Executive Committee Meeting Wednesday - Monday Memo 7/15/24
July 15, 2024
Executive Committee to Meet; New Fiscal Year Begins
On Wednesday, members of the association’s Executive Committee will hold their first meeting of the 2025 fiscal year. ABI Chair Chad Reece (Winnebago Industries, Forest City) will call the meeting to order by Zoom at 10:00 that morning.
As is typical for July, the meeting will provide a review of ABI’s programs and strong financial condition to mark the start of the year. Preliminary numbers for the 2024 ABI Taking Care of Business Conference will also be discussed and it is clear that last month’s annual event was a smashing success.The Executive committee will next meet on August 14th, with the ABI Board of Directors holding its first meeting of the fiscal year on September 11th. Watch for more news as it develops.
Annual Business Horizons Program NOW UNDERWAY at Drake University
Business Horizons, the ABI Foundation’s annual entrepreneurism experience for high school students, kicked off yesterday at Drake University in Des Moines. Members of the class will graduate in a special ceremony to be held this Thursday, July 18th. If you have never seen this program, find time to stop by Drake this week. The students are wonderful and have high energy, creativity, and incredible enthusiasm. At the end of the week, students have learned that they have terrific opportunities for a great career right here in Iowa.
Thank you to those of you who have provided help for this popular annual program. Your employees, whether they serve as industry advisors or in other roles, are critical to the longtime success of this important program. Look for a full report on this year’s BH session at the September meeting of the ABI Board of Directors.
ABI Executive Forum August 8, 9
There is still plenty time for you to register for the 2024 ABI Executive Forum. Click here for more information and to register: Summary - Executive Forum (Members Only) (cvent.com). The forum will be held the 8th and 9th of August in North Iowa. Thursday’s events take place in various locations around Mason City, but start at 10:00 that morning with a tour at longtime ABI member Stellar Industries. Friday’s concluding breakfast and tour takes place at longtime ABI member Winnebago Industries in Forest City.
Following the Stellar tour on Thursday, the event moves to the well-known MacNider Art Museum for a terrific lunch program. We’ll be welcomed by Mason City Mayor Bill Schickel and we’ll also hear from a couple of area business leaders, Kim Pang and MercyOne North Iowa president Chad Boore).
Following lunch on Thursday, we’ll move to the Historic Park Inn Hotel and a program featuring Wells Fargo Senior Economist Dr. Michael Swanson. A terrific panel including ABI Board Members Heather Bruce (Osmundson Mfg. Co. Perry), Tim Conlon (Conlon Construction, Dubuque), and Peter Voorhees (Standard Golf Co., Cedar Falls) will come next.
Former ABI Chair Mary Andringa (Vermeer Corporation, Pella) will then serve as our keynote speaker for the day. As noted in previous memos, Mary is a second generation leader of her family’s company and is now Chair Emerita. We’ll take a break and then Mary’s remarks will be followed by a reception and dinner that evening at Mason City’s fabulous Music Man Square events center.
Friday morning, we’ll move to Winnebago and remarks by ABI Chair Chad Reece (Winnebago Industries, Forest City).The manufacturing tour that follows will conclude what you can see is a fabulous program. Make plans now to join 70 other ABI leaders in North Iowa in August!
Leadership Iowa University to Begin in Three Weeks
Another popular ABI Foundation program takes place in a little less than three weeks. Starting on August 4th, talented Iowa college students will assemble for the annual session of the Leadership Iowa University program. Students come from Iowa’s public universities, private colleges, and from community colleges and all will learn about our state and ways they can impact its future. LIU class programs have received rave remarks from students, college officials, ABI leaders, and others.
There is still plenty of time for students to apply for the program and potential participants should apply now at www.LeadershipIowaUniversity.com. Applications will be accepted until the program is filled. With any questions, contact Jessi McQuerry at jsteward@iowaabi.org.
Just as is the case with Business Horizons, great supporters and donors and terrific volunteers make LIU possible. Thank you to all involved.
Policy Committee Meetings Start Next Month
With the holding of the final ABI Regional Policy Meetings last month, the association’s policy development process moves to the next stage, the holding of the five policy committee meetings in August. The ABI Workplace and Product Safety Committee will kick things off on August 6th.
Regarding each of the committees, dozens of members have already registered for these important meetings. If you haven't already done so, there is still plenty of time for you and your employees to register. Simply go to https://www.iowaabi.org/events/ to register for the committee meetings of interest to you.
Thank you to ABI Vice Chair Kellan Longenecker (General Mills, Avon) for leading this process. The ABI Board of Directors will act on the policy recommendations at the September board meeting.
Pre-Employment Testing Webinar Series Coming in July, September, December
For years, ABI hosted a single day conference related to pre-employment testing. After receiving feedback from members, that conference has been re-developed as a webinar series. Webinars will be held on July 30th, September 17th, and December 10th and will last an hour. Get the latest information and best practices when it comes to effective pre-employment testing and related issues. To learn more, click here: Summary - Pre-Employment Testing Process Webinar Series (cvent.com).
ABI Advisory Council Webinar July 31; ESOP 101: Options for Selling Your Business
Members of the ABI Advisory Council can be a great resource for your business. In that regard, AC members have created a webinar to help you learn about options available to you as you contemplate transitioning your business to new ownership. On July 31st, AC members will host an hour-long webinar that focuses on Employee Stock Ownership Plans as a potential transition method. Click here for more information and to register: Advisory Council Webinar: ESOP 101: An Introduction to Options for Selling Your Business | Iowa Association of Business and Industry (iowaabi.org).
Registration Now Open for ABI Executive Open; Foursomes Adding Up Quickly
As I noted last week, registrations are pouring in for the ABI Executive Open, one of ABI's most popular annual events. Dozens of foursomes have already signed-up for the event, which will be held August 26th at Glen Oaks Country Club in West Des Moines. Register now at Summary - Executive Open (cvent.com). If you like golf, or if you just like to have fun and network with your fellow ABI members, attend this event!
ABI's Elevate Program to Host Annual Legends in Manufacturing Awards Event
As you know, ABI's Elevate Advanced Manufacturing will be accepting nominations for the annual "Legends in Manufacturing Awards." Past Legends Dinners have been a huge success and a terrific celebration of Iowa manufacturing. Your help is needed to ensure that Iowa manufacturers are honored for their hard work and dedication. The nomination link on the Legends website will soon be available and look for a link in an upcoming Monday Memo. Then, please make your nominations (there is no charge to do so). By the way, the awards will again be presented in a luncheon format as a part of ABI’s Iowa Manufacturing Conference. Look for more information soon!
Latest Business Monthly Published
The latest edition of ABI’s monthly newsprint magazine, the ABI Business Monthly, should already be in your mailbox. We hope you enjoy this edition of the Business Monthly and if for some reason you didn’t receive it, please reply to this memo and I’ll make sure one is sent to you right away. Thank you to longtime ABI member Corridor Media Group, which publishes the journal in both the Corridor Business Journal and the Quad Cities Business Journal and distributes it across the state.
Something Fun: Clips from KXEL Program Director Jeff Stein
You have heard me say often that KXEL Radio Program Director Jeff Stein is Iowa’s best business broadcaster. By that I don’t mean Mr. Stein is a shill for business interests, as he most certainly is not. But he gets business issues, he understands the marketplace, he knows Iowa businesses all across our state, and he highlights interesting bushiness stories in his various (he is a prolific broadcaster, author, and speaker) media outlets.
Mr. Stein recently shared two clips that illustrate his prowess. The first is a clip in which speaks with U.S. Senator Charles Grassley about the recent manufacturing tour that made a stop at longtime ABI member Vermeer Corporation in Pella. In another clip, ABI Vice President Public Policy JD Davis discusses ABI’s business advocacy. Thank you to Jeff Stein for his work; ABI salutes you!
Cemen Tech Expands to SW United States
While longtime ABI member Cemen Tech has customers all over the world, a new partnership will expand the company’s sales in Colorado and New Mexico. Cemen Tech will partner with 4Rivers Equipment to offer concrete production solutions to customers in the new territory. Click here to read more about this exciting initiative: Cemen Tech Expands with New 4Rivers Equipment Partnership. Congratulations to everyone at Cemen Tech, including CEO and president and longtime ABI board Member Connor Deering (Cemen Tech, Indianola)!
Jack Hasken Continues State Board Leadership
In last week’s memorandum, I noted that longtime ABI Board Member Kelly Barrick (CIBC Bank, West Des Moines) had been reappointed the Iowa Workforce Development Board. However, that wasn’t the only good news related to the board. I somehow missed that Former ABI Chair Jack Hasken (Jackson Mfg., Maquoketa) had also been reappointed to the board by Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds. Jack served as Vice Chair of the board for several years and is terrific board member. My apologies, Jack, and congratulations!
BCC Advisers Facilitates Tigerhawk Sale
It was announced last week that a longtime manufacturer in SE Iowa has been sold. Tigerhawk Profiles has been acquired by Midland Plastics. Midland is based in Wisconsin, but has plants in a number of states, including Iowa.
Longtime ABI member BCC Advisers was able to ensure that the goals of Tigerhawk’s owners were reached in the sale. It wasn’t just about money, the company wanted to ensure Tigerhawk’s long-term viability and continued contribution to the SE Iowa economy. BCC made it possible for that to happen. Congratulations to all involved, including BCC President and longtime ABI Board Member Steve Jacobs (BCC Advisers, Des Moines)!
Three ABI Leaders Celebrate
Every year at this time, we note that several ABI leaders are celebrating birthdays. Former ABI Chair Jack Hasken (Jackson Mfg., Maquoketa), ABI Board member Kirk McCollough (Seneca Foundry, Webster City), and Former ABI Chair Kirk Tyler (Atlantic Coca-Cola Bottling Company, Waukee) are all celebrating their birthdays this week. Happy birthday to Jack and to Kirk and Kirk!
Rob Feeney Celebrates Birthday
This might be the third year in a row that I have somehow missed the birthday of ABI Board member and company President Rob Feeney (Atlantic Coca-Cola Bottling Company, Des Moines), who celebrated his birthday last Tuesday, July 11th. Happy Belated Birthday, Rob; hope it was a great day!
Fishers Celebrate
Thursday is the 37th anniversary of the wedding of former longtime ABI Board Member Rand Fisher and his wife, Cyndi Fisher. Best anniversary wishes to Rand and Cyndi!