, the Charlotte region is home to 16 banking institutions with $2.27 trillion in total assets. So, what’s happening in the USA’s financial services sector overall?
Learn about the future of Financial Services here.
How are tech trends and FinTech affecting the Financial Services industry? Learn how here.
Are technology firms the next Financial Services providers? Let’s see what Forbes thinks here.
Finally, learn about the third way of innovation (AI and machine learning) in Financial Services here.
Pop-Up = Competitive Advantage
The concept of “pop-up” was once limited to the world of retail and public relations stunts. Fast forward to today, and you’ll find business innovators using pop-up strategies in fresh, new ways to gain a competitive advantage.
Most people think of “pop-up retailing” (also known as “flash retailing“) as shops, restaurants, collections of shops or events opening short-term in a temporary location. The concept, however, is now being utilized in other ways including as a business model for temporary, project-based companies and training/professional development organizations.
The New York Times recently ran a story about how “flash organizations” are forming to build products for the on-demand economy. Click here to learn more.
The Croixstone team loves SkillPop, a local organization providing pop-up training and professional development.
For WSJ subscribers, learn how consumer brands create buzz by setting up NYC pop up stores here.
Earn a Backstage Pass to the QC via Leadership Charlotte’s ENCOUNTER Program
This week our Chief Experience Officer, Patti Weber, enjoyed a fantastic “backstage pass” to the city of Charlotte by participating in Leadership Charlotte’s “ENCOUNTER Charlotte” program. This great program is a slimmed down version of the organization’s flagship 10-month program and is designed as a high-level introduction to the city of Charlotte for newcomers or residents who want to get involved.
“I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to meet and learn from a cross-section of leaders from Charlotte’s education, government, arts + council, environment, human services, public safety and volunteerism communities” said Patti. “I encourage others to participate in this amazing program and get connected to Charlotte in a deeper way”.
Patti participated in the day and a half program along with 43 other participants from a cross-section of Charlotte region corporations and nonprofits including: A Child’s Place, ai Design Group, Addison Whitney, Alexander Children’s Foundation, Arts & Science Council, Bank of America, Cardinal Innovations Healthcare, Carolinas College of Health Sciences, Carolinas Healthcare System, The Catalyst Agency, Charlotte Chamber of Commerce, Charlotte Country Day School, Charter Communications, Clariant Corporation, Converse College, EY, Grant Thornton, Harvey B. Gantt Center, Huron Studer Group, Integrated Leadership Systems, KPMG, Kelly Voelker & Associates, Maid in Heaven, Merrill Lynch, Moore & Van Allen, Pat’s Place Child Advisory Center, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson, PA, Signs ID, TCG Events, TIAA, Turnaround Advisors, and WFAE 90.7 FM.
Learn more about Leadership Charlotte here.
Read Charlotte Agenda’s article about ENCOUNTER Charlotte here.
USA’s Most Fulfilled Cities
So which city in the USA has the most fulfilled workers?
According to LinkedIn and Censuswide (a global survey consulting firm), it is our very own Charlotte.
During the summer of 2016, Censuswide surveyed 1,000 professionals across the USA about their overall level of job satisfaction and the factors that contribute to it. Charlotte tops the list with 65% of its professionals feeling very or completely fulfilled at work, and chefs rank the highest in job satisfaction with 84% reporting they feel very or completely fulfilled at work.
The next time you are feeling down about your career, you may wish to visit one of the Queen City’s great local restaurants at lunch and sit next to the apparently happy chef to change your mood. After your meal, call the Croixstone Consulting team and we’ll be glad to talk about our management consulting opportunities!
Read more about the survey on LinkedIn’s blog here.
Good Fellows Pass $1 Million Fundraising Goal
Thank you to our consultants, partners and friends who joined our table at yesterday’s Good Fellows Club lunch and who opened their hearts (and wallets!) to help raise a record setting $1 million+ in donations to help the working poor across the Charlotte region.
Read more about yesterday’s record-setting event in The Charlotte Observer.
Croixstone Hosts Table Today at Annual Good Fellows Luncheon
Croixstone Consulting founder Mark Weber, a long-term member of The Good Fellows Club, is hosting a table at today’s annual Christmas luncheon at the Charlotte Convention Center.
A club of 1,700 business and civic leaders, The Good Fellows Club was founded in 1917 by a group of men at Charlotte’s Second Presbyterian Church. Through the years, the club has evolved into a charity that has raised millions to help the working poor who often can’t get aid at other nonprofits.
The club’s board of directors consists of a number of well-known Charlotte business leaders including:
- W. Frank Dowd, IV, President
- John W. Harris, Vice President
- Thomas E. Meckley, Treasurer
Last year, The Good Fellows Club raised more than $500,000 at the organization’s annual Christmas luncheon. Read more about last year’s event courtesy of The Charlotte Observer.
Global Cities 2016
So do you think you know the world’s most powerful “global” cities?
A recently published study by The Brookings Institution and JPMorganChase might surprise you. The study suggests that our idea of a global city has become outdated in a rapidly urbanizing world in the midst of seismic technological change. A handful of financial centers, like New York, London and Tokyo, no longer drive world economy. Instead a “vast and complex” network of cities – some surprisingly small, others mid-sized – powers the international flow of goods, services, people, capital and ideas.
The study identified seven types of global cities comprised of 123 urban areas – including our very own Charlotte (defined by the study as one of sixteen “American Middleweight” global cities).
Learn more here.
Friday Fun Facts – Life is Good with the Firebird
So if you live in Charlotte, you already know that the #1 destination for tourist photos and selfies in the QC is on the sidewalk in front of The Bechtler Museum of Modern Art.
It is here that the Firebird outdoor sculpture (affectionately named “Disco Chicken” by many locals) calls home.
Some Friday fun facts compiled by the Croixstone Consulting team that every Firebird aficionado should know…
- The sculpture was created in 1991 by French-American artist Niki de Saint Phalle (1930-2002).
- It was purchased by museum patron Andreas Bechtler specifically for placement in front of the museum.
- Andreas Bechtler loved the sculpture and found it to be “joyful, uplifting and engaging” and stated that “it makes you feel that life is good” (don’t we all feel this way on Fridays?).
- Firebird is adorned with 7,500 mirror mosaics over polyester on steel armature and stands over 17 feet tall.
- The sculpture weighs 1,443 pounds.
- It gets restored three to four times a year at an annual cost of $5,000 to $8,000. The process largely involves replacing cracked mosaic mirrors. It is believed that “nocturnal skateboarders” are largely responsible for required restoration work.