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Young people looking for a great place to live and work will find Iowa has more to offer them than the rest of the nation. Iowa’s great economic and lifestyle factors rank the state 3rd is third in the nations for favorable conditions for young people according to MoneyRates.com. Among the 10 factors in the report where Iowa shines are employment, cost of education, auto insurance, affordable and available housing, nightlife, and healthfulness. Read the entire report.
Cedar Falls Community Main Street
Announces New Associate Events and Promotions Coordinator
Cedar Falls, IA – The Cedar Falls Community Main Street Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Emily Yaddof began her duties at Community Main Street August 1 and will be serving as the new Associate Events and Promotions Coordinator.
Yaddof was raised in Northeast Iowa in rural McGregor. She attended Iowa State University, graduating with a degree in Marketing and a degree in Technical Communication. After college, she returned to Northeast Iowa, accepting a position with the Clayton County Development Group where she spent almost two years promoting tourism and economic development opportunities in Clayton County.
Yaddof is thrilled to have the opportunity to join the Cedar Falls Community Main Street team “I have heard very good things about Community Main Street and I am looking forward to the new opportunities my role as Associate Events and Promotions Coordinator will bring.”
Cedar Falls Community Main Street, Inc. is a volunteer, non-profit organization established to foster economic vitality while preserving and promoting the historic image and character of the downtown.
The well documented but still emerging bankruptcy of PFGBEST placed the Cedar Valley of Iowa in the national headlines. In the wake, nearly 200 people were left out of work, financial obligations to global investors, suppliers, and a variety of other interests, including the GCVAC remain unmet. Though this event and its fallout present challenges, it also opens doors of opportunity for Cedar Valley businesses and GCVAC to respond with practical and creative solutions.
A state of the art building filled with advanced information technology infrastructure is now available for growth of a Cedar Valley business, or a new corporate citizen. Further, the availability of former PFG and MyVerona employees provides an opportunity for local companies to hire well trained and highly skilled talent in a wide range of jobs.
To facilitate this, the Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber established Cedar Valley Talent Connect. In cooperation with our local economic development partners, workforce agencies and the GCVAC investor base, Talent Connect facilitates the match of PFG’s displaced job seekers with businesses looking to hire through job fairs, and web-based tools for sharing resumes and job postings. Beyond the immediate circumstances, Cedar Valley Talent Connect will be further developed and deployed to respond to ongoing demand for skilled, talented people in the Cedar Valley.
The national and regional media attention is providing opportunities to accentuate our talented people and expanding businesses. By concentrating on helping you, our investors, to match your open job opportunities with available PFG talent, and seeking future uses for the extraordinary, available headquarters building, we’re working to keep the demise of PFG from overshadowing the great things that are happening all over the Cedar Valley economic area. We will continue to use the attention drawn by this unfortunate event to present the stories of success of our businesses and talented people of the Cedar Valley. Our – your – resilience and determination to succeed is the correct, lasting storyline.
Tuesday, July 17th, The Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber hosted a Campaign Kick-off event to launch their Fulfilling the Vision2 campaign and to unveil their five-year Plan for Regional Growth . The event, held at the Waterloo Center for the Arts, was hosted by Campaign Chairman Thad Nevitt of Deere & Company. A broad-based program celebrated recent accomplishments and Alliance economic development activities presented by Alliance & Chamber CEO, Steve Dust. A presentation of The Plan for Regional Economic Growth was given by Alliance & Chamber Board Chair -elect Kris Hansen. Outgoing Alliance & Chamber Board Chair Hugh Field also made comments.
Among those in attendance were regional businesses and institutions who have already made commitments to the current campaign, those who have participated in the past as well as potential investors in the campaign. The Fulfilling the Vision 2 campaign funds the ongoing efforts of the Alliance & Chamber to support existing local business, attract new business, and aid in the retention, development and attraction of talent to the greater Cedar Valley Region of Iowa.
FtV2 is the follow-up campaign to the successful Fulfilling the Vision initiative of the Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber. With this new campaign, the Alliance & Chamber will be raising the Cedar Valley to a greater power.
Goals of the campaign are as follows; to develop and strengthen a technology and innovation based regional economy, to act as a catalyst and focal point of effective regional action on economic issues of importance to businesses and institutions throughout the Cedar Valley economic area, and to increase the effectiveness of Alliance organizations.
These goals will be reached through focused efforts in six areas: Workforce and Talent, Business Growth, Advocacy for the Cedar Valley, Increasing Cedar Valley Regional Collaboration, Cedar Valley Business Intelligence and Economic Performance Data, and Reporting Our Success.
The FtV2 Campaign Goal
The goal to raise $4.25 million through the FtV2 campaign will be invested over the next five years in our work to attain the business development goals.
FtV2 ROI Estimates
Most importantly, The Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber estimates that their efforts will generate 100 opportunities for business expansion, retention and recruitment, at an average of $5 million in value. They are also projecting new jobs with a target floor rate of $19 an hour. These jobs should influence produce $66,975,00 in annual total earnings adding $37,021,302 in annual area consumer expenditures and up to $5,787,220 in annual deposits for area banks.
A website and video have been produced for the campaign and can be viewed at www.FtV2.org.
The Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber (GCVA&C) is a private, not-for-profit corporation whose investors and members include businesses, institutions, governments and professionals dedicated to continuously improving the economic environment and quality of life in the Cedar Valley.
The Cedar Valley-generally encompassing a 30-mile radius around the Waterloo/Cedar Falls metro-is one economy comprised of thriving corporations, enterprise-level institutions and locally owned businesses, as well as talented, skilled people pursuing careers and enjoying life.
The Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber, along with other agencies is hosting an information meeting for PFG & MyVerona employees at Hawkey Community College, Tama Hall on Wednesday, July 18th, 2012, from 1:00 -3:00pm. The meeting will be lead by Iowa Workfoce Development and about a dozen other agencies. Read more here.
The Courier reports that the CBE Group announced Friday that it will re-occupy its building located at 4140 Kimball Ave. in Waterloo allowing the company the ability to bring more jobs to the Cedar Valley
After more than a year of working collaboratively, Phantom EFX, a Cedar Falls, Iowa company that publishes and develops casino games for social, casual and mobile gaming entertainment, was acquired Friday by WMS Gaming of Waukegan, IL, a publicly traded Fortune 500 company.
The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reported that Phantom EFX’s 35 employees will remain in Cedar Falls, and that they hope to add more tech jobs within the next 18 months. Aaron Schurman of Phantom EFX anticipates the Cedar Falls operation to double in size.
(06/14/2012, Waterloo, IA) – The Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber announced today the debut of their new business-focused website. The Alliance & Chamber brought the features and related information from multiple economic development and chamber of commerce sites, into one integrated web presence (www.cedarvalleyalliance.com).
The Alliance & Chamber’s website serves as a resource for new and growing businesses, important economic and community data including economic profiles, demographics, major employers, cost of living and more. In addition, it will highlight tools and resources for members including legislative advocacy efforts, quality of life amenities, education and workforce resources, as well as business education and networking events and promotional opportunities for member/ investors.
To increase traffic, this media-rich website has maximized search engine optimization, social media integration, and value-added features such as a events calendar and enhanced membership directory. The directory now includes links to investor websites, video, introduction, and social media. These features, along with tools to promote events and products will provide greater exposure and drive more traffic to member/investor websites and locations.
Fresh content, relevant to the business community will be posted frequently including the latest press releases, community and economic news, TechWorks and legislative advocacy updates, and timely postings from the CEO. The new media center allows visitors to access links to online versions of print publications and newsletters with Courier Communications and other Cedar Valley media partners. The video and photo galleries give viewers a more complete picture of the Cedar Valley communities and resources.
The flexibility of the new site allows information about the entire Cedar Valley economic area to be added.
To further enhance the sites value proposition to investors and users, a mobile application will be launched later this summer. The application, will allow smart phone users to access the fully searchable investor business directory, find businesses closest to them, access information about current promotions, provide single click mapping and dialing to businesses, plus news and event reminders.
“The new website is an advanced tool for providing resources and information to our investors, the Cedar Valley and businesses considering locating to our region,” explains Steven J. Dust Greater Cedar Valley Alliance and Chamber CEO, “It helps us achieve our primary goal; to provide information instantly that accommodates both today’s product selection and buying decisions as well as business location decisions.”
The Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber brings together nearly 900 businesses, local governments, healthcare and educational institutions to make the Cedar Valley of Iowa one of the nation’s best places to do business and enjoy life. With the support and efforts of the investors and member volunteers, the Alliance & Chamber serves as a conduit for information about the region, its businesses and the issues that affect them and provides opportunities for significant professional networking, business education and promotion. The Alliance & Chamber supports workforce & talent development, and aggressively works to improve our positive climate for business expansion and growth.
The Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber encourages interested parties to Be Part of Something Greater by visiting www.cedarvalleyalliance.com.
The Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber announces nominations are open for a variety of business awards to be presented during the 2012 Annual Celebration on Thursday, March 29th at the 5 Sullivan Brothers Convention Center. “The Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber Annual Celebration is one of my favorite events. It gives us the opportunity to thank all our investors and members for all they do to make the Cedar Valley a great place to do business. The businesses and individuals recognized always bring inspirational stories of success. It’s the high point of the evening,” said Bob Justis, Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber.
Do you know of an individual who should be recognized for their contributions in creating a strong business climate and enhancing the quality of life in the Cedar Valley by continued service and leadership? Has a business or organization, made an outstanding contribution to the Cedar Valley and its citizens on a continued basis or with a specific project? You are encouraged to nominate them for recognition of their contributions.
“The nominees and award winners demonstrate what a successful economy we have. It’s important and fun to recognize those who are investing capital, creating jobs and really making a difference,” said Alliance & Chamber CEO Steve Dust.
Nominations are being accepted through February 10th for the following awards:
• Business of the Year Award
• Harold Brock Innovation Award
• Treating Capital Well Award
• Fulfilling the Vision of One Award
• Cedar Valley Partner Award
Descriptions of the awards and nomination forms are available at the Alliance & Chamber offices or online at www.greatercedarvalleychamber.com under the “Resource Documents” link. Please contact Bette Wubbena at bwubbena@cedarvalleyalliance.com for more information.
The Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber works to increase wealth and economic vitality through collaborative economic and community development throughout The Cedar Valley economic area.
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