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GCVAC NOW ACCCEPTING NOMINATIONS FOR ANNUAL AWARDS

The Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber announce nominations are open for a variety of business awards to be presented during the 2013 Annual Celebration on Thursday, March7th  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 January 18th 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. cedarvalleyalliance.com/programsandevents .  For additional information, please contact Bette Wubbena  at bwubbena@cedarvalleyalliance.com or 232-1156.

 

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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GCVAC Work the Valley Talent Tells All Event to Help Employers See What They Are Missing.

The Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber is bringing together a panel of recent college graduates and young professionals to share ideas for how the Cedar Valley employers can become more engaged with the local, YP population.    

CEDAR VALLEY of IOWA (December 3, 2012)—On Friday, December 7st from 10 am-12pm, the Greater Cedar Valley Alliance and Chamber (GCVAC) will host a panel discussion to help Cedar Valley employers improve their recruitment practices.  This event, titled Talent Tells All, part of the GCVAC’s “Work the Valley” program, will feature approximately six, young professionals who chose positions in communities outside the Cedar Valley.  The goal of the event is to provide candid feedback in order to make Cedar Valley employers more competitive and attractive to college graduates and young professionals. All Cedar Valley business leaders and HR professionals are encouraged to attend the event to be held at Hilton Gardens Inn & Conference Center, 7213 Nordic Dr., Cedar Falls, IA.

“We are always looking for better ways to attract and retain talented young professionals. Work the Valley events help us highlight the outstanding opportunities the Cedar Valley has to offer. We believe the fresh perspectives and frankness of the Talent Tells All conversations will help Cedar Valley employers increase their competitiveness in the race to secure highly skilled talent,” said Steve Dust, CEO of GCVAC.

Talent Tells All, made possible by a partnership with UNI Career Services, is part of the GCVAC’s focus on workforce development for the Cedar Valley. Having more young professionals choose local opportunities over those in outside communities, is a key to business growth and innovation says Britt Jungck, Director of Business Services for the Alliance and Chamber, “Our goal is to increase the contact between our top employers and the emerging talent in this community.  We want our young professionals to see the career opportunities and become inspired to get invested in our community, and we want our businesses to get access to fresh ideas through this impressive generation of rising professionals.”

Employers interested in attending the event or desiring more information on GCVAC workforce initiatives can contact Brittany Jungck, Director of Business Services at the GCVAC office:  (319) 232-1156.

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Branstad to Visit Cedar Valley to Promote Local SkilledIowa Campaign

The Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber is hosting Governor Terry Branstad and Teresa Wahlert, Director of Iowa Workforce Development to promote the local SkilledIowa campaign aimed at creating a robust talent pool for the 21st century workforce.

 

Cedar Valley of Iowa (Nov. 8, 2012) All Cedar Valley businesses are encouraged to attend a SkilledIowa presentation featuring Governor Terry Branstad and Teresa Wahlert, Director of Iowa Workforce Development. They are in the Cedar Valley in support of the Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber and Hawkeye Community College’s partnership to develop a SkilledIowa Communities program and promoting involvement of local employers. The presentation will include information on how Cedar Valley business and industry can become a Featured Employer, the positive impact of the National Career Readiness Certificate (NCRC) testing system and how to gain access to job profiling advice from workforce professionals.

 

 

The GCVAC is promoting the SkilledIowa program as a tool for our employers to attract and retain quality talent. Representatives from the GCVAC and Hawkeye Community College’s IowaWORKS division will be available to answer questions.

 

“The supply of high quality talent is a key component to economic growth,” states Steve Dust, CEO of the Alliance & Chamber, “Our role is to encourage and facilitate the participation of Cedar Valley companies and institutions so they can fill their positions with skilled job seekers.”

 

The event is free, but seating is limited.  The program will begin at 3pm in the auditorium inside Barrett Forum Auditorium on the Allen College Campus (1990 Heath Street, 50703.

GCVAC Investor Company Far Reach Partner Kate Washut Wins Women of Innovation Award

Cedar Falls–Kate Washut, Partner at Cedar Falls-based Far Reach received a Dupont Pioneer Iowa Women of Innovation Award.  Washut won the award in the category of “Entrepreneurial Innovation & Leadership.”   The Iowa Women of Innovation Awards are presented annually by the Technology Association of Iowa and recognize women who are leaders in science, technology, engineering, or math.

 

Winners and finalists were honored at a dinner and ceremony in Des Moines on November 15.   Washut was recognized for her accomplishments in technology, including starting her company Far Reach with four other partners in 2007.  Far Reach is based in downtown Cedar Falls and offers web design and development services, custom software development, mobile technology solutions, and technology and marketing consulting.  Washut was also instrumental in the development of two additional companies, Hired Hand Software and Nu Squared Software.   Washut worked with other technology leaders in the Cedar Valley to establish the Cedar Valley TechBrew.  This event attracts around 100 attendees each month for idea sharing, networking, and start-up promotion.

 

The Technology Association of Iowa (TAI) is a professional service organization that strives to strengthen Iowa’s technology ecosystem and enhance the state’s reputation as a technically advanced place where world-class technology firms and organizations thrive. TAI’s Women of Innovation Awards is in its fifth year of honoring Iowa women.

 

For more information contact Sue Munnik at 319.273.8060, ext. 112, or sue@farreachinc.com.

 

More info:

http://farreachinc.com

http://www.technologyiowa.org/en/events_services/iowa_women_of_innovation/2012_women_of_innovation/

Top ED Recommendations to the Obama Administration

As part of their Winning the Race 2012 series of policy briefs, the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF)  offers this policy brief titled: TOP POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION TO HELP THE UNITED STATES WIN THE RACE FOR GLOBAL ADVANTAGE.  The brief addresses five key areas; Trade Sector Competativeness, Taxes, Science and R&D, STEM, and Skills Digital Economy.

ITIF is a non-partisan think tank whose mission is to formulate and promote policies to advance technological innovation and productivity internationally. For more information on ITIF, go to www.itif.org.

Review the policy brief here.

 

Economic Impact of Highways & DOT Budget

During a recent meeting of the Economic Development Policy committee of the Iowa Association of Business and Industry, chaired for the day by Mark Hanawalt, GCVAC investor and CEO of United Business Accessories, the Iowa Dept. of Transportation made a presentation on the needs for highway improvements. Here’s a link to the portion of the presentation on the economic impact of the highway system and program.

 

Vote for job creation, favorable business climate and prosperity

The Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber is proud to participate in the  Iowa Prosperity Project (P2) sponsored by Economic Progress for Iowa ‘s Citizens (EPIC), a not-for-profit entity founded in 1991 by a number of businesses and statewide business associations. EPIC is a non-partisan organization dedicated to research and the dissemination of data on the attitudes of Iowa ‘s citizens, legislators, and legislative candidates on matters affecting business.

Like the GCVAC, EPIC believes that Iowa and its citizens will benefit from a “pro-business” environment. The resources found on the P2 website neither endorse nor oppose any candidate for public office, rather, it is a resource to inform the electorate by publicizing issues and factual information on those issues, and to be active participants in the political process.

The GCVAC encourages you to subscribe our Legislative Relations blog where we will be providing local insights and links to resources including P2 .
Use the link in the right side column to subscribe.

With all the political messages filling the media, it can be confusing whose name will be on your local ballet.
Find your candidates by entering your full street address below. You may also enter just your zip code if you wish.
Click here.

Use this search form to find your elected officials at all levels of government  and  see how your incumbent performed in the last term.
Click here.

Election Insights is a political analysis publication of the Business Industry Political Action Committee (BIPAC). BIPAC is an independent, bipartisan organization, that is supported by several hundred of the nation’s leading businesses and trade associations.

“The importance of election at the state level cannot be emphasized enough. While most of the focus and attention revolves around the tightening presidential race and a few contests for the U.S. Senate, what happens at the state level is typically more relevant to our daily lives and the pocket book issues Americans rate as the most important issue facing the country.”  – By Michael R. Davis

Read more here

“. . . whenever the people are well-informed, they can be trusted with their own government; that, whenever things get so far wrong as to attract their notice, they may be relied on to set them right.”

– Thomas Jefferson

 

Encouraging Young Professionals to Work the Valley

As part of an overall strategy to develop, recruit, and retain talented people in the Cedar Valley economic area, the Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber is launching Work the Valley, a talent retention program targeting college students and young professionals (YPs). Work the Valley encourages YPs to stay in the Cedar Valley by showcasing appealing work places, careers, great company cultures and local life style amenities attractive to their demographic.

Work the Valley engages students and YPs with tours of Cedar Valley employers, business districts and cultural & entertainment venues, discussions & informative presentations, and specialty job fairs.

GCVAC Director of Business Services, Brittany Jungck says that when YPs experience firsthand all that the Cedar Valley offers they will be more likely to stay to build a career. “We want to show them that the Cedar Valley really can provide opportunities in line with their career goals yet with a much lower cost of living than bigger metros they may be attracted to.’’

The initial Work the Valley Bus Tour is November 1st in partnership with the UNI Career Center. Forty UNI students will visit four businesses and cultural venues and have opportunity to speak with 10 companies about current job openings and future employment outlooks.

Fulfilling the Vision2 – The Cedar Valley’s Equation for Continuing Economic Growth

The work of the Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber (GCVAC) is to help business and institutions grow in our area, increasing economic vitality and wealth. Repositioned and growing businesses and institutions have produced significant results for the Cedar Valley economic area over the past five years, which in­cluded some of the worst years in modern US economic history. GCVAC delivered major development projects, services and opportunities resulting in healthier businesses, over $260 million in new capital investment, good jobs, and a more robust business climate. In those unfavorable times, GCVAC’s work contributed to rising wages and a modest increase in population, when similar cities around the country saw decline. It has emerged as a leader in regional economic develop­ment, building relationships with businesses and development organizations throughout the Cedar Valley economic area.

The financial investments of businesses and institutions throughout the Cedar Valley fund our work – fulfilling your vision of more economic growth and prosper­ity to the area. The Fulfilling the Vision2 is both a framework plan and funding campaign designed to respond to today’s quickly shifting and sometimes unpredict­able economic realities. Through FtV2, the work of GCVAC is focused on: Workforce & Talent Retention, Recruitment and Development; Business Growth Through Expansion and Location in Targeted, High Value Sectors; Building a Strong Cedar Valley Brand Message to Businesses, Talent, and in Government Relations; In­crease Regional Collaboration Among Business & Civic Interests; and Collecting & Reporting Useful Data on our economic base. Emphasis will shift as opportuni­ties and need of our Cedar Valley region dictate.

GCVAC is finding strong, unprecedented regional support for FtV2 program and campaign. The campaign is now over the 50% level, with momentum building to reach successful completion near the end of 2012. To learn more, please visit www.CedarValleyAlliance.com to view a video featuring several area businesses, cities, and GCVAC work.

Your financial support – an investment in our work to expand our economy – is important to our success. It will benefit everyone who wants to strengthen our businesses, expand quality employment opportunities, and create a greater place to work, build a career, and enjoy life. To schedule an appointment with one of our FtV2Leadership Team volunteers to discuss why they are involved and how you can best assist, call Campaign Coordinator Blake Woods at 319-232-1156

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