March 8, 2010
Board Meeting Wednesday; ABI Day on the Hill Also Being Held
Wednesday will be a busy day of ABI meetings and activities, with several association events being held throughout the day. The ABI Executive Committee and Board of Directors will hold regularly-scheduled meetings and the third annual ABI Day on the Hill will bring association members to Des Moines for meetings with legislators.
First up Wednesday is the 2010 ABI day on the Hill (see below) with the Executive Committee and Board of Directors meetings to follow. The latter two meetings will be led by ABI Chair Bill Brown (BrownWinick, Des Moines).
The board will meet at 1:00 p.m. at the Embassy Suites on the River hotel (at 101 East Locust Street in downtown Des Moines). If you did not receive your board packet by email last week, please reply to this message and I’ll send another copy at once. The board will work through a very full agenda and your participation is vital. If you haven’t already done so, please contact ABI to indicate your attendance plans and thank you in advance for participating in this important meeting.
Third Annual ABI Day on the Hill Wednesday
As noted above, the third annual ABI Day on the Hill will also be held Wednesday at 9:00 a.m. at the State Historical Building of Iowa. This is event is provided FREE for members and includes breakfast, handouts, and transportation to the Statehouse and back. It provides a great opportunity for you and your employees to hear the latest news on legislative developments, meet with legislative leaders, receive talking points and other specific information, tour the Capitol, and talk one-on-one with your local legislative delegation. There is still time for you and/or your top managers to register for this event.
You are not automatically registered for Day on the Hill because we know you are very busy. But as an ABI board member, it is hoped that you will participate. If you can participate in Day on the Hill, please go to the association’s website and click on the link/photo at the top of the page to register for this event now.
Region VII EPA Administrator Brooks to Speak at ABI Today
Karl Brooks, President Obama’s newly appointed Regional Director for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Kansas City, will address members of the ABI Environment Committee in just a couple of hours here in Des Moines. Director Brooks has been on the job for less than 60 days and has already reached out to ABI, a marked and welcome change from previous EPA officials.
Director Brooks has a very strong academic background (he holds degrees from Harvard, Yale, and the London School of Economics), was a member of the Idaho State Senate, and is a past conversation official. He has taught at the University of Kansas for the past decade. ABI looks forward to a renewed relationship with the EPA.
Jochmann Completes Service as ABI Environment Chair, Durham Takes Over
At Friday’s meeting of the ABI Environment Committee, longtime Chairman Wayne Jochmann (ALCOA, Davenport) announced his retirement. Like Terry Noteboom (Pella Corporation, Pella) before him, Wayne has provided great leadership and the Environment Committee has significantly increased its work and its impact.
Longtime committee member Mick Durham (Grain Processing Corporation, Muscatine) has been appointed the new chair of the committee. ABI salutes Wayne and congratulates Mick. We look forward to continued terrific leadership by the committee.
Second Annual Leading Leaders Conference Big Success
A week ago today, the ABI Foundation’s Second Annual “Leading Leaders: Iowa Community Leadership Program Directors Conference” was held in West Des Moines. The conference grew about 10 percent in attendance from its first year and attendees raved about the day-long event.
Thanks to all involved and special thanks to the Iowa Area Development Group Community Foundation, which served as the conference’s major sponsor. ABI Board Member and IADG CEO Rand Fisher (Iowa Area Development Group, West Des Moines) served as one of the speakers for last week’s conference.
Foundation Board Adopts New Logo
The ABI Foundation Board of Directors held its regular quarterly meeting last week in Des Moines. Foundation Board Chair and ABI Past Chair Charese Yanney (Guarantee Roofing and Siding, Sioux City) and Foundation board members worked through a full agenda of reports and action items.
Program metrics for all Foundation activities are strong. In addition to other things, the Foundation Board took action on a two issues to make future metrics even stronger. First, the board established a fundraising committee to help the Foundation solidify its financial base. Second, the board adopted a new logo which builds on the marketing and branding work ABI recently completed with the help of member company Strategic America.
The new logo helps weave together all the Foundation programs and ABI itself. You will soon begin to see the new logo on Foundation materials, but for now, it was included in the packet of materials you received last week to help prepare for this week’s board meeting.
Advisory Council Meets Tomorrow in Des Moines
Members of the ABI Advisory Council will convene tomorrow in Des Moines for their regular monthly meeting. The council has played a crucial role in the increase in revenue, quality programming, and technical assistance ABI provides all members.
Special thank you to members of the council. They are BrownWinick, EMC, Flynn Wright, Hopkins & Huebner, Iowa SHRM, LWBJ Financial, Manpower, Merit Resources, Principal Financial Group, Strategic America, and Syverson Strege & Company.
RACOM Wins U.S. Chamber Award; Cast Your Vote for Further Recognition
In the Monday Memo, I focus on companies affiliated with members of the ABI Board of Directors. From time to time, though, I do note achievements of other member companies and ABI member RACOM Corporation of Marshalltown recently won a major award. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has named RACOM one of its yearly Blue Ribbon Small Business Award winners.
This prestigious award recognizes RACOM’s excellent business practices and its commitment to its employees, customers, and community. You can read about the RACOM award here and you will also find a link to vote for RACOM for an even bigger award from the Chamber. Cast your vote now for this great Iowa company! Congratulations to RACOM and Marshalltown!
YPIowa to Join Leadership Iowa at Cedar Rapids Events, LI Class meets This Week
The ABI Foundation serves as the administering agency for Young Professionals of Iowa, an organization committed to keeping young leaders involved in their communities and our state. In conjunction with Leadership Iowa, YPIowa and a local organization in Cedar Rapids (ImpactCR) are holding events in Cedar Rapids this Thursday. A regional networking event and a joint reception will be held starting at 4:45 p.m. at the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art. ABI board members are also invited to these free events. Click on this link for more information and to register,
The 2009-2010 Leadership Iowa class will meet in Cedar Rapids Thursday and Friday of this week in a session that will focus on community response and preparedness. The class will gather a couple of more times and will graduate at the ABI Convention in June in Ames.
Pioneer Sponsors Alzheimer’s Association Reception
Longtime ABI Member Company Pioneer Hi-bred International is sponsoring an event for the Alzheimer’s Association Greater Iowa Chapter to provide information about the latest in Alzheimer’s research and the impact of the disease on business. The event will be held Tuesday, April 13 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. in Des Moines. More information will be forthcoming, but you can click here in the meantime.
March 31 is Date for Annual ABI Risk Management Conference
The 2010 annual ABI Risk Management Conference will be held in Des Moines at EMC on March 31. Best-practice presentations, case studies, and technical information will make this conference a great value for Workers Comp staff, HR staff, and/or Safety and Risk managers. Click here for more information or to register.
Worksite Wellness Events in Davenport, Des Moines Later This Month
Later this month, ABI will begin a series of meetings to provide members with practical information related to wellness, weight loss, smoking cessation and other health-related issues. Sessions will be held in Davenport on March 23rd and Des Moines on March 29. More dates will be added and more information will be available soon.
Bernstein, Lisle, Shine Appointed to IDED Board; Bocken Retires as IDED Chair
Last week, Iowa Governor Chet Culver appointed three individuals with ties to the ABI Board of Directors to the Iowa Economic development Board. ABI Past Chair Toby Shine (Shine Bros. Corp., Spencer) and ABI Board Member John Lisle (Lisle Corporation, Clarinda) were both reappointed to terms on the board. Former ABI Board Member David Bernstein (State Steel, Sioux City) was also appointed to the board.
ABI Executive Committee Member Bob Bocken (Farner-Bocken, Fort Dodge) completed his term as IDED Chair and retired from the board. Thank you to all these men for their leadership and congratulations!
The Business of ABI
As you know, serving as Board Treasurer of ABI is not a great job for the first half of the fiscal year. ABI’s fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30 and positive numbers don’t show up on the balance sheet until midway through the year. Thank you to current Treasurer Fred Buie (Keystone Electrical Manufacturing Company, Des Moines) for his great service this year.
As you saw in your financial report, however, the news is now quite good. With a little over a quarter of the year left, the association is showing a very strong cash position and numbers are improved over a year ago. I fully expect very positive results in this important metric as ABI races to the close of a terrific year.
You also know that is important for only one reason: it allows ABI to serve you and to advance the aggressive agenda you establish for the association each year. Thank you for your leadership – in this area and in every other -- that makes our success possible.
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