Executive Committee to Meet - Monday Memo 7/2/18

July 2, 2018

Executive Committee Teleconference Next Week

The ABI Executive Committee will hold its July teleconference a week from Wednesday.  ABI Chair David Bywater (Bankers Advertising/Tru Art, Iowa City) and members of the committee will hold what is typically a brief meeting, but one which includes a full agenda of reports and action items.  News regarding developments will be a part of the September meeting of the ABI Board of Directors. 

ABI Board Members Invited to Grassley, Young Events This Week

Members of the ABI Board of Directors, including former Chairs of the Board, are invited to two upcoming events involving members of the Iowa’s Congressional delegation. The first, an award presentation and conversation with Congressman David Young (IA-03), will be held at the ABI office at 2:30 Thursday afternoon (July 5). 

The second event, involving U.S. Senator Charles E. Grassley, will be hosted by ABI Chair David Bywater (Bankers Advertising/Tru Art, Iowa City) at his plant in Iowa City this Friday, July 6.  Senator Grassley will provide brief remarks and then take questions from the audience.  A brief tour of Bankers Advertising/Tru Art will also be a part of the event, which will be held from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. 

These events are great opportunities for ABI board members to interact with Congressman Young, Senator Grassley, and other ABI members. For more information about either event, please contact ABI Coordinator Public Policy Brad Hartkopf at bhartkopf@iowaabi.org

New Board Member Orientations Begin; ABI Board Will Meet in September

Orientation sessions with new members of the ABI Board of Directors begin today.  A terrific group of new board members was elected to the board in June and they join an already strong group of Iowa business leaders.  

Thank you to the new members for their commitment to the association.  The new members will join you for the first time at the board’s next meeting, which is set for Wednesday, September 12.  

At the September meeting, which will mark the first meeting of the board for the fiscal year, ABI will officially welcome new association board members.  Elected to the board for terms beginning July 1 were Matt Ahmann (Principal, Des Moines), Brett Bosworth (R&R Equity Partners, West Des Moines), Connor Deering (CemenTech, Indianola), Rich Dwyer (Kent Corporation, Muscatine), Phil Jones (Rada Manufacturing, Waverly), Nick Gerhart (FBL Financial Group, West Des Moines), Randy Moore (Iowa American Water, Davenport), and Mindi VandenBosch (Vermeer Corporation, Pella), and the honorary Leadership Iowa board member, Molly Varangkounh (Hy-Capacity, Humboldt).  

Mindi and Matt will kick-off the board orientations later today.  We look forward to getting an update from them about their companies and from the other new board member companies as well.  Thanks again to these new board members for their service! 

Registrations Coming In for Okoboji Event; Paul Shirley, Other Great Speakers Confirmed

The Bringing ‘Boji Back event, the next in a series of ABI Connecting Statewide Leaders events, will be held in the Iowa Great Lakes August 1st and 2nd.  Registrations are already coming in for this fun and high-value event. If you are interested in great programming, great networking, and great venues, you will want to attend this event.  

An industry tour will kick things off on the afternoon of August 1st.  A reception and dinner will be held later that day.  A fantastic program is in store on August 2nd, starting with breakfast and two high-value panels.  To cap things off, I’ve already heard from ABI members who are excited about Paul Shirley.  He is the former Iowa State University basketball player who has travelled the world, written two books, and spoken to audiences across the globe.  Mr. Shirley will speak about flexibility and adaptability and why they are important for all organizations.  

Find more information and register now at: http://www.cvent.com/events/connecting-statewide-leaders-bringing-boji-back/event-summary-fdc283cb22ec41a2abb45c3527f13328.aspx.  See you at the Lakes in August! 

Next IIPAC Fundraising Deadline July 14

ABI’s political arm, the Iowa Industry Political Action Committee, supports candidates for statewide and legislative office who support pro-business policies. I always say IIPAC will support a Republican, a Democrat, a Whig, or a Tory, as long as that candidate supports business. 

The next fundraising deadline for IIPAC is July 14. In order for others to know a positive business climate is important for Iowa, IIPAC needs a strong financial report.  If you are an ABI board member who has not yet contributed, please consider a personal contribution today.  You can donate here: https://www.iowaabi.org/public-policy/iipac/.  Your investment is used to maximize support of candidates who support economic growth polices around Iowa.  In the last election, the IIPAC-endorsed candidate won in 95% of the races.  

For more information about the PAC or why you should continue, please contact ABI Senior Vice President Public Policy Nicole Crain at ncrain@iowaabi.org.  In the meantime, thank you to former ABI Chair Kirk Tyler (Atlantic Coca-Cola Bottling Company, Des Moines) and our other IIPAC board members for their leadership.  And thank you to all IIPAC contributors for your support! 

Online Foundation Auction Deadline Extended

There have been some questions related to the latest online auction to benefit the ABI Foundation. As you saw at the conference and have seen in recent editions of this memorandum, that auction involves fabulous furniture donated by Allsteel.  Because there has been some confusion involving the auction, the deadline for receiving bids has been extended to July 13.  

Several of you have told me you are interested in bidding/supporting the ABI Foundation. Now is the time to bid!  Please use this link to participate in the auction: https://www.32auctions.com/ABIFoundation2018.  As I have noted previously, these are high-value items that will not only look beautiful in your plant or office, but will also help your facility teams be productive and comfortable.  Thank you once more to all bidders and to Allsteel and ABI Board Member Steven Bradford (HNI Corporation, Muscatine)

Plan Now to Participate in Annual Policy Development Process

As you know, ABI has significantly stepped-up its award-winning public policy programming.  Already recognized for years as one of Iowa's most effective public policy organizations, ABI over the years dramatically increased events (held throughout Iowa), added new events, and altered its annual policy development process to increase its impact. 

To that end, the association's annual policy committee meetings have already been scheduled.  Please go to the ABI Events Calendar at http://www.iowaabi.org/events/ to register for the committee meetings of interest to you and your employees.  The ABI Board of Directors will act on the recommendations of these committees at the September board meeting. 

Business Horizons 2018 in Two Weeks

As you read about in last week's edition of this memorandum, the 2018 session of the ABI Foundation's Business Horizons high school experience will soon be upon us. Iowa high school students will converge on the campus of Central College in Pella July 15-19 to participate in this terrific program.  This program is simply a great event each year and it is possible only through the support of you, your company, and your employees.  

Focus on Building Your Workforce

If there is one issue that unites ABI member companies regardless of their industry, location, or size, it is the need to find more workers. ABI works hard to help you address that through Elevate, other programming, and now through the latest Connecting Statewide Leaders event.  Register now for the Building Your Future Workforce event. 

This program will be held immediately prior to a networking reception with the Leadership Iowa University group.  Find more information and register here: http://www.cvent.com/events/connecting-statewide-leaders-building-your-future-workforce/event-summary-f6b3458007c447568c22c4ac6bb579e2.aspx.  The event will be held on August 8 at ABI member company Shive-Hattery in West Des Moines. 

Mark Your Calendars for Tenth Annual ABI Executive Open August 27

ABI holds an annual golf event to promote member programs and to thank members for their support and participation.  The event has proven incredibly popular.  The tenth annual event will be held Monday, August 27.  The past five opens have sold-out and we expect that will be the case again this year.  Join us for golf and for an afternoon of fun and networking. 

The ABI Executive Open will again be held at Des Moines Gold and Country Club in West Des Moines, one of Iowa's most exclusive private clubs.  This is a fabulous course and registration is now open for this always-great event.  Please click on http://www.cvent.com/events/abi-executive-open-2018/event-summary-5649dbb1599a4a19b881d3714e7303ca.aspx to register now.  See you at Des Moines Golf in August! 

Reminder to View Photos Online

Many of you have been great to share very positive feedback from last month’s 115th Annual ABI Taking Care of Business Conference.  We appreciate that, but we are always looking for constructive criticism as well, so please know that your feedback of any kind is important to us. 

And be sure and view the photos from the conference (you might be in them!):  www.iowaabi.org/events/photos.   Again, thank you for your participation and assistance in helping make the 2018 ABI Convention a terrific success. 

Elevate Looking for Fair Ambassadors

ABI’s Elevate Advanced Manufacturing initiative will again have a presence at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines on August 19.  As a part of that, the Elevate crew is looking for volunteers to staff the Elevate booth.  

If you participate, you will get free admittance to the fair and a spiffy t-shirt. To learn more or to volunteer, reply to this message and I’ll get the information to you at once. 

ABI Members Invited to Early Childhood Systems Summit

ABI members have specifically been invited to Iowa Early Childhood Systems Summit and Early Childhood Iowa 20th Anniversary Celebration on October 3rd at the Sheraton Hotel in West Des Moines. A business and economic development leaders track is being offered as part of the programming, which focuses on the business/workforce aspect of early childhood issues. 

The summit is designed to engage partners that are involved in local and state-level early childhood systems work, as well as business and economic leaders, civic and faith leaders, education leaders, law enforcement and policymakers.  The Business and Economic Leader Track focuses on the connection between workforce (today and tomorrow) and child care.  

Click here for more information about the summit:  https://earlychildhood.iowa.gov/state-system/early-childhood-system-summit.  To register, you may use the link below to go directly to the registration link: https://ecisummit.eventbrite.com

Governor Appoints Dave Zrostlik to STEM Council

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds Friday appointed Immediate Past ABI Chair David Zrostlik (Stellar Industries, Garner) to the North Central Regional STEM Council.  Dave has long been a leader in Iowa’s Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics community and is a perfect choice for service on the council.  Congratulations, Dave! 

ABI Begins New Fiscal Year, Focus is on Value for Members

Each July, I note the passing of the fiscal year, more for what opportunities lie ahead than for anything having to do with the past (though make no mistake, in so many ways, the past year was a record-setter for ABI).  

ABI began a new fiscal year yesterday. 

As always, ABI's focus is on providing high value for members.  The beginning of a new year brings new opportunities to serve existing members, gain new ones, and build a better Iowa business climate.  As we start the year, all of us at ABI are thinking about how we can do things even better than they have been done in the past.  

You have heard me say often that I like things that can be measured, because they let us know how we are doing at achieving the agenda you set for us each year.  Revenue at ABI has increased over the course of the past several years, thanks to new members, new sponsors, and (we hope) more value for your company.  Still, we take seriously our charge to not waste your investment. 

At ABI, it's all about the members!  We are always looking forward and building for growth.  If we aren't moving ahead, we are falling behind and that is not acceptable.  Thanks to your leadership and a great staff, we are achieving that goal.  It is not just rhetoric to say that your leadership has ensured that ABI continues its resurgence and growth as one of our state’s leading organizations.  Thank you.