Record Crowd Expected for Legislative Reception - Monday Memo 1/14/19
January 14, 2019
Big Day of ABI Events Wednesday
Last year, ABI saw a record pace of registrations for the annual Legislative Briefing and Reception. This year, pre-registrations numbers have broken last year’s record. Over 400 people are already registered. As I noted last week, add legislators, other state officials, and on-site registrants, and it is clear that the crowd will easily top 500 people.
The 2019 edition of the briefing/reception and other ABI events take place the day after tomorrow; Wednesday, January 16. All of the events will be held at the Community Choice Credit Union Convention Center in downtown Des Moines.
Because you attend, legislators and other state officials attend. They want to meet you and learn about your business. If you haven’t already registered, simply reply to this memo and I’ll make sure you are registered. Thank you in advance for participating and see you Wednesday.
ABI Board Will Meet Wednesday; Will Hear Search Update
Prior to Wednesday’s briefing and reception, the ABI Board of Directors will hold its first meeting of 2019. The board will meet at 2:00 p.m. at the Community Choice Credit Union Convention Center. ABI Chair David Bywater (Bankers Advertising/Tru Art, Iowa City) will lead the board through a fast-paced meeting. Strong attendance numbers are expected.
One agenda item is an update on ABI’s public policy staff search. A targeted search is well underway, with a small group of professionals being considered. More news will be shared at the board meeting.
Annual Resource Guide Available Soon
The annual ABI Business Resource Guide and membership directory is being finalized and will be printed and available soon.
Look for your 2019 directory to arrive in the near future. In the meantime, thank you. Your support in terms of people, resources, and ideas is what makes the guide (and ABI itself) possible.
Latest Business Record Iowa Out; Governor, IIPAC Contributors Featured on Cover
As you know, over four years ago, ABI partnered with the Des Moines Business Record to publish the brand new Business Record Iowa magazine. This newsprint magazine is published monthly (as opposed to six times per year for the previous ABI publication) and is distributed statewide to about four times the audience.
We hear more and more frequently from members that they find value in BRIowa and that's good. If you have questions or need additional copies, please contact me. And if you have story ideas, we are always interested in those, too.
In the meantime, congratulations and thank you to this month's BRIowa cover stars, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds and major donors to IIPAC, ABI’s political action committee. By the way, if you didn’t receive your copy of BRIowa, reply to this memo and we’ll get one to you right away.
First ABI Legislative Teleconference of 2019 on the 25th
ABI's Public Policy team will again hold monthly teleconferences related to the work of the Iowa General Assembly. The first call of the 2019 session is a week from Friday (January 25) at 8:00 a.m.
Members have told us they appreciate these calls, which offer the very latest in news from the Statehouse. As I noted in last week's memo, the calls typically last about 30 minutes and you and your employees are invited to participate. Please click here for more information about the call, free and open to ABI members only: Register now at https://www.iowaabi.org/events/2019-01-25/.
Conference Committee Meets; Primary Hotel Nears Sold-Out Status
ABI's 116th Annual Meeting, Iowa's Taking Care of Business Conference 2019, will be held June 4-6 in Ames. There will be many highlights to the conference, including terrific speakers and exciting venues such as Jack Trice Stadium and Hilton Coliseum (https://cyclones.com/facilities/). Another highlight is golf at the beautiful Ames Golf and Country Club (https://www.amesgolfcc.com/).
The committee planning this fantastic conference, which is chaired by Lisa Patterson (Bankers Advertising/Tru Art, Iowa City) met last week at ABI. One issue discussed at the meeting was the fact that the main conference hotel, the Gateway Hotel and Conference Center, is very nearly sold-out. Plenty of rooms are still available at other conference hotels (https://www.iowaabi.org/events/annual-conference/) and in fact, another hotel will be added. Watch for more information soon.
ABI events have been breaking attendance records for the past several years, with each drawing a larger number than the previous events of the same kind. On behalf of ABI Chair David Bywater (Bankers Advertising/Tru Art, Iowa City), please consider this your personal invitation to attend the ABI Conference. We'll see you in Ames in June.
ABI Advisory Council Continues Strong Support; Will Meet Thursday
Members of the ABI Advisory Council provide incredible value for the association's general membership. Terrific information, technical programs, subject-matter expertise, and more are available to ABI members thanks to the Advisory Council.
The council will hold its January meeting Thursday at ABI. Thank you to 21st Century Rehab, ACS, BCC Advisers, BrownWinick, CIRAS, CliftonLarsonAllen, EMC Insurance, Far Reach, Focus OneSource, HDH Advisors, LMC Insurance and Risk Management, Principal Midwest Business Center, Shift Interactive, Tero, The Iowa Clinic, Wellmark, and Wells Fargo.
Leadership Iowa Class Will Meet; LI Dinner Wednesday
At 36 years, the ABI Foundation's Leadership Iowa program is one of the nation's oldest statewide leadership development programs. As you know, LI enjoys a strong base of alumni.
Those alumni will meet this Wednesday evening for an LI Alumni Dinner in Des Moines. There is still time for you to register. Do so here: http://www.cvent.com/events/leadership-iowa-alumni-dinner-celebration/event-summary-49107dec5b7d4babaae4c8fb454ef01a.aspx.
And, the current LI class will hold its January session this Wednesday – Friday. A full and varied agenda is on tap for the class. It will focus on government and will end with an exciting National Guard experience.
ABI Foundation Auction Re-Energized; Your Unique Donations Desired
Over the years, the auction benefitting the programs of the ABI Foundation has been a big part of the annual ABI conference. Now, work is underway to re-energize the auction and make it bigger and better than ever.
A committee of ABI/ABI Foundation leaders has come together to make that happen. Chad Alley (Brieholz Construction, Des Moines), Kim Butler Hedeges (Community State Bank, Ankeny), Alyson Fleming (Iowa Finance Authority, Des Moines), and Jason Gross (EMC Insurance, Des Moines) are leading the effort.
If your company manufactures a unique item, or if you have transferable travel points, or if you want to make a special donation of any kind, the committee wants to hear from you. Watch for more information soon and in the meantime, please contact ABI Foundation Vice President Becky Coady for more information at rcoady@iowaabi.org or (515) 235-0569.
Mary Landhuis, Nate Weaton Celebrate Birthdays
January is a busy time for ABI board members' birthdays. In addition to board members already noted in previous editions of the Monday Memo, two more ABI leaders are also celebrating. Happy birthday to board member Mary Landhuis (Lisle Corporation, Clarinda) and to former board member Nate Weaton (Weaton Capital, Fairfield)!
Atlantic Bottling Celebrates 110 years of Success
Longtime ABI member Atlantic Coca-Cola Bottling Company is well-known for its recent expansion when, two years ago, the company tripled in size overnight through an acquisition. What may not be as well-known is that the company will celebrate its 110th anniversary in 2019.
Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds and Lieutenant Governor Adam Gregg again visited the company’s Atlantic production facility to tour the plant and see the latest technology. Congratulations to everyone at Atlantic Bottling on their 110 years of success! Special congratulations to two former ABI Chairs: Company Executive Chairman Jim Tyler (Atlantic Coca-Cola Bottling Company, Atlantic) and Chairman/CEO Kirk Tyler (Atlantic Coca-Cola Bottling Company, Des Moines)!