January Voice 2017

LASERQUEST LIGHTS UP ROCKFORD PAGE 3

BUSINESS TAX CLIMATE PAGE 18

The Voice is online at rockfordchamber.com

2017 STANDARD MILEAGE RATES January 2017 | Volume 30 | No. 1

Why YOU should engage in RLA

By Caitlin Pusateri, Rockford Chamber In preparation for next year’s Rockford Leadership Alliance, I’m combing through Patrick Lencioni’s “The Advantage” with intention — I have my highlighter out and everything.

I want to walk into 2017’s RLA fully equipped with knowledge and ready to start digging into the messy stuff — the stuff that makes real change happen.

But I have to admit, the reading stopped me dead in my tracks pretty early on. It isn’t overly academic or difficult to read by any means — it’s actually quite enjoyable.

I can’t help but notice how Lencioni smacks the reader right in the face with truth that many of us need to hear, and he doesn’t take long to do it.

If you’re following along at home, flip over to page 2. Yes, 2 — I told you he didn’t waste time. Lencioni is telling the brief story of an extremely healthy organization and is stumped why more organizations aren’t choosing this route.

He questions the CEO of the organization as to why he thinks others

Patrick Lencioni

Visit us online at: rockfordchamber.com ■ online registration ■ keynote speaker video clips ■ event photos ■ list of Chamber events Questions? 815-987-8100

Join the Chamber’s LinkedIn Group

Vinh Giang

The Wall Street Journal has called him “one of the most in demand speakers in America.”

Join the Rockford Chamber on Feb. 2 at the Coronado Performing Arts Center, where Patrick Lencioni, author of 11 books and founder of The Table Group, presents “The Untapped Advantage of Organizational Health.” The event kicks off a series of Rockford Chamber events and workshops focused on building the health of area organizations.

Based on his capstone book, The Advantage, Lencioni makes the case that organizational health “will surpass all other disciplines in business as the greatest opportunity for improvement and competitive advantage.” He asserts that instead of trying to become smarter, leaders and organizations need to strive to become healthier by tapping into the more-than-sufficient intelligence and expertise they already have.

aren’t following suit. The answer is one we all need to hear.

“You know, I honestly believe they think it’s beneath them.”

As Lencioni said, There it is.

Within that statement really sits the core of our problems. Our organizations, our personal lives, our community are all being held back because we have this idea that intentional practice — training ourselves to be better leaders — is surely something we don’t need. Surely, it’s for someone right out of school, brand new to the workforce or an entry-level management. As CEO, as senior vice president, as manager for 20 years — surely that training isn’t for me.

Continued on page 4

Nationally acclaimed speakers come to Rockford The Art of Perspective On Jan. 19, the Rockford Chamber brings international speaker Vinh Giang to the Annual Dinner at Giovanni’s, Inc. Giang will demonstrate the magical world of perspective and how it can be used to solve business problems that appear to have no solution.

Giang’s mission in business and in life is to share the psychology of illusion.

In his 20s, he started an online business with two good friends — all left their careers in accounting and pharmacy to pursue their dream of building a successful business. Their online platform, Encyclopedia of Magic, now teaches magic to almost 50,000 students around the world.

Visit www.rockfordchamber.com.

The Internal Revenue Service issued the 2017 optional standard mileage rates used to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business, charitable, medical or moving purposes.

Beginning on Jan. 1, 2017, the standard mileage rates for a car, van, pickup or panel truck are: ■ 53.5 cents per mile for business miles driven, down from 54 cents for 2016.

■ 17 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes, down from 19 cents for 2016.

■ 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations.

■ Taxpayers always have the option of calculating the actual costs of using their vehicle rather than using the standard mileage rates.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR!

Rockford Chamber

Annual Dinner Jan. 19 • Giovanni’s

For more info, see page 27 SPONSORED BY

MINIMUM WAGE HIKES RING IN THE NEW YEAR Nineteen states will be raising their minimum wage for the New Year, based on ballot measures and legislation passed in 2016 and previous years.

Arizona increases to $10.

Arkansas increases to $8.50.

California increases to $10.50. Small businesses with 25 employees or fewer will have an extra year to comply with increases.

Connecticut increases to $10.10.

Colorado increases to $9.30.

Hawaii increases to $9.25.

Maine increases to $9.

Massachusetts increases to $11.

Michigan increases to $8.90.

New York City increases to $11 for businesses with 11 employees or more. It increases to $10.50 for businesses with 10 employees or fewer.

Washington state increases to $11.

Vermont increases to $10.

States with indexing in which annual cost of living adjustments will take effect Jan. 1, 2017 include Alaska to $9.80, Florida to $8.10, Missouri to $7.70, Montana to $8.15, New Jersey to $8.44, Ohio to $8.15 and South Dakota to $8.65.

2

January 2017

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

President’s Message VIEWPOINT

Key Chamber priorities for 2017 Welcome to 2017! We at the Chamber wish you a happy and prosperous New Year. We feel blessed to have so many great businesses and non-profits in our community with great people willing to help in so many ways to advance the needs of the Rockford region. While the Chamber will always be there to support business growth, education, and network development, we also will be focusing heavily on enhancing our business environment during 2017. Here are some of the highlights: Workforce Development — Finding quality workforce remains an issue in Rockford, as it does for many urban areas.

We will be working on a few initiatives with other partners to develop a stronger talent pipeline that can address both core workforce weaknesses (soft skills) and industry specific demands as well (engineering, aerospace, machining, and healthcare). At present, we will be working to unify strategies and have a more effective system for employers.

Small Business Development and Growth — Watch for the rollout of a series of workshops to specifically address areas of weakness, shared with us by small businesses. We also will provide affirmative and strategic topics to help businesses plan for and act on key strategies. Small

businesses are core to a strong local economy and we want to help provide the tools for success!

In addition, the Chamber will be initiating the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) in early 2017. Having received initial approval by the State of Illinois in December, we look forward to returning this important resource to the community. Without an SBDC, there are few resources for people/businesses in need of assistance to start a business or move their business forward.

Transform Rockford — I am excited about the various projects rolled out a few months ago that support the strategies to make Rockford a Top 25 city by 2025. As someone who has committed quite a bit of time in supporting and being part of a leadership group for Transform Rockford, I believe we are on a great path for success.

For the Chamber as a whole, we will look to the strategies that line up well with our strengths and work to support those projects as well be a convener for the business community where needed.

Public Education — Over the past six years, the Chamber has been actively involved in working with RPS 205 to see overall improvement in the public education system, and to have curriculum

that addresses the needs of employers.

Starting with a comprehensive survey of the business community in 2009, an extensive plan was undertaken to address key priorities for employers. In this issue of The Voice you will see a special insert of the 2016 Perception Survey by the business community on public education — contrasted with the results from the 2009 survey — to demonstrate points of progress and challenges.

Crime and Civic Leadership

Center for Leadership Development

experiencing newly elected leaders in

A longer-term initiative began in 2016 is the Center for Leadership Development, which houses the Rockford Leadership Alliance. This is perhaps the top initiative of the Chamber. We are committed to developing, growing and encouraging future leaders in all sectors. In 2016, we had 245 people participate and complete the first phase of this program. Kicking off 2017 with Patrick Lencioni, author of The Five Dysfunctions of Team and The Advantage. Our focus will be on individual development and roles in organizational health, which will help businesses become high functioning.

I encourage you to participate or enroll some of your key leaders!

we have to work directly with them to

Do these two go

Einar K. Forsman Rockford Chamber of Commerce

together?

Absolutely!

I

think you will agree with me that we as a community had a pretty alarming finish to 2016 with violent crime. Over the next

twelve

months

we

will

be

many important local governments and address this issue. Without this issue being addressed aggressively, all of the above priorities have lesser meaning.

The Chamber and its Public Safety Council expects to engage elected leadership, public safety leaders, and other agency support to work on strategies in partnership with these groups.

I hope you are supportive of these priorities and we want your input and participation to help us achieve success for our business environment. Please feel free to reach out to me at 815987-8100

or

chamber.com.

eforsman@rockford

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

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January 2017

Member Profile PROFILE

Laser Quest Rockford celebrates 20 years in business

By Paul Anthony Arco Lasers. Fog. A 10,000-square-foot arena filled with great hiding spots and more than 500 mirrors. Code names like Hamburger, Cupcake, Princess and Ninja. These are just a few of the elements that make laser tag one of the most popular entertainment activities around for people of all ages.

For the past 20 years, Laser Quest Rockford has been home for laser tag enthusiasts from throughout northern Illinois and Wisconsin. It’s the site for parties, family events and corporate and church retreats. “The laser tag experience is what sets us apart,” said Chris Cameron, general manager. Adds manager Moe Bock: “We see just as many adults as kids.”

The corporate-owned Laser Quest is owned by Leisure Entertainment based in Canada. The company started in 1993 and opened a Rockford location three years later. Last month, the local business celebrated two decades of business with a day packed with cake, balloons and special deals.

There are 60 Laser Quest locations in the United States; four of them are in Illinois. The next closest Laser Quest

is in Arlington Heights, and there are none in Wisconsin, which helps draw crowds to Rockford. Located off of Mulford Road, Laser Quest Rockford also is helped by neighboring restaurants Shogun and Portillo’s.

Laser tag is a competitive shooting game similar to a video game. Each player has a laser tag gun and wears an eight-pound pack that includes seven sensors. The object of the game is for participants to try to hit members of the opposing team by shooting at the other players’ sensors. Games run between 15 and 30 minutes. The most points win.

“It’s different than anything else you can do,” said Cameron. “You’re walking into a 10,000-square-foot arena that has fog, black lights, neon paint, while wearing a pack. It’s hide-and-goseek combined with tag. But you’re not sitting around, rolling dice or drawing cards. You’re actually in the game. And the more people who play, the more fun the game is.”

Laser Quest Rockford doesn’t rely on advertising. Instead, it’s word of mouth and social media that brings in the crowds. Bock said it’s not uncommon to see 500 guests come through the doors on any given

Saturday, especially during the winter months when people are looking for an escape from the cold weather.

Education and Fun Laser Quest also is known for Quest for Knowledge – educational field trips for students from fourth to 10th grade.

The program teaches students certain aspects of science – light, sound and optics – while enjoying the fun of laser tag at the same time.

“We’re a very hands-on experience,” said Cameron. “We just don’t hand you your game card and say ‘go play.’ We check on our guests during the event, help them with anything they need; we even entertain them with magic tricks and other games during breaks in play.

I compare the experience we provide to summer camp.”

Laser Quest Rockford employs a team of eight full- and part-time staff. Bock started 5½ years ago and has moved up to manager. Cameron came on board last summer as general manager. His previous experience included working for a charter school and operating YMCA before and after school programs. “This fit my wheelhouse,” he said.

After Rockford, the closest Laser Quest is in Arlington Heights, and there are none in Wisconsin, which helps draw crowds to Rockford.

Laser Quest is open on Wednesday and Thursday from 6 to 9 p.m.; Friday 4 to 11 p.m.; Saturday noon to 11 p.m.; Sunday noon to 7 p.m. Monday and Tuesday are reserved for special events. Overnight events are popular for groups.

Reservations are recommended, especially on weekends. Games cost $9.

There are various specials as well.

LASER QUEST ROCKFORD

Chris Cameron, general manager Moe Bock, manager 293 Executive Pkwy.

815-227-9090 Rockford@laserquest.com

4

January 2017

RLA

(continued from front page) Please use this article as your formal invitation: No matter who you are, no matter your title, no matter your years of experience — this training is for you.

Getting Back to Basics As a community, we have to get beyond the idea that we’ve mastered the basics. Take a quick look throughout your organization. What’s tripping you up most? Is it the high-level process or intense understanding of systems that trips up your day-to-day operations, or is it the ability to communicate effectively with your employees? Is it the precision in which you execute client deals or putting your financial prowess at work for your customers or is it the lack of clear expectations and constructive feedback for your team?

The basics are always where our abilities falter — not the hard stuff. The basics are where we stand the most ground

to gain and where, if improved upon, will quickly transform your bottom line.

This year, let’s take a humbling step back and remember that we can all improve. Never once did I hear Michael Jordan say that he really regretted his time spent practicing the basics. No renowned CEO was ever quoted saying that things like effective listening or routine feedback were a waste of time.

And yet, when given the opportunity to hone these skills, we often shy away thinking it’s work that is somehow below us.

Join us in improvement by participating in this year’s Rockford Leadership Alliance. I promise — there is something for everyone.

That, and you will be in good company — surrounded by community leaders also inspired enough to realize that they too can improve.

I’ll see you there! theVoice Caitlin (Ludwig) Pusateri is vice president, leadership development for the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

Let your Voice be heard The Rockford Chamber of Commerce welcomes and encourages submissions for The VOICE of the Rockford Business Community.

Deadline is the 15th of the month preceding publication. Send news releases and other items of interest to the business community to: The VOICE Rockford Chamber of Commerce 308 W. State St., Ste. 190 Rockford, IL 61101

For information about advertising contact Customer Service at 815-987-8100.

The VOICE of the Rockford Business Community (USPS 784-120). ISSN number 1086-0630, is published monthly by the Rockford Chamber of Commerce, 308 W. State St., Ste. 190, Rockford, Illinois 61101.

Periodicals postage paid at Rockford, Ill. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: The VOICE of the Rockford Business Community, 308 W. State St., Ste. 190, Rockford, IL 61101.

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

Rockford University PERSPECTIVE

New Masters of Arts in urban education Teachers trained to meet district’s specific needs One of the challenges area businesses face is finding and/or developing the talent needed to meet current and future employment needs. One example of how two organizations are working together to do this are Rockford University (RU) and Rockford Public School, District #205 (RPS). RU and RPS are partnering to meet the needs of our community by training teachers in a new Masters of Arts (M.Ed) in urban education.

The master of education in urban education degree was built from “the ground up” specifically for the RPS with cooperation and guidance from school district leaders. RU and RPS worked closely to create this program around the research-proven belief that the best way to improve the academic performance of the PK-12 students is to increase the capacity of their teachers to meet student needs through advanced staff development, training and advanced study.

One of the driving forces for this program was the desire to keep our talented local teachers in the district.

The way to do this was to design a program with RU to meet the specific needs of RPS. This collaboration between these two organizations not only helps local area teachers further their education in order to help students, but also keeps the business of the education local at RU. This spring semester 20 teachers from RPS will begin at RU in the M.Ed Program. Tuition will be paid entirely

by RPS, in this, the first semester for the partnership. In order to be considered for the program, all interested teachers completed the entire application process with RU and following that process, the initial cohort group was selected by the school district. More than 140 teachers attended informational meetings about the degree, while 47 completed full applications in this highly competitive process.

In addition to their teaching, class preparations, and personal lives, these educators will take six credit hours of coursework from RU for six consecutive semesters. Working through this rigorous program is no small or easy task for these educators. The degree is designed to be a cohort structure, with all teachers taking the exact same courses at the same time as a group. RPS teachers have committed to remain in the degree program from start to finish.

The coursework in the program will be taught by a combination of adjunct faculty who are current RPS professionals and RU faculty. RU is planning to hire a full-time urban

Michael Houselog Rockford University

education professor to teach courses in the program, develop additional partnerships for the urban education degree, and conduct research related to urban education. Plans are underway to expand the degree to other school districts throughout the region, the state and the nation. Not only does this help to keep our welltrained teaching talent local, but it also brings business to our local university.

The program with RPS is being developed in a blended format; meaning half of the courses will be traditional face-to-face classes and the other half will be taught in an online format.

Initially, it was felt the daily demands of teaching plus attending the university two nights per week on campus would be unsustainable. Therefore, the university proposed the blended format where teachers can take one course each semester online from the convenience of their home, in addition to one night of face-to-face instruction. RU faculty and administrators believe the M.Ed. in urban education will create an exciting and rewarding experience for graduate level students seeking advanced study in a totally online format outside the Rockford region.

RU has also partnered with the Belvidere School District to provide an ESL/Bilingual endorsement for a group of their teachers. The Belvidere School District is currently paying for tuition for six of their current teachers seeking their ESL/Bilingual endorsement.

This RU program is an exclusively online Bilingual and English as a Second Language endorsement. The endorsements are available to prepare teachers to meet the increasing demands of multi-language classrooms and the many challenges facing the growing number of English language learners enrolled in school districts. Teachers are able to finish their endorsement in as little as eight months depending on their current credentials.

These are just two examples of how partnering between RU and local organizations will have a positive longterm impact on this region. Simply stated, partnerships like the ones described above will meet the needs of a changing workforce and area organizations.

Michael Houselog is director of graduate programs in education at Rockford University.

The views expressed are those of Houselog’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

5

January 2017

Best-performing cities biggest gainers

Construction, real estate, transportation equipment manufacturing and health care are the industries driving the economies making the biggest gains.

Sectors on the upswing

By Joe Lee

Source: Moody’s Analytics

Source: Milken Institute, Dec. 14, 2016 blog. Visit www.milkeninstitute.org/publications/view/815

This year the Milken Institute’s BestPerforming Cities index shows that tech still is king, with the Top 10 dominated by technology hubs. So what are the other metros doing differently to drive their growth, and how real has this growth been? This year, a few industries really impacted movement up the list, with some outliers. This was clearest among the Top 25 metros that improved their rankings the most — the “biggest gainers.”

Construction, real estate, transportation equipment manufacturing and health care are the industries driving the economies making the biggest gains.

The transportation equipment sector had the largest impact on the most improved economies. Though DetroitWarren-Dearborn by far added the most jobs in this sector both in the last year and in the past five years, Toledo, Ohio, and Rockford, Ill., also stand out. Over the five-year period, transportation equipment manufacturing employment in these two metros grew 96 percent and 84 percent, respectively, adding a combined 11,490 jobs.

Construction has gone from bust to boom in the last five years, and the sector had the greatest employment gains in the Midwest and East Coast. This particular sector also yielded employment opportunities in real estate. These two

sectors both saw employment growth in the vast majority of metros on the biggest gainers list.

Beyond saving lives, health-care services also added economic life to the biggest gainers. Health care has been a growing sector for a long time, but ambulatory health-care services, hospitals and nursing and residential care facilities have been averaging 7 percent employment growth over the last five years. Collectively, the biggest gainers in this year’s index have seen 183,030 jobs added across these three sectors. These sectors offer stable, higher paying jobs than many other servicesector positions.

Hospitals, in particular, offer higherwage jobs and also bring talent and research into an area. In the last year, 50,010 jobs have been added in these sectors among the most-improved metros, representing 27 percent of the jobs created over the last five years. (See Job Growth Chart.)

The combination of construction, real estate, transportation equipment manufacturing and health-care have played an important role in this year’s index to help some metros grow.

Changing demographics, pent-up demand and favorable macroeconomic conditions have helped these sectors grow these Top 25 largest gainers on this year’s Best-Performing Cities index. (See Bestperforming Cities Table.)

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January 2017

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

New Chamber Board Members The Rockford Chamber welcomed new members to its board on Jan. 1, 2017.

Introducing High School Academies 2.0 Seamless transition to college, careers

LaVonne Brown Savant Capital Management

John Schuster Rosecrance Health Network

Paula Carynski OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center

Karl Swanson Rockford Bank & Trust Co.

Samuel J. Castree Staff Management, Inc.

Jon Thompson Butitta Brothers Automotive

Documenting donations for tax purposes As tax filing season approaches, the Internal Revenue Service reminds taxpayers who give money or goods to a charity by Dec. 31, 2016, that they may be able to claim a deduction on their 2016 federal income tax return and reduce their taxes.

Only donations to eligible organizations are tax-deductible. IRS Select Check on IRS.gov is a searchable online tool that lists most eligible charitable organizations. Churches, synagogues, temples, mosques and government agencies are eligible to receive deductible donations even if they are not listed in this database.

Claiming Charitable Donations

a Form W-2 wage statement or other document furnished by the employer showing the total amount withheld for charity, along with the pledge card showing the name of the charity.

Donating Property For donations of clothing and other household items the deduction amount is normally limited to the item’s fair market value. Household items include furniture, furnishings, electronics, appliances and linens. A clothing or household item for which a taxpayer claims a deduction of more than $500 does not have to meet this standard if the taxpayer includes a qualified appraisal of the item with the return. Donors must get a written acknowledgement from the charity for all gifts worth $250 or more. It must include, among other things, a description of the items contributed.

Special rules apply to cars, boats and other types of property donations.

Only taxpayers who itemize using Form 1040 Schedule A can claim deductions for charitable contributions. Charitable deductions are not available to individuals who choose the standard deduction or file Form 1040A or 1040EZ. Most tax software will alert taxpayers about the Benefit in Return tax savings available if their itemized Donors who get something in return deductions, such as mortgage interest, charitable contributions, state and local for their donation may have to reduce taxes, exceed the standard deduction. their deduction. Examples of benefits include merchandise, meals, tickets to Monetary Donations an event or other goods and services.

A bank record or a written Good Records statement from the charity is needed The type of records a taxpayer to prove the amount of any donation of money. Bank records include canceled needs to keep depends on the amount checks, and bank, credit union and and type of the donation. An additional credit card statements. Donations of reporting form is required for many money include by check, electronic property donations and an appraisal is funds transfer, credit card and payroll often required for larger donations of deduction. For payroll deductions, property.

Visit IRS.gov. the taxpayer should retain a pay stub,

Our high school academies in the Rockford Public Schools have shown early success in transforming lives — whether it’s increasing ACT scores, raising the graduation rate or encouraging a high level of involvement from our community and business partners.

That’s excellent, but we’ve only started. We want even greater achievement from our students. With the invaluable help of Alignment Rockford, we’re aiming for even more engagement and alignment with our business partners.

That’s why we’re borrowing a page from the tech world and implementing High School Academies 2.0.

The term “2.0” has become a synonym for more communication, more collaboration and more refinement to create a better product.

We in RPS 205 are focused on the same things when it comes to our students and our award-winning high school academies.

We want to improve an already sound academy structure. We want to get to the next level in our academy journey: making sure all of our academies meet standards of practice established by the National Career Academy Coalition.

We want to make sure a student who graduates from our schools has a seamless route to college or careers — the careers of the future, and the careers this region needs.

We want to ensure feedback from the community results in any necessary course corrections in teaching and learning.

We’re proud of what we’ve achieved just three years into full implementation of academies in RPS 205. Rockford was recognized as a Model Community by Ford Next Generation Learning last year. Ford recognized the district for having a high level of fidelity to the career academy model: transforming teaching and learning; transforming the secondary school experience, and transforming business and civic engagement.

Now we’re a model and mentor to other communities that want to start academies. While Rockford’s not yet a center of “edu-tourism,” we regularly host communities that want to learn from us.

New Grant for the School District Another validation of what we’re doing: Earlier this year, the Joyce Foundation chose Rockford as one of four communities to share a $3 million Great Lakes College and Career

Pathways Partnership grant. Rockford will receive $400,000 over two years to ensure our high schools are linked to postsecondary education and training.

The goal is to expand college and career pathways to create a seamless transition.

We consider the RPS 205/Rockford University Education Pathway to be a prototype of this kind of work. Through this unique partnership, 20 of our existing students will be able to earn a degree and enter the teaching profession for a fraction of the cost of a traditional Rockford University degree. Twenty of our existing teachers will be able to continue their learning by earning a master’s degree in urban education at RU. (The first master’s candidates begin classes in the spring; the students will be chosen in the spring to begin their coursework at RU in fall 2017.)

A big part of Academies 2.0 is replicating the RU-RPS 205 success and developing even more communitydriven and need-based pathways.

Initial

discussions

have

begun

with the City of Rockford about a law enforcement pathway. And we’d like to see an engineering pathway that would create a continuous circuit for students. They could attend an RPS 205 high school academy, proceed to Rock Valley College and earn their engineering degree from Northern Illinois University, all without leaving Rockford. We envision leveraging the strong RVC-NIU partnership that exists now and making it even more accessible and valuable for our students.

In a few short years — with a huge assist from Alignment Rockford — RPS 205 has reinvented the concept of high school and built a new structure around college and career readiness.

I’m

proud

of

that

progress

and heartened about the national recognition we have received.

We

plan

to

transformation, community

continue making

engagement

the sure

leads

to

recalibration in teaching and learning.

As we launch Academies 2.0, know that your support is as important as ever.

Dr. Ehren Jarrett is superintendent of Rockford Public Schools.

The views expressed are those of Dr. Jarrett’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

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January 2017

Guest Perspective INSIGHT

Consider some New Year’s (financial) resolutions Helpful reminders for building financial stability We’re just about ready to open the door to 2017, so you might be thinking about some New Year’s resolutions.

What’s on your list this year? More visits to the gym? Learning a new language?

Mastering the perfect beef bourguignon?

All worthy ambitions, of course, but why not also include some financial resolutions?

By reviewing your needs and goals, you can identify some resolutions that are particularly relevant to your own situation.

But here are a few suggestions: Build an emergency fund. If you needed a major car repair or a new furnace, or faced some other large, unanticipated expense, could you cope with it? If you didn’t have the money readily available, you might have to dip into those investments intended for longterm goals, such as retirement. Instead, build an emergency fund containing three to six months’ worth of living expenses, kept in a liquid, low-risk account.

Cut down on debts. It’s not easy to cut down on one’s debt load. But if you can find ways to reduce your debts,

Try to keep a long-term focus when making all your key investment decisions. By doing so, you can avoid overreacting to short-term developments, such as a sudden drop in the market or a “momentous” political event that actually decreases in importance as time goes by. you’ll help improve your overall financial picture. Many debts are not “useful” – that is, they don’t carry any tax advantages – so every dollar you spend to pay down those debts is a dollar you could use to invest for your future.

Boost contributions to your retirement plan. If your employer offers a 401(k) or similar retirement plan, take full advantage of it. Your earnings have the potential to grow tax deferred, and your contributions may lower your taxable income. Plus, most plans offer a selection of investment options, so you can choose the investment mix that fits your objectives and risk tolerance. Therefore, if your salary goes up this year, or if you think you can find other ways to free up some money, increase your contributions to your retirement plan.

Review your portfolio. Is your investment portfolio still on track toward helping you meet your longterm goals? If not, you may need to make some changes. You’ll also want to study your investment mix to make sure it still accurately reflects your risk tolerance. Over time, and often without your taking any significant actions, your portfolio can “drift” to a place where you are taking on too much risk – or even too little risk – for your needs and long-term objectives. If this happens, you may need to “rebalance” your holdings.

Avoid mistakes. None of us can avoid all mistakes, in life and in our investment activities. But as an investor, you’ll clearly benefit from minimizing your errors. For example, it’s generally

a mistake to Will Geske jump out of Edward Jones the market in response to a period of volatility. If you wait for things to “calm down” before investing again, you might miss out on the opportunity to participate in the next market rally.

Think long term. Keep this in mind: You’re not investing for today or tomorrow, but for many years from now. Try to keep a long-term focus when making all your key investment decisions. By doing so, you can avoid overreacting to short-term developments, such as a sudden drop in the market or a “momentous” political event that actually decreases in importance as time goes by.

Try to follow these financial resolutions as best as you can. You could make 2017 a year to remember.

Will Geske is financial advisor for Edward Jones.

The views expressed are those of Geske’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

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January 2017

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

A tradition the community shares together Stroll on State breaks records

John Groh Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau

Sometimes it is hard to believe that Stroll on State, presented by Illinois Bank & Trust, is just four years old. The Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau’s signature event has quickly become a community favorite, and we are grateful for all the support and accolades it has received.

The common theme I’ve been hearing is that Stroll instills a great sense of love for and pride in our community as well as optimism for the future.

Stroll is more than just an event — it’s a feeling, it’s a memorable moment, it’s a tradition that our community shares together.

Each year the event has grown in both size and scope, with this year’s event attendance estimated at 75,000 visitors. Have you ever wondered how we come up with this number? You’re not alone … We are asked this question quite often. We take aerial photography, gather feedback from crowd spotters, count shuttle bus ridership and analyze sales/participation numbers for local businesses and attractions and then we crunch all those numbers (and others) to come up with our estimate.

Here are just a few of those numbers from Stroll on State 2016:

showcasing

■■ 10,000 people rode on the horsedrawn wagon rides (an 11 percent increase over last year).

■■ 68 percent of shoppers spent more

■■ 7,000 guests used park and ride shuttles to and from the event (a 40 percent increase over last year).

■■ 77 percent of people said that Stroll

■■ 3,500 children visited Santa Claus (a 16 percent increase over last year), and 500 letters were written to him noting their wishes for Christmas.

specifically

■■ 1,260 ice skaters experienced the indoor ice skating rink at the Rockford Park District’s Riverview Ice House (a 20 percent increase over last year).

likely to come back downtown after

■■ 5,000 cups of hot chocolate were enjoyed at the Hot Chocolate Express station and 2,350 S’Mores were eaten (an 80 percent increase over last year).

locally

owned

retail

shops and eateries. It also features an abundance of family-friendly activities.

And, judging by the feedback we have received so far, all of this went off splendidly.

In a post-event survey, Stroll on State and downtown Rockford have collectively received favorable feedback.

An astounding 98 percent of people said they had a positive experience at the event.

When asked what they liked most about Stroll some respondents said: ■■ “I love that it gets so many people downtown. Downtown Rockford is great and getting even better.”

■■ “It was well organized and there were plenty of fun things to do for all ages.”

■■ “Spending time with my family and feeling strongly connected to my community.”

■■ “A great event for families and to showcase the downtown.”

A few other key takeaways from the survey include: than $25 (an 8 percent increase over last year.) on State positively changed their perception of downtown Rockford, noting

that

downtown

Rockford feels cleaner and safer than expected.

■■ 90 percent said they are more experiencing Stroll on State.

■■ 74 percent of people that said they experienced Stroll for more than 2 hours.

In the end, we at the RACVB are always impressed and encouraged by

■■ 1,400 guests attended The Studio’s performance of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at The Nordlof Center.

the community’s love for Stroll on

■■ And, just for fun, 30,000 lights adorn Rockford’s Christmas tree.

and for the community. See you all on

As we wrap up another recordbreaking Stroll on State, our team at RACVB is incredibly inspired by this community and the hard work that so many put in to create this aweinspiring night. The event spans more than 15 blocks in downtown Rockford,

State. Thank you again to everyone for embracing the awe and wonder of the event that is truly by the community Saturday, Nov. 25, 2017.

John Groh is president/CEO of the Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau.

The views expressed are those of Groh’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

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9

January 2017

IGNITE

Young Professionals

Welcome to the new year A sharpened focus for 2017

Dec. 31 signals the end of one year and beginning of another. Many of us will spend the evening of Dec. 31st with our loved ones and a glass of champagne to celebrate the year that has passed and show optimism for the year to come.

At IGNITE we will certainly be celebrating a successful 2016 that saw the continued and growing success of IGNITE Cup, which has become our flagship event in which many (over 150 young professionals) participated in a winner-take-all event over the course of the summer months. Our After 5s (happy hours) have gotten young professionals out and about in the Rockford area to many fine establishments and many people have met new professional connections through these events. We have also been involved in the community through our Involve committee which has organized a non-profit panel and has many new and exciting events on the horizon for 2017.

Last, we started a series in 2016

entitled “Won’t You Be My Neighbor,” which saw our membership getting out to several neighborhoods in the Rockford area and learning about the history and various cultures of each of these.

Vision for 2017 My vision as president for IGNITE is for 2017 to continue the success of our 2016 social events including the IGNITE Cup, After 5s and Won’t You Be My Neighbor. Our Involve team has done a tremendous job planning our volunteer activities for 2017, which will be a series of volunteering with the Food Bank, The Literacy Council and Lewis Lemon Elementary School.

I would love to see more young professionals getting out in the community making a difference by volunteering through these various events. 2017 will also see the launch of our “Lunch With a Leader,” series in which we will invite various executives to speak with us over a lunch hour each month. These executives and

Derek Erwin

community IGNITE leaders will discuss their career journey, how they got to the point they currently are and many common pitfalls to avoid.

At IGNITE we saw many successes in 2016 and want to celebrate and remember that on New Year’s Eve, but are even more excited about the things to come in 2017. I think we can truly make a difference in this great community and am so excited to see what the upcoming year has in store!

Cheers to 2016 and here’s to an amazing 2017! Stay safe and as always, let IGNITE know if we can do anything to enhance your or your young professional’s Rockford experience.

Derek Erwin is IGNITE REACH co-chair and works at Raymond James & Associates.

The views expressed are those of Erwin’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

10

Technology & Telecom (Cyber Security)

January 2017

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Guest Perspective INSIGHT

Company culture drives growth Attracting, retaining the best people I used to think that companies with the best product or service grew fastest and were most successful.

But, great products and services are ultimately replaced by new products and services. Many believe it’s great people that allow a company to grow and be successful. But, great people may leave a company and certainly do retire at some point.

Look at Xerox. They had a great product but are mostly an irrelevant company today. Look at Blockbuster.

They owned the video rental market, ignored a partnership offer from Netflix, and are now extinct. Business history is littered with leaders who went bad and pulled their business down with them.

I’ve come to believe that the only sustainable competitive advantage is a company’s culture.

General Electric is a great example of a company that was led by a great leader in Jack Welch. Many didn’t understand, however, that what made him great was the culture he built around excellence and education, a culture which has

Quite simply, we realized that our only long term (20+ year) competitive advantage would be to create a workplace where people know they will grow intellectually, emotionally, spiritually and financially. continued to thrive beyond his tenure.

He famously refocused the company and established a culture that said GE should only be in a business in which they can be one of the top three players.

He then built a tradition at Crotonville — GE’s college — where people are expected to grow and where he would personally welcome new management trainees. Similarly, Apple has a culture of innovation, but only time will tell if their innovation was tied to Steve Jobs or if it was truly an innovative culture.

Good Individuals, Good Teams We’ve spent a lot of time working on our culture at Ticomix. As a start, in 2012 we completely re-worked our purpose and values statement, an

exercise that I firmly believe changed our growth trajectory. Quite simply, we realized that our only long term (20+ year) competitive advantage would be to create a workplace where people know they will grow intellectually, emotionally, spiritually and financially.

This would allow us to attract and retain the best people. We adopted a new set of core values that didn’t look like that of every other company. We said we wanted to hire people who were Personable, Adaptive, Thoughtful and Honest (PATH).

Within that construct, we have strived to teach people how to be good individual team players and how effective teams work together to win. Not long ago, as reinforcement,

Tim Ancona we spent time Ticomix with our entire company going through Patrick Lencioni’s book The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, a process we repeat with each new team member during our new-hire orientations.

I realized early on that things like purpose statements and written values wouldn’t be the end. And I knew that we wouldn’t get it right all the time. In fact, I’ve made plenty of mistakes along the way. But improving culture is not a one-time, “set it and forget it” activity.

The key I’ve learned is to simply stay committed to getting better every step of the way.

Tim Ancona is CEO of Rockford-based technology firm Ticomix, named by Inc. magazine as one of the fastest growing privately-held IT companies in America for four consecutive years.

The views expressed are those of Ancona’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

January 2017

Technology & Telecom (Cyber Security)

11

Cyber-Shopping Consumers: Beware of Fake Apps

The Better Business Bureau has a warning for online shoppers downloading apps to their mobile devices: Hundreds of fake retail and product apps have popped up in Apple’s “App Store” and Google’s “Play Store” in recent weeks.

Apps have become a popular way to shop, particularly for people looking for deals. But there are serious risks, especially to using a fake app. Entering credit card information opens a consumer to potential financial fraud.

Some fake apps contain malware that can steal personal information or even lock the phone until the user pays a ransom.

Starbucks started the first “retail app,” and many stores have followed.

The biggest source of the fake apps is China.

“Cyber-thieves have also found ways to make their counterfeit apps convenient; they encourage users to log in using their Facebook credentials,” said Dennis Horton, director of the Rockford Regional Office of the Better Business Bureau.

Precautions for Downloading an App ■ Check when it was developed, what version it’s on, who was the publisher and look for customer reviews. If you pull up a major retailer’s app, and it has no reviews, then you’re probably on the wrong one.

■ Check the link connected to the app to see if you’re being directed to the retailer’s legitimate website.

■ Never click on a link in any email to download a new app. Only go to the website of the retailer to get a link to the legitimate app.

■ Use a credit card, which typically has a restitution plan that can save you if you fall victim. Using your debit card can have you losing everything you have in the bank.

■ Shoppers who encounter a fake app should immediately notify Apple or Google and report it to the BBB Scam Tracker to help track down where the scam is coming from.

Stopping the Stigma A 2006 UK study found that 57 percent of those who report being the victim of a con are motivated to help ensure that others are not victimized (Office of Fair Trading, 2006). This phenomenon was confirmed by the BBB’s own survey results showing that 49 percent of respondents would be motivated by a desire to warn others if they were to report a scam.

Response to survey question, “From the options below, if you reported being scammed, what would be your primary motivation?”

■ To try to get my money back, 23% ■ To try to bring justice to the perpetrator of the scam, 28% ■ To help warn others about the scam, 49% In response to survey question: “Think of a specific instance where you or someone you know lost money to a scam. Which of the following factors contributed to the scam being successfully perpetrated?” respondents answered: ■ The scammer used effective sales techniques, 37% ■ The scammer pretended to be a business or individual I knew and trusted, 32% ■ I had never heard of this type of scam before, 27% ■ I did not do my homework/research before making a decision, 22% ■ The scammer’s product or service was something I needed urgently at the time, 17% Source: BBB.org/TruthAboutScams

12

Technology & Telecom (Cyber Security)

Gartner’s Top 10 Strategic Technology Trends for 2017 Three themes — intelligent, digital, and mesh — form the basis for the Top 10 strategic technology trends for 2017, announced by David Cearley, vice president and Gartner Fellow, at Gartner Symposium/ITxpo 2016 in Orlando, Fla.

Theme: Intelligent No. 1: AI & Advanced Machine Learning In banking, AI and machinelearning techniques could be used to model current real-time transactions, as well as predictive models of transactions based on their likelihood of being fraudulent.

No. 2: Intelligent Apps Technologies like virtual personal assistants, have the potential to transform the workplace by making everyday tasks easier (prioritizing emails) and its users more effective.

No. 3: Intelligent Things Three categories: Robots, drones and autonomous vehicles.

Theme: Digital No. 4: Virtual & Augmented Reality Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) transform the way individuals interact with each other and with software systems, creating an immersive environment. VR can be used for training scenarios and remote experiences. AR, which enables a blending of the real and virtual worlds, means businesses can overlay graphics onto real-world objects.

No. 5: Digital Twin Digital twins function as proxies for the combination of skilled individuals and traditional monitoring devices and controls. Their

proliferation will require a cultural change, as those who understand the maintenance of real-world things collaborate with data scientists and IT professionals.

No. 6: Blockchain A type of distributed ledger in which value exchange transactions (in bitcoin or other token) are sequentially grouped into blocks.

Theme: Mesh No. 7: Conversational Systems Conversational systems do not use text/ voice as the exclusive interface but enable people and machines to use multiple modalities (e.g., sight, sound, etc.) to communicate across the digital device mesh.

No. 8: Mesh App and Service Architecture The mesh app and service architecture is a multichannel solution architecture that leverages cloud and serverless computing, containers and microservices as well as APIs and events.

No. 9: Digital Technology Platforms Every organization will have some mix of five digital technology platforms: Information systems, customer experience, analytics and intelligence, the Internet of Things (IoT) and business ecosystems.

No. 10: Adaptive Security Architecture The evolution of the intelligent digital mesh and digital technology platforms and application architectures means that security has to become fluid and adaptive. Multilayered security and use of user and entity behavior analytics will become a requirement for virtually every enterprise.

Source: www.gartner.com

January 2017

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‘Invulnerability Illusion’

Millennials More Likely to Get Scammed The stereotype of the “little old lady” as scam victim is wrong, and Millennials are actually more vulnerable to scams than Baby Boomers. That’s the conclusion of research by the BBB Institute for Marketplace Trust (BBB Institute). Marketplace scams affect one in four North American households each year at an estimated loss to individuals and families of $50 billion, yet most consumers believe they are invulnerable.

“That $50 billion ‘underground’ economy is stealing from the legitimate marketplace,” said Mary E. Power, president and CEO of the Council of Better Business Bureaus (CBBB). “Every dollar lost to a scam is a dollar not spent at a lawful, trustworthy business.”

More than 2,000 U.S. and Canadian adults were surveyed for “Cracking the Invulnerability Illusion: Stereotypes, Optimism Bias, and the Way Forward for Marketplace Scam Education,” on their perceived vulnerability to scams, who they think most likely to be scammed, and the factors that helped them to avoid being scammed.

“We’ve bought into stereotypes about scam victims – they’re usually seen as vulnerable and elderly, or gullible and poorly educated,” said the paper’s coauthor Emma Fletcher, BBB Institute, CBBB’s foundation. “These stereotypes are strongly held … and they are wrong.

We are all at risk, but younger and more educated individuals are actually the most likely to be scammed.”

“Optimism bias – the idea that we all think other people are more vulnerable than we are – is associated with risktaking and failure to heed precautionary advice,” said co-author Rubens Pessanha, CBBB director of marketing research and insights. “Seniors may be the one group that does not suffer from optimism bias when it comes to scams. They’ve heard, loud and clear, that they are at risk.

Seniors may very well be more scam savvy than others. They are also less impulsive buyers than younger consumers, and less likely to be making purchases online where so many scams take place.”

The new research also confirms some trends noted in BBB Scam Tracker, a

crowd-sourced reporting tool. More than 30,000 consumers have reported details of scams to BBB since the site was launched in late 2015, and reports are shared with law enforcement to drive investigations.

Of those consumers reporting scams to BBB Scam Tracker, 89 percent of seniors (65 and up) recognized the scam in time, while only 11 percent reported actually losing money. More than three times as many of those age 18 to 24, however, failed to recognize the scam, and 34 percent reported losing money.

Report Recommendations 1. Leverage Technology, Crowdsourcing and Altruism. Targets of scams feel empowered when they can take back some control by reporting what has happened to them in order to help warn others. As noted in the report, “The voices and stories of others have the potential to normalize the problem in a positive way, shedding the shame and stigma of victimization with the message that, if it can happen to other people like me, it can happen to me.”

2. Take Aim at the Optimism Bias.

Motivation to take protective action requires both the sense that one is vulnerable and the tools to do something about it. Effective public education must take a twofold approach; it must confront its audience with messaging that runs counter to stereotypes and perceived invulnerability, while simultaneously providing information that empowers individuals to avoid becoming victims.

3. Provide Preemptive Information.

Survey participants, when asked what might have prevented them from being scammed, said knowing about different scam types and understanding common methods used by scammers prior to being targeted would have helped.

If you are a victim report the incident to BBB Scam Tracker bbb.org/ scamtracker.

For more important consumer information visit ask.bbb.org.

Download “Cracking the Invulnerability Illusion” at BBB.org/TruthAboutScams.

13

January 2017

Celebrating Rockford’s entrepreneurs

by Dan Cataldi, executive director, NIU EIGERlab I love passionate, creative, risk-taking entrepreneurs who start businesses or privately grow existing enterprises with little recognition or fanfare. As I retire from NIU EIGERlab at the end of this year, I am humbled and honored to have been in a position to support these innovators who quietly and steadily make a huge impact on the community.

Celebrating passionate entrepreneurs and creative innovators is Rockford’s history. It’s in our DNA. Over the years, NIU EIGERlab clients have turned their ideas, inspiration and effort into businesses that continue to create jobs and wealth for the region. Just a few examples: ■ B/E Aerospace was once two engineers with an idea. They incubated the business at EIGERlab, refining their designs, making prototypes and getting ready for the marketplace. Today, the company employs more than 40 engineers and other professionals in a new Rockford facility.

■ Comply365 got its start in the basement of the founders’ home. They pitched their business at FastPitch and Innovate Illinois, polished their business model and attracted start-up funding.

Today, 75 percent of the commercial aircraft compliance industry uses their software, and they employ more than 70 professional staff.

■ Accelerated Machine Design began as an incubating EIGERlab business, designing and prototyping innovative custom equipment for aerospace and health care customers. Today, they employ 20 engineers and other professionals in their manufacturing facility in Rockford.

■ sockTABs won top honors at FastPitch and gained national visibility and investment when the product was pitched on ABC’s Shark Tank™. Today, the product is sold on the Home Shopping Network and in major retail outlets.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Since its inception, the annual FastPitch Competition has drawn more than 450 participants, all putting their ideas and business models in front of local investors, bankers and business leaders.

Many of these have turned into lifestyle businesses, and some have exploded into major employers in our region.

Growing Our Own Supporting local entrepreneurs is important work.

Solopreneurs, inventors, innovators, and existing small- and medium-sized privately held companies are an important sector of our local economy. Their impact must not be overlooked or underestimated. They should be encouraged and celebrated.

Rockford has embraced its manufacturing legacy and is offering strong support to this important sector. Similar effort should be directed toward economic gardening, finding ways to grow our own small and medium sized privately held businesses. Other sectors of the economy offer great promise as well: IT and digital companies are producing new highincome jobs at a rapid pace, and small privately-held health-related businesses now top all other sectors in our region.

There is a lot to celebrate in the futurefocused, transformational economic and workforce development activities underway in our region. I urge leaders of these initiatives to develop strategies and incentives to diversify the economy and develop plans to support the growth of our own small- and medium-sized companies.

It has been my pleasure to work with a great group of dedicated individuals at EIGERlab: Mike Cobert, Sherry Pritz, Jeff Metters and Tina Leombruni, and as of two years ago, Dr. Rena Cotsones of NIU. The community is fortunate to have this team in place to continue NIU EIGERlab’s important work.

Finally, I want to say thank you to Northern Illinois University. Did you know that NIU has had a Regional Engagement Office in Rockford since 2009? Did you know that NIU purchased the assets of EIGERlab from the Rockford Area Economic Development Council to ensure that its important economic development work could continue? Going forward, I hope NIU will get the recognition it deserves for its engagement, investment and contributions in the Rockford area.

For me, NIU EIGERlab has been a labor of love. I leave with great memories of the journey and high hopes for the future of Rockford.

PHOTO BY BRIAN THOMAS PHOTOGRAPHY

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Dan Cataldi retired in December, 2016 as executive director, NIU EIGERlab.

The views expressed are those of Cataldi’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

14

January 2017

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

Excel Centers pave a path out of minimum wage

By Alex Gary

The Roadmap: The Excel Center by Goodwill Education Initiatives In November, Transform Rockford unveiled more than 140 projects that it believes will help make Rockford one of the top 25 communities to live in by 2025. This month, we look at one of those ideas, bringing The Excel Center concept to Rockford.

Comparing communities: Rockford vs. South Bend, Ind. Category

Rockford

South Bend

United States

Population

148,278

101,516

318.9 million

Percent over 25 without high school degree

16.9%

16.5%

13.3%

Median household income

$38,716

$34,523

$53,889

Percent in poverty

24.8%

28.3%

13.5%

Percent without insurance

12.4%

16.4%

10.5%

Median housing value

$94,200

$81,500

$178,600

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Incidence of diabetes The latest report in the GallupHealthways State of American WellBeing series should ring alarm bells across the area — in 2015, the Rockford metropolitan area had the eighth highest percentage of people with diabetes out of the 190 largest metropolitan areas in the United States.

In 2015, according to the report, 16 percent of adults in Boone and Winnebago counties – or about one of every six – had diabetes. At the better end of the spectrum was Boulder, Colo., Incidence of Diabetes in Communities 10 Best Communities 1. Boulder, Colo. . . . . . . . . . . . 4.9% 2. Bellingham, Wash. . . . . . . . 6.1% 3. Fort Collins, Colo.. . . . . . . . 6.5% 4. Provo-Orem, Utah . . . . . . . 6.5% 5. Cedar Rapids, Iowa . . . . . . 7.3% 6. Salinas, Calif. . . . . . . . . . . . 7.4% 7. Ann Arbor, Mich.. . . . . . . . . 7.4% 8. Anchorage, Alaska . . . . . . . 7.7% 9. Amarillo, Texas . . . . . . . . . . 7.8% 10. Bridgeport, Stamford, Conn.8.0% 10 Worst Communities 181. McAllen-Mission, Texas . . 15.7% 182. Beaumont-Port Arthur, Texas 15.8% 183. Rockford, Ill. . . . . . . . . . . 16.0% 184. Flint, Mich. . . . . . . . . . . . . 16.3% 185. Columbus, Ga.-Ala. . . . . . 16.4% 186. Little Rock-Conway, Ark. . 16.5% 187. Hickory-Morgantown, N.C. 16.8% 188. Corpus Christi, Texas . . . . 16.9% 189. Charleston, W.V. . . . . . . . . 17.6% 190. Mobile, Ala.. . . . . . . . . . . . 17.7%

where only 4.9 percent -- or one out of every 20 adults suffered from diabetes.

This is a distressing figure.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, diabetes is the leading cause of lower-limb amputation not related to trauma, blindness and kidney failure in the U.S. It also is a major contributor to cardiovascular disease, which is the number one cause of death in our country. Nearly 70 percent of people with diabetes die from cardiovascular disease.

It is a costly disease to manage in an area where wealth creation has not kept up with the rest of the United States.

Gallup surveyed nearly 250,000 people from the 190 communities in 2014 and 2015.

Type 2 diabetes is closely tied to obesity rates, which have been rising for decades as Americans eat more processed food and have traded exercise time for electronic pursuits such as video games or Facebook. In 2016, the obesity rate – defined as having a body mass index of 30 or higher – hit 28.3 percent in the United States. Not surprisingly, all 10 of the communities with the highest rates of diabetes were well above the national obesity average.

Rockford’s obesity rate in 2014 and 2015 was 33.1 percent.

— By Alex Gary

Goodwill does everything it can to remove those barriers.

In meeting after meeting, The classes are free. The Guy Fisher of Goodwill funding comes from Indiana Industries would hear the workforce development same thing from employers. dollars. They offer free “They would say ‘we have childcare and usually are the job openings, but we can’t located on bus routes and find workers with the skills to Goodwill reimburses students fill them.’” for the busing costs.

Does that sound like Guy Fisher “We average more than Rockford, Illinois? In this Goodwill Industries 50 kids a day in our childcare case, it was South Bend, center, and we got South Bend to adjust Indiana.

“We have about 20,000 adults in South one of its bus routes – getting a city to Bend without a high school diploma,” change a bus route can be like getting an said Fisher, vice president of mission Act of Congress – so we could make it as advancement for Goodwill Industries easy as possible for our students to get in Michiana. “These are people who are here,” Fisher said.

“We have a number of services at never going to get beyond a minimum wage job. Sure, they can go back and earn Goodwill people don’t even realize we a GED, but it’s larger even than passing have and we wrap those around our a test. Do they know how to show up on students,” Fisher said. “Each class runs for eight weeks so if you miss a day, you miss time? Can they work in a team?”

In 2015, seeking to lift people out of a lot. Our counselors essentially become minimum wage work as well as generate life coaches and if you miss a day they will more skilled workers for the companies track you down and find out why.”

“Sometimes, we hear stories where already in South Bend, Goodwill opened its 11th Excel Center in Indiana. The Excel students had to take on an extra shift to Center idea grew out of a conversation in get the electric bill paid,” Fisher said. “We 2010 between the mayor of Indianapolis have programs to help with utility costs in and Goodwill where the mayor was times of hardship. We do everything we saying the same thing, they had lots of can to make sure those students are here unemployed worker without the requisite every day.”

Other communities have taken skills to fill the available job openings.

“The question was how do you move notice. There now is an Excel Center in this large chunk beyond minimum wage Austin, Texas and this year one opened job skills,” Fisher said. Although Goodwill in Washington D.C. If you look at the is better known for its ubiquitous thrift demographics of Rockford, we face nationwide, those stores actually fund many of the same issues as South Bend. its core mission which is workforce According to U.S. Census statistics, 16.5 development. “This is what Goodwill was percent of South Bend’s population over the age of 25 does not have a high school created to do.”

Fisher said originally Goodwill set diploma. In the United States as a whole, up the program as an online learning 13.3 percent of the over 25 population does opportunity, but it failed quickly. Students not have a high school degree. In Rockford, needed to learn how to work together, 16.9 percent of our over 25 population does face to face. Goodwill retooled it to be a not have a high school degree.

Those workers will have an increasingly classroom learning environment. Since making the change, more than 3,000 difficult time finding even minimum wage have enrolled in classes, about 1,600 have work as automation begins to reach into completed the program and those 1,600 more and more industries. In December, have seen an average increase in earnings the Brookings Institute published a story “Automation Beyond the Factory” that of about $9,500.

“When you move someone into a detailed the move toward cashier-less livable wage it has a ripple effect in their stores and driverless trucks. In 2014, there were 1.7 million people employed as truck family and the community,” Fisher said. drivers and 3.4 million as cashiers. What The Excel Center will happen to those workers when those In an Excel Center, students are doing jobs are replaced by robots and kiosks? more than just preparing a final test. Brookings ended its story this way.

“Education and training could also They are required to either take college classes or work toward certification in a prepare displaced workers to take higherrecognized job training program. The skill jobs in their current industry, or classes all are taught be state-certified to switch careers entirely. Without any increased automation teachers and must meet state standards preparation, in math, science and English. An Excel will continue the trend of worker Center graduate has a degree that is displacement. As technology advances, so acceptable by all state higher education should our labor policy responses.” institutions and either six college credit hours or a professional certification.

Most adults who do not have a high school degree, have multiple barriers that keep them from returning to finish.

Alex Gary is president of Alex Gary Communications Inc. The views expressed are those of Gary’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

Growth Through Marketing/PR/Communications

January 2017

15

Guest Perspective INSIGHT

Grooming our community’s next leaders Invest your time, talent in others Congratulations to this year’s class of 40 Leaders Under Forty! It seems like a long time ago when I was in the inaugural 40/Forty class. I remember I had goals, I had vision, and I knew I still had work to do to get where I wanted to be. I also had one thing -- mentors.

The career journey of being mentored myself and now in a position to do that for others is one of the most critical and exciting parts of my role as CEO at Illinois Bank & Trust.

I think about the famous quote from Jack Welch – “Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others.”

I think he got most of it right. Success is certainly about taking responsibility and growing yourself, but it’s also about working to find others who can help you grow and develop along the way. It is really hard to grow alone.

I have been extremely fortunate in my 20+ years in the industry to have worked for great managers who not only took time to hold me accountable for my performance, development and career plan, but also invested their time and energy into helping me grow and develop in ways necessary for me to achieve my long-term plans. Community leaders also have contributed to that process for me. I strive every day to be a better leader.

I now manage and mentor others including, one of this year’s 40 Leaders Under Forty recipients, Illinois Bank & Trust’s Commercial Banking VP Kyle Logan.

You become a manager to someone, as I did to Kyle, through the organizational chart and your position, but you become a leader and mentor to someone by taking the risk to mutually agree to work toward common goals and objectives. You become a leader and mentor someone by your willingness to

invest your own time and talents to help others, with no expectations of return.

daily basis inside my organization

Jeff Hultman is

and throughout our community, I’m

CEO at Illinois

Interested in Mentoring Others?

confident our future is bright!

Bank & Trust.

Here’s a few tips I’ve gleaned during the process:

40 Leaders Under Forty class and to

The views expressed are those of Hultman’s and

all of those who helped mentor those

do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford

recipients to where they’re at today.

Chamber of Commerce.

■■ Generational differences are real and they need to be understood and embraced. Just as generations before me scratched their heads and wondered why, I would recommend leaders today work really hard to learn from each other’s generation and each other’s view point.

■■ Spend your limited time with people who really want to improve. Almost everyone says they want feedback and they want to get better, but some people are just saying it. Your time is not endless; invest more of yourself where you are appreciated and valued for what you are providing to them.

■■ Ensure you have mutual trust. The Rockford Chamber has done a lot of great work around the topic of trust in leadership.

■■ Realize it is just like a lot of other relationships. It is not always fun, it is not always easy, you will not always be in sync. … The ups and downs are part of the process. However, in the end, to have someone thank you for helping them grow and develop is worth all the effort.

Be willing to learn as much from those you manage and lead as you have to share. As they say with teaching, you actually learn and get more when teaching than you do as the student.

Members of this year’s 40 Leaders Under Forty Class are not just leaders of today; many will continue to grow into leaders of tomorrow — future CEOs, community leaders, collaborators, managers and entrepreneurs. Based on the quality of individuals in leadership positions who I interact with on a

Jeff Hultman Illinois Bank & Trust

Congratulations again to 2016’s

16

Growth Through Marketing/PR/Communications

January 2017

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

Guest Perspective INSIGHT

The power of collaboration Putting egos aside true then and even more so now. As we collaborate we move from plain survival to success!

Collaboration is the art of empowering each of us to share without ego. Charles Darwin said, “Those who have learned to collaborate and improve most effectively have prevailed.” The Power of WE They were invited to enjoy a great meal, and in front of each person there was a delicious plate of food. Everyone was very hungry and eager to eat, but they had to follow one simple rule.

They had to use the spoons provided, which had six-foot-long handles, and they had to hold onto only the end of the handles … enjoy dinner!

Each person tried for hours to figure out how to feed themselves with these long-handled spoons and were getting hungrier and hungrier, and more and more upset. And then they saw that two people at the table had found a solution. … They were feeding each other! As they all began to feed each other, they had a joyous and successful meal together.

In business and in life we are frequently invited to enjoy great opportunities, and if we look, not only at each opportunity, but at the people

involved who can feed each other ideas, passion, and energy, solutions and success will be found.

Competition is Good, Collaboration is Better.

In business we need to have a competitive spirit to go the extra mile, to keep us moving, and to fulfill our imagination. So we do need to compete against our own goals and develop skills and talents to become our very best; however, we must collaborate in the pursuit and achievement of our company and team goals, as that will bring more ideas and lead to more opportunities for each individual.

Competition is good, collaboration is better!

Collaboration is the art of empowering each of us to share without ego. Charles Darwin said, “Those who have learned to collaborate and improve most effectively have prevailed.” It was

WE is the reflection of ME. As simple as looking at the reflection in the mirror, if we take the letters ME, they become WE naturally. When we reflect on our ideas, even if they seem impossible to achieve on our own today, and remove the “I’m” from the possibilities, the Impossible becomes possible. The power generated by the possibilities brings more ideas and therefore exponential results.

Let’s look at the math on this.

The Exponential Difference of Collaboration There is no question that the more we do something, the more we get its simple mathematics. I am the constant 3. The more I do something, the more I get.

3 x 1 = 3 When I multiply my own efforts I get exactly the same.

3 x 2 = 6 With 2, I can double … with 3, I can triple, and so on.

3 x 6 = 18 But when I collaborate with people who know more, bring ideas and energy, and elevate my standards the results are exponential.

31 = 3 When I elevate my own efforts without collaboration, the result is the same.

When I collaborate with 32 = 9 one more, I triple my results.

33 = 27 When I collaborate with three people, I can achieve the same result as if I multiply my efforts nine times … and so on. And by just collaborating with one more person

(34 = 81), I can achieve Saul Serna 27 times the Business For Life linear result of just working alone without collaboration.

It’s SIMPLE, but not EASY By looking at this simple math, we can conclude that the results of collaboration are much greater than by simply multiplying our own efforts.

This looks like a simple formula, but it’s not that easy. Working together toward the achievement of a common goal requires putting egos aside and WE before ME. It requires a synchronized effort, a passion for the benefit of the team, and choosing the right people for the right part of the process, regardless of rank and position. Henry Ford said it best: “Coming together is the beginning, keeping together is progress, and working together is success!”

To succeed in today’s world, with all the information and resources that are available, collaboration is even more important.

Choose to collaborate with people from whom you can learn and grow, elevate your own standards, and help others do the same.

One last thought, when you work on your own you can make good money, but when you collaborate with others, when you network, you can make a fortune!

Passionately Committed to Your Success!

Coach Saul Serna is president-CEO for Business For Life. Call 305-906-2247 or visit Coachsaulserna.com.

The views expressed are those of Serna’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

January 2017

Guest Perspective INSIGHT

Managing a crisis

Strengthening your reputation We’ve all heard that “proper prior planning prevents poor performance.”

Many a communications crisis, and the subsequent damage to reputation, could have been avoided with a bit of planning and practice.

While no one wants to face a crisis, and we can’t always control the outcome, developing a solid plan, and keeping these tips in mind, can certainly help you influence the outcome: ■■ Anticipate a Crisis: Too often we think, somewhat seriously, “if I don’t think about it or talk about it, then it won’t happen.” However, being proactive and anticipating a crisis will help you be better prepared. We work closely with our clients to help them think in advance about potential situations that could impact their business. This is much more effective than facing them for the first time under the pressure of a real-life crisis.

We also help them identify weak spots in their operations that, when modified or improved, might prevent a crisis.

■■ Define the Crisis: A crisis can be an event that can impact or damage your operations. A devastating fire. A prolonged power outage. A destructive criminal act. A computer systems failure.

A financial scandal.

However, a crisis can also impact your reputation. A rumor that spins out of control. A fake news story. An irate customer using social media to spread misinformation. You will want to spend time in your planning process outlining a “hazard vulnerability analysis” that can help identify the major risks that could impact your company or organization.

■■ Develop a Plan: In the first moments of a crisis, it’s likely you’ll be paralyzed with fear. Having a step-by-step guide to respond to different scenarios is critical.

Once you’ve identified the risks you face, develop a comprehensive plan, including a “first steps” document outlining your initial action when you first learn of the incident. Involve your staff members, volunteers, vendors and key organizational stakeholders to make sure everyone is operating from the same playbook.

■■ Drill with the Plan: Engage your staff in developing and drilling with the plan so they can respond effectively. Be sure they receive proper initial and ongoing training in executing the plan and utilize outside experts who can bring a fresh perspective to help you manage your communications and response. You will sleep better knowing you have the plan in place and the necessary training to execute it.

■■ Create an Effective Internal Communications Framework: In the

first moments Wester Wuori of a crisis, Chartwell Agency communicating with your employees and those you serve is paramount. Analyze your business or organization and determine if and how you could communicate with your key audiences. Would you use an overhead announcement? E-mail? Text message?

Phone calls? You’ll need to be prepared to use all those methods internally when the incident occurs.

■■ Be Prepared to Respond Externally: Information today moves more quickly than ever, and it’s likely your external audience will know of your crisis soon after your internal audience does.

Regular citizens with cell phones and a social media channel often will post information about an incident more quickly than traditional media outlets.

By the time your crisis shows up on local media channels, you can be certain it’s already being talked about elsewhere.

Take this into account when planning your response time in a crisis.

■■ Identify Key Spokespeople and a Chain of Communications Command: It may seem counter-intuitive, but your CEO may not always be the first person designated to speak to the media in the first moments of a crisis. Identifying a chain of command for staff who are managing the crisis itself and those who are responding to and speaking with the media is critical to an effective response.

■■ Add a Post-Crisis Review to Your Tool Box: It’s inevitable you’ll face a crisis or a risk to your company’s reputation at some point. Learning from your response and identifying the root causes of the crisis are vital for continuous improvement.

Once the incident has cooled off, take time to analyze what you did well and how you can be more effective next time.

Developing and fine-tuning an effective crisis communications and reputation management plan takes an investment of time and resources. While it’s easy to hope “that will never happen to us,” working hard at the front end, and engaging the assistance of communications professionals, can help you protect your employees and customers and ensure the long-term viability of your organization.

Wester Wuori is vice president at Chartwell Agency in Rockford.

The views expressed are those of Wuori’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

Growth Through Marketing/PR/Communications

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January 2017

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

2017 State Business Tax Climate Index The Tax Foundation released its 2017 State Business Tax Climate Index, designed to show how well states structure their tax systems and to provide a roadmap for improvement.

The 10 Best States in the 2017 Index: Wyoming, South Dakota, Alaska, Florida, Nevada, Montana, New Hampshire, Indiana, Utah, Oregon.

The absence of a major tax is a common factor among many of the top 10 states. Property taxes and unemployment insurance taxes are levied in every state, but several states do without one or more of the major taxes: the corporate income tax, the individual income tax or the sales tax. Wyoming, Nevada, and South Dakota have no corporate or individual

income tax (though Nevada imposes gross receipts taxes). Alaska has no individual income or state-level sales tax.

Florida has no individual income tax. New Hampshire, Montana and Oregon have no sales tax.

Indiana and Utah, however, levy all of the major tax types, but do so with low rates on broad bases.

The 10 Lowest Ranked States in the 2017 Index: Louisiana, Maryland, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Ohio, Minnesota, Vermont, California, New York, New Jersey.

The states in the bottom 10 tend to have a number of shortcomings in common: complex, non-neutral taxes with comparatively high rates.

2017 State Business Tax Climate Index Ranks Overall Rank

Corp.

Tax

Ind. Income

Sales Tax

Unemp.

Insurance

Property Tax

Wyoming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

South Dakota. . . . . . . . . . . .

Alaska . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Florida . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Nevada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Montana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

New Hampshire . . . . . . . . . .

Indiana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Utah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Oregon. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

North Carolina . . . . . . . . . . .

Michigan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Tennessee . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Texas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Missouri . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Colorado . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Washington . . . . . . . . . . . . .

West Virginia . . . . . . . . . . . .

Delaware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Idaho . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Arizona. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Kansas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1 . . . . . . . . .1 . . . . . . . . . 1 . . . . . . . . .

2 . . . . . . . . .1 . . . . . . . . . 1 . . . . . . . . .

3 . . . . . . . . .27 . . . . . . . . 1 . . . . . . . . .

4 . . . . . . . . .19 . . . . . . . . 1 . . . . . . . . .

5 . . . . . . . . .34 . . . . . . . . 1 . . . . . . . . .

6 . . . . . . . . .13 . . . . . . . . 21 . . . . . . . .

7 . . . . . . . . .46 . . . . . . . . 9 . . . . . . . . .

8 . . . . . . . . .23 . . . . . . . . 11 . . . . . . . .

9 . . . . . . . . .3 . . . . . . . . . 12 . . . . . . . .

10 . . . . . . . .35 . . . . . . . . 32 . . . . . . . .

11 . . . . . . . .4 . . . . . . . . . 15 . . . . . . . .

12 . . . . . . . .8 . . . . . . . . . 14 . . . . . . . .

13 . . . . . . . .22 . . . . . . . . 8 . . . . . . . . .

14 . . . . . . . .49 . . . . . . . . 6 . . . . . . . . .

15 . . . . . . . .5 . . . . . . . . . 28 . . . . . . . .

16 . . . . . . . .18 . . . . . . . . 16 . . . . . . . .

17 . . . . . . . .48 . . . . . . . . 6 . . . . . . . . .

18 . . . . . . . .17 . . . . . . . . 26 . . . . . . . .

19 . . . . . . . .50 . . . . . . . . 34 . . . . . . . .

20 . . . . . . . .24 . . . . . . . . 23 . . . . . . . .

21 . . . . . . . .19 . . . . . . . . 19 . . . . . . . .

22 . . . . . . . .39 . . . . . . . . 18 . . . . . . . .

6 . . . . . . . . . . 31 . . . . . . . . . .

32 . . . . . . . . . 40 . . . . . . . . . .

5 . . . . . . . . . . 29 . . . . . . . . . .

28 . . . . . . . . . 2 . . . . . . . . . . .

41 . . . . . . . . . 43 . . . . . . . . . .

3 . . . . . . . . . . 19 . . . . . . . . . .

2 . . . . . . . . . . 41 . . . . . . . . . .

10 . . . . . . . . . 10 . . . . . . . . . .

17 . . . . . . . . . 22 . . . . . . . . . .

4 . . . . . . . . . . 33 . . . . . . . . . .

19 . . . . . . . . . 6 . . . . . . . . . . .

9 . . . . . . . . . . 47 . . . . . . . . . .

46 . . . . . . . . . 23 . . . . . . . . . .

37 . . . . . . . . . 12 . . . . . . . . . .

24 . . . . . . . . . 7 . . . . . . . . . . .

39 . . . . . . . . . 42 . . . . . . . . . .

49 . . . . . . . . . 18 . . . . . . . . . .

15 . . . . . . . . . 27 . . . . . . . . . .

1 ..........3 ...........

26 . . . . . . . . . 46 . . . . . . . . . .

47 . . . . . . . . . 13 . . . . . . . . . .

30 . . . . . . . . . 11 . . . . . . . . . .

38 23 22 10 8 9 43 4 5 18 31 25 29 37 7 14 27 13 20 2 6 19

Pennsylvania . . . . . . . . . . . .

Nebraska . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Massachusetts . . . . . . . . . .

Mississippi . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

North Dakota . . . . . . . . . . . .

Maine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Oklahoma . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Alabama . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Virginia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Kentucky . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

New Mexico. . . . . . . . . . . . .

Georgia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

South Carolina . . . . . . . . . . .

Arkansas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Wisconsin . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Iowa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Louisiana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Maryland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Connecticut . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Rhode Island . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ohio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Minnesota . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Vermont . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

D.C. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

California . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

New York . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

New Jersey . . . . . . . . . . . . .

24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 47 48 49 50

20 . . . . . . . . . 45 . . . . . . . . . .

12 . . . . . . . . . 8 . . . . . . . . . . .

23 . . . . . . . . . 24 . . . . . . . . . .

18 . . . . . . . . . 49 . . . . . . . . . .

38 . . . . . . . . . 5 . . . . . . . . . . .

34 . . . . . . . . . 15 . . . . . . . . . .

8 . . . . . . . . . . 44 . . . . . . . . . .

36 . . . . . . . . . 1 . . . . . . . . . . .

48 . . . . . . . . . 14 . . . . . . . . . .

11 . . . . . . . . . 39 . . . . . . . . . .

13 . . . . . . . . . 48 . . . . . . . . . .

42 . . . . . . . . . 17 . . . . . . . . . .

33 . . . . . . . . . 35 . . . . . . . . . .

31 . . . . . . . . . 37 . . . . . . . . . .

44 . . . . . . . . . 30 . . . . . . . . . .

7 . . . . . . . . . . 36 . . . . . . . . . .

21 . . . . . . . . . 34 . . . . . . . . . .

50 . . . . . . . . . 9 . . . . . . . . . . .

14 . . . . . . . . . 26 . . . . . . . . . .

27 . . . . . . . . . 21 . . . . . . . . . .

22 . . . . . . . . . 50 . . . . . . . . . .

29 . . . . . . . . . 4 . . . . . . . . . . .

25 . . . . . . . . . 28 . . . . . . . . . .

16 . . . . . . . . . 20 . . . . . . . . . .

33 . . . . . . . . . 27 . . . . . . . . . .

40 . . . . . . . . . 16 . . . . . . . . . .

43 . . . . . . . . . 32 . . . . . . . . . .

45 . . . . . . . . . 25 . . . . . . . . . .

32 39 17 45 35 3 41 12 16 28 36 1 21 26 24 34 40 30 42 49 44 11 33 48 47 15 47 50

Illinois . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 . . . . . . 26 . . . . . . 10 . . . . . . 35 . . . . . . . . 38 . . . . . . . . . 46 . . . . . . . .44 . . . . . . . . 17 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 . . . . . . . . 24 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 . . . . . . . . 31 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37 . . . . . . . . 13 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 . . . . . . . . 20 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 . . . . . . . . 36 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41 . . . . . . . . 25 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 . . . . . . . . . 38 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 . . . . . . . . 22 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 . . . . . . . . . 40 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28 . . . . . . . . 30 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25 . . . . . . . . 35 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 . . . . . . . . 42 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 . . . . . . . . 41 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40 . . . . . . . . 29 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30 . . . . . . . . 43 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47 . . . . . . . . 33 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36 . . . . . . . . 27 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21 . . . . . . . . 46 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32 . . . . . . . . 37 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31 . . . . . . . . 39 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45 . . . . . . . . 47 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .43 . . . . . . . . 45 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38 . . . . . . . . 44 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31 . . . . . . . . 43 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33 . . . . . . . . 50 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 . . . . . . . . . 49 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42 . . . . . . . . 48 . . . . . . . .

Note: A rank of 1 is best, 50 is worst. Rankings do not average to the total. States without a tax rank equally as 1. D.C.’s score and rank do not affect other states. The report shows tax systems as of July 1, 2016 (the beginning of fiscal rear 2017).

Source: Tax Foundation

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

19

January 2017

Regional, National Indicators THE ECONOMY U.S. Indicators November 2016 Consumer Price Index



Unemployment Rate Payroll Employment Average Hourly Earnings Producer Price Index Employment Cost Index Productivity U.S. Import Price Index U.S. Export Price Index

0.2 percent 4.6 percent

      

178,000 $0.03 0.4 percent 0.6 percent (third quarter, 2016) 3.1 percent (third quarter, 2016) 0.3 percent 0.1 percent

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Unemployment Rates Region / State / Nation July 2016

Aug 2016

Sept 2016

Oct 2016

Rockford

6.2

6.3

6.6

6.0

Chicago

5.5

5.4

5.2

5.7

Illinois

5.8

5.5

5.5

5.6

United States

4.9

4.9

5.0

4.9

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

2016’s States Most Vulnerable to Identity Theft & Fraud In order to determine where Americans are most likely to be exposed to and affected by identity theft and fraud, WalletHub analysts compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across six key indicators of susceptibility to such crimes, ranging from “identity-theft complaints per capita” to “average loss amount due to fraud.”

Rankings

Identity Theft

Fraud

Policy

1. District of Columbia

1

1

1

2. California

3

3

19

3. Florida

5

5

19

4. Massachusetts

4

32

1

5. Nevada

14

2

19

6. Illinois

2

38

19

7. Texas

18

4

19

8. Michigan

12

8

19

9. Missouri

7

28

1

10. Connecticut

8

18

19

Quick Tips for Avoiding Identity Theft & Fraud Emphasize Email Security. Focus on email in shoring up cyber defenses.

Your primary email address will likely serve as your username and means of resetting your password on other websites, so if it’s vulnerable, all of your other accounts will be, too. Make sure to use an especially secure password and establish two-step verification for this account.

Sign Up for Credit Monitoring. Credit monitoring is the best way to keep tabs on your credit report, providing peace of mind in the form of alerts about important changes to your file, including potential signs of identity theft. WalletHub offers free monitoring of your TransUnion credit report. (https://wallethub.com/free-credit-monitoring) Leverage Account Alerts & Update Contact Info. Setting up online management for all of your financial accounts (e.g., credit cards, loans, Social Security), and keeping your phone number, email address and street address up to date will make them harder for identity thieves to hijack.

Exercise Common Sense Online. Don’t open emails you don’t recognize.

Don’t download files from untrustworthy sources. Don’t send account numbers and passwords via email or messenger applications. Don’t enter financial or personal information into websites that lack the “https” prefix in the URL. Source: https://wallethub.com

20

January 2017

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

The year in review

By Mike Nicholas, RAEDC

■■ The

Chicago

Rockford

Airport

continues to grow with the AAR Corp As our region heads into 2017, it makes sense to look back and reflect on the significant progress the Rockford Region has made during 2016.

Just like the Chicago Cubs, we have hit some home runs, but we also have had many singles and doubles as we put together a championship season: ■■ In two of three of the most current reporting periods, the Rockford Region has led all other areas of the state of Illinois in job growth.

■■ In the one reporting period where we did not lead the state in job growth, our region’s unemployment level dropped to its lowest level since 2006.

■■ Since the fourth quarter of 2015, the Rockford Region’s Annual Employment Growth Rate (%) has consistently exceeded the U.S. Metro Average growth rate for all U.S. Metropolitan Areas.

■■ There is currently $1.5 billion being invested in capital projects in the Rockford Region.

■■ The largest capital project in the history of Rockford is currently under construction involving a new hospital at Riverside and I-90.

■■ There are currently 5,000 open jobs in the Rockford Region with more to come.

■■ Chrysler is moving the production of the Jeep Cherokee from Ohio to the Belvidere plant. New manufacturing operations of several Chrysler suppliers are moving here as well.

maintenance, repair, and overhaul facility (MRO) now operational, a new terminal expansion under construction and increased cargo traffic.

■■ The Rockford Park District and the Rockford Area Convention and Visitors Bureau (RACVB) continue to build our sports tourism traffic with aggressive plans.

■■ The

Rockford

downtown

area

is being reborn with new retail and residential activity.

The region’s workforce pipeline is taking shape with the new Northern Illinois University (NIU)/Rock Valley College (RVC) Engineering Program on the RVC campus, the new OSF School of Nursing is under construction on the RVC campus and the new A&P Mechanics School at the airport is in operation.

As we reflect on the accomplishments of 2016, we can move forward into 2017 with confidence knowing that we have built a solid foundation for continued economic growth.

Mike Nicholas is president at the RAEDC. Nathan Bryant will be the new leader of the RAEDC starting on Jan. 9.

The views expressed are those of Nicholas’ and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

The Quick Reference Guide The Rockford Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) has an updated and redesigned Quick Reference Guide, a 10-page document providing highly desired data in a more user-friendly format.

Redesigned by the Rockford Area Economic Development Council (RAEDC), the guide provides a better connection between the MSA’s data and the lifestyle benefits.

Combining quality of life photos from the region and data specific to the Rockford MSA, compiled by Economic Development District of Northern Illinois (EDDNI), the guide provides a holistic representation of the MSA when companies are evaluating the region for expansion

or relocation. The data is updated

by EDDNI on a yearly basis from sources such as the U.S. Census

Bureau, C2ER and Rockford Metropolitan Agency for Planning.

This data-filled marketing piece provides high-quality information commonly requested by site selectors and brokers when evaluating a region, allowing information to be found quickly.

Information not included in the Quick Reference Guide can always be requested from the RAEDC. The guide will promote the area at tradeshows, online, and as part of business attraction packages.

It tells the story of the MSA’s assets including logistics, cost of doing business, population, and incentives available to businesses located here.

The Rockford MSA encompasses Boone and Winnebago counties.

The MSA sits contiguous to the Chicago Metropolitan Area in northern Illinois and businesses here are globally connected with international firms. The region generates $2.3 billion in annual exports and manufactures items used around the world.

The guide is used by Growth Dimensions of Bevidere-Boone County, as well as the Rockford Area Economic Development Council (RAEDC) in the promotion of the region.

To download the Quick Reference Guide visit www.RockfordIL.com/ QuickReferenceGuide.

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January 2017

Business Briefs BUSINESS BRIEFS Rockford Chamber members appear bolded. Thank you for your support of your fellow Chamber members.

SwedishAmerican, a division of UW Health, gave a $250,000 gift to the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Rockford to support its M1 expansion project, offering education to first-year medical students in Rockford.

The YMCA of Rock River Valley launched construction on the interior of the new Puri Family YMCA serving southeast Rockford and the Cherry Valley region. Sunil Puri and former business partner Dan Arnold donated the building at 1475 S. Perryville Road in 2015, and the building will undergo $1.4 million in renovations.

Ringland-Johnson Construction and ComEd, an Exelon Company, unveiled in November an interactive energy education center, the “Smart Energy Hub,” at the ComEd Rockford Training Facility, 403 Energy Ave. K-12 students through hands-on displays and exhibits can learn about energyrelated topics such as how energy is generated and delivered, smart grid technology, and the future of energy.

The facility features more than 34,000 square feet of indoor training space, including seven classrooms, a 100-seat auditorium, pole climbing yard to train ComEd linemen, and 85,000 square feet of outdoor training space, complete with a 28-foot transmission tower to prepare utility workers with real life work experience.

Visit www.comed.com.

AT&T, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development ConnectHome initiative, held an event on Nov. 19 for area HUD residents about applying for a lowcost Internet program, Access from AT&T. It also will provide up to 100 Udacity Nanodegree program scholarships in designated HUD communities to teach in-demand skills for tech-related jobs.

The Rockford IceHogs launched its new online store, Oink Outfitters Online with thousands of new items, available exclusively online at Shop.

IceHogs.com.

Mercyhealth’s insurance company, MercyCare Health Plans, now offers new group health insurance options for Boone and Winnebago County residents, effective Jan. 1, 2017.

Also on Jan. 1, Mercyhealth transitioned operations of the Children’s Learning Center located on the hospital campus to YMCA of Rock River Valley.

University of Illinois College of Pharmacy at Rockford will host a High School Pharmacy Camp on Saturday April 1. Application deadline, which includes a personal essay, is March 10. It also will host Summer Pharmacy Institute, June 5 to 9, for students interested in exploring areas of the pharmacy profession. Apply by

April 3, 2017. Visit https://pharmacy. uic.edu.

Bergstrom, Inc., was named one of the outstanding suppliers from a pool of roughly 380 by school bus manufacturer Blue Bird Corporation at its annual Supplier Conference in Macon, Ga., in September. Bergstrom began producing heaters for school buses in the 1950s.

More than 500 supporters attended the 19th annual Puttin’ on the Glitz fashion show on Nov. 11 at Giovanni’s, raising more than $50,000 for SwedishAmerican’s BetterLife Wellness cancer resource services.

Rockford Park District held a ribbon cutting for indoor pickleball at UW Health Sports Factory.

OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center held a special celebration to celebrate the eighth anniversary of its Animal Assisted Therapy program on Nov. 30.

Heritage Credit Union awarded more than $4,500 in 2016 to Lutheran Social Services of Illinois, Remedies Renewing Lives, the Warm Feet Mission and KFACT, Inc. (Keeping Families and Communities Together) through its Richard J. McGrath Endowment Fund.

Goodwill Industries of Northern Illinois’ moved its headquarters to 850 N. Church St., in Rockford, and houses its free vocational training, tax preparation and filing, and educational services for adults interested in obtaining a high school equivalency. It is along RMTD’s route #4 bus line.

Blackhawk Bank launched its Gratitude Project before Thanksgiving, managed by its 10-member Leadership Academy and resulting in $7,050 and 1,668 food items distributed to Caritas, St. Vincent De Paul, the Old Stone Church Food Pantry, Victory Outreach, Rock River Valley Food Pantry, Boone County Food Pantry, Janesville YWCA and ECHO Janesville.

Community Foundation of Northern Illinois now is accepting applications for 83 unique scholarships amounting to more than $200,000. Applications must be submitted by Feb. 1 at 5 p.m.

Visit http://cfnil.org/scholarships.

The NIU-RVC Engineering our Future campaign, with a goal of $6 million, reached a $4.5-million milestone.

Woodward was the lead donor with a $2 million gift from the Woodward Charitable Foundation. Registration for the spring 2017 semester is underway. Ringland-Johnson Construction and Community Foundation of Northern Illinois donated $50,000 each to Rock Valley College for student scholarships for the program over the next five years.

The YMCA of Rock River Valley announced that comedian Michael Jr., will be the headlining entertainer at its annual Community Dinner on March 16 at Giovanni’s.

Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau unveiled its new BYG2 RKFD (Bring Your Game 2 Rockford) sports tourism marketing initiative in December at Owly Oop Sports Pub at UW Health Sports Factory in downtown Rockford.

Staff and patients of Upper Cervical Care Center – Rockford, a division of 1st Step Chiropractic, S.C., raised 920 pounds of food for Rock River Valley Food Pantry in November 2016.

YWCA Northwestern Illinois announced Reverend Felicia P. Hopkins, author of “Halfway Home,” as speaker for its 37th annual Leader Luncheon and Women of Achievement Awards ceremony on March 6 at Giovanni’s. It’s accepting nominations for Women of Achievement Awards in business, community leadership, mentorship, professions, promise and racial justice. Visit www.ywcanwil.org.

Rockford-based Mrs. Fisher’s Potato Chips hired KMK Media Group to manage its social media accounts and social media strategy.

Winnebago County veterans will have the opportunity to achieve outdoor mobility independence through a new program in the Rockford area, VETANK. Midway Village Museum, as a host to the AllenForce-Run program VETANK, will offer an all-terrain chair available to borrow for use at community events by qualified veterans and their family members.

Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau announced that Stroll on State on Nov. 26, now in its fourth year, drew an estimated 75,000 visitors.

Forest City Gear added a Reishauer RZ 160 Gear Grinding Machine and Felsomat FRC 600 high-speed load/ unload automation; expanding its high volume gear production capabilities for eight different gears for a robotics application.

The Rockford IceHogs, American Hockey League Affiliate of the Chicago Blackhawks, delivered Teddy bears collected at its weekend games to each patient on Mercyhealth hospital’s pediatric unit on Dec. 13.

Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau’s website GoRockford.com won a Gold MarCom award for excellence in the category of tourism website. It launched its redesign of the website last May. Rockford Public Library launched its new eBook and eAudiobook collection for digital material called the RPL cloudLibrary™ with a wider selection of eBooks and eAudiobooks.

Download the app from your app store.

Look for the Cloud Library. Check out a digital item, and you are eligible to Register to win a Kindle Fire.

The Rock River Development Partnership and the City of Rockford are opening up an opportunity for businesses, individuals and organizations to view a large map of

Madison Street and register to sponsor a streetlight.

Financial-services firm Edward Jones ranked No. 2 on Fortune magazine’s 2016 Best Workplace for Parents, based on more than 120,000 surveys of U.S. employees across a range of industries.

The Rockford Park District Board of Commissioners approved a proposed 2016 Tax Levy 2017; going from $1.1629 last year to $1.1581 this year.

Colorwave Graphics, LLC customprinted a 10 x10-foot fabric display, fabric table cover with logo and banner stand for Aurum Contracting. It produced van graphics for OrthoIllinois, 16-ft.-tall outdoor feather flags for Clodius & Co., and 40 full-color banners distributed nationwide at ABC Supply stores.

Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau announced the return of Tough Mudder, presented by Merrell, on Aug. 26 to 27 at the Chicago-Rockford International Airport. Rockford was selected as one of only six locations in North America and the U.K. Chicago-Rockford International Airport announced that it will not host AirFest 2017 and is suspending the airshow in future years due to recent expansions. Several of the new businesses have nearly non-stop operations that make it challenging to close the airport for four days. Recent projects such as the Rock Valley College Aviation Maintenance Program, the AAR MRO project, the Terminal Building expansion and the ABX Air cargo operation have helped create more than 500 jobs to date and more in the future.

Rockford Park District announced that Snow Park at Alpine Hills, 4402 Larson Ave., opened for the season, weather permitting. A four-foot base of snow was needed in order for the five-acre snow park to open. Visit www.alpinehillsadventure.com.

Community Foundation of Northern Illinois announced its largest grant cycle in its 63-year history and will distribute more than $1.1 million to local organizations for projects, programs and events. University of Illinois College of Medicine at Rockford received the largest oneyear grant in the foundation’s history, worth $188,622 for the purchase of new labs and learning spaces to accommodate 55 additional medical students per year.

Ethnic Heritage Museum purchased the adjacent Graham-Ginestra House and a vacant lot between the two museums in the 1100 block of South Main Street to ensure preservation of the city’s first designated historic landmark. The sale closed on Nov. 18, 2016, and board members individually contributed about one-third of the $116,500 purchase price.

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the News IN Members THEin NEWS

1. Bobby J. Stenstrom

2. Lisa M. Carter

3. Bob Walters

4. Dr. Kimberly Remedios-Smith

5. Dr. Shruti Atul Fadia

6. Dr. Marko Krpan

7. Gerald “Jerry” Sagona

8. Johnna Held

9. Branden Jackson

10. Kerry Hill

11. Kate Rich

12. Eliza Gawenda

13. Judy Meehan

14. Kelsey Ott

15. Tabatha Endres-Cruz

16. Jason Stoll

Rockford Chamber members appear bolded. Thank you for your support of your fellow Chamber members.

BOARD APPOINTMENTS Bobby J. Stenstrom (1), president of Stenstrom Companies’ Petroleum Service Group, was appointed to the Rockford Bank & Trust board.

Klehm Arboretum & Botanic Garden welcomed four new members to its board: Gail Farr, BMO Harris Bank Center; Rod Leezer, retired; Michele B. Lind, Alpine Bank, and Jim Reid, retired.

NEW HIRES, PROMOTIONS, RETIREMENTS Lisa M. Carter (2) joined the Blackhawk Bank’s business division as assistant vice president.

Mercyhealth hired Bob Walters (3) as vice president of home care.

Kimberly Remedios-Smith, M.D. (4), FAAP, and Shruti Atul Fadia, M.D. (5), joined Mercyhealth HospitalRockton Avenue and Marko Krpan, D.O. (6), to Mercyhealth Orthopedic Specialists, Mercyhealth Physicians.

Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau named Fred

VanVleet its first sports tourism ambassador.

Gerald “Jerry” Sagona (7) joined the Rockford Area Economic Development Council as the vice president of national business development.

Stillman Bank welcomed Johnna Held (8) and Branden Jackson (9) as retail banking representatives.

Kerry Hill (10) was named chief financial officer for OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center.

Crusader Community Health promoted Luis Delgado to director of finance and Kate Rich (11) to director of human resources.

Nathan Bryant was hired as the new president and CEO for the Rockford Area Economic Development Council starting Jan. 9, replacing Mike Nicholas, who will pursue opportunities in manufacturing more closely aligned with his interests.

Ringland-Johnson Construction hired Eliza Gawenda (12) as its newest project manager.

Rockford Bank & Trust hired Judy Meehan (13) as assistant vice president and account manager.

Ringland-Johnson, Inc., hired Kelsey Ott (14) as its newest estimating engineer.

Keep Northern Illinois Beautiful welcomed Tabatha Endres-Cruz (15) as its new executive director.

Fehr Graham hired Jason Stoll (16) as a senior project manager.

Crusader Community Health welcomed Vernee Pia Edwards, M.D. (17), obstetrician and gynecologist, and Mutimbuwa Anaene, M.D., board-certified pediatrician, to its medical team.

Ringland-Johnson Construction hired AJ Uhrig as assistant logistics manager.

Mercyhealth welcomed Gail Schuman, D.O., board certified pediatric neurology and headache medicine physician; Ashram Baeshu, M.D., board certified pediatrics; Kimberly Chaney, M.D., Ph.D., neuroradiologist; Paul Lewis, M.D., M.S., interventional radiologist, and Mamdouh Rayan, M.D., MSc, cardiac imaging and neuroradiologist, fellowship trained neonatology physician, to Mercyhealth HospitalRockton Avenue.

EMPLOYEE/COMMUNITY RECOGNITIONS, AWARDS The UIC Health Sciences Campus awarded staff. Cynthia Lopez received the 2016 Dean’s Award; Lorinda Dredske, Cynthia Hall and Terese Knake, the 2016 Distinguished Staff Award; and Cindy Lopez, Kendra Wilson, Gwen Stook and Anays Gelacio, the Team Award.

Dr. Kelly Rosenberger, director, and team from UIC College of Nursing at Rockford and the National Center for Rural Health Professions received a $50,000 grant from the Telligen Community Initiative for “Expanding the Rural Nursing Initiative at UIC.” Becker’s Hospital Review listed Paula Carynski (18), president of OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center, in its annual list of 130 women hospital and health system leaders to know.

Eve Whitaker (19), Spectrum Insurance Agency, earned the Associate in Personal Insurance designation through The Institutes.

Meridian named Toni Schultz (20) as November employee of the month.

(continued on page 23)

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January 2017

Community Events COMMUNITY

Members in the News

Rockford Chamber members appear bolded. Thank you for your support of your fellow Chamber members.

Sunday, January 1 17. Dr. Vernee Pia Edwards

18. Paula Carynski

19. Eve Whitaker

20. Toni Schultz

Keep Northern Illinois Beautiful will accept Christmas trees for recycling into reusable mulch, Jan. 1 to 15, at 13 sites in Winnebago and Boone counties. Remove stand, ornaments, lights or wraps.

No wreaths or artificial trees. Site list and maps at www.knib.org or call 815-637-1343.

Monday, January 9 21. Sandra Lindvall

25. Karen Sikorski

22. Dr. Dennis Norem

26. Bruce Graham

23. Debbie Daniels

27. Brent Brodeski

24. Stephen Tenney

28. Ashley Sarver

Mark Joins Chamber Team Doug Mark joins the Rockford Chamber of Commerce as its new Membership Development Executive in January 2017. Coming from an extensive sales and marketing background working with regional businesses, Doug will lead the Chamber’s membership growth strategies.

“I am excited to have Doug join our team,” said Einar Forsman President/CEO, “he is a solid professional who also has been an active leader in our community.”

Doug can be reached at 815-316-4336 or dmark@rockfordchamber.com.

Continued from page 22

OF GENERAL INTEREST

Sandra Lindvall (21), credit manager, CCP, CPC, at Aqua-Aerobic Systems was elected as the 2016 Business Credit Executive of the Year by the Business Credit Management Association.

Spectrum Progressive School of Rockford students Cameron Strandin participated for the third year and Chase McIntoush for the second year in the Illinois High School Theatre Festival’s All-State Production of Sweeny Todd.

Dennis Norem, M.D. (22), Mercyhealth, received the Community Leader Impact Award from the Rockford Regional Health Council at an annual dinner on Dec. 7.

Comfort Keepers Northwest Illinois named Lucy Owens as Comfort Keeper of the Month for October, and Debbie Daniels (23) for November.

Stephen Tenney (24), intern architect, Larson & Darby Group, completed the Construction Specification Institute’s Construction Document Technology exam to become CDT certified.

Karen Sikorski (25), clinical nurse specialist in pain management, OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center, received the President’s Award from the American Society for Pain Management Nursing.

Bruce Graham (26), Spectrum Insurance Agency, attended the Hanover Insurance Groups annual Million Dollar Dinner in Oak Brook, Ill., in November.

Brent Brodeski (27), CEO, Savant Capital Management, contributed the chapter “Growing and Sharing the Pie,” in a new book about financial advice spearheaded by PIEtech℠, Inc., “Exploring Advice: What You Need to Know About Good Financial Advice, a Quality Financial Plan and the Role of a Fiduciary.”

Ashley Sarver (28), urban planner, Gary W. Anderson Architects, will be leading planning and research for the Rockford Purpose Built Communities initiative.”

The autism program of Easter Seals, University of Illinois College of Medicine at Rockford, Rockford Ice Hogs, PeaCe Foundation and Million Buddies Plus hosts a community-wide Anti-Bullying Awareness Kick-off, 6 p.m., at UIC Health Sciences Campus – Rockford, 1601 Parkview Ave. RSVP by Jan. 6 to 815-395-5566, or tap.rockford@easterseals chicago.org.

Tuesday, January 10

Hulsebus Rockford Chiropractic presents a free Holistic Health Night at 1877 Daimler Road. Call 815-398-3434, ext. 1.

Monday, January 16

Court Street United Methodist, 215 N. Court St., Rockford, invites anyone from Kindergarten through 8th grade for music, art and crafts around the theme of “peace,” 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Register by Jan. 8 at 815-962-6061.

Discovery Center Museum presents We Choose Health, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at 711 N. Main St., Rockford. Meet real doctors, examine organs, avoid lurking viruses, pump up your heart, and more!

Saturday, January 21

Rockford Symphony Orchestra presents Three Violins of Rachel Barton Pine, 711 N. Main St., Rockford. Call 815-965-0049

On Jan. 29, visitors to Discovery Center Museum can find clues leading to the plans for the Death Star, fire up their speeders, get droids, and track down Princess Leia while evading storm troopers at the Star Wars: Rogue 1.5 day. or visit www.rockfordsymphony. com.

Monday, January 23 Complete Health Improvement Program (CHIP) conducts its next Health and Wellness Program, Jan. 23 to March 7, at SwedishAmerican.

Register by Jan. 13 at www.

CHIPhealth.com, 815-975-4523 or jody.perrecone@CHIPhealth.com.

Tuesday, January 24 Hulsebus Rockford Chiropractic presents a free Headache Workshop, 7 p.m., at 1877 Daimler Road on how people can benefit from chiropractic care. Visit Rockforddc.com or call 815-3983434 to RSVP.

Sunday, January 29 Discovery Center Museum presents Star Wars: Rogue 1.5, 1 to 4 p.m., at 711 N. Main St., Rockford.

Have a galactic good time helping us defeat the evil Empire! Visit discoverycentermuseum.org.

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January 2017

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Populations on New Year’s Day The U.S. population will be 324,310,011 on Jan. 1, 2017; an increase of 0.70 percent from New Year’s Day 2016. Since Census Day (April 1) 2010, the population has grown by 5.04 percent.

In January 2017, the United States is expected to experience: ■ one birth every 8 seconds and one death every 11 seconds.

■ add one person through net international migration every 33 seconds.

The combination of births, deaths and net international migration will increase the U.S. population by one person every 17 seconds.

The projected world population on Jan. 1, 2017 is 7,362,350,168, an increase of 1.07 percent from New Year’s Day 2016. During January 2017, 4.3 births and 1.8 deaths are expected worldwide every second.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, www. census.gov/popclock

New Chamber Members MEMBERS AUDENTIO Rockford digital agency 2222 E. State St., Ste. 205, 61104 Mike Creuzer 815-797-9456 www.audentio.com

BOYD CONSULTING GROUP, INC. Group employee benefits 1 Parker Place, Ste. 625 Janesville, WI 53545 Bill Boyd 608-743-0472 www.boydcg.com

ROCKFORD DERMATOLOGY The premier dermatology clinic in the stateline area offering not only general dermatology but cosmetic dermatology as well.

345 Executive Pkwy., Ste. L1, 61107 LaKimerly Coates, M.D. 815-399-6400 Rockforddermatology.com

VETSROLL.ORG

KOWAL DEVELOPMENT, INC. Rental properties 7065 Golden Eagle Dr. Loves Park, IL 61111 Greg Kowalsk

The mission of VetsRoll, Inc.® is to thank and pay tribute to our American Veterans.

1777 Gardner St. South Beloit, IL 61080 Mark Finnegan 608-207-8319 www.vetsroll.org

815-793-0332

PRESENCE COR MARIAE CENTER Offering a full continuum of care: independent living, assisted living, long term skilled and short term rehabiliation.

3330 Maria Linden Dr., 61114 Amy Swanson 815-986-7594

Let your Voice be heard Do you have news to share?

Send news releases and other items of interest to the business community to: The VOICE, Rockford Chamber of Commerce 308 W. State St., Ste. 190, Rockford, IL 61101 DEADLINE IS THE 15TH OF THE MONTH PRECEDING PUBLICATION

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

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January 2017

Members Caught on Digital ON DIGITAL Ceremonial ribbon donated by SERVPRO of Rockford.

OSF Center for Health - Parkview held a ribbon cutting and open house on Nov. 30 at 1502 Parkview, Rockford.

Envoy Mortgage held a ribbon cutting on Dec. 15 at 6876 Spring Creek Road, Ste. 124, Rockford.

Children’s Home & Aid Holiday Shoppe held a ribbon cutting on Dec. 9 at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, 3300 Rural St., Rockford.

Great ribbon cutting ceremony for AAR Corp.’s new MRO hangar at Chicago Rockford International Airport (RFD) with Senator Dick Durbin. Wonderful opportunity to recognize and thank all involved to make a dream a reality in Rockford.

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theVoice rockfordchamber.com

January 2017 Member Anniversaries Thank you to the members celebrating their anniversaries with the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

20-YEAR MEMBER

Northwest Community Center

15-YEAR MEMBERS Midwest Stitch Orput Companies Inc.

10-YEAR MEMBERS White Pines Inn in Mount Morris near Rockford was named in Only in Illinois as one of “11 Unique Getaways in Illinois That Are Picture Perfect For Winter.” The destination was noted for its well-preserved log cabins dating back to the Depression Era, cross-country skiing and holiday show at the White Pines Dinner Theatre. www.whitepinesinn.com.

Visit www.onlyinyourstate.com/illinois for more Illinois recommendations, including a story on Rockford’s own Stroll on State.

Best places to go in winter WalletHub’s analysts crunched the data to find the most fun-filled and wallet-friendly destinations across 26 key metrics: “cost of the cheapest flight” to “number of attractions in each winter vacation spot.”

Top 10

Cold-Weather Destinations

Atlanta, Ga. New York, N.Y. Albuquerque, N.M. Kansas City, Mo. St. Louis, Mo. Washington, D.C. Philadelphia, Pa. Chicago, Ill. Cincinnati, Ohio Denver, Colo.

Chicago Ranked #1 in Lowest Travel Costs and Fewest Hassles #2 in Most Attractions #3 in Most Cold-Weather Activities

Top 10

Warm-Weather Destinations Las Vegas, Nev. Los Angeles, Calif.

San Diego, Calif.

Phoenix, Ariz.

Orlando, Fla. Tucson, Ariz.

San Francisco, Calif.

Tampa, Fla. Dallas, Texas Houston, Texas

5-YEAR MEMBERS

Arc Design Resources, Inc. Benning Group LLC Creative Benefit Solutions Miller Eye Center The Oliver Group Inc.

Gemini Computer Systems, Inc. Leading Lawyers

Membership Renewals Thank you to members who renewed with the Rockford Chamber of Commerce in November, 2016.

A-1 Dry Cleaners & Laundry Absolute Fire Protection, Inc. Advanced Chimney Systems Inc. Alignment Rockford Anderson Japanese Gardens Baker Tilly Virchow Krause, LLP Ballard Properties Benning Group LLC Boylan Catholic High School Chastain & Associates LLC Chick-fil-A Rockford City of Loves Park Crimson Ridge Estate Condos North Culver’s Restaurant CYRS Wealth Advisors LLC Don E. Ballard Trust Envoy Mortgage Erboe & Associates, CPAs Fantasy Glassworks Farm & Fleet of Rockford Forest City Communications of Illinois Inc. Golden Apple Foundation GrahamSpencer Brand + Content Solutions GreenFire Restaurant, Bar & Bakery Hicksgas Belvidere Illinois Bank & Trust Indev Gauging Systems Judson University Keller Williams Realty Signature Leland L. Freberg, CPA, LLC Lindstrom, Sorenson & Associates, LLP Louis Bageanis Lucha Cantina, Inc. MAZTEK Calibration, Inc. MembersAlliance Credit Union Montford Point Marine Association Chapter 41 Movement Fitness Mrs. Fisher’s, Inc. Napleton Honda

Northern Illinois Terrazzo & Tile Company Olson Funeral & Cremation Services Ltd./Fred C. Olson Chapel Olson Funeral & Cremation Services/ North Main Chapel and Care Center Pearson Plumbing & Heating Co. Phelps Industries, Inc. Rasmussen College Regional Office of Education Rockford Housing Authority Rockford I.D. Shop, Inc. Rockford Molded Products Rockford Rotary Club Rockford Specialties Savant Capital Management Securitas Security Services USA, Inc. Special Power, Inc. Stateline World Trade Association, Ltd. c/o Greater Beloit Chamber of Commerce SuperSuds Car Care Center Thayer Lighting, Inc. Title Underwriters Agency Town Square Publications Trinity Day Care U.S. Cellular University of Illinois College of Medicine at Rockford University of Illinois College of Nursing, Rockford Regional Campus University of Illinois College of Pharmacy at Rockford Wanless-Brothers Moving and Storage Co. Winnebago County CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) Winnebago County Health Department Winnebago County-River Bluff Nursing Home Woodman’s Food Market, Inc. #30 YWCA Northwestern Illinois

FEBRUARY VOICE SPECIAL SECTION: Career Aspirations — The Future of Work Revolutionary Medicine (Health Innovations) For information on advertising, call 815

987-8100

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

EVENTS

Upcoming Chamber Events JANUARY, 2017 Government Affairs Council, 7:30 to 8:45 a.m., Stockholm Inn, 2420 Charles St., Rockford.

Sponsored by AT&T. Thursday, January 19, 2017 5 - 8 pm Giovanni’s, Inc. 610 N. Bell School Rd., Rockford

ROCKFORD CHAMBER

Annual Dinner

Vinh Giang will present “The Art of Perspective.”

Giang will demonstrate the magical world of perspective and how it can be used to solve business problems that appear to have no solution.

Giang’s mission in business and in life is to share the psychology of illusion.

Announcement of the Citizen of the Year award. Vinh Giang will present “The Art of Perspective.” His online platform, Encyclopedia of Magic, teaches almost 50,000 worldwide the ways in which people are fooled by illusions. He and his co-owners were awarded Young Entrepreneur of the Year.

Sponsored by OSF HealthCare (presenting), Associated Bank (gold), Charles Schwab (Citizen of the Year), Williams-Manny Insurance Group (wine), and The Alliance, AT&T and RSM US LLP (bronze).

Ribbon cutting and open house at Comfort Keepers, noon to 6 p.m., 4835 Manhattan Dr., Rockford.

Advertisers Index ADVERTISERS

Alpine Bank. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Klaas Financial Asset

Ballard Companies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Advisors, LLC. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Thursday, February 2 9:30 - 11:00 am Coronado Performing Arts Center 314 N. Main St., Rockford

Bisconti Computers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

KMK Media Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Blackhawk Bank. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Meridian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Boylan Catholic High School. . . . . . . . 9

Northern Public Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

The Untapped Advantage of Organizational Health with

Brian Thomas Photography. . . . . . . . 24

OSF HealthCare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3, 9

Broadmoor Agency, Inc.. . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Rockford Bank & Trust Co.. . . . . . . . . 17

FEBRUARY, 2017

Friday, January 13

Tuesday, January 24

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January 2017

Patrick Lencioni Wall Street Journal named Patrick Lencioni as one of the “most in demand speakers in America.” A power-house in professional development, Lencioni will provide a 90-minute workshop on Organizational Health. An opportunity like few others in our region, bring your team, your clients, your board — you will not want to miss this. Tickets are now on sale at an early bird rate.

Visit www.rockfordchamber.com for additional details.

Tuesday, February 7

Business Women’s Council: Time – Talent – Treasure, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., at Rockford Country Club, 2500 Oxford St., Rockford.

Century Plaza Business Center. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Chartwell Agency. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Comcast Business. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Honquest Family Funeral Homes with Crematory. . . . . . 7

Thursday, February 16

Ribbon cutting and open house at Goodwill Admin/Mission Services Building, 11:30am – Tours and Lunch at noon, 850 N. Church St., Rockford.

For more information, to register for an event, and to view an updated Chamber Event Calendar, visit rockfordchamber.com.

Get to Know Your Ambassadors Position: Tax Advisor

How long have you been an Ambassador?

Going on one year this March.

What do you like most about being an Ambassador? I relocated to Rockford about three years ago, due to my husband’s job transfer.

The Ambassador Club has provided me with the opportunity to meet many interesting people and to learn about this great community.

Rockford University . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 RSM US LLP. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Stillman Bank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Thayer Lighting, Inc.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

illumination.io . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

V2 Marketing Communications . . . . . . . 15

Chamber Staff / Call 815-987-8100.............................................. Direct Line Einar K. Forsman, President & CEO.......................................... 815-316-4304 Heidi M. Garner, Chief Operating Officer.................................... 815-316-4312 Doug Hessong, Director of Publications & Technology................... 815-316-4338 Lynette Jacques, Vice President, Member Investment. . .................. 815-316-4317 Caitlin Pusateri, Vice President, Leadership Development................... 815-316-4337 Doug Mark, Membership Development Executive............................... 815-316-4336 Stephanie Mathews, Administrative & Finance Assistant .................... 815-987-8100 Stacy Mullins, Director of Events. . ............................................ 815-316-4302 Doug Rand, Accounting Manager/Controller............................... 815-316-4316 Sue Boyer, Member Relations................................................. 815-316-4315 Joan Sundvall, Membership Contact Coordinator......................... 815-316-4320

Chamber Board of Directors & Officers EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

DIRECTORS

Chairman of the Board Richard Zumwalt OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center Vice Chair Michele Petrie BMO Harris Bank

Andrew Benson Benson Stone Company, Inc. Jan Bowman TLC Construction LaVonne Brown Savant Capital Management Paula Carynski OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center

Vice Chair Dan Ross Williams-Manny Insurance Group

Samuel J. Castree Staff Management, Inc.

Treasurer Amy Ott Boylan Catholic High School

Joe Castrogiovanni Giovanni’s, Inc.

Immediate Past Chair Patti Thayer Thayer Lighting, Inc.

Rena Cotsones Northern Illinois University Jean Crosby Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Crosby Starck Real Estate Don Daniels SwedishAmerican, A Division of UW Health

Name: Mary Jane Provance Company: Block Advisor

Commerce . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4, 23, 25, 28

Illinois Bank & Trust. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Friday, February 10

Government Affairs Council, 7:30 to 8:45 a.m., Stockholm Inn, 2420 Charles St., Rockford. Sponsored

by AT&T.

Rockford Chamber of

Rebecca Epperson Chartwell Agency

Patrick Shaw RSM US LLP

Ira Grimmett UTC Aerospace Systems

Karl Swanson Rockford Bank & Trust Co.

Tim Honquest Honquest Family Funeral Home with Crematory

Jon Thompson Butitta Brothers Automotive

Jeff Hultman Illinois Bank & Trust Michael F. Iasparro Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP Kris L. Kieper Machajewski YWCA Northwestern Illinois Patrick Morrow Alpine Bank Mike Paterson Mid-West Family Broadcasting Mark Peterson CBL Associates Cherry Vale

Laura Pigatti Williamson Rockford Park District

EX-OFFICIO DIRECTORS Einar K. Forsman President & CEO, Rockford Chamber of Commerce John Groh Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau Michael Nicholas Rockford Area Economic Development

John Schuster Rosecrance Health Network

Let your Voice be heard Do you have news to share?

Send news releases and other items of interest to the business community to: The VOICE, Rockford Chamber of Commerce 308 W. State St., Ste. 190, Rockford, IL 61101 DEADLINE IS THE 15TH OF THE MONTH PRECEDING ­PUBLICATION

ROCKFORD CHAMBER OF COMMERCE PUBLIC EDUCATION SURVEY RESULTS

special insert to THE VOICE January 2017

Chamber Members weigh in on public education matters of importance to the business community Welcome to our special insert which highlights the results of our recentlyconcluded Public Education Survey. One of the key aspects of any regional chamber of commerce is to have a public policy organization and agenda as part of its overall plan of work. Addressing key policy initiatives to protect the business climate, supporting economic development programs, and lowering costs of doing business is a hallmark of an effective public policy plan.

Our Public Education Survey was sent to our members in 2016 and the graphs and

charts contained within this special insert represent the results. Please take the time to review and share this information with your peers. The Chamber and its Public Education Council will use this as a basis for building our priorities for advancing public education in our region.

One of the rewarding results of the survey is being told the important role the Chamber should play with regard to public policy. We are gratified to see that you support, and want to see continued involvement by the Chamber in:

➤ increasing graduation rates ➤ advancing curriculum development ➤ building sound workforce skills This insert graphically summarizes the results of the survey and, in some cases, includes comparisons to the previous Public Education survey completed in 2009. 243

Einar Forsman, President & CEO Rockford Chamber of Commerce

individuals completed the survey.

Please feel free to share your comments with me at eforsman@rockfordchamber.com.

Education What type of educational attainment do you require for your employees?

What percentage of your employees are recruited from outside the Rockford Region? (Region defined as the four counties of Winnebago, Boone, Ogle and Stephenson).

Percent Outside Region

Percent of Respondents

0 % . . . . . . 27.78% 1-25% . . . . . 50.85% 25-50% . . . . . 13.68%

80

50-75% . . . . . . . 4.7%

Stephenson

Winnebago

Boone

Ogle

75-100% . . . . . . 2.99%

70 60 50

If you hire from outside the Rockford Region, what opinions do potential employees express of the Rockford Public Schools (RPS)?

40 30 20 10 0

66.67% 62.34% High School Bachelor’s Diploma Degree

29% 27.71% Advanced Certification Degree

“They like what the Rockford schools do with the academies and think it is awesome. They also like some of the staff they have worked with.” “‘Negative’ might be too strong a word, but they certainly express concern and ask questions about the quality of the district.”

“Most are not as informed as they should be about our schools, and do carry a negative opinion.”

“Concerns over graduation rates, test scores, and safety — compared to state and other indices.”

“Employees and new hires are concerned but optimistic about the future of Rockford schools.”

“Getting better. Kids get a good education.”

“Tone regarding education has shifted to be more positive.”

“They hear from co-workers that SD 205 is bad news, and they coach incoming employees to stay out of Rockford.”

“Some have heard education “There’s currently a mix of positive and negative received is substandard.” opinions. Many employees say that RPS is still behind but it looks like they are moving in the right “The high crime rate is the direction. People are optimistic of RPS’s future, biggest deterrent.” but they want to continue to see improvements.”

A

B

ROCKFORD CHAMBER OF COMMERCE PUBLIC EDUCATION SURVEY RESULTS

January 2017 special insert to THE VOICE

What skill sets are most important when hiring a new employee?

(We have included data from 2009 survey for comparison)

2016 vs. 2009 Results 2016 vs. 2009 Results 01 Interpersonal skills 01 Interpersonal skills 02 Grammar/writing skills 02 Grammar/writing skills 03 Analytical skills 03 Analytical skills 04 Reading & comprehension 04 Reading & comprehension 05 Math skills 05 Math skills 06 Technology skills 06 Technology skills 07 General office skills 07 General office skills 08 Creative skills 08 Creative skills 09 Bilingual skills 09 Bilingual skills

100

75

50

25

0

100

75

50

25

0

76.66% 72.27% 76.66% 62.88% 56.11% 62.88% 53.28% 57.86% 53.28% 45.85% 40.17% 45.85% 35.82% 33.19% 35.82% 34.50% 38.43% 34.50% 26.64% 25.33% 26.64% 25.76% 28.60% 25.76% 6.99% 4.37% 6.99%

2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009

What personal characteristics do you value most in an employee?

(We have included data from 2009 survey for comparison)

2016 vs. 2009 Results 2016 vs. 2009 Results 01 Positive attitude 01 Positive attitude 02 Self-starter 02 Self-starter 03 Team-oriented 03 Team-oriented 04 Strong communicator 04 Strong communicator 05 Resourceful 05 Resourceful 06 Dedicated 06 Dedicated 07 Gets along well w/others 07 Gets along well w/others 08 Caring 08 Caring 09 Innovative 09 Innovative

100

75

50

25

0

100

75

50

25

0

71.24% 71.24% 75.05% 54.08% 54.08% 61.82% 49.79% 49.79% 54.45% 40.34% 40.34% NO DATA

35.19% 35.19% 36.44% 31.33% 31.33% 38.83% 30.90% 30.90% 31.67% 17.17% 17.17% 17.35% 16.31% 16.31% 24.73%

“Willing to go that extra mile, do whatever it takes to get the job done and exceed our expectations!”

“Just being able to interview well and have a good work ethic seems to be a thing of the past. Very hard to find.”

“Need to be proactive. Not sit and wait to be told what to do. Need to communicate. Need to be able to work with a team of people. Need to be able to learn other skill sets.”

“We say we like to operate with the COFUE — Those who work with confidence, ownership, focus, urgency and empowerment.”

2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009 2016 2009

ROCKFORD CHAMBER OF COMMERCE PUBLIC EDUCATION SURVEY RESULTS

special insert to THE VOICE January 2017

Do you believe RPS 205’s performance affects your ability to attract/retain qualified employees?

If yes, which of these issues affects your ability to attract/ retain employees?

(Respondents could select multiple answers) 80

YES

70 60

NO

50 40

74.67% – YES

30

25.33% – NO

20 10

“Each of these is important. I want to stress that the issues could affect our ability to attract/ retain employees in a positive way — “All of these. People come to not only a negative communities for good schools!” way.”

“Until Rockford gets the crime issue taken care of, which directly impacts the schools, people are just reluctant to move here and send their kids here.”

20.81% 52.02% GeographicStudent zoned test scores student as compared assignment to national average

“I believe many of the decisions made have a business basis not just educational purpose.

Therefore, the Board, administration and business sector appear to have sufficient interactions.”

Do you think the School Board and administration have sufficient interaction with the business community?

50.29% Safety in the schools

67.63% 66.47% Curriculum Curriculum that teaches that teaches soft workforce hard workforce skills skills (attendance, (math, attitude, English/writing, appearance, technology, professionalism) etc.)

“This has improved greatly via Alignment Rockford and the transition to Dr. Jarret’s leadership.

We have everything we need to transform our schools right here in the community and need to continue to leverage our assets and wisdom.”

“This has improved, with the business community’s focus on recruiting and electing qualified individuals for the Board.”

“Better than I can remember it to have ever been.”

“It seems that there is interaction and the academy program has led to more interaction between the school district and the business community.”

“I think the interactions have grown over the years and are now functioning in a positive way. I hope to see that trend continue.”

What do you think your company could offer local schools?

What are the top three issues you think most important for public schools to focus on?

Insight Grow Job Shadowing Unknown Support Tutoring Skills Graduates

Career Resources Education Learn

Mentoring Experience Students Training

0

Opportunities Disabilities

Manufacturing Offer High School College Readiness Business Program

80

2016

80

70

70

60

60

50

50

40

40

30

30

20

20

10

10

2009

Internships Importance Kids If you were to consider RPS 205 today, versus 5-6 years ago, how would you characterize their status today?

01 27.06% Moving in a great direction 01 45.41% Things are improving 01 16.06% I don’t note any change 01 4.59%

Things are worsening

01 6.88%

I have no idea

0

25

50

75

100

0

59.17% 45.87% 44.95% Preparing Curriculum High School students with Career Soft Skills Academies for the Workplace

0

58.67% 48.46% Discipline Curriculum

42.99% Safety

C

D

ROCKFORD CHAMBER OF COMMERCE PUBLIC EDUCATION SURVEY RESULTS Has the change in elementary schools from a choice system to student assignment zones had a positive or negative impact on recruiting businesses or employees to the area?

January 2017 special insert to THE VOICE

2016

2009

Positive Positive

(We have included data from 2009 survey for comparison)

negative no opinion

“Working parents would like to know that their children are going to school in the neighborhood in which they live, so they could walk to/from school and “From a socialization and cost not have to ride a bus standpoint neighborhood across town.” schools make sense. I would like to see businesses “Students now have ownership and pride “adopt” schools near their in the school they are facilities to provide support attending because it is according to that particular their neighborhood.” schools’ needs.”

no opinion

negative

“I believe people who move to the Rockford public school system want to know that their kids will go to the neighborhood school in the area they choose to live.”

“Currently, I send my kids to private schools because of the previous loss of neighborhood school assignments.

I’m aware of many others who moved outside the RPS system to avoid the same. For some the move outside the RPS area then affected their employment choices. It is my belief the return to neighborhood schools will be a benefit.”

“Choice was not effective. I was personally affected as my daughter would have been bused 45 minutes across town for kindergarten. I moved out of the district at that point.”

Are you or employees from your company/ organization involved in Alignment Rockford?

YES

45.66% Not familiar with alignment rockford

6.85%

NO

30.59% unsure 16.89%

80 70 60 50

Are you aware of the following Alignment Rockford activities?

(Respondents could select multiple answers)

40 30 20 10 0 66.51% 18.60% 65.88% 56.74% 52.09% Kennedy Implementation College & Academy Expo Student Career Middle School of High School Career and/or Exploration Math Tutor Academies Readiness Teacher Event Program Councils/ Visits to Academy Businesses Support Teams

YES

14.98% no opinion 35.27%

NO

49.76%

Do you think RPS 205 provides adequate vocational training to address workforce needs?

32.56% Early Childhood Learning Efforts

22.33% I am not aware of any of these activities