Atlanta Using Chief Economic Assets to Weather Recession
Atlanta Business Chronicle-- 12/8/08
…Atlanta economic development leaders used the metro area’s “core strengths” to generate 54 corporate relocations to the region this year, creating 5,000 jobs during a downturn, Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce President Sam Williams said Friday.

At the organization’s 149th annual meeting, Williams listed those assets as Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, 45 colleges and universities, a network of world-class health-care facilities and a young, well-educated work force.

Atlanta Chamber of Commerce President Talks About Georgia Economy
Fox 5 Atlanta-- 12/8/08
…The Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce president Sam A. Williams said Georgia is at an advantage because of several things. The world's busiest airport, Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport connects Metro Atlanta to the rest of the world. …

The Best Places to Work in Georgia
Georgia Trend Magazine 11/4/08
Bank of North Georgia
Alpharetta
Kessel Stelling, President and CEO
 
... “If they’re not happy at home, they’re not going to be happy at work,” Stelling says. “It’s part of our culture that we value our team members. We try to be team-oriented and family-friendly.”

Delta Gets Its Chance to Dominate Aviation -
World’s biggest airline: Acquisition of Northwest opens routes but carries risk
Atlanta Journal Constitution 11/1/08

Metro Atlanta hopes for boon
Atlanta Journal Constitution 10/30/08
Sam Williams, president of the Metro Atlanta Chamber, said the merger is the biggest boost for metro Atlanta since the 1996 Olympics “It will make up the most globally connected city in the world,” Williams said. “It will connect us to the economic capitals of other nations.”

Williams predicted the merger will mean more non-stop flights to foreign economic centers, which will lead to more economic trade offices in Atlanta. “And then business starts flowing back and forth,” he said. “The potential for Atlanta’s economic success just went up.”

Williams said the metro area scored a “PR coup” by landing the Olympics. But the Delta-Northwest merger could be much more substantive in the long run, he said, because it creates economic connections that did not exist before. “Within the first year you will see some significant activity pick up with these international flights,” Williams said.

Justice Department approves Delta – Northwest Merger
Atlanta Business Chronicle 10/29/08
Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce President Sam A. Williams noted that for every one job Delta has in Atlanta, it creates 100 through its route structure and connections to the world’s fastest-growing economies.

“The Delta Air Lines and Northwest merger represents a new plateau for metro Atlanta, just as significant as the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games in Atlanta. While the Olympics gave us worldwide recognition, Delta's route structure makes Atlanta the most connected city on earth,” Williams said. “The presence of the world’s largest airline in Atlanta strengthens our city’s position as a center of gravity for economic prosperity not just in Georgia, but across the Southeast. Especially in these difficult times for the national economy, Delta’s role as an economic multiplier for our region is critical.”.