| Reporter's Notebook
Notes and thoughts from the
travels of Virginia Business writers and editors
Virginia
Business
May
2005
Yount,
Hyde & Barbour PC, a Winchester-based
accounting firm, is looking for the right partner
to build its practice in Richmond. The firm, which
ranked fourth among accounting firms in Virginia
Business’ latest Book of Lists, has a small
office in Richmond in addition to offices in Winchester,
Culpeper, Leesburg and Middleburg.
W. Mark Rudolf, president and CEO of the firm, says he is looking for a merger
partner. The firm has targeted Richmond and Roanoke as potential growth areas
in the first phase of an expansion plan. Other areas considered for expansion
include Fredericksburg, Harrisonburg, Manassas, the Tidewater region and the
Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia.
Yount,
Hyde & Barbour has doubled its size in the past
five years and Rudolf expects it to double again
within the next five years. The firm has annual revenue
of $17.5 million and 95 CPAs among a staff of 120.
Rudolf
says Richmond is especially attractive because of
the presence of schools such as Virginia Commonwealth
University and the University of Richmond. He believes
that the firm has a better chance of recruiting twenty-something
accounting graduates by having offices in urban centers
like Richmond and Roanoke.
Joey
Arrington,
the head of Arrington Engines in Martinsville,
is doing his part to advance the motorsports industry
in his town. His company has collaborated with
Patrick Henry Community College on an internship
program that allows student to build truck-racing
engines.
Arrington,
however, offers a cautionary comment. “The
motorsports industry can only be built as this area
manufactures people,” he says. By that, Arrington
means that the area needs to develop amenities that
will keep the area’s young people from leaving.
There
are signs that the community college motorsports
program is helping keep students in the area while
attracting others from out of state. Earl Dodrill,
dean of the school’s applied science and engineering
technology division, says he has more than 100 students
in motorsports classes and regularly gets inquiries
from students out of state. In addition to building
engines, students in the program also fabricate race
cars from scratch — including the chasis, body
and suspension — and race them at area tracks.
The
program also has attracted the attention of NASCAR
racing teams such as Petty, Wood Brothers and Gibbs
who have donated more than $250,000 in parts. “I’ve
been in racing my whole life, and I’ve never
seen a program like this,” says instructor
Mike Sharpe.
How do you reward a business heavy hitter for an
appearance at your club? The Virginia Council of
CEOs tried plaques and other gifts before settling
on wooden
baseball bats. The bats have been a hit with speakers like G. Gilmer Minor
III of Owens & Minor and Richmond Mayor L. Douglas Wilder. In fact, Wilder’s
bat got quite a bit of play in the press when he carried it into a city hall
meeting with the Richmond Braves. Since the Council of CEOs has already claimed
bats, one has to wonder who is up for giving out hockey sticks?
Suffolk,
the fastest growing city in Hampton Roads, continues
to attract defense contractors. Last month, Lockheed
Martin opened a $30 million military lab, the Center
for Innovation, on Harbour View Boulevard. The 50,000-square-foot
center will be used to develop operational concepts
and advanced technologies for the military and homeland
defense. The brick facility has a large central rotunda
which houses a three-story reproduction of the top
of the Cape Henry Lighthouse. This structure is a
gathering place for programmers and operators to
collaborate on projects. It is all part of developing
what Lockheed Martin calls a net-centric information
system. This system is intended to offer federal,
state and local government officials an environment
where they can share information vital to national
defense and homeland security. U.S. Sen. John Warner,
chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee,
attended April's opening ceremonies as did Robert
Stevens, CEO of Lockheed Martin.
Reporter’s
Notebook is a new monthly feature of Virginia Business.
This month’s contributions are from Editor
Robert Powell and Publisher Douglas Forshey.
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