October 26, 2020
Media articles written by Roanoke Times, Business Journal, News Advance, and Times News
’Northam turns to far Southwest Virginia during economic recovery tour’
Area business, government, education leaders share challenges of pandemic with Northam

(Photo credited from Business Journal of Tri-Cities Tennessee/Virginia)
On Oct 23, 2020, Governor Ralph Northam turned to one of the most economically challenged places in Virginia to hear how the pandemic has affected businesses and families and what they need to recovery.
“We want to do what we can to bring all of Virginia back, especially rural Virginia. We’re here to listen. We don’t have monopolies on ideas here in Richmond.” – Governor Northam
Governor Northam and state Chief Workforce Advisor Meaghan Healy’s virtual visit was hosted by the United Way of Southwest Virginia’s COVID Relief Council co-chair Mike Quillen.
This meeting came as the local health department issued a warning about the steady rise in COVID-19 cases. Influential leaders from SWVA including 1901 Group joined to share issues ranging from COVID-19 testing, broadband access to education, and public health impacts from the pandemic.
1901 Group CEO, Sonu Singh, participated as one of the panelists sharing his thoughts and experiences.
“We’ve been super fortunate because of the nature of our work. But the reality is, it’s a tough slog and mentally difficult for a lot of folks to wake up, trudge over to their home office and then have to deal with kids that are home, so anything the United Way is doing is just amazing. “We’re fortunate but there is a lot of work left to be done.” – Sonu Singh, CEO 1901 Group
Read more from influential leaders including Executive Director United Way Travis Stanton, Executive Director of the LENOWISCO Planning District Duane Miller, and Pulaski County Administrator Jonathan Sweet to name a few on the types of actions that would help with recovery.
Relevant Links:
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- The Roanoke Times: Northam turns to far Southwest Virginia during economic recovery tour
- The News & Advance: Northam turns to far Southwest Virginia during economic recovery tour
- Times News: “Heavy lift”: Area business, government, education leaders share challenges of pandemic with Northam
- Business Journal: Northam conducts COVID roundtable with southwest Virginia business, government leaders

Sonu Singh
CEO
Sonu is the founder of 1901 Group and corporate leader responsible for our strategic vision, innovative business model, and financial performance.

George Batsakis
EVP and Chief Strategy Officer
George leads the company’s overall corporate development and strategy planning process and provides expertise in executive management, operations, new business development, emerging technology and technology partnership.

Paul Wilkinson
EVP, Business Development
Paul leads Business Development, Capture Management, Marketing, and Channel Partners. Paul provides leadership for 1901 Group’s growth initiatives by supporting the development of new markets and services.

James Christopher
EVP, Operations and Engineering
James brings over 25 years of industry experience to 1901 with a focus on delivering Information Technology business solutions and managed services.

Dana Pittman
SVP, Talent Strategy & Human Resources
Dana is the leader of our Human Capital Management function for providing organizational growth, performance, and profitability.

Brendan Walsh
SVP, Partner Relations
Brendan leads our partner relations and management efforts and supports business development activities in addition to establishing strategic business alliances with leading cloud service providers and security solutions.

Brian Lubin
SVP, Service Management
Brian leads the development and management of our service offerings and brings great value in aligning our growth and delivery activities while ensuring profitability.