ABI Board to Meet in May - Monday Memo 4/18/22
April 18, 2022
Board to Meet in May; Final Meeting Prior to Annual Conference
The final ABI board meeting before the annual conference will be held in May. ABI Chair Jack Hasken (Jackson Mfg., Maquoketa) and the ABI Board of Directors will meet Thursday, May 12, at the Gateway Hotel and Conference Center in Ames. The meeting begins with lunch at 11:30 a.m. and several special features will make the meeting one you won’t want to miss.
If you haven’t already done so, please register your attendance now by replying to this message. Look for your usual packet of meeting materials to arrive in your email in-basket about a week before the meeting. On behalf of Jack and our ABI officers, I look forward to your participation.
Annual ABI CEO Survey Coming Your Way This Week
As I noted last week, it is time for the annual ABI survey of member CEOs. The survey this year focuses on issues of interest to you and your company. By the way, the annual survey differs from the quarterly business survey, in that the annual CEO survey is distributed to ALL member company CEOs and it surveys general issues; not what is expected in the coming quarter.
CEOs should look for the survey to arrive in your email in-basket later this week. When you see it, please complete the survey (it should take no more than 5 to 10 minutes). You will be able to read the results in the June edition of Business Record Iowa.
Advisory Council Meeting Thursday in Des Moines
The members of the ABI Advisory Council will hold their monthly meeting on Thursday. Please join me in thanking the members of the council. They are Anthologic, AssuredPartners, BCC Advisers, BrownWinick, CIRAS, CliftonLarsonAllen, EMC Insurance, Focus OneSource, Fredrikson & Byron, HDH Advisors, Principal Midwest Business Center, The Iowa Clinic, and Wells Fargo. These organizations can be terrific resources for you and your employees. Don’t hesitate to contact them for information and assistance. We are grateful for their premium support for ABI.
Conference Registrations Pouring In
As I write this memorandum on Sunday afternoon, there are nearly 300 people already registered for the 2022 ABI Taking Care of Business Conference. Over a hundred registrations were received last week alone! If you haven’t already done so, register NOW by clicking on this link: https://www.iowaabi.org/events/annual-conference/. You don’t want to wait to register for this terrific event! On behalf of ABI Chair Jack Hasken (Jackson Mfg., Maquoketa), I look forward to seeing you in Dubuque in less than two months (June 14-16)!
Nominating Committee to Meet April 27
As noted in last week’s Monday Memo, the ABI Nominating Committee will meet soon. The committee, which is chaired by Immediate Past Chair of the ABI Board of Directors Steven Bradford (HNI Corporation, Muscatine), will meet by Zoom on April 27.
In addition to Steven, members of the Committee include ABI board members from each of the association's five state districts. They are District 1 – Mindi Vanden Bosch (Vermeer Corporation, Pella), District 2 – Peter Voorhees (Standard Golf Company, Cedar Falls), District 3 – Taylor Teepell (Lumen, Des Moines), District 4 – Mary Landhuis (Lisle Corporation, Clarinda), and District 5 – Kirk McCollough (Seneca Foundry, Webster City).
If you have someone you believe would make a great ABI board member, the committee wants to know about her or him. Simply contact one of them, or me, and we’ll make sure the names are considered by the committee.
Regional Public Policy Meetings Set; Look for One Near You in May
Speaking of the legislative session, it is hoped there are only a couple of weeks left. Upon adjournment, the ABI public policy team will hit the road to meet with ABI members all over Iowa. In those meetings, information about the session and its impact on your business are discussed.
These post-session meetings, which will star ABI Vice President Public Policy JD Davis and Director Public Policy Brad Hartkopf, will be held in person around Iowa. Meetings will be held in Atlantic, Cedar Rapids, Des Moines, Fairfield, and Fort Dodge.
Iowa Food Industry Seminar Coming May
Also coming May is another special, high-value ABI event. ABI and CIRAS (the Center for Industrial Research and Service at Iowa State University) are partnering to produce the Iowa Food Manufacturing Industry Overview and Challenges Seminar. The seminar will be held on May 4th at ISU in Ames. Substantive topics such as supply chains and logistics, government regulations, environmental considerations, and much more will be a part of the program. Tours of terrific industry facilities on campus will be a part of the event. The Food Polymer Lab, Meat Science Lab, and tours of other cutting-edge facilities will be available. You can find more information and register for the seminar by using this link: Summary - Iowa Food Manufacturing Industry Overview and Challenges Seminar (cvent.com). Please mark May 4 on your calendar.
Foundation Program Nominations, Elevate Scholarship Nominations All Due Now; LI Board to Meet Thursday
As you have read in previous editions of this memorandum, now is an important time for programs of the ABI Foundation. Foundation programs such as Leadership Iowa, Leadership Iowa University, and Business Horizons are all accepting nominations for participants in the next session of each program. And, ABI’s Elevate Advanced Manufacturing initiative is accepting nominations for its annual community college scholarships.
To nominate worthy individuals for the programs, please go here: https://www.iowaabi.org/abi-foundation/about/. To nominate students for a scholarship, please go here: https://www.elevateiowa.com/about/elevate-scholarship-program. Thank you for your nominations!
In other ABI Foundation news, the Board of Directors for the Foundation’s flagship program, leadership Iowa will meet this week. The LI board will meet Thursday. Planning for the 2022-2023 LI session is well underway, thanks to the board and to ABI Foundation Director of Programs Jessi McQuerrey.
NAM Report: Global Growth Slows
Last week’s Global Manufacturing Economic Update published by the National Association of Manufacturers, led with sobering news, as manufacturing growth is slowing. That said, the report carried an item about expansion in manufacturing in many parts of the world. Bottom line: be cautious. In the weekly manufacturing report, received just moments ago, the tone was much mro0e optimistic.
As usual, there was a great deal of interesting information in the reports. If you wish to see them, please reply to this message and I’ll get it to you at once.
Governor Reynolds Nominates Cindy Dietz for State Board; Senate Confirms Her
Earlier this year, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds nominated former ABI Chair Cindy Dietz (Collins Aerospace, Cedar Rapids) for a term on the State Board of Education. Last Wednesday, the Iowa Senate unanimously confirmed Cindy’s nomination. This is great news for Cindy and great news for Iowa, as Cindy has been a leader in so many education and STEM-related organizations over the years. Congratulations, Cindy!
Rick Tollakson Honored by Easter Seals
Longtime ABI Board Member Rick Tollakson (Hubbell Realty Company, West Des Moines) is well-known for his philanthropic efforts in Greater Des Moines and around Iowa. In that regard, Rick is a longtime supporter of Easterseals Iowa’s Camp Sunnyside. The camp serves children with special needs and Rick and Hubbell Realty have helped lead the camp in an expansion of service and facilities. Camp Sunnyside recently re-named a newly-renovated building as the Rick Tollakson Wellness Center. ABI salutes Rick for his leadership and service; congratulations Rick!
Weatons Celebrate Their Anniversary
In last week’s memo, I meant to mention that two great ABI leaders would be celebrating. The big day was yesterday, as former ABI Chair Lori Schaefer-Weaton (Agri-Industrial Plastics Company, Fairfield) and former longtime ABI Board Member Nate Weaton (Weaton Capital, Fairfield) celebrated their anniversary. Happy belated anniversary to Lori and Nate!
David Bywater Celebrates Wednesday
Another ABI leader is celebrating. Former ABI Chair David Bywater (Bankers Advertising Company/Tru Art, Iowa City) will celebrate his birthday on Wednesday (April 20). Happy birthday, David!
Steffi Lee Dwyer Wins Blackburn Award
It was fun to see the news recently that ABI’s Communications and Public Policy Intern, Steffi Lee Dwyer, was honored with the 2022 M. Gene Blackburn Award. The award is presented each year to the Drake University Law School student who presents the Best Brief in the Drake Moot Court Competition. Congratulations, Steffi!