January 2017 Inside this issue: Mid-Year Review Member Spotlight Events Review SME Resources Workforce Development Get Others Involved
CHAMBER at a glance
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a publication of the Brandon Chamber of Commerce
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Advocating for Prosperity
H
appy New Year! I hope like me, you are optimistic about the opportunities ahead for Brandon and southwestern Manitoba. RBC Economics’ December 2016 report has Manitoba tops in Canada for GDP growth with strengths in construction, manufacturing and agriculture. So while expectations are high for Manitoba, we need to continue to work with the City, Brandon School Division and Provincial Government to ensure that Brandon earns our portion of that growth.
At this time of year, we also need to work with the City and the Brandon School Division on ensuring that these organizations work hard to limit tax increases. Like Manitoba Personal Taxes, residential property taxes are amongst the highest in Canada and indications are that we are going to see increases beyond the levels of inflation from both the City and Brandon School Division.
As our Civic Leaders and School Trustees deliberate on spending decisions, we believe they need to make the tough choices on priorities with programs, services and capital This means the Chamber continues investments as they collaborate and to advocate for an evaluate budgets for environment easy to 2017. We do business in. understand the “they need Working with the City challenges of an to make the on reducing “Red operating Tape” and environment in tough encouraging today’s world with choices on collaboration on the significant and implementation of increasing portions priorities ” development charges of budgets being will be key to driving allocated to staff growth in our community in the next costs, Federal and Provincial funding few months. changes, costs of technology, and
Terry Burgess, Chamber President
unfortunately, the cost of growth! With the recent “musings” by Premier Pallister about labour costs and the private sector seeing only slight increases in wages (1.25%1.5%), we believe the City and BSD need to carefully evaluate all employee costs from a similar market based view. In addition, our members continue to voice opinions on the value of the service outcomes they are receiving. We encourage the leaders to hold their administration accountable for not only the costs of the services but the quality of services or outcomes provided. The process of measuring outcomes like graduates entering Secondary Schools, rankings on (Continued on page 6)
GM REPORT
Chamber Mid-Year Review
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s the Chamber marks the midway point of our presidential year and we look back on the activities of the past six months, we have been very active. During our strategic planning session, this past June, the Board identified a number of goals and priorities. From our consistently well attended events to our robust advocacy activity, we have made progress on a number of these objectives and the following is an update of some of our work.
members, our Facebook and Twitter accounts have seen consistent growth and engagement with members. Our Thank You Thursday initiative, featuring our Membership Committee surprising member businesses with coffee and treats, continues to be well received and in December, we launched our Pay It Forward: Support Local video campaign, which highlighted local stories of member businesses that are providing great local experiences.
City Luncheon and State of the Province address with a new Premier. We will continue to meet with our elected officials and will represent Brandon business at the Manitoba Chamber conference in Winnipeg this May.
Our advocacy work has continued to be a central focus of Chamber activity and committee work. Our Workforce Development Committee completed a series of 12@12 member roundtables on labour recruitment and retention and are now working on some of the identified issues, while our Government Relations Committee continues to engage in City, Brandon School Division and Provincial Budgets - attending consultations and providing feedback. We continue advocacy on our Municipal Red Tape Reduction policy and are also looking into impacts of potential municipal development charges. Provincially, we have met with local MLAs, multiple Ministers and recently shared lunch with the Premier. We also co-hosted an HR Conference Nationally, we represented members at with speakers from West Jet and Argus the Canadian Chamber of Commerce Industries as well a Facebook Workshop Annual convention and supported over with the Facebook Canada team! 60 resolutions that form our national Including our AGM Wine & Cheese, two advocacy platform. This is just a Business After 5s, a Chamber 101 sampling of the work of our volunteers Membership Session, and several and staff team, as we continually Chamber Friday Coffees, we have respond to emerging issues. hosted well over 30 events thus far. In the coming months, we look forward With continued work on developing to bringing more great events including more effective communication with our Annual Awards Gala, State of the
As always, it is busy times at the Chamber! We invite you to make the most of your Chamber membership by getting involved. Regardless, know that we are working hard behind the scenes to provide opportunities and help make Brandon a great place to live, work and do business!
This fall saw another busy events calendar. Our luncheon series continues to be popular with attendance numbers exceeding the previous year’s attendance. This no doubt, is in part, due to our efforts to produce high caliber topics and speakers of interest to members. This year’s luncheons have featured speakers on Business Opportunities in Shilo, Innovate Manitoba, Manitoba success stories on GORP energy bars and Joe Beeverz, as well as celebrations of business anniversaries. With consistent attendance of 250 – 350, these continue to be the place to be to network and build your client base.
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Carolynn Cancade General Manager Contact Carolynn by phone at 204-571-5342 or by email at gm@brandonchamber.ca
Note that event updates, workshops, and Lunch & Learn sessions will be communicated electronically in the Chamber Insider. Subscribe your staff 204-571-5340 info@brandonchamber.ca
www.brandonchamber.ca
MEMBERSHIP ZONE
WELCOME NEW MEMBERS Double Decker Tavern 943 Rosser Ave. Brandon MB R7A 0L3 204-727-47343 allenshalwani@hotmail.com doubledeckertavern.com
McDonalds 1023 Middleton Ave. Brandon MB R7C 1A8 204-725-0548 kasa@mts.net mcdonalds.ca
Technology Solve 318 16th St. Brandon MB R7A 4X8 204-730-3032 info@technologysolve.com technologysolve.com
Grafton Health 902 10th St. Apt. 1 Brandon MB R7A 6B5 204-402-0560 Michael@circlesquared.ca
Prairie Firehouse Unit 1 637 Princess Ave. Brandon MB R7A 0P2 204-727-3117 anna@prairiefirehouse.com prairiefirehouse.com
The Change Manager 34 Juniper Bay Brandon MB R7B 0Y8 204-717-7117 tim@thechangemanager.ca thechangemanager.ca
Ion Coating 725 4th St. Brandon MB R7A 3H6 204-573-8336 ioncoating@wcgwave.ca Katy’s Kookies 725 17th St. Brandon MB R7A 5A1 204-573-6098 Katyunruh3@gmail.com Katys-kookies.ca
Shopbrandon.com 962 1st St. N Brandon MB R7A 2L3 204-761-3793 ken@shopbrandon.com shopbrandon.com
Timber + Lace Interior Design RR5, Box 35, Site 50 Brandon MB R7A 5Y5 204-740-0254 jaydi@timberandlace.com timberandlace.com
member
SPOT LIGHT The Brandon Chamber of Commerce is pleased to welcome A Familiar Face to our membership! Can you provide a description of your business? We offer a menu of lifestyle management services designed to simplify a client’s day: allowing for a balance in life, work and leisure in today’s challenging world. We provide a range of services from purchasing groceries, picking up dry cleaning, pet care, and car repairs, to banking and house sitting. The services provided are only limited by the client’s imagination. How long have you been in business? June 2016 Do you have a motto? “Making Life Easier”
January 2017
What are your business goals? To provide our customers with whatever type of exemplary service he or she desires at a reasonable cost. We want to make life as easy as possible for our clients and their loved ones. We strive to provide the best service possible by being a reliable, trustworthy and passionate business that truly cares about the well-being of our customers. Our services will exceed the expectations of our customers. Do you have an office? As a home-based service oriented business, we travel to our clients and the hours are flexible. 204-724-3577 info@afamiliarface.ca www.afamiliarface.ca
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EVENTS
Champions of Agriculture Luncheon Business After 5: Making Roots Featuring: GORP Clean Energy Bars Montessori Centre November 17th November 24th Almost 300 people heard about the inspiration, inception, formulation, commercialization of the Manitoba grown product. Colleen Dyck shared her WHY and her demographic of the busy, overscheduled average Canadian looking for a way to conveniently eat healthy while on the go, and how intestinal health is the new black. Guests also savoured delicious sweet potatoes in the meal grown by ACC’s applied research project Horticultural Production and Sustainable Food Systems programs
Thank you to Booth Sponsors: Futurpreneur Canada
Members & community were able to get a glimpse of the specialized features of the child care facility’s renovated space and enjoyed food provided by one of the their local partners who provide healthy nourishment for their little clients.
Holiday Luncheon December 8th Guests celebrated the season and enjoyed music from talented Waverly Park School band students, as well as a visit from Santa and Mrs. Claus. Through the 50/50 draw, $1,228 was raised for the “Dollars for Scholars” program, which supports Assiniboine Community College and Brandon University students.
Thank you to our Luncheon Sponsor:
Friday Coffee @ the Chamber Special Guests November 24 & December 9th Chamber Coffees promote the exchange of
Thank you to our Luncheon Sponsor: ideas and discussion. We hosted special
guests from the City to discuss the upcoming budget and MP Larry Maguire to share insights on current issues and topics relevant to our members. Did we mention coffee and treats provided by our sponsor?
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www.brandonchamber.ca
RESOURCES
Recommended Reading Retain and Gain: Career Management for Small Business Author: Lisa Taylor Launched by the Canadian Education and Research Institute for Counselling (CERIC) to help small-and medium-sized enterprises (SME) retain and develop the talent to grow their businesses. The career management playbook is supported by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce as it enables small business owners and entrepreneurs to use career management as a strategic lever for stronger company performance which is a critical, and often misunderstood, issue. Career management not only brings employee satisfaction and loyalty, it also drives better customer service, improvement in business operations and an increase in opportunity for growth. A key concern voiced by small business owners was how to provide career development for employees in flat organizations with limited resources and few chances for promotion. Written in an innovative "travel guide" format, Retain and Gain provides:
•Tips, activities and actions that SME owners and managers can take immediately •Research, facts and statistics that shed new light on Canada's small business economy and workforce •Special sections on new graduates, aging workers and family businesses The Playbook is available in both English and French and can be downloaded for free at www.ceric.ca/sme CERIC is a charitable organization that advances education and research in career counselling and career development, in order to increase the economic and social well-being of Canadians.
Contact the Office about Sponsorship Tickets on sale now
Aboriginal Job Fair Tuesday, March 14th Shoppers Mall Faced with a labour shortage? Looking to diversify your workforce? Planning to fill positions between now and this summer? Sponsored by: IANE Westman & Brandon Chamber of Commerce
January 2017
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CHAMBER NEWS
A Strong Voice in a Changing World
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he Canadian Chamber of Commerce is committed to ensuring Canadian businesses have access to the people, customers, infrastructure, capital and technology needed to compete and win in domestic and global markets. 2016 was another successful year. We saw our new government reshape Canada’s economic and international agendas. It is under this government that we secured policy improvements and commitments in areas that are critical to business success: access to people, customers, infrastructure, capital and technology. We welcomed and resettled over 34,000 Syrian refugees and overcame significant hardships—some were economic, others were caused by natural disasters.
With all these changes, there has been one constant—how strong the voice of Canadian business has been. We are proud of our achievements in 2016: Approval of Trans Mountain and Line 3 Pipelines: The government recently approved Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project and Enbridge’s Line 3 replacement project. These projects will diversify our international energy markets and create jobs and important economic benefits for our country. Changes to the Express Entry System: Last month, the government approved changes to the Express Entry system that streamline the application process for talented workers and students who already have experience living in Canada. The change from requiring permanent job offers to recognizing
contracts of one year or longer reflects the changing realities of the job market and the many high-wage, high technology industries that favour more discrete, contract-based employment. Together, we are building the next 150 years of Canadian business success.
Perrin Beatty President and Chief Executive Officer Canadian Chamber of Commerce
President’s Message (Cont’d from page 1) provincial exams, number of building permits, and hours of overtime are key to ensuring the value of services delivered and the success of the programs. This will also help to evaluate which programs, not meeting the desired results, to stop spending on before investing in new initiatives that will achieve the priorities. Quite frankly, we continue to talk about “remaining” competitive from an overall tax (including property and education taxes) basis but we continue to be at the high end of taxation in Canada. So from a business perspective, it is hard to be viewed as Competitive and have an “Open for Business” Business Climate when we
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are viewed as being more expensive to live and do business in. Keeping in mind the relatively strong economic forecast, the time is now to set priorities for our Civic Leaders to set the stage for attracting new growth and prosperity to Brandon and Southwestern Manitoba.
Terry Burgess, President Terry can be reached at president@brandonchamber.ca
Friday Coffee | 9-10am Chamber Office www.brandonchamber.ca
WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
Can You Reverse the Decline in Work Ethic ?
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o matter what sector or region, employers are increasingly hiring talent based on soft skills like attitude and ambition, with the most important factor in hiring is the candidate’s work ethic. Almost three-quarters of Canadian businesses say the work ethic of their new hires has deteriorated in recent years. Top reasons employees are dismissed: Dishonesty or lack of integrity on the job Lying on a resume Refusing to follow directions Conducting personal business at work Inconsistency - unreliable work and behaviours Inability to get along with others Inability to do assigned job tasks Performing tasks slowly, with multiple errors High absenteeism rate Drug and/or alcohol abuse
focused on academic and technical skills. Work ethic is a trainable set of behaviours that are the foundational competencies of workplace success. Employers want the basics that are often lacking in today’s workforce. Organizations need employees who will show up on time, are honest, respect the policies of the organization, dress appropriately for their roles, and conduct themselves with a good attitude. These behaviours are making a huge difference in employability and retention. Attitude - Staying positive in every situation Attendance - Showing you’re reliable in every phase of your life Appearance - Being professional in both the way you act, and the way you look Ambition - Taking initiative and adding value Accountability - Living honestly and having integrity with every decision you make Acceptance - Having respect and following direction Appreciation - Demonstrating your gratitude towards others Developing work ethic: -Be explicit by clearly defining the expectations
While soft skills are the top traits that hiring managers are looking for in candidates, almost all job training is
why you need a person to do something, you change long term behavior. Draw upon current or past experiences to identify how and when work ethic has been either present or lacking in a given situation. -Don’t rely on posters, have hard discussions. Teaching the behaviors of work ethic to everyone in an organization, and then setting shared expectations around those behaviors creates an environment in which everyone understands the responsibility they have to their customers and each other. -Be a role model: more than what people say is what people do. Subconsciously we mirror those around us. Best way to teach work ethic is to model it. -Lead employees to deliver more than their daily minimum. This way when they hit rough patches in life / work, even if their performances dip they are still performing above the minimum.
The Center for Work Ethic Development provides assessments, training, and certifications that drive organizational profit, and promote individual success. For additional information on how to develop high performing individuals and teams, visit www.workethic.org
-Focus on explaining why: When you tell people what to do you only change short term behavior. When you explain
@BdnChamber January 2017
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Chamber at a Glance is published six times per year by the Brandon Chamber of Commerce 1043 Rosser Avenue | Brandon, MB R7A 0L5 Phone: (204) 571-5340 | Fax: (204) 571-5347
info@brandonchamber.ca www.brandonchamber.ca
EDITING & DESIGN Allison Reville
PRINTING
Get Others Involved Organizations become members because they take pride in being part of an organization that plays a key role in their community. The Member Referral Program helps to grow the Chamber and provide rewards to members who forward prospects that result in memberships.
Leech Printing Ltd.
2016-2017 BOARD OF DIRECTORS Terry Burgess—President RBC Royal Bank
A growing membership strengthens the Chamber’s voice advocating on issues of importance, enhances services for our members and provides more business
connections. We value your membership and appreciate your help to grow the Brandon Chamber of Commerce. Simply connect with an organization, discuss the Chamber benefits you enjoy, and you can earn $100 in marketing, or a lunch gift card (limited). Contact members@brandonchamber.ca to learn more about the Program.
Tami Rae Clements—Vice President NetSet Communications & I-Netlink Wireless Jeff Hood —Secretary/Treasurer MNP LLP
Jordan Ludwig —Past President Brandon Business Interiors
Frank Arndt myITsource/MTS Connect - Corral Centre
Greg Crisanti
Showcase Your Business at a Chamber Luncheon!
Space to display company material & greet guests Two Luncheon seats Verbal recognition from MC Thank you in Chamber at a Glance
$300
(plus GST)
Tim Hortons
Tayona Jonas Sunrise Credit Union
Karen MacDonald Assiniboine Community College
Steve McMillan VBJ Developments
Cathy Snelgrove Siere
Trent Sholdice Meighen Haddad LLP
Jason Thorpe Thorpe Construction Ltd.
Jordan Trotter C & C Rentals
Rosa Villamizar Behlen Industries LP
CHAMBER STAFF Carolynn Cancade General Manager
Allison Reville Events & Communications Coordinator
Kristina Timmer Membership & Marketing Coordinator
Tanya Lysack Office Administration Coordinator
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Who we are: The Brandon Chamber of Commerce is an independent, membership funded, non-profit organization that represents Brandon business from the grassroots level.
Our Mission: To encourage growth in the Brandon community by fostering a progressive business environment favorable to enhancing existing and attracting new business.
www.brandonchamber.ca