Why is Jones Capital building its headquarters in Hattiesburg? Here's what the CEO says
Though Jones Capital plans to locate its new corporate headquarters in midtown Hattiesburg to work more closely with The University of Southern Mississippi, there is more to the reason that Hattiesburg was chosen.
CEO Jonathan Jones said in an emailed statement to the Hattiesburg American that there were state or county incentives for building the new headquarters in midtown Hattiesburg, but the company is under a non-disclosure agreement and is unable to elaborate.
Jones said he also wanted to give graduates of USM a reason to not only stay in Mississippi, but in Hattiesburg.
"As a growing company, we at Jones need more quality, talented people working for our companies. … The location we have chosen is sandwiched between Forrest General Hospital and the university," Jones said. "Our office placement will now provide even more job opportunities within the heart of Hattiesburg."
Jones said 100 new jobs are projected to be created at the new headquarters over five years.
Jones Capital to build new headquarters: $40 million building to be located in midtown Hattiesburg
The $40 million, 80,000-square-foot corporate headquarters will be located south of Chevy Chase and north of Lorraine Street, just south of the Hotel Indigo in the midtown development. The lots are currently vacant and were purchased by Jones Capital through a special purpose entity, Jones said.
John Becton, Dean of the College of Business and Economic Development at USM, said the partnership between the university and Jones Capital will take several different forms.
There is a formal internship program in the works which would apply to nearly every company in Jones Capital's portfolio. This would include internships in areas such as supply chain, sales, accounting, finance, marketing, human resources or general management.
Additionally, the university has discussed identifying projects within the companies that faculty-led teams of students could complete to help address issues or challenges Jones Capital are facing while providing faculty and students with real-world experiences.
Finally, the university has discussed how Southern Miss Business could assist Jones Capital with professional development opportunities for its employees through existing certificate programs or tailor-made programs depending on their needs, Becton said.
"We are looking forward to working more with the business school and Dr. Becton by providing internships and are continuously collaborating with (USM president Rodney Bennett) to help find a way to bridge the gap between the university and business," Jones said.
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Contact reporter Laurel Thrailkill at lthrailkill@gannett.com or on Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Hattiesburg American: What will Jones Capital's partnerships with USM look like?
