John Snow's new job: Keep the economy rolling
by
Paula C. Squires
Virginia
Business
April 2004
When some people go to Washington, they get a big head,
becoming too busy and important for hometown concerns.
Not John Snow. The former CEO
of CSX Corp., which Snow headed for years when the transportation
company was based in Richmond, sat down with Virginia
Business last month to discuss his current job:
serving as treasury secretary under President George
W. Bush.
For
about 50 minutes in his office a few steps from the
White House, a relaxed and congenial Snow discussed
everything from jobs to outsourcing, the economy and
tax cuts — issues that are center stage this election
year. And he used Virginia Commonwealth University as
an example of how the country can step up to the challenge
of retraining workers. “That engineering school
is a terrific community asset,” he said, and represents
a model worthy of replication on how the educational
and business communities can collaborate to give people
marketable job skills.
Snow's son is a student at VCU studying business
and economics, and is one of the many ties that keep
this cabinet member connected to Richmond. His wife
spends most of her time here and when Snow makes it
home, he still enjoys Richmond's museums and walking
down Monument Avenue. These days, though, he can't
go anywhere without his security detail, one of the
biggest differences, he says, in running a company as
opposed to being the president's point man on
economic policy.
Our profile and question-and-answer
session with Snow was written by frequent contributor
Jack Milligan, a Charlottesville-based writer.
Closer
to home, this month's cover
story looks at Virginia's chemicals industry,
one of the bright spots in the beleaguered manufacturing
sector. Richmond-based writer Garry Kranz visited the
Boehringer Ingelheim Chemicals plant in Petersburg and
Dupont in Chesterfield County for a first-hand look
at how these modern plants are expanding, bringing both
jobs and investment.
The April issue includes also our annual look at the
biggest corporate expansions
of the year. Another annual feature, the most
significant commercial real estate projects, spotlights
two shopping centers and a corporate relocation.
The subject of this month's regional report is
the Richmond area. We look
at the new projects in place to revive downtown and
explore what impact preservation of the core city might
have on regional cooperation.
Lastly, just in time for spring and vacation planning,
our lineup includes a story on the state's top-rated
hotels. It's not easy to get five diamonds
or stars, and keeping them is a challenge. One Virginia
establishment has even put a system in place to assess
and boost guests' moods. I must be staying in
the wrong places.
Paula
C. Squires
Managing Editor
psquires@va-business.com
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