Final Pre-Convention Board Meeting Next Week - Monday Memo 4/27/14

Board to Meet Next Week; Final Meeting Before Conference

The final ABI board meeting before the 2015 convention will be held next week.  ABI Chair Mark Hanawalt (United Equipment Accessories, Waverly) and the ABI Board of Directors will meet Wednesday, May 6 at the Prairie Links Golf and Events Center in Waverly.  The meeting will begin at 10:00 a.m. 

Please register your attendance now at http://www.cvent.com/events/may-abi-board-meeting/event-summary-719c68db686a46018b5f9bd3667b8d92.aspx.  Look for your usual packet of meeting materials to arrive in your email in-basket later this week.   On behalf of our ABI officers, I look forward to seeing you next week.

Dinner and TechWorks Tour Drawing Crowd

Several alternative activities are available around the board meeting.  First, the night before, you are welcome to join in dinner in Cedar Falls hosted by the Executive Committee.  if you wish to join us, please reply to this message so that we know for how many to plan.

Following the board meeting, a tour of the TechWorks Campus in Waterloo, made possible by ABI Board MemberSteve Dust (Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber, Waterloo), will take place.  A good crowd of board members is already planning for that, but spots remain.  Again, please reply to this message if you wish to join us.

Other activities include golf, Waverly tours, and more.  Please contact me for more information and we look forward to seeing you in Waverly.

ABI Foundation Seeks Your Nominations for Leadership Iowa, Business Horizons, LIU ; LI in Dubuque Next Week

As I have noted in recent editions of this memo, this is the time of year that the ABI Foundation is seeking your help to nominate worthy individuals for acceptance in Foundation programs.  Business Horizons, Leadership Iowa, and Leadership Iowa University are all in the nomination phase.  Go to http://www.leadershipiowa.com/ or tohttp://www.businesshorizonsiowa.com/ or to http://www.leadershipiowauniversity.com/ for more information.

Thank you to those of you who have already nominated individuals for these great Foundation programs.  By the way, the current LI class will meet in Dubuque next week. 

Nominating Committee to Meet May 14

As noted in last week’s Monday Memo, the ABI Nominating Committee will kick off its work soon.  The committee, which is chaired by Immediate Past Chair of the ABI Board of Directors, Myron R. Linn (Pella Corporation, Pella),will meet by teleconference on May 14.

In addition to Myron, members of the Committee include  ABI board members from each of the association's five statewide districts.  They are District 1 - Kirk Trede (Eastern Iowa Light & Power, Wilton), District 2 - Dee Baird (Metro Economic Alliance, Cedar Rapids), District 3 - Jason Gross (Nationwide, Des Moines), District 4 - Mary Landhuis, EZ Way, 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. 

Register NOW for 2015 ABI Taking Care of Business Conference; Blackhawk Sold-Out

The 112^th Annual ABI Convention, the 2015 ABI Taking Care of Business Conference, will be held in the Quad Cities June 10-12.  As I noted last week, first class venues, terrific speakers, golf at one of the PGA's top courses, and the very best business networking in Iowa will make the 2015 meeting one for the record books.  Almost 300 people are already registered for the conference.

In conference-related news, ABI was notified last week by officials with the Hotel Blackhawk, the main conference hotel, that it is sold-out.  That's okay, because there are other terrific hotels, such as the Isle of Capri Hotel, and others, that will provide great lodging for conference attendees.  Click on this link for more information:http://www.cvent.com/events/2015-annual-abi-conference/custom-19-03d0fa194e70462bad589a50955c2275.aspx.

The bottom line is you want to make your lodging reservations -- and register for the conference -- NOW. Simply reply to this message and we’ll take care of the registration process for you!  Or, you can find the convention link it at the association’s website at www.iowaabi.com.  Just click on the convention icon at the top of the page.  See you in the Quad Cities  in June!

Connecting Statewide Leaders Event Next Week in Dubuque

As you saw in last week's Memo, the next event in ABI's Connecting Statewide Leaders Series will be held in Dubuque a week from  Thursday (on May 7).  ABI Advisory Council Member Rob Kane (CliftonLarsenAllen, Cedar Rapids) will facilitate an interesting and informative panel discussion.  The event will be followed by a reception.  Click on this link for more information: http://www.cvent.com/events/connecting-statewide-leaders/event-summary-9b775a41131d4ea383f4b6cde7c2b917.aspx.

Search Update

As you know, the search for a new member programs and development director is well underway.  Dozens of terrific applications were received and we are now reviewing those applications.  The list of candidates will then be narrowed and preliminary interviews conducted.  Following that, officers will be invited to meet with a small group of finalists. 

As I noted last week, competition for the position is fierce.  Thanks to the fantastic leadership provided by the board of directors, ABI is a sought-after employer.  I am excited by the quality of applicants and I know the successful candidate will play a key role in taking ABI to an even higher level of performance.  Stay tuned.

Check the ABI Events Calendar Often

Between ABI and the ABI Foundation, our organization is sponsoring events throughout Iowa all year long.  Please allow this note to serve as a reminder to check the ABI Events page often for information about upcoming events.  Simply go to /en/events_calendar/ for the latest events information.

There you can get further details about upcoming meetings and seminars, register your attendance, or find other information.  The page changes weekly so visit it frequently for the most up-to-date data.

NAM Report Cites Manufacturing Growth, But Static Economy Persists

As are many of you, I am an avid reader of the National Association of Manufacturers' Monday Economic Report.  Last week's report was more good reading.

The bottom line is that American manufacturing continues to enjoy very moderate growth (can something be 'very' moderate?).  Predictions for the general economy call for things to be static, without much growth.  Hopefully, manufacturing activity can lead to growth in the economy in general.  Please reply to this memo if you wish to receive last week's NAM report. 

Atlantic Bottling Expands Territory Through Historic Agreement with Coca-Cola

Longtime ABI member Atlantic Coca-Cola Bottling Company this week announced a major expansion of its territory in Iowa and now Southern Minnesota.  The Ames, Mason City, and Spirit Lake territories are all now part of Atlantic's operations, giving it a huge footprint.  The agreement marks a historic partnership between the company and the Coca-Cola Corporation.  Congratulations to two former ABI Chairs, company Chairman Jim Tyler (Atlantic Coca-Cola Bottling Company, Atlantic) and company President Kirk Tyler (Atlantic Coca-Cola Bottling Company, Waukee)!  by the way. the Tyler Family may soon have another expansion to announce, as Kirk's daughter and son-in-law are expecting their third child any day!

Toby Shine Receives ISRI Lifetime Achievement Award

Former ABI Chair Toby Shine (Shine Bros. Corp., Spencer) was awarded his industry's most prestigious honor last week in Vancouver.  That was the site of the annual convention of the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries, an ABI member and an international organization.  Toby was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award presented at the ISRI meeting.

Toby has worked in his family's century-old business since he was very young and he has led it to great success over the course of his several decades as the CEO.  ABI salutes and congratulates Toby Shine on this terrific and much-deserved honor!

Kendig Kneen Chairs International Convention

Speaking of ISRI, former ABI Chair Kendig Kneen (Al-Jon, Ottumwa) led the international exposition this year, chairing the Convention Committee for the Institute for Scrap Recycling Industries Annual Convention.  Congratulations, Kendig!

Lori Schaefer-Weaton Featured in News Video

ABI Executive Committee Member Lori Schaefer-Weaton (Agri-Industrial Plastics, Fairfield) is often quoted by the national media.  Her latest media appearance came last week, when Lori starred in a video clip produced by Plastics News magazine.  View the video here:http://www.plasticsnews.com/article/20150420/MULTIMEDIA01/150419939/what-keeps-you-up-at-night-lori-schaefer-weaton.  What a great clip and congratulations, Lori!

Tollakson, Bass Part of Business Record CRE Forum

Two ABI board members were a part of last week's Des Moines Business Record Commercial Real Estate Forum. Rick Tollakson (Hubbell Realty Company, West Des Moines) was a panelist.  As usual, Rick's insights were terrific and highly-valued by the sold-out crowd in attendance.  Doug Bass (Great Western Bank, Clive) also appeared and presented an award prior to the panel presentation.  ABI salutes both Rick and Doug!

CenturyLink Expands Through Acquisition

Longtime ABI member CenturyLink announced last week Tuesday its acquisition of Orchestrate, a company that offers a fully managed database service for rapid application development and expands CenturyLink's ability to serve its data customers.  Congratulations to the company and to ABI Board Member Michael Sadler (CenturyLink, Des Moines)!

Al Jennings Pens Register Letter

Former ABI Chair Al Jennings (EFCO, Des Moines) last week authored a letter carried in the Des Moines Register.  The letter focused on the incredible costs that would result from a new administrative rule proposed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.  Read the letter for yourself here:http://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/opinion/readers/2015/04/23/new-epa-standards-huge-price-tag/26216673/.  It was a great letter about an important topic and thank you, Mr. Jennings!