The Business Case for Williamson County, TN

1. 305 Public Square, Suite 214
Franklin, TN 37064
Matt Largen, Director
615.261.2880
matt@williamsonprospers.com
twitter.com/MattLargen

2. THE BUSINESS CASE FOR
WILLIAMSON COUNTY, TENNESSEE

3. “MedSolutions has benefitted significantly from the
decision to base our operations in what we consider
the heart of our nation’s healthcare capital. As home
to a growing and vibrant business community,
Williamson County offers our company the chance to
collaborate with other industry leaders while
providing employees with rich quality of life.”
Curt Thorne, President & CEO of MedSolutions, Inc.

4. Accessible
Easy access to east coast population centers
• A day’s drive from 75% of the U.S.
• Interstate 65 and Highway 840
run through Williamson County
• I-40 and I-24 surround and
connect creating a grid for easy
accessibility and transportation
• 30 minutes from Nashville International
Airport serving 48 non-stop
markets per day
Nashville, TN
Williamson County

5. Accessible
Easy access via non-stops at Nashville International
Nashville International Airport Non Stop Markets
Airport City Airport City
Code Name Code Name
ATL Atlanta MIA Miami
AUS Austin MKE Milwaukee
BWI Baltimore MSP Minneapolis/St. Paul
BHM Birmingham MSY New Orleans
BOS Boston EWR New York Newark Liberty
CUN Cancun (seasonal) JFK New York JFK
CLT Charlotte LGA New York LaGuardia
MDW Chicago Midway OAK Oakland
ORD Chicago O’Hare ONT Los Angeles Ontario
CVG Cincinnati MCO Orlando
CLE Cleveland PHL Philadelphia
CMH Columbus PHX Phoenix
• 12 air carriers DFW Dallas/Ft Worth PIT Pittsburgh
• 48 non-stops markets DEN Denver PVD Providence
DTW Detroit RDU Raleigh/Durham
• 88 direct-served FLL Ft. Lauderdale SLC Salt Lake City
markets BDL Hartford SAT San Antonio
HOU Houston Hobby SAN San Diego
• 400 flights per day IAH Houston Intercontinental SEA Seattle
• 10 million passengers JAX Jacksonville STL St. Louis
MCI Kansas City TPA Tampa
per year LAS Las Vegas YYZ Toronto
• Live music in terminal LAX Los Angeles DCA Washington Reagan
MEM Memphis IAD Washington Dulles

6. Affordable
ACCRA Cost of Living Index 3rd Quarter 2012
US
Average
Nashville, TN
Williamson County

7. Dynamic
Fastest growing county in TN
250,000
200,000
150,000
100,000
50,000
0
1990 2000 2010 2015
Census Census Census Projection
Total Population Total Households
1990 2000 2010 2015
Census Census Census Projection
Total Population 81,020 126,638 183,182 215,891
Total
27,927 44,725 64,886 76,341
Households
Source: US Census Bureau, 2010

8. Continued Dynamism
Projections above state and US averages
Projected 2010-2015 Annual Growth by Percentage
4
3.5
3
2.5
Williamson County
2
Tennessee
1.5
United States
1
0.5
0
Population Households Families Owner Median
Occupied Household
Homes Income
Source: ESRI Business Analyst Projections, 2011

9. Talent
Rates consistently below region & state average
Tennessee
Labor force 3,103,400
Unemployment rate 7.6%
Nashville Region
Labor force 828,970
Unemployment rate 6.4%
Williamson County
Labor force 95,650
Unemployment rate 5.2%
Source: Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development, September 2012

10. Talent
Historically outperformed state and US
Source: Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development Research

11. Talent
Growth through in-migration
Source: Internal Revenue Service, 2009

12. Transfer Appeal
Proven record of relocating talent
% of workforce that chose to relocate
42% of workforce
80% of executives
From Los Angeles, 2005
82% of workforce
From Los Angeles, 2006
50% of financial service workforce
From Tampa, FL, 2008
45% of IT workforce
From Charlottesville, VA, 2012
90% of IT workforce
From Lansing, MI, 2012

13. Talent and Public Education
Far outperforms state and US
US TN Williamson
County
EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT
Population 25 years and over
Associate's degree or higher 35.7% 29.3% 59.3%
2006-2012 High School Graduation Rate
2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Williamson Co 91.0 93.4 93.8 95.3 93.9 91.8 92.2
Tennessee 80.7 81.8 82.2 82.2 86.1 85.5 87.2

14. Public Education
Rising standardized test scores
Williamson County Schools Average ACT Scores
(2010-2012 Graduating Classes)
Note: 100% of students in Williamson Schools takes the ACT,
even if they are not college bound

15. Public Education
#1 priority and #1 differentiator
America’s Best High Schools 2012
4 schools in Williamson County were listed on Newsweek's
Best High Schools list, more than any other county in Tennessee
• Brentwood High School
• Ravenwood High School
• Franklin High School
• Page High School
Newsweek picks the best high schools in the country based on how hard school staffs work to
challenge students with advanced placement college-level courses and tests. Just over 1600 schools
—only six percent of all the public schools in the U.S.—made the list.
Source: Newsweek 2012

16. Talent
Pipeline of future employees
24 colleges and universities with 88,398 students
8 community colleges with 32,103 students
14 career colleges + with 9,095 students
129,596 students
currently enrolled
in the Nashville
region
Source: 2010 enrollment data

17. Employer of Choice
Evidence of strong applicant pool
Received 40,000 applications
for 700 jobs in 2005
Received 4,000 applications
before they posted a single job in 2010

18. Talent
Signs of sustained economic strength
Since 2000
Employment Growth
Population Growth
LOW Unemployment Rate
Corporate relocations, growth of existing
industry, & entrepreneurial dynamism

19. “Jackson looked at a variety of different communities
to open a regional headquarters office. We ultimately
selected Williamson County because of the strong
talent pool due to its proximity to nationally
recognized academic institutions, the quality of life
the area offers our employees, and most of all the
welcoming spirit of the local community. We couldn’t
be happier with our decision.”
Mike Wells, President & CEO of Jackson National Life
Insurance

20. Economic Diversity
Risk is minimized through balance of sectors
Employment Distribution, US vs. Williamson County
US Williamson Co.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2011

21. Sector Growth
Significant growth in management subsector
Source: Nashville Business Journal, June 2012
http://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/print-edition/2012/06/08/williamson-countys-growth.html?s=image_gallery

22. Corporate Image
Over 200 companies with corporate functions

23. Top 25 Largest Private Sector Employers
LOCAL
COMPANY NAME EMPLOYEES DESCRIPTION OF OPERATION
Community Health Systems Inc. 4500 Operator of non-urban general acute care hospitals
Nissan Americas 1600 Automotive corporate headquarters for North and South America
Williamson Medical Center 1412 County-owned hospital
HCA 1400 Patient accounting service center and physician services
Verizon Wireless 1300 Tennessee state headquarters for wireless carrier
Comdata Corporation 890 Transaction process solutions including payroll services
Ford Motor Credit 800 Customer care center for finance department
United Health Group (formerly AIM HealthCare Services) 750 Claims resolution and healthcare information management
Mars Petcare US 750 Headquarters for private label dry & semi-moist pet food co.
Lee Company 700 Integrated facility solutions; commercial & residential
MedSolutions Inc. 692 Radiology management products
Tractor Supply Company 664 Owns and operates retail farm and ranch stores
Affinion Group 650 Designs and markets customer engagement and loyalty solutions
Healthways 600 Proactive custom health & care plans
Vanderbilt Medical Group 500 Physician services
AT&T 500 Disaster recovery center, call center, and retail stores
DaVita 455 Billing office for company that provides dialysis services
Brookdale Senior Living 450 National senior living and health care provider
LifePoint Hospitals 415 Operates hospitals in non-urban areas
Lasko Metal Products Inc. 360 Manufacturer of fans, humidifiers and heaters
Ozburn-Hessey Logistics 345 Provider of global supply chain management solutions
The Lampo Group (Dave Ramsey) 340 Financial seminars, radio show, television show, and web
Lattimore Black Morgan & Cain 270 Professional services organization
Jackson National Life Insurance Company 260 Offers variable, fixed and fixed index annuities, and institutional products
Apcom, Inc. 250 Divisional headquarters & drain valves, testing elements thermostats
For a complete list of major employers by sector, please visit:
http://williamsonprospers.com/why-williamson/look-whos-here/

24. Low cost of doing business
Local property tax rate ranges from
$2.31 to $3.60 per $100 of assessed value
3rd lowest county tax rate in Nashville
region
Ranks below the average Tennessee
county tax rate
$ No state income tax

25. Credentials
Consistently ranked near the top

26. Credentials
Business friendly
3 of top 5 are from Williamson
County, including #1 and #2

27. Credentials
Consistently ranked near the top
One of the Best Cities for Startups
1. Boulder, CO 6. Cambridge, MA
2. Boca Raton, FL 7. Bellevue, WA
3. Santa Monica, CA 8. Franklin, TN
4. Bend, OR 9. San Francisco, CA
5. Irvine, CA 10. Rockville, MD
Ranking by: ZoomProspector.com and Bloomberg Businessweek 2010

28. Credentials
Consistently ranked near the top
Healthiest County in Tennessee
Health Outcomes 1
Mortality 1
Morbidity 1
Heath Factors
Health Behaviors 1
Clinical Care 1
Social & Economic Factors 1
Physical Environment 7
Source: 2012 County Health Rankings & Roadmaps
http://www.countyhealthrankings.org/app/tennessee/2012/williamson/county/1/overall

29. How do Williamson County residents feel?
2012 data for Williamson Co, TN

30. Start-up activity
Healthy culture of entrepreneurship
24% of the fastest growing private
companies in Tennessee from the
2012 Inc. 500║5000 are in
Williamson County

31. The home for business
12 of the 25 largest publicly traded
companies in the Nashville region call
Williamson County home,
including #1-#5
and 7 of the top 10

32. Who has grown jobs in Nashville?
Nashville Region County % Employment Growth, 2007-2011
Nashville Region = 4.3%

33. 2011 Where the jobs are
Source: Money.com
“Where the jobs are”,
2011

34. 2012 The jobs are still coming here
Source: Money.com
“Where the jobs are”,
2012

35. “Moving the headquarters and the sales and
marketing organization [to Williamson County, TN in
2006], I think, was a significant competitive
advantage for Nissan. Our results speak volumes as
to whether it was the right decision. Our market
share has grown significantly, and I attribute a big
part of our success and our potential to the fact that
we are located here.“
Bill Krueger, Vice Chairman of Nissan Americas

36. 305 Public Square, Suite 214
Franklin, TN 37064
Matt Largen, Director
615.261.2880
matt@williamsonprospers.com
twitter.com/MattLargen