ABI Online Allsteel Auction - Monday Memo 6/18/18

June 18, 2018

Online Foundation Auction LIVE Today

One highlight of the annual ABI Taking Care of Business Conference is the annual auction benefitting the programs of the ABI Foundation. THANK YOU to the many member companies that donate fabulous auction items and thank you to those who bid; every penny in proceeds goes to the foundation’s terrific programs. 

At the recent auction, circumstances did not make it possible to hold a representative live auction for the fabulous furniture donated by Allsteel.  By the way, we’ll be addressing that situation in future auctions.  For now, many members let us know they wanted to bid.  So, ABI is holding another of its somewhat famous online auctions. 

Please use this link to participate in the auction: https://www.32auctions.com/ABIFAuction2018.  When you access the link, you’ll find information about the auction and you can click on a green button to see photos of the furniture.  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 in advance for your participation and thanks again to Allsteel and to ABI Board Member Steven Bradford (HNI Corporation, Muscatine)

First Executive Committee Meeting of New Fiscal Year in Three Weeks

The Executive Committee/Board of Directors meeting schedule for 2018-2019 was provided to you in a message sent the week prior to the annual conference. Please mark your calendars for the next meeting of the ABI Board of Directors.  The board will next meet on September 12. 

In the meantime, members of the newly-constituted ABI Executive Committee will hold their first teleconference of the 2018-2019 fiscal year in just a little over three weeks.  The July Executive Committee teleconference will take place at 9:30 a.m. on July 11.  As is typical for July, the call is expected to be brief, but will provide an opportunity to review financial and membership data and receive program reports. 

Incoming ABI Chair David Bywater (Bankers Advertising/Tru Art, Iowa City) will be joined on the coming year’s Executive Committee by Vice Chair John Krogman (Connect-A-Dock, Atlantic), Treasurer Steven Bradford (HNI Corporation, Muscatine), Secretary Michael Sadler (CenturyLink, Des Moines), and Immediate Past Chair David Zrostlik (Stellar Industries, Garner).  Also on the committee are District Vice Chairs John Riches (Arconic, Davenport), Jack Hasken (Jackson Manufacturing, Maquoketa), J.D. Davis (MidAmerican Energy Company, Des Moines), Jack McFarland (Miller Products Company, Osceola), and Brent Kjelberg (Pella Corporation, Carroll). Look for a full report on any developments at the next meeting of the ABI Board of Directors. 

Leaders to Retire from ABI Board; New Board Members will Begin Terms July 1

In addition to officers, also elected at the 115th Annual Convention were new members of the ABI Board of Directors.  These individuals and/or their companies have long been active in ABI and like all of you, will make terrific board members.  They take the place of members who are completing their terms or otherwise leaving the ABI Board of Directors. 

Ending service on the board are Drew Larson (RAM Pattern, Le Claire), Vince Newendorp (Vermeer Corporation, Pella), David Nicholl (Grip-Tite Manufacturing Co., Winterset), Kim Pang (Diamond Jo, Northwood), Jerry Patterson (Principal, Des Moines), and Kirk Trede Eastern Iowa Light & Power, Wilton)Lori Schaefer- Weaton (Agri-Industrial Plastics Company, Fairfield), leaves her board slot as Immediate Past Chair, but in accordance with ABI Bylaws, remains a board member for life, as do all other former Chairs.  

Please join me in congratulating these individuals for their service and leadership and THANK YOU to these Iowa business leaders. 

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), Mindi VandenBosch (Vermeer Corporation, Pella), and the honorary Leadership Iowa board member, Molly Varangkounh (Hy-Capacity, Humboldt).  Congratulations to these incoming leaders. 

2018 Conference Photos Being Posted; 2019 ABI Convention in Ames

Many of you have shared great comments about the just-completed 2018 ABI Taking Care of Business Conference; thank you.  Many of you have also remarked that you wished to see photos from the conference. Some photos are already posted (please click here: http://www.iowaabi.org/events/photos/), but more will be posted in the coming days. Please check back often, as you might see yourself in one of the photos. 

The 2019 ABI Convention/Iowa's Taking Care of Business Conference will be held in Ames.  Plans are already underway to make the event truly spectacular.  Each year, conference committee members work hard to develop world-class experiences and next year, they will be able to do that with terrific facilities and with the use of some other fabulous surprises.  Mark your calendars now for June 4-6 of next year and make plans to join your ABI colleagues in Ames! 

Watch for Convention Survey in Your In-Box Soon

As I noted above, many of you have been kind to offer good words about the recently-held 115th Annual ABI Convention.  It was indeed a fantastic meeting, with great speakers, exciting venues, and terrific numbers of ABI members from all over Iowa and beyond.  

While Vice President Member Development and Programs Kathy Anderson, Member Programs Director Holly Mueggenberg, Membership Coordinator Dorothy Knowles, Communications Director David Hildahl, and Bookkeeper Chrissy Viers put the finishing touches on convention, your feedback is encouraged and desired.  Watch your email in-basket for a convention survey that will arrive soon, or may have already arrived.  Please take a few moments (that’s all it takes, I promise) to complete the survey and provide your counsel about how to make a great event even better.  

ABI Publishes Iowa HR Library

One of ABI’s popular services over the years has been to provide a library of reference books related to Human Resources and other issues.  The reference set is periodically updated and highlighted for those companies seeking such a resource and it is offered at a very nominal rate for ABI members.  For more information or to obtain a set of manuals, please contact the ABI office.  

IIPAC Fundraising Now Underway

The Iowa Industry Political Action Committee is ABI’s political arm and it is not pro-Republican or pro-Democrat; it is pro-business.  IIPAC is an important resource for pro-business candidates. 

Thanks to IIPAC Chair (and former ABI Chair) Kirk Tyler (Atlantic Coca-Cola Bottling Company, Des Moines) and the members of the IIPAC Board of Directors, the PAC is being re-energized.  Board members will tell you that your support is vital to the success of IIPAC and its mission. 

Fundraising for IIPAC really never stops, but it occurs in earnest during the summer and fall.  ABI Senior Vice President Public Policy Nicole Crain, Director Public Policy Jessica Hyland, Coordinator Public Policy Brad Hartkopf, with the help of Administrative Assistant Michelle Vollstedt, are now actively recruiting contributions.  The past few weeks have seen significant activity as far as IIPAC Revenues.  THANK YOU!  However, if you are on the ABI Board of Directors and have not yet contributed to IIPAC, we need you! 

I hope you will join your fellow ABI board and staff members by becoming an IIPAC contributor today.  Please click on this link for more information or to make a donation: https://www.iowaabi.org/public-policy/iipac/

More EPIC Interviews Thursday

In addition to raising money for ABI’s PAC, the public policy team is busy coordinating candidate interviews for Economic Progress for Iowa’s Citizens, the coalition of business groups administered by ABI. EPIC interviews candidates (Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians; anyone on the ballot) for open seat legislative and statewide races.  Interviews are slated for this Thursday (June 21) and next Tuesday (June 25). 

This Week: Nominate Students for Business Horizons to Take Advantage of Early-Bird Registration

Business Horizons, produced by the ABI Foundation, is the week-long entrepreneurial experience for Iowa high school students.  The 2018 session of the program is fast-approaching and there are just a few spots remaining. 

To take advantage of the early-bird registration fee, nominations of students should be received by Friday of this week. And if you have questions or wish to be involved, please don’t hesitate to contact ABI Foundation Vice President for Programs Kay Neumann-Thomas, Development Director Becky Coady, or Foundation Marketing Coordinator Jessi Steward.  Thank you to all these staff members and to Foundation Assistant Jane Galloway for their work in making BH and all Foundation programs a success.  In the meantime, thanks to the many of you who have already nominated Iowa high school students for selection to BH. 

Foundation Panels to Meet

Speaking of the ABI Foundation, two important Foundation entities will hold meetings this week. Both meetings are on Thursday. 

The ABI Foundation Board of Directors, chaired by Former ABI Chair Bill Brown (BrownWinick, Des Moines), will meet that morning.  The Leadership Iowa Board of Governors will meet that afternoon.  Watch for more information as it develops.

Register Now for 2018 ABI Executive Open at Des Moines Golf and Country Club

Each year I like to remind you that I am the fellow that predicted there wouldn't be much demand for participation in a new event created a few years ago, the ABI Executive Open.  Well, I was spectacularly wrong (again).  The event has become one of the association's most popular annual outings and it sells-out every year. 

The 2018 Open will be held Monday, August 27, at one of Iowa's most beautiful private courses, Des Moines Golf and Country Club in West Des Moines.  Click on this link to learn more about the club: http://www.dmgcc.org/.  It will make a fabulous location for the 2018 Executive Open.  Watch for registration information to be available soon.  See you in West Des Moines in August! 

ABI’s Elevate Program Now Accepting Legends Nominations

Please go now to the Elevate Iowa webpage.  There you can find information about nominations for worthy winners of the coveted Legends in Manufacturing Awards.  The 2018 Legends Dinner will be held in Altoona on October 2.  You can send a nomination letter to ABI (or drop it off), or mail it to 8510 New York Ave., Urbandale, Iowa 50322.  You can also email nominations to Elevate Coordinator Alex Monaghan at amonaghan@measuredintentions.com.  Thank you for helping us recognize Iowa’s great manufacturers! 

Employer Group Announces New Resource Related to Comparative Data in Healthcare

Many ABI member companies participate in the Iowa Employer Group that seeks to document costs and quality related to healthcare in Iowa. Last week, the group announced a new resource for employers and their employees, the Iowa Health Scores website. 

The site is dedicated to providing the best comparative tools available for Iowans choosing health care. For now, the site includes only hospitals (and a selected range of quality/patient safety ratings and metrics), but the site will be expanded over time. It is intended to be used as a guide and can assist consumers in seeking information about care for themselves and their families. 

The site is available to all Iowa employers. It can be added to your company website as a link or landing page. Information and education about the site for your employees is encouraged. You can view the new site here: http://iahealthscores.org/.  For more information, contact Paul Pietzsch at health@hpci.org

Opportunities in Iowa Manufacturing Publication Available

The Iowa Department of Education, along with ABI and ABI’s Elevate Advanced Manufacturing initiative, has recently published a report about manufacturing careers in Iowa.  The report was officially released at ABI’s Taking Care of Business Conference and it provides detailed information about career opportunities and how to access them.  For your own copy of the report, or for additional copies, please reply to this message and I’ll see that you receive them. 

SBA Seeks Your Input

The U.S. Small Business Association has invited ABI members to provide feedback about harmful and burdensome regulations and their impact on your business. Three small business regulatory roundtables will be held throughout Iowa next month. 

Roundtables will be held in Council Bluffs (July 17), Des Moines (July 18), and Dubuque (July 19). Please reply to this message for more information and to register. 

David Bywater Featured in Business Dailies

Both the Corridor Business Journal and the Des Moines Business Record publish daily electronic news reports. ABI’s soon-to-be-Chair David Bywater (Bankers Advertising/Tru Art, Iowa City) was featured in both reports a week ago today. The Business Record report quoted the CBJ report, which you can read here: http://myemail.constantcontact.com/CBJ-Business-Daily.html?soid=1102751454250&aid=QtQbLlgDNCw. Congratulations on the great coverage, David! 

Two ABI/Iowa Leaders Facing Health Issues

Last week was a tough one at ABI. Two prominent ABI leaders, who are also Iowa leaders in general, are facing serious health issues. 

Most of you know that former ABI Chair Lori Schaefer-Weaton (Agri-Industrial Plastics Company, Fairfield) is battling cancer.  Lori is undergoing an intensive five-month chemotherapy regimen and will undergo surgery in December.  

Most of you also know ABI Board Member Michael Sadler (CenturyLink, Des Moines).  A week ago yesterday, Michael had emergency surgery to repair a burst aortic aneurism. As a part of the surgery, an artificial valve was implanted in his heart.  Yesterday, Michael had surgery to remove blood clots from his lungs. 

Both Lori and Michael are their usual positive selves. In her case, Lori shares that the cancer was found and diagnosed early and that is positive.  In his case, Michael shares that his prognosis for a full recovery is good.  They were already sure of it, but I let Lori and Michael know they are in our thoughts and prayers every single day