By James T. Hammond
jhammond@scbiznews.com
Published Jan. 14, 2011

Robert M. Hitt, who was confirmed by the South Carolina Senate on Thursday to become the state’s Commerce Secretary, already is confident that the agency he now heads will have good jobs and economic development news in 2011.

“I see a lot of things coming up on the horizon and I can’t wait to talk to you when the time comes,” said Hitt, who has been BMW Manufacturing’s point man for 18 years when it comes to dealing with political, regulatory and tax issues in South Carolina.

Hitt said his boss, Gov. Nikki Haley, has attracted a lot of national and international attention because she is the first woman governor of South Carolina, and a first-generation American from a family that migrated here from India.

“There are a lot of things in the pipeline that have been in there,” Hitt said. “And Gov. Haley’s election and the attention she gets nationally have drawn some people to want to look at South Carolina. We are working on building those contacts.”

The Ambassador from India attended Haley’s inauguration earlier this week and the newspapers in India have reported on her election to statewide office here.

Hitt (pictured) also sought to reassure staff at the agency he now heads, and to recognize those state employees for the work they’ve done in recent years to bring jobs and industry to the state.

“I’m an incrementalist,” Hitt said. “I’ll look at changes I think need to be made.”

But he added, “They have a pretty good track record right now. So there’s nothing that requires major overhaul. Anytime there’s a change of administration, you have a bit of a renaissance, higher expectations and opportunities to bridge some relationships that maybe haven’t been bridged in a while. And that’s what we’ll work on.”

Acknowledging that the Great Recession has been tough on his department’s budget and on business investment in the state, Hitt thanked his predecessor for the successes, such as ZF Group in Laurens County, First Quality Tissue in Anderson County and Boeing in North Charleston.

“Joe Taylor and his crew have done a really good job,” Hitt said. “The agency has been battered by budget cuts like all the agencies, it’s down in size, and they’ve worked very hard to create jobs in South Carolina, and to convince companies that this is a really good place to do business.”

Additional funding for the department’s industry recruitment efforts, Hitt said, will also be incremental, addressed as it is needed. “Now is not the time,” he added.

He indicated he’s comfortable with staff he’s met there already.

“There’s nothing going on in the department that needs to be fixed,” Hitt said. “The question is, now we are on the front end of a bubble, how do we make sure we capture as much of it as we can, get our share, plus.”

Hitt, whose 18 years at BMW have made him a serious insider in the automotive sector, said ZF Group’s decision to locate in Laurens County, and to build its first high-efficiency nine-speed transmission there, could be a bellwether for things to come in South Carolina’s automotive cluster.

“ZF is a remarkable company; they make very complex components for automobiles. They’ll be building for multiple manufacturers in the United States,” Hitt said. “A transmission plant is akin to an engine plant. It is a very sophisticated level of manufacturing and I think it is a testament to the work force in South Carolina that they would locate here.”

For now, Hitt said he’s learning from business and government leaders about the state’s hopes, aspirations and capabilities.

“I need to listen and see what’s good,” he said.