July Voice 2018

WHITE PINES RESORT IS A LIGHT IN THE FOREST PAGE 3

VETERANS HELPING VETERANS

SKILLS COMPANIES NEED MOST

PAGE 8

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THE VOICE IS ONLINE AT ROCKFORDCHAMBER.COM

of the Rockford Business Community

JUly 2018 | Volume 31 | No. 7

ROCKFORD CHAMBER’S Jill Manzo has done the research and the results are in. In 2018, women are still underrepresented as leaders in the workplace and on corporate boards across the country.

Manzo was the keynote speaker at the Rockford Chamber of Commerce annual Women in Business Expo and Luncheon, June 21, at the newly remodeled Cliffbreakers. Manzo, a Midwest Researcher at the Illinois Economic Policy Institute in LaGrange, Ill., presented “Women in High-Ranking Positions; The Few, The Need, and the Path Forward,” outlining her research on the gender gap. More than 300 people turned out and over 45 businesses were represented at this year’s event.

PHOTOS BY BRIAN THOMAS PHOTOGRAPHY

Women in Business

Jocelyn Hare (left), SERVPRO of Rockford, named Woman Business Leader of Tomorrow; Kathryn Pearce, Mercyhealth, is Woman Manager of the Year; and, Laurie Miller, 2HB Human Resources and Benefits Solutions is Woman Business Owner of the Year.

“I’m even surprised more women

to focus more on family instead of work.”

aren’t in leadership roles,” said Manzo.

According to Manzo’s research, women

“Women are just as educated as men and

make up just 20 percent of corporate

are equally qualified. The number one

board seats and 25 percent of senior-level

roadblock is parenthood. Research shows

positions across the country. Women still

as women take on more of a parental role,

make just 79 cents for every dollar earned

they tend to get passed up for promotions.

by men, and they are overrepresented in Continued on page 4

There’s a misconception that women need

Summer, a season for golf outings

RECENT CHANGES TO MOVING, MILEAGE, TRAVEL EXPENSES The IRS announced changes to moving, mileage and travel expenses based on the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The new law suspends the move-related vehicle expense deduction for tax years, Dec. 31, 2017 through Jan. 1, 2026. No deduction is allowed for using an auto as part of a move using the mileage rate, with the exception of members of the Armed Forces on active duty moving to a permanent change of station.

The act also suspends all miscellaneous itemized deductions for unreimbursed employee expenses subject to the two percent of adjusted gross income floor, such as uniforms, union dues and business-related meals, entertainment and travel.

The standard mileage rates for a car, van, pickup or panel truck for 2018 are: 54.5 cents per mile for business travel, 18 cents per mile for medical purposes and 14 cents per mile serving charitable organizations.

The recent legislation also increases the depreciation limitations for passenger autos placed in service after Dec. 31, 2017, for purposes of computing the allowance under a fixed and variable rate plan. The maximum standard automobile cost may not exceed $50,000 for passenger automobiles, trucks and vans placed in service after Dec. 31, 2017.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR! BLOCK PARTY

Summer brings golf outings; a fixture at every golf course and a legitimate reason to slip out of the office on a warm summer day, connect with friends and clients, and fund worthy causes and organizations.

Below are some of the summer golf outings in the Rockford area, a city known for its love of golf and excellence of its courses.

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

❯ “I have always had a drive that pushed me to try for perfection, and golf is a game in which perfection stays just out of reach.”

– Betsy Rawls

JULY 2018

Thursday, July 5 JackManDew Tour Championship— The Mauh-Nah-Tee-See-Club Monday, July 9 OSF HealthCare Saint Anthony Medical Center Golf Play Day— The Mauh-Nah-Tee-See-Club Sunday, July 15 ByronFest Open — PrairieView Golf Club (Byron)

Friday, July 27 Winnebago County Bar Association’s 73rd Annual Clambake Golf Outing— The Mauh-Nah-Tee-See-Club Rockford Public Schools – Aldeen Golf Club Saturday, July 28 SMA Andrew Murray – Forest Hills Country Club Monday, July 30 Rockford Area Realtors’ Let’s Flamingle on the Greens Golf Outing – Forest Hills Country Club Jerry Guse Scholarship Golf Outing— The Mauh-Nah-Tee-See-Club

AUGUST 2018

Friday, Aug. 3 Northern Illinois Hospice Foundation’s 31st annual Charity Golf Event – Rockford Country Club 10th Annual Rockford Sexual Assault Counseling, Inc. – Aldeen Golf Club

Continued on page 10

FOUNDERS’DAY juLY 12 • 308 W. State St. outside of Stewart Square For more info, see page 27 SPONSORED BY

RECORD NUMBER OF VISITORS ENJOY ILLINOIS IN 2017 The number of Illinois visitors hit an all-time high in 2017 at nearly 114 million, for a $1.1 billion boost to the state’s economy. Last year’s visitor totals were 1.4 percent higher than in 2016 -- also a record year.

Travelers came from all over the world for business (17 percent) and pleasure (83 percent). In the past 10 years, travelers visiting Illinois increased by more than 22 million, and tourism has become one of the state’s most important industries. It saves the average Illinois household more than $1,300 in taxes each year.

2 | JUly 2018

theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

positionChairman’s Perspective

Back to school! It still may be summer, but learning never ends Yes, I know that the summer just began and the kids are far from ready to head back to the classroom. But as I age, summer seems to go faster every year and before you know, it will be time to restart school and the fall routine will be upon us.

Not being a great advance planner, this seems a strange topic for me at virtually the beginning of summer break.

I am in this frame of mind because there are great opportunities for you and your organization just around the corner.

Your Rockford Chamber of Commerce premiere business professional education program, Rockford Leadership Alliance, is geared up and ready for the next exciting series of learning and growth opportunities.

Since its inception in 2016, the Rockford Leadership Alliance has provided the highest quality leadership training to more than 110 companies and over 450 individuals. Designed for business executives and high potential leaders, these programs target critical leadership gaps that exist in virtually every organization. The experiences

Participants have commented that the programs are not only of the highest caliber, but give them real life, practical tools to take back to their organization. are invigorating and promote growth from within at participant companies.

Participants have commented that the programs are of the highest caliber, and give them real life, practical tools to take back to their organization. This concentrated effort by your Chamber has received rave reviews and is heralded as providing national quality training right here in our community.

Past participants have said: “I looked forward to every meeting. I have put quite a few things I’ve learned from RLA into play already and have seen the benefits of it.”

“I enjoyed the variety of speakers — each brought their own uniqueness to the program.

I have been through other leadership programs and this is one of the better ones. I helped author a leadership program for my national professional association and have taught it

twice now. I still found your program to be excellent and I learned something new in every session. Thank you.”

“RLA provides a great way for leaders to share and grow. The better we become as leaders the more we can achieve within our companies and lives.”

As busy leaders, it is often difficult to pause daily responsibilities and demands long enough to assess your companies needs and determine a reasonable way to access resources.

RLA has done that challenging work for you, providing the top presenters on topics that are transformative for you and your company. The series began with Trust, moved to Organizational Health, and now continues with Accountability — a topic critical to success in any business setting.

Leaders must be prepared to create a

culture of accountability within their Richard Zumwalt organizations; Rockford Chamber Board Chairman although many may often lack the tools or even a sense of where to start. Without the expectation of accountable performance, countless hours of work are lost leading to lower efficiency and higher cost.

Joseph Grenny, our keynote speaker, will be kicking off this critically important series on September 19.

He is a renowned author, researcher and motivator on the topic of accountability. The goal is to help you and your company achieve new levels of performance by creating an improved culture of accountability at all levels of your business.

Take some time today to think about how you are developing your leaderships skills to improve the future of your company.

Register for Rockford Leadership Alliance today at www.rockfordchamber. com.

theVoice

JULY 2018 | 3

PROFILE Member Profile

White Pines Resort: A little piece of tranquility

By Paul Anthony Arco Nestled inside White Pines State Park near Oregon, Ill., sits White Pines Resort, a fun, woodsy getaway from life’s hustle and bustle. The best part? It’s a quick 30-minute drive from Rockford.

“It’s a respite from everything,” said Elizabeth George, the resort’s owner and concessionaire. “We welcome an entire realm of guests — from couples falling in love to bus groups who come for the dinner theater. There’s something for everyone.”

White Pines State Park is home to 350,000 guests a year and features 385 acres of tranquility, thanks to beautiful rolling hills, limestone bluffs, streams and six miles of hiking trails. The resort includes 25 historic cabins, three family cabins — two that sleep 12 — and a honeymoon cabin. “Our rustic, charming Hansel and Gretel cabins include hardwood floors, log walls and camp fires,” George said. “They’re perfect for family reunions, getaways and wedding parties.” There’s also a restaurant, gift shop and an intimate dinner theater.

White Pines Resort was named one of the “15 Best Wilderness Getaways” by Midwest Living magazine. The resort is open 10 months of the year, closed only in January and February.

George has been with the resort for 30 years. A Mount Morris native who has been in recreation and tourism her entire career, George built and owned Lake Ladonna Family Campground in Oregon, before moving to White Pines Resort in 1989. That’s when the resort’s concession business became available.

George outbid a national hotel chain, a chef and the former concessionaire, and even had to make a quick plane ride to Springfield just to meet the application deadline.

The resort, according to George, is a diamond in the rough. “What makes me happy is to make people smile,” said George, who not only survived the recession but a bout with cancer in 2008. “I get to help create a good time.

What makes my engine roar is to make someone’s wedding go seamless and perfect. It’s a lot of work, but I still love it.”

Capacity for Corporate Retreats The resort is even better today, thanks to a significant expansion project that was completed last year. The expansion included a new stage for the theater with state-of-the art lighting and sound, creating an additional 40 seats. The project was a partnership between the resort and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, which has authority over the park.

The goal for the expansion was to create a retreat center that attracts

White Pines Resort is open for family reunions, getaways and wedding parties.

Mount Morris native Elizabeth George has been with the resort for 30 years. corporate groups. “After 30 years, it was time to rejuvenate the property,” George said. “We were busting at the seams.

We have tourists and weddings on the weekend, but all we have during the week is the dinner theater. Now we have space for corporate retreats during the week as well.”

The mid-week afternoon matinees run from March through mid-November and draws bus tours from a two-hour radius.

Entertainment includes musicals, plays, comedies and tribute acts. “Scrooge,” an annual Christmas show, is one of the biggest draws.

And now George is looking forward to the resort’s’ future. After 30 years, she is starting to scale back, turning the day-to-day operations over to general manager Jerry Campagna. But George will remain involved, still helping to make memories for guests.

“I’ve worked my business hard, and my staff followed,” she said. “I have great people who create good times for families. I can’t wait to see where White Pines Resort goes from here.”

WHITE PINES RESORT Owner: Elizabeth George 6712 W. Pines Road Mount Morris 815-946-2400 Gotgoodnatured.com

4 | JUly 2018

theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

Women in Business (continued from front page)

lower paying occupations such as retail and education and underrepresented in higher paying jobs in business and technology.

During her message, Manzo offered four policy changes to help ensure gender equality: equal time off for paternity leave, affordable childcare, equal pay for equal work and adoption of a flex time program.

Individually, she says, we can all do our part. “We can all champion for other women,” she said. “Encourage women to fight for a promotion or a pay raise. This is something we can do every day.”

“I think the topic of women advancing in the executive environment is an important issue,” added Einar Forsman, chamber president and CEO. “The numbers Jill shared are very telling. When you hear only six percent of Fortune 500 companies have female CEOs, that number is really small.

Forsman said the chamber is working to pursue recognition of women advancing in the workplace and advancing as leaders.” By 2019 the Chamber will have had three female board chairs in the last 11 years. In the previous 97 years, there was just one. “Our focus is good competent leaders, regardless of gender,” he said.

“They’re the ones we want leading our community.”

The topic of gender inequality hits close to home for Patti Thayer, president of Thayer Lighting, Inc. The Loves Parkbased company is certified as women’s business enterprise by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC), the nation’s largest third-party

Jill Manzo, a Midwest Researcher at the Illinois Economic Policy Institute in LaGrange, Ill., presented “Women in High-Ranking Positions; The Few, The Need, and the Path Forward.” certifier of the businesses owned and operated by women in the United States.

“In my industry, it’s a man’s world,” said Thayer, a past chamber board chair. “You have to be persistent and push forward. You have to do more to be accepted. Sometimes it takes years.

Persistence is the key.”

Annual Award Honorees Three awards were presented to local community leaders during the luncheon.

Awards were presented to: Woman Business Leader of Tomorrow, Jocelyn Hare, SERVPRO of Rockford; Woman Manager of the Year, Kathryn Pearce, Mercyhealth; and Woman Business Owner of the Year, Laurie Miller, 2HB Human Resources and Benefits Solutions.

Hare has been the officer manager of her family’s business for the past seven years. She is also the director of brand development for a start-up company, Restoration Tools. And the number

of organizations she volunteers for is staggering – including Family Counseling Services, Ethnic Heritage Museum and Music Academy of Rockford.

“I didn’t grow up in Rockford but I fell in love with the community,” she said.

“I’m honored to volunteer with so many wonderful people, and I’m excited to see where we can go from here.”

Pearce has enjoyed a long career in healthcare. She is currently Mercyhealth’s patient experience officer. In her role she consults with physicians, clinical team, patients and families to resolve any issues. In addition, Pearce is involved with Transform Rockford, Sharefest and an international bible study group called Bible Study Fellowship.

“My success as a manager in leadership is because of the individuals that I work with,” she said. “They inspire me, and I learn so much from them.”

In 1998, Miller started a motherdaughter benefits consulting firm. In 2012, she merged her business with a large, national brokerage firm and just last year she opened her own consulting firm again, 2HB Human Resources and Benefits Solutions, which handles employee benefits, human resources, compliance, recruiting, payroll and training. Miller is also involved with

Women of Today’s Manufacturing, which promotes career pathing for women in manufacturing roles, and she’s one of the few female members of the Rock River Valley Tooling Association.

“Many people ask me why at my age I decided to restart my business,” she said.

“I have a true love for customer service and clients are like extended family to me.

The biggest lesson I’ve learned in business is resilience – being able to bounce back and take on new challenges.

Prior to the luncheon, many business leaders visited the various booths to talk with representatives from different businesses and organizations, including the Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network, who saw steady traffic all morning long.

“The expo provided Gift of Hope the opportunity to explain the process of organ and tissue donation to attendees as they stopped by our table,” said Therese Michels, manager of marketing and communications. ‘It was also great to hear the inspirational stories of the business leader award honorees, who are making such a difference in the stateline area.”

The presenting sponsor of the expo and luncheon was Mercyhealth. Other sponsors were OSF HealthCare, Gift of Hope and Northwest Bank. theVoice

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

Deadline is the 15th of the month preceding publication date. 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

JUly 2018 | 5

Rockford University PERSPECTIVE

A new opportunity for leaders What Xers, Millennials want A few weeks ago, Deloitte released the results of its 2018 survey of 10,455 Millennials across 36 countries. For business leaders, the message was clear: decisions makers are expected to improve the world and their careers.

Leadership among all businesses has undergone significant change in the last decade. Great leaders have become more flexible. Young companies and successful leaders are using their creativity to focus on positive results. In the classroom, we talk about the significance of participative, inspirational and transformational leadership. Technology has also become a critical component of successful leaders. More employees are working remotely, and managing employees everywhere requires adaptability and communications. Transparency has become a mandatory checkpoint.

The Deloitte survey provides leaders with an insightful perspective of their incoming workforce. While leadership styles are important, successful future leaders must also understand and utilize artificial intelligence, robotics, the internet of things and cognitive development.

Importance of Business Culture Millennials and ‘Gen Z’ view our current social and political environment with pessimism. While they understand

the need for a positive ‘bottom line,’ they have an expectation that leadership will also consider the stakeholders, their community and the environment. Leaders’ slow adoption of these rising principles is leaving our incoming workforce with a diminutive sense of loyalty.

One of the common challenges faced by business leaders in the greater Rockford area is the rate of turnover.

While we celebrate those employees that have milestone anniversaries with our organizations, we should endeavor to close the misconception gap that exists among other employees. The Deloitte survey reveals that younger employees believe the business world is on a downward trend with regard to motivation and ethics. There is a mismatch between what they believe responsible leaders should be doing, and what the actual priorities are.

Although good pay has and competitive benefits will continue to be important considerations in attracting and retaining good employees, business leaders should make sure to include a meaningful discussion about their business culture when interviewing candidates. Equally important are how business addresses diversity and inclusion. These are no longer buzzwords that are briefly mentioned in trade journals; they are foundational components of success

leadership portfolios. While millennials believe diversity consists of traditional aspects such as age, gender, disabilities and ethnicity, they are also introducing the importance of educational diversity.

“The need to address educational background as a diversity issue was more acute within emerging (52 percent) than in mature (33 percent) markets. Along with age and gender inequality, diversity of educational background (types of universities/colleges and degrees) was considered something that business, in particular, should address.” (2018 Deloitte Millennial Survey, pg. 11) Millennials and Gen-Xers are shifting their perception of societal contributions and benefits away from their generic definition of ‘business,’ and redirecting their expectations to leadership specifically.

Four in 10 millennials believe that their employer should be addressing educational diversity -- the types of degrees represented among their workforce. Less than half of today’s 20- and 30-year-old workers believe business leaders are committed to helping improve society. Three-quarters consider business as focusing on their own agendas rather than society as a whole. Two-thirds believe businesses single ambition is to make money.

Emerging leaders must be willing to include specific goals that will provide mean-

ingful social improvements and contributions toward the communities in John Gunyon, Ph.D. which we live.

Rockford University For those employees that were born since the mid-80s, their perception of business is one of constant evolution and development. Many lack the confidence that they can be successful, and will be looking to your leadership to help them develop not only their trade skills, but those necessary “soft” skills as well.

Their longevity with today’s business will be directly tied to leadership helping them personally improve as the business and their specific job evolves.

In the eyes of today’s younger workforce, it is the leader who shoulders the responsibility to be an agent of positive, creative, supportive change.

Change is inevitable. Successful leadership growth and development is optional.

John Gunyon, Ph.D., is chair of the Puri School of Business; associate professor of economics, business & accounting.

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

6 | JUly 2018

 Destination

theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

ILLINOIS, USA

ADDING WEALTH TO THE REGION’S ECONOMY BY GROWING TOURISM

Making our Forest City beautiful

Plans continue for making our Forest City beautiful expanding to our city’s gateways When company’s coming, many folks run to the store to buy flowers for the table. You bring out the good china.

We dispense of clutter, cut the grass and make sure everything’s spit-and-polish clean.

Maybe you step back to survey our efforts and think: “Wow. I should do this for myself, not just for guests.”

It’s true. The everyday appeal of our surroundings affects how we feel about ourselves and about where we live.

Rockford is a beautiful city, replete with picturesque parks, scenic rivers, attractive neighborhoods and public and private spaces where great attention is paid to how things look. But “fast backward,” so to speak, about five years.

Not so long ago, our downtown “selfie” left something to be desired aesthetically.

Bleak public spaces and mismatched planters – some sporting crops of mismatched weeds – didn’t exactly

John Groh Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau

boost our collective self-esteem. The appearance of downtown did little to support efforts toward “attracting top talent” to our city, which is the focus of this month’s Voice.

Forest City Beautiful In 2014, RACVB launched Forest City Beautiful with funds from its boarddesignated Wendy Perks Fisher Fund for Innovation and with generous support from the City of Rockford. Over the past five years, beautification efforts have been expanded tremendously with support from many community donors and volunteers.

You can’t miss the results: huge flowerpots all over downtown teeming with lush greenery and colorful blossoms, professional landscaping around parking lots, park benches and bistro sets that make previously unremarkable public spaces welcoming.

New signage helps residents and visitors find their way around, and we’ve added more trash receptacles to keep our streets and public spaces litter free.

And did you see the nine sculptures that were on loan to the city and displayed downtown from 2015 to 2017?

Donors who believe in public art funded that very popular sculpture project, and they are doing it again.

By now, installation has begun for 13 sculptures that will be featured downtown and beyond for the next two years. These sculptures are the work of Midwest artists. We asked for public support at an event in early June and the response was immediate and overwhelming. Thanks to everyone who helped make the sculpture initiative happen again.

RACVB also sponsors the Business is Blooming competition that recognizes local businesses for their efforts to make Rockford a beautiful and enjoyable place to live, work and play. Criteria include well-maintained landscaping, overall cleanliness and attractiveness, creativity of design, color and signage, along with other elements. Last year RACVB recognized six businesses for excellence.

There’s more to be done, and we need more sponsors for specific beautification initiatives and more volunteers to keep our efforts moving in the right direction.

Every year, we raise funds to maintain what we’re already doing, and the push is on now to expand efforts beyond

downtown and to beautify our city’s gateways.

Circus Coming to Town The major fundraiser for Forest City Beautiful is “Paint the Town Green,” and this year, we have something truly special planned. On Friday, July 13, we’ll present a Vintage Circus at Klehm Arboretum & Botanic Garden. Guests will thrill to the show-stopping aerial antics of Aloft Circus Performers from Chicago and enjoy interesting side shows, food and drink, all in the cirque theme.

Please contact me if you are interested in helping with any of the current beautification efforts or if your company is doing something notable that we should know about.

Rockford’s 2018 “selfie” is a far cry from the snapshot of just five years ago. What a difference a few – or a few thousand – flowers, plants and shrubs make in the table we set for ourselves, as well as for our guests.

John Groh is president/CEO of Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau. The mission of the RACVB is to drive quality of life and economic growth for our citizens through tourism marketing and destination development. www.gorockford.com The views expressed are Groh’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

JUly 2018 | 7

Guest Perspective insight

Culture – worth the effort The ‘secret sauce’ of a results-based business I recently participated in a meeting with local leaders about workplace culture.

In the group were small businesses, large businesses, corporations and public entities. Two specific businesses in the group were considered our “experts.”

One business began working on culture because things were so bad they had to make a change. Through five years of figuring out what was important to them, developing their words, implementing ROWE (an acronym for a Results Based Work Environment) and not giving up (sometimes it was very, very hard), they are seeing some significant improvement in results and engagement.

The second business was doing pretty well and after about 10 years, thought they should figure out how they developed this unique work environment.

As their culture journey evolved, they too figured out the components of their “secret sauce” and intentionally began to weave their words, values, goals and habits into hiring, training and weekly communications. This company started their culture work at good and wanted to be great. Now, the owner will tell you, the culture work is their key to excellence.

As other businesses in the room

participated, three key topics kept rising to the top: ■ Intentional Actions ■ Committed Leadership ■ Trust Intentional Actions. Once folks agree it’s time for a change in culture, a leadership group must own the responsibility to intentionally create then cast the special messages/ behaviors out to employees, vendors and customers. Going through the exercise of figuring out priorities as well as “who you are” and “why you matter” are critical. These things in turn tap into passion, motivation, commitment, engagement and ultimately results.

Committed Leadership. In order to succeed long term, leadership must take an honest view of its culture so it can execute in the long term in both opportunities and in gaps. When a group determines what its “secret sauce” is and where its priorities lie, that information must be clearly communicated and be visible on a consistent basis. There will be times when partners internally and externally push back – leadership must keep the

message fresh and intact during points of stress.

Trust. Trust and credibility are the core principles of effective leadership.

Building a culture of trust requires a candid and transparent approach. Job status and seniority can only take a leader so far. Trust, respect, knowledge and sound judgment can take a leader and a leadership team the distance.

Challenge Yourself If this culture conversation resonates with you, and you are looking for a next step for your business, ask yourself: ■ Can key people/advocates around me tell me what we do best? What are the priorities of the company and each individual team member?

If the answer is maybe or no, do some soul searching and ask yourself: ■ How do I as a leader provide clarity about where we are and what comes next?

■ How do I distribute trust and authority?

■ How do I deal with conflict (in other words – do I regularly challenge people, am I careful to challenge conspicuously,

does challenge in a disarming way work better)?

Michele Petrie Wintrust Commercial Banking

■ Where does accountability live in my business? How is it discussed?

The great news is when we have command of culture in our businesses and our lives; we have a chance of building it in our community. I define a Community Culture as “how people in a community live — their ideas, attitudes, health, language, religion and history.”

Take a look around you. We have many businesses in our community really thriving with great culture and bright futures. Let’s commit to leaning in as leaders and aligning our cultures for the betterment of our community.

I don’t have all of the answers, but I’m certainly committed to trying.

Michele Petrie is president of Wintrust Commercial Banking.

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

8 | JULY 2018

theVoice

According to BPI staffer and Vietnam veteran, Eric Willard, the comradery shared between the veterans is a big part of the class. Discussions range from recent suicides of veterans they know, to race relations and struggles they’ve experienced.

Veterans helping veterans Supported by Rock Valley College

By Eric Willard When Dawn Ousley, administrative assistant at the Business and Professional Institute of Rock Valley College, saw a TV news story about the Veterans Drop In Center, she conceived the idea to provide computer training to veterans.

Dawn mentioned her idea to another BPI staffer, Eric Willard, who she knew was a Vietnam veteran. They visited the center the next day and met the director, Pat Ambrose, to propose their idea to help those at the 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation.

Pat, whose years of experience working with the Red Cross, as well as veterans, explained that the mission of the center is to provide a safe, supportive and positive social environment where all veterans and their families can give and receive help transitioning into postservice life. Pat has a small conference room on the second floor of the center that she offered to use as a training room.

The Business and Professional Institute (BPI) at Rock Valley College sprang into action, providing seven laptops for the satellite site training center.

The SwedishAmerican Foundation and other organizations provided funding for Microsoft course materials, a video projector, white board and desktop computers for students to use at home.

Classes included Introduction to Computers and Microsoft Office as well as Introduction to Word and Excel. The veterans are given the same materials as used by colleges around the country.

Beyond Learning While the initial intent of the program was to provide computer training, the

value of the course to the instructor and the student veterans who attend, extends well beyond “learning computer skills” which can be helpful in finding jobs or advancing careers. The comradery (and camaraderie … google it to understand the difference) that is shared between the veterans are a big part of the class.

Discussions range from recent suicides of veterans they know, to race relations and struggles they’ve experienced.

As one veteran summed it up, “The time in the classes is the best part of coming to the Drop In Center, because sharing and learning are encouraged and knowledge and skills are shared.

No one judges you there.” The instructor also reports that he has been significantly helped in his own PTSD issues by the care and leadership given by the director, Pat, and the sharing and welcoming friendship given by all the veterans.

HOW TO GET INVOLVED The Rockford community cares about its veterans, and this is one more example of how local businesses are helping the community to be a place of love and respect. If you want to help out the Veterans Drop In Center, visit www.veteransdropincenter. com/. (Yes, there’s a donation button.) or on Facebook at “Veterans Drop In Center Rockford IL”. You can also reach Pat Ambrose at 815-713-8843 or director@veteransdropincenter. com for your organization to provide meals or meet other needs of the veterans at the center.

theVoice

JULY 2018 | 9

ignite

Young Professionals

Ask yourself: ‘Should I try a job in sales?’

Cultivating the art of persuasion, relationship building

Greg Lundquist IGNITE

I was 23, I tried selling By now, the leftover graduation cake is gone, If you would not disability insurance door to door to business owners and you are looking for personally use what with the anticipation that employment as a young I would be retired at 30. you are selling, professional. The great news is that the current it’s never going to Currently, I’m well past job market is considerably 30, and I’m still working. work out for you, Obviously, that didn’t work better than it has been for a very long time. Of because that lack out too well. course, the next thing to However, here’s what of enthusiasm do is to find a job!

I learned. It didn’t work In your search, you will show through because it was not the right are bound to run across product and type of sale in your sales jobs that involve sales for me. I simply looked presentation in the job description at it as an opportunity to to some degree. The generate income. Which, in every time. more intriguing aspect is hindsight, was completely that those jobs typically misguided. In my current role, it’s more show a much higher income potential about relationship building for a company than a non-sales job. This might leave with services that I personally believe in. you questioning: should I try a job in If you would not personally use sales? Over the course of this article, I’ll what you are selling, it’s never going to highlight some of my own experiences work out for you because that lack of with this scenario. I suspect that many enthusiasm will show through in your others have asked themselves the same sales presentation every time. thing.

Don’t be scared away by not knowing Start by seriously asking yourself how to sell. In most companies, training whether or not you think you can do it.

If that answer is anything but a yes, then usually includes sales training on the it may not be the best fit. I only say this effective ways to illustrate the product from a confidence and positive attitude or service you are selling. Selling is a standpoint. This holds true in most things skill that you hone over time. Just like in life, not just sales. If you believe you anything else, it takes practice to get good can do something, most of the time you at it. Most companies will do everything can achieve your goal. If you don’t think in their power to make you successful, as you can do it, the odds are against you to it benefits everyone involved. If you miss achieve success. your goal for a given month or quarter, This is a vital part of any sales process. most often it does not result in termination as long as your employer sees that you are Determining Right Fit making an honest effort.

My advice before embarking on a In conclusion, all of us are selling every job in sales is to find out some more minute of every day. I sell my wife on why information about yourself. Take some it’s a good idea for me to go golfing on time and conduct a personality test. This Saturdays, and she sells me on why her will give you more insight as to what your purchases are needs and not just wants. tendencies are. If your personality profile We are persuading others all of the time says you don’t like meeting new people, to see things our way. In looking at it that this could be a sign that sales is not right way, you’ve been selling your whole life for you. Most employers will conduct and just didn’t realize it. Therefore, I will these evaluations on their own as part of leave you with this. With the right attitude, the interview process. While their tests are willingness to learn and determination to typically different, the core components succeed, it can be a great career. should essentially be the same when it If you are looking for more insight on comes to determining whether you are an the topic, please feel free to stop by any introvert or extrovert.

Find that right product, service and/ IGNITE event. I’d be happy to talk with or company to sell. Not every sales job you regarding a career in sales. is the same. The process differs greatly depending on whether it is business to business or you are receiving or making calls on the phone to try to make a sale.

In my own personal experience, when

Greg Lundquist is vice president of IGNITE. The views expressed are those of Lundquist’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

10 | JUly 2018

Summer Golf

(continued from front page) Monday, Aug. 6 Stateline Youth for Christ’s 2018 YFC Golf Outing – The Mauh-Nah-Tee-See-Club Wednesday, Aug. 8 United Way Golf Outing – PrairieView Golf Club (Byron) Thursday, Aug. 9 Prairie Street Brewhouse – Rockford Country Club ❯ “It took me 17 years to get 3,000 hits in baseball. I did it in one afternoon on the golf course.”

– Hank Aaron Friday, Aug. 10 4th Annual Greg Lindmark Foundation Golf Outing & Dinner Fundraiser – Forest Hills Country Club Friday, Aug. 17 2018 Rockford Cosmopolitan Golf Classic – Forest Hills Country Club & Rockford Country Club Saturday, Aug. 18 Lions Club International – PrairieView Golf Club (Byron) Monday, Aug. 20 Piping Industry Council Rockford Area (PICRA) – Forest Hills Country Club

Friday, Aug. 24 Rockford Hockey Club – Rockford Country Club Winnebago County Medical Society Golf Play Day – Forest Hills Country Club ❯ “I didn’t miss the putt. I made the putt. The ball missed the hole.”

– Peter Jacobsen

SEPTEMBER 2018 Friday, Sept. 7 Men’s Italian Open – The Mauh-Nah-Tee-See-Club Monday, Sept. 10 Holy Family Catholic Church Golf Outing – The Mauh-Nah-Tee-See-Club GiGi’s Playhouse’s No Bull” Golf Outing – Rockford Country Club Northern Illinois Building Contractors Association (NIBCA) – Forest Hills Country Club Friday, Sept. 14 Walter Lawson’s Annual Golf Outing – The Mauh-Nah-Tee-See-Club Northwest Community Center’s Annual Chip 4 Kids – Aldeen Golf Club ❯ “It’s great to win, but it’s also great fun to be in the thick of any truly well and hard-fought contest against opponents you respect, whatever the outcome.”

– Jack Nicklaus

Quotes Source: www.greatest-inspirational-quotes.com/inspirational-golf-quotes.html

theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

Guest Perspective insight

The future of Rockford Park District golf

Weigh in at upcoming golf outreach meeting For 109 years, Rockford Park District has been recognized both as a leader throughout the golf industry as well as a life-changing force within our community.

Sinnissippi Golf Course, which opened in 1912, changed our community, as it was Rockford’s first public course, and to this day continues to be nationally recognized.

Until the 1980s, it was the longest ninehole course in the nation.

The golf course was designed by Thomas Bendelow, who designed the country’s first public course in New York City and the famous #3 course at Medinah Country Club in Chicago. Over the years, the district added five more courses as interest in the game continued to soar, thanks to what I like to call the Tiger Woods factor. Everyone wanted to play and try to become the next big PGA star.

Golf was a big revenue generator for our district, but over the last 10 years, we are down 160,000 rounds per year and have experienced a one and a half million dollar annual swing in revenue. Expenses have exceeded revenue every year since 2010. Our golf operations are no longer showing a profit. Weather, community demographics, time and new recreational trends factor into why the game of golf is changing. Golf courses are closing rather than opening, and we too are at the point where it’s becoming extremely difficult to provide the same level of service without a significant increase in golf revenue.

Rockford Bank & Trust Pavilion at Aldeen Golf Club, which opens later this summer, is one example of how the Rockford Park District can bring in new revenue and reduce dependency on taxes. The district is using a variety of funding opportunities to make this project happen: $2.7 million in generous donations, a naming rights agreement and a continued partnership with Giovanni’s Restaurant & Convention Center, which operates Graystone Grill at Aldeen Golf Club. Rockford Bank & Trust (naming rights partner), Rick and Lana Engen and Giovanni’s have made substantial donations to the project, and the main reasons this is even possible. The design of the new banquet facility will allow Aldeen Golf Club to retain its golf outings, while attracting new golf outings, play days,

tournaments Jay Sandine and banquets.

Rockford Park District Rockford Bank & Trust Pavilion also will provide a venue for non-golfing citizens and visitors to enjoy.

This additional revenue is crucial to our long-term financial success, as property tax revenue and golf fees will not sustain Aldeen Golf Club at the same level of service. Profit from the Rockford Bank & Trust Pavilion will be reinvested into Aldeen Golf Club, as the district will receive all rental fees and a portion of food and beverage sales.

Transform Golf Movement Over the years, we’ve tried a variety of ways to “transform golf,” beginning with the reorganization of the golf department in fall 2014, resulting in a 50 percent reduction in the number of fulltime staff, and increasing our reliance on high quality, seasonal golf staff and professionals.

Components of the broader Transform Golf movement included: ■ New initiatives in alternative golf programs, such as foot golf, golf boards, big cup golf and golf bikes; all designed to encourage new players and nontraditional players.

■ Bringing the game to area youth.

Our golf outreach values program complements existing fee-based instructional programs, camps and clinics that teach golf and life values to children, 5 to 18. Our team is often found in elementary and middle schools, community centers or summer programs trying to develop lifelong golfers.

■ Use of Alpine Hills Golf Course for junior golf lessons.

■ Partnership with Giovanni’s to operate Graystone Grill at Aldeen Golf Club, which has doubled the amount of food and beverage revenue.

Jay Sandine is executive director at the Rockford Park District.

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

Determine Future of Rockford Park District Golf Courses We continue to try innovative ways to capture new players of all abilities, but we are at the point where we need to make some big decisions based on the recreational needs of this and succeeding generations. Join us in three golf outreach meetings featuring golf course history, financial realities and efforts to grow the game. Meetings are 6 to 8 p.m., on Wednesday, July 11, Sinnissippi Park Twin Shelter; Tuesday, July 17, Ingersoll Golf Course Clubhouse, and Wednesday, Aug. 1, Rockford Bank & Trust Pavilion at Aldeen Golf Club.

theVoice

JULY 2018 | 11

Transform Rockford under new leadership

By Alex Gary, Thinker Ventures David Sidney — who served as a volunteer when Transform Rockford started five years ago before joining the staff fulltime in January 2016 — took over as executive director on June 1.

Sidney is a graduate of Auburn High School and the University of Illinois. He served as an urban planner with Gary W. Anderson Architects and the city of Rockford before joining Transform Rockford.

Sidney takes over for former Woodward executive Mike Schablaske,

who led the movement from its kickoff at the Coronado Performing Arts Center in November 2013.

Woodward CEO Tom Gendron, one of the founders of Transform Rockford praised Schablaske’s “unwavering drive” in leading the organization through its formative stages. “Mike’s leadership has from the very beginning been integral to the success of the Transform mission.”

Schablaske, much like former Transform Rockford communications director Pat O’Keefe, plans to continue to serve the Transform movement as a volunteer.

Transform Rockford believes in Rockford’s neighborhoods Transform Rockford launched the Great Neighborhoods project on June 7, unveiling a new website featuring the strengths of 13 recognizable areas of Rockford and a resource guide for other neighborhoods.

Former Transform Rockford communications director Pat O’Keefe is a volunteer on the Great Neighborhoods committee. He showed off the effort to the United Way of Rock River Valley before it was unveiled to the general public.

“We have some really great neighborhoods in Rockford, and we don’t talk enough about them,” O’Keefe said.

The group has identified 55 neighborhoods that share a common

architecture and heritage and the new website has links to 13 that have gone through the Great Neighborhoods asset mapping process.

These include neighborhoods such as Keith Creek, which is home to SwedishAmerican Hospital, Redeemer Church, Church Hill Park and three Rockford public schools, and Signal Hill, which features the Garrison Redevelopment, St. Peter’s Church and the North End redevelopment.

Other neighborhoods interested in being included can download the resource guide off the website, www. greatneighborhoods.info.

-- Alex Gary

ABOUT TRANSFORM ROCKFORD The Transform Rockford mission is to facilitate the region’s transformation into a Top 25 community by creating a climate for transformational work (including the use of shared vision, shared values, broad engagement, and best practices) and facilitate the creation and implementation of a strategic plan by the community for the purposes of dramatically improving the social and economic well-being of the community and its residents. It has three staff members who support the work of hundreds of community volunteers. To learn more about Transform Rockford, please visit http://transformrockford.org.

12 | July 2018

theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

R O C K F O R D

C H A M B E R

O F

C O M M E R C E

Small Business Enterprise Create meaningful jobs— and get efficient, happy employees in return Part 2 The following is Part 2 of a two-part article dealing with creating and keeping happy employees. Part 1 can be found in the June issue of the Voice.

Key responsibilities The mainstay of a good job description is the definition of seven to nine work or key areas that describe the employees’ job responsibilities. A maximum of nine is generally easiest to deal with and, if you have more than nine points, you can usually put them together under fewer headings.

Examples of key areas are “repeat sales to existing customers,” “maintenance of website,” “order handling,” “customer deliveries,” etc. In some cases, it can also be relevant to describe which projects the employees are to be involved in and which they are to lead.

In addition to the main headings, you can add sub-headings that give a better picture of the actual daily tasks. A key area such as “maintenance of website” could include a list of what this actually entails, for example: produce monthly news; update product descriptions and client references; develop new web pages; collect image materials; and, maintain dialogue with programmer and graphic designer.

It may sound a little elaborate to compile such a detailed job description, but if you have not made it clear to yourself what the employee should be focusing on, the chances are they will not be clear to your employee, either. When the list has been compiled, it can be very useful in coordination meetings, where you have to choose priorities. Most jobs often change content, and when the assignment descriptions have been defined in print, it is easier to make additions or changes.

For the same reason it ought to be written at the bottom of all job descriptions that employees have a responsibility to adjust their job description so that it corresponds to reality.

Expected results — short and long term It is one to determine which work areas and projects an employee is involved in, it is another to define the results expected of the employee, both in the short and long term. It sounds easy, but it can actually be quite difficult. However, it is worth it when you succeed, because it gives the employees a clear sense of what it takes to become successful at the given job and the business gets a sense of what it takes to make employees worth their salaries.

The expected short term result can be very simple. It may be, for example, to “takeover tasks from a former employee,” or to “prepare a plan for future projects,” or “gain expertise in the business’s IT systems.” All these results are related to the employee getting a head start in the business and therefore it is important that you, as the manager, tell the employee exactly how this is to be achieved.

When considering the results more long term, most of the points relate to how the employers can create value for the business, and how they can earn the equivalent value of their salary for the business. For sales people for example, you can define results such as “Sales: 100 new customers” or “10 percent increase in gross margins.” For a marketing assistant it might instead be points such as “500 new subscriptions to the electronic newsletter” or for an accounting assistant or bookkeeper it could be “savings of $500 every month on expenses to external bookkeeping or accounting.”

If you choose to define the results expected in the long term, these can be in less concrete, more visionary terms, which function more as mile stones for the company as a whole. It could be, for example, points such as “creating the most loyal customers in our industry” or “making the business known for its good

service and high quality.”

Management and limits The next decision that needs to be made relates to management and decision-making limits. These points are something most business owners have very clear views on, but often fail to communicate clearly to employees. Why not put it in writing in the job description: Define the boundaries of a job — dtermine the employees’ areas of responsibility and their decision-making limits, e.g., what they are authorized to determine on their own without asking their superior first. It can be decisions relating to what kind of prices and discounts should be offered to customers, or what purchases can be made within the budget for the fiscal year. It can also relate to how much time the employee should spend on different assignments, or how much freedom they have deciding how to perform an assignment, design a product, or formulate an external communication.

In all businesses, decision-making skills are something you develop and get a feel for, over time. The advantage of formulating this in a job description is it allows you to discover the areas in which to give employees decision-making authority. This is useful to both you and the employee as it takes some weight off your shoulders and provides the employee with more independence and freedom.

Besides defining an employee’s ability to make decisions, another tool in the daily business management is to make an employee responsible for making a report. By taking a look at the key areas of responsibility defined in the employee’s work description, you can find inspiration as to what kind of reports it would make sense to ask employee to compile. These reports may be weekly or monthly updates on “traffic on the website,” “completed customer visits and mailed offers,” or “time spent per project” (if you have time registration in the business). With a job description that requires reports like this, you send a clear signal of your expectations and that you will monitor progress.

Growing with the job The last, but key element in a good job description, is a short training plan that outlines what an employee needs to learn

to complete the given tasks. Depending on the employee’s existing skills, these can be small or large things, but regardless of the employee’s background and experience there will always be a need to introduce the employee on how things specifically operate in your business.

Employee training does not have to be as expensive as it may sound, and it does not necessarily have to involve external course training. It may be as simple as buying a few books or finding relevant articles for the employee to read or colleague training, in which the new employee observes a colleague at work for a period of time. It sounds very informal, but it does demand that the training is planned, and that you follow up, so it does not just take place only when other employees find the time.

In a smaller startup it is the entrepreneur who takes care of the training — but when the first employee has been trained, this person can be in charge of training future employees.

You may also include professional growth opportunities in the job. What can the position lead to in the future? Is there a possibility of increased responsibility?

Meaningful jobs make sense A job description that contains all these points will take time to formulate because it demands careful consideration. If this is done the right way, you can achieve the most important thing: A job that the employee considers meaningful. For some, a meaningful job entails clearly defined areas of responsibility but for others it is important to have clearly defined expectations. For some employees, it is more important that the company has an exciting mission. Regardless of how perfect a job description is, it is nothing in comparison to a job that is actually fulfilling. Meaningful positions are best when they are shaped to suit the employee, not vice versa. Even the most wellphrased job description requires a sense of how to attract the most suitable employee for the job. When the right job and the right employee are matched, you have successfully brought your business one step further in its development and growth.

This is Part 2 and is derived from the article, “Create Meaningful Jobs” published May 21, 2018. Part 1 was in the June 2018 issue of The Voice. ©GrowthWheel International Inc. and David Madié.

ABOUT THE SBDC The Illinois SBDC at the Rockford Chamber of Commerce offers services free of charge to aspiring entrepreneurs and small business owners in the Rockford area, both chamber members and non-members. As a partnership between the Rockford Chamber and the Illinois DCEO, it operates out of NIU EIGERlab, NIU-Rockford, 8500 E. State St., and maintains an office at the chamber’s downtown location. For questions, contact Bo Boger, SBDC director, at 815-316-4301.

theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

JUly 2018 | 13

Root cause for industrial skills gap is a matter of interest Dispelling the four ‘Ds’ of manufacturing generation from pursuing careers related to the field:

individuals who comprise the workforce of tomorrow.

■ Dirty

Dangerous — Manufacturing Jobs are Unsafe

■ Dark ■ Dangerous

By Meaghan Ziemba, AME It is no secret that American manufacturers are facing an industrial skills gap as the last of the baby boomers prepare for retirement. According to the Deloitte and Manufacturing Institute study, more than two million manufacturing positions will be left unfilled within the next decade due to the lack of STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) skills among workers.

Manufacturers are joining forces with community leaders and educational institutions to provide hands-on opportunities to high school and college students in an attempt to close the gap, but robust apprenticeships are only solving part of the problem.

Manufacturers are accustomed to practicing root cause analysis to address quality issues in manufacturing operations. The idea is to treat the problem, not the symptoms of the problem. Many industry leaders believe an interest gap is the root cause underlying the industrial skills gap.

Perhaps the root cause of the skills gap is an interest gap. Younger generations are quick learners; however, the biggest challenge facing the skills gap stems from their lack of interest in learning the techniques for manufacturing and engineering opportunities because of certain misconceptions surrounding the trade.

Dispelling the Four Ds of Manufacturing Doug Jensen, president of Rock Valley College, believes there are four main misconceptions discouraging the younger

■ Dull According to the Economics Public Institute, 52 percent of surveyed teenagers said they had no interest in manufacturing.

The Deloitte and Manufacturing Institute study also reported that Generation Y respondents ranked manufacturing last among seven domestic industries in terms of their career choice — with 53 percent saying perceptions of the industry made it hard to recommend jobs.

To dispel the four Ds of manufacturing, we need to identify the root cause of each.

Dirty — Manufacturing Environments are Outdated and Dirty According to the Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME) survey , more than 20 percent of parents viewed manufacturing as an outdated and/or dirty work environment. While this may have been true during the early years, many of today’s manufacturing environments look more like clean rooms with laboratory-like settings. Companies are required to meet strict industry standards to produce the highest quality products and a healthy, safe environment for employees.

Dark — Manufacturing Has No Future in Terms of Careers Industry 4.0, advanced robotics, Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and 3D printing (additive manufacturing) are creating unique job opportunities of the future. Counteracting the old stigma of manufacturing involves compelling stories, technological outreach, community engagement and networking between manufacturers and the

i

https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/services/consulting.html

ii

http://www.themanufacturinginstitute.org/

Lean manufacturing and Six Sigma practices have improved many facilities’ safety ratings. By eliminating waste and unnecessary steps within a manufacturing system, companies can monitor potential dangers more effectively and avoid them in the future.

Dull — Manufacturing Is Not Exciting, Stimulating, Challenging or Engaging Today’s manufacturing is more advanced and requires a different skill set. Engineering software and 3D design have created unique opportunities in solar, biomedical, game design, medical devices, aerospace and more. Other positions require complex skills to operate machines that maximize efficiency. The best workers are constantly thinking of new ways to develop a product’s design or production — they are not just carrying out repetitive tasks.

There are also sensing and process control developments that enable manufacturers to monitor the production process from start to finish. Workers can easily detect minor shifts in conditions that could lead to process failures, sending alerts to operators or plant managers via cell phone.

Engage, Encourage, Connect Manufacturing is the backbone of the economy. For every $1 spent in manufacturing, another $1.89 is added to the economy -- the highest multiplier effect of any economic center.

Manufacturers need to develop creative ways that will engage, encourage and connect younger generations to the industry for them to consider it as a career choice so our economy can continue to prosper.

One option is to get involved with

industry events that explain the whys of manufacturing processes. Events like FIRST Robotics dive deep into various processes by providing hands-on experiences for the students designing and creating the robots. It inspires young people’s interest and participation in science and technology, and immediately provides the skills that today’s manufacturers need.

Another option is to partner with industry organizations that generate interest through programs that focus on technical skills such as: ■ Coding ■ Engineering ■ Design ■ CAD Drawing ■ Fabrication ■ Machining ■ Electrical Trade schools and alternative education like apprenticeship programs provide hands-on experience in parallel with weekly classes. Students learn the various skills associated with the trade and receive the necessary work-and-learn experiences to perfect their skills. Another benefit of apprenticeships is that students get paid as they are earning their education. It shifts away from the notion that one’s success is dependent on a college education that could place someone in a situation of debt.

The key is to tap into the interests of students at an early age and show them how they can tie those interests into a successful career in manufacturing and engineering. Manufacturers need to be proactive and engage with students, as well as their influencers, as much as they can.

Meaghan Ziemba is content marketing manager at Advanced Machine & Engineering.

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

https://pages.infor.com/manufacturing-brochure-skills-gap-skilled-worker-shortagesoftware.html?cid=NA-NA-HCA-US-HCM-0216-FY16-HCM-Assets-WWOA-40385 iii

iv

http://www.sme.org/SME-Survey-Results-Show-Parental-Misconceptions-of-Manufacturing-Careers/

14 | JUly 2018

theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

When C-Suite leaders get it right There’s often a debate to be had in leadership theory about where exactly the origins of leadership are most effective.

Many a discussions have been had that focus purely on the debate between topdown and bottom-up leadership. Both styles of leadership have been used since the beginning of time. There has always been someone in power and there has always been someone in the ranks who commands respect and has natural followers. The stories of great leaders — whether top-down or bottom-up — are the things great movies, books, and watercooler dreams are made of. We know these stories well.

But what about leadership on a Monday in the middle of January when the holiday rush is over, the weather outside is gray and the work is routine and mundane? What about leadership when things are going fine, but not great; everyone’s getting along, but not pushing the envelope; and numbers are being met, but not surpassed? Leadership in these moments aren’t blockbuster movie worthy. They don’t make great plots for motivational how-to books. But they do look remarkably like most days in an

organization’s life. Our lives are made up of tiny, normal moments and yet, that’s where leadership seems the hardest.

In these moments of every day necessity, it is my opinion that top-down leadership is a more effective approach when trying to move the needle. It isn’t necessarily better than the bottom-up approach, but when done correctly, I would argue that it’s faster and slightly easier.

Now, this isn’t to say that I think barking commands at those who are lower than you in the organizational chart is an effective leadership approach — unless the building is on fire, that hardly ever works.

I do think, however, when a person in charge makes conscious decisions to be a pro-active and thoughtful leader who leads by example, there are less barriers to getting things done. People WANT a leader they can like and trust. They want a leader they know will have their back, who will act reasonable and somewhat predictably. Effective top-down leadership works with the grain of the culture — not against it.

But so often, top-down leadership forgets the easy ways to be an effective leader. Here are a few ways top-down

leadership could trickle through the organization with minimal effort: Participate in training programs with staff. Is your organization an RLA investor? Take one of the seats for yourself.

Show up to the workshops and put in the work. It sends the message that no one is too high-up to continue to learn and develop. (And you may enjoy it and learn something too!)

Talk with employees. Take a particularly hard-working employee to lunch. Ask them questions about the organization’s perceived strengths and areas of opportunity. Showing that you care about perspectives from all levels of the organization goes a long way — especially when making tough decisions later.

Share the company goals, success, and learned-from failures. It amazes me how often people at the bottom of the organization have no idea what the organizational goals are. Including all employees in strategic goals, helps to build a strong team who feel a part of something bigger. Information is rarely a bad thing — and yet, many senior level executives forget to share the news.

Admit when you’ve made a mistake. Of course you’ve failed — you’re human (I’m assuming).

Share those Caitlin Pusateri failures and Rockford Chamber ways that you re-bounded and learned. You’ll encourage more daring thinking while at the same time showing you’re a human part of the team.

Being a member of the C-suite has its challenges. It can be an intense amount of pressure, but also comes with great reward.

Don’t forget to take a moment to stop and assess your leadership. Is your top-down style being as effective as possible or has it been awhile since you joined the ranks in a professional development session? We’ve got seats in Rockford Leadership Alliance designed specifically for you…

Caitlin Pusateri is vice president, leadership development at the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

JULY 2018 • theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

attracting top talent: Recruitment & job fairs | 15

Guest Perspective insight

Creating a successful workforce of the future Everyone has a role to play in creating the future workforce for our community. I have been actively involved in the development of the Rockford-area workforce for several years, and believe the first step toward building a stronger workforce pipeline is understanding the economics of our workforce.

I look to researcher and author Dr. Kevin Fleming, who wrote the book, (Re) Defining the Goal: The True Path to Career Readiness, and created the YouTube Video, “Success in the New Economy.” In the video, he reveals data showing the 1:2:7 ratio; that for every…

1 job requiring a master’s degree or higher, there are 2 jobs requiring a four-year degree, and 7 jobs requiring job-specific training (apprenticeship, on-the-job, certifications, or in some cases, a two-year degree) This means we need to break the myth, “College for everyone,” which has morphed into “a four-year degree for everyone.” Not everyone needs to obtain a fouryear degree. This may make some of you cringe, but the reality is there are plenty of personally enriching careers in our community that can provide a comfortable life for a person or a family. We need to stop perpetuating the belief that everyone needs to obtain a four-year degree.

Statistical Breakdown According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s, 2013 American Community Survey, 45 percent of recent college graduates are working jobs that don’t require a college degree. Of the 45 percent of college graduates working jobs not requiring a college degree, 55.6 percent are making less than skilled workers. Making these statistics even more painful to read is that many students with four-year degrees are bridled with student loans averaging $28,400 (according to the College Board).

There are many jobs in the community that require certifications, industry credentials, two-degrees or apprenticeship programs in health care, manufacturing and the skilled trades that provide a livable wage and need qualified candidates.

So what does this mean to the Rockford community?

We need to change our messaging to “careers requiring varying levels of training and education are available for everyone.”

As individuals, we need to accept that being part of any career will require us to commit to lifelong learning, which will involve recertification classes, continued education or general learning to be part of a workplace, regardless of the level of postsecondary education obtained.

As a community, we need to continue to work together to provide our students opportunities to explore their interests at a young age, so they may become aware of how their interests fit with career options.

We need to get involved in programs that help our youth discover their strengths.

We can do this by volunteering to help with

Robotics Lego, and mentoring programs, and advisory committees, to name just a few.

June Hazzard Woodward, Inc.

Career-Sharing Opportunities If you want to share your career experiences with students, you can enroll in Unite through CEANCI, which connects career-sharing opportunities between members of our community and 15 local school districts. You can also share information about your career through numerous “Invitations to Participate,” posted on Alignment Rockford’s home page.

Employers should engage in the conversations in the region about what skill sets are needed for their businesses to be successful now and in the future.

Employers should provide information about the exact skills they are seeking to organizations such as: ■ Alignment Rockford, which supports the Rockford Public Schools by aligning community resources.

■ Career Education Associates of North Central Illinois (CEANCI), which supports 15 local school districts in preparing students for career readiness.

■ Rock River Valley Tooling & Machine Association (RRVTMA), supporting manufacturing apprenticeships ■ The Workforce Connection – the local government workforce development board.

Employers must accept that community programs teach to the most common skills needed by the industries in the community; meaning unique aspects of an organization’s jobs may not be covered in training, and the programs will not provide 100 percent of the skills, but more likely 80 percent of the skills the employer is seeking. Employers will experience greater success with these community programs by providing specific examples of skills gaps encountered in the workplace.

We need to accept this as an issue for the health and long-term prosperity of our community. It takes each of us getting involved, investing our time, envisioning the future, attempting new approaches, and providing resources to build our future workforce.

June Hazzard is VP of human resources at Woodward, Inc.; co-chair of NIMBLE (Northern Illinois Manufacturers Building Lifelong Employment); board member of the Alignment Rockford Governing Board, and board member of Workforce Connection.

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

16 | attracting top talent: Recruitment & job fairs

AMBASSADORS ON THE MOVE

JUly 2018 • theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

Guest Perspective insight

It takes a village to attract and grow top talent Alignment Rockford keeps community working together

The Rockford Chamber’s Ambassador Club met for its monthly luncheon at the Keep Northern Illinois Beautiful Rockford Recycle Center located at 4665 Hydraulic Road. Pam Osborne, the Executive Director, did a presentation and tour of the new facility. Lunch was catered by Beef-A-Roo.

KNOW A STAR?

NOMINATE THEM FOR THE

2018 People You Should Know Award Deadline: August 13 Presenting Sponsor

Every year, the Rockford Public School District 205 graduates some of Rockford’s best and brightest students.

The community is working to ensure that all students have equal opportunity to grow successful in their lives, whatever that may be. Before they graduate, it’s important to prepare them with the knowledge and experience to make them college, career and life ready.

Alignment Rockford has taken a large responsibility to reinforce this initiative. Founded in 2009, we follow a solution design collective impact model to improve public school outcomes.

We focus on many projects, ranging from early childhood to college/ career development, gathering local business, civic leaders, faith leaders and community volunteers to support along the way. Our teams are implementing pilots that align the community’s strengths to break down barriers that ensure every child graduates college, career and life ready.

Our current initiative is doing just that. We’ve partnered with RPS 205 and industry leaders to develop and execute a work-based learning and career continuum for secondary students in Rockford’s public-school system.

In their freshman year, students attend the Academy Expo, one of the largest events for Alignment Rockford.

Currently in its seventh year, this event gathers diverse industry leaders in health, public safety, education, skilled trades, manufacturing, engineering and more. These leaders provide insight to students who might be interested in that career path or those who are unaware that these careers are here in the Rockford Region!

The Academy Expo is beneficial for students as it either affirms their decision in a field or introduces a new career path.

Site Visits, Shadowing During a student’s sophomore year, Alignment and RPS 205 coordinate with local businesses to accommodate student site visits to support a student’s decision to pursue a career in their current pathway. By their junior year, they will engage in job shadowing, which deepens the connections to a career -- or shifts the student’s interest to another field.

Senior year will develop their teambuilding skills with a completion of an internship and a capstone project, which they complete throughout their last year.

Anisha Grimmett Alignment Rockford

Throughout their secondary education, each student has an equal opportunity within the curriculum to talk to someone in their field, visit a place of business and receive

on-the-job-experience.

These

connections and experiences grow a student’s employability skills and talents so when they finally graduate, they are career and life ready.

Contributions of Many For these programs to be successful, it takes a village. These initiatives involve everyone in the community including: the Rockford Police Department; Rockford Fire Department; SwedishAmerican, A Division of UW Health; Woodward; Associated Bank; OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center; Rockford Park District; Goodwill

Industries

of

Northern

Illinois; YMCA of Rock River Valley; skilled trades; Boy Scouts of America, Rockford Public Schools, community members, volunteers, parents, students and countless more.

Today,

Alignment

Rockford

continues to create teams with pilots to strengthen the current foundation of the learning and career development continuum, but they can’t do it alone.

Once these students graduate, it’s the community’s responsibility to keep our home-grown talent in Rockford. With the relationships built during their career development, students might stay knowing that their talent has a home and is valued by local business.

Alignment Rockford operates in the shared culture, not to fix the education system, but to support it. This concept is one that lies at the heart of Alignment Rockford’s mission. After all, it takes a village to grow talent. Alignment Rockford is here to help the village work together. Thank you to all partners who tirelessly work to grow student talent! If you’d like to be involved in Alignment Rockford and volunteer with one of our initiatives, please visit our website, www. alignmentrockford.com.

Anisha Grimmett is executive director of Alignment Rockford.

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

JULY 2018 • theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

attracting top talent: Recruitment & job fairs | 17

Guest Perspective insight

Open the doors of opportunity

Take a second look at that ‘unemployable’ candidate Nine years ago, I threw garbage and picked up leaves because an employer overlooked my criminal driving record and took a chance. It may not sound glamorous, but my teaching endorsement was basically on hold until I built a recent work history. I couldn’t go from homelessness to full-time teaching; instead, I needed someone to take a calculated risk and hire me.

Thank goodness they did. Within a year, I was teaching in RPS205. Now I help others in early recovery get their foot in the door somewhere.

My company prefers to work with “rejects.” Why? I learned how to get sober from other alcoholics, so I’m uniquely qualified to teach other ex-rejects how to navigate the mucked-up system of landing a decent job without lying. The majority of my career was devoted to teaching high school English, so I naturally promote education (training) once people are stabilized (post-treatment or postincarceration).

“Go get one!” I say, when I hear, “I need a job.” It’s not crass — it’s good advice.

Career sustainability in 2018 requires a post-secondary education (of some sort), resourcefulness and experience (of some variety). Employers tend to measure candidates in levels of diplomas, degrees, certificates, etc., along with experience and community involvement. Solid skill sets and professional recommendations tell potential employers if potential candidates are worthy of a job offer.

As education and experience separates the crowd of candidates immediately, the hidden “ace” in your stack may be the person making strides to confront his or her past, with a local network to verify progress. Yet that level of transparency often produces cold rejection, and it is discouraging beyond belief.

Why Aren’t More People Interested?

Rockford is saturated with educational opportunities and support services, and many employers wait patiently to capitalize on people preparing themselves for a 21st century job.

Meanwhile, some job candidates interested in improving their employability are distrustful of broken systems and institutions. I can’t blame them to an extent. I know plenty of skilled, educated folks working in fast food or scanning boxes for $9/hour to make ends meet. It’s miserable to make huge sacrifices, only to barely provide for a family.

Clearing the Hurdles I learned something working in the complex fields of addiction and

David Armstrong Hope In Recovery Employment

employment: Companies cannot fix what they don’t understand.

There is an endless pool of candidates wrongly denied access to employment.

If you have had a good impression of someone who can pass a drug test and has three solid people in the community behind them, it might be time to open the door. Part-time is better than no-time, and serves as a great litmus test with minimal risk. Granted, not everyone is willing to take a part-time position, but if we as employers admit we might be part of the problem, then we are on our way to being part of the solution.

But how can we tell who is workready? It’s pretty simple: Stop relying on resumes and using algorithms to sort.

Legally, resumes contain anything. It’s the application that counts.

Talk with people who know the candidate’s journey and listen. No professional “bull-stuffer” is capable of gathering recommendations from reputable professionals in our community.

Can people forge letters? Absolutely, so trust, but verify.

I’m in the minority opinion that “qualified” means credentialed — regardless of a criminal record. If the desired skill sets are present, and the person can pass a drug screen, by default, that should trump a blemish in the background more than two years ago.

We must clear that hurdle as employers.

People move on and recover, sometimes even thrive.

I’m not the only one.

If you’ve ever said, “I don’t hire felons,” your candidate pool will diminish. This pool is generally the most motivated set of workers you’ll find. Only one door needs to be opened before their life drastically improves. If it’s raining outside, and you only have one umbrella to give away, give it to someone who’s ready to launch a career instead of someone with four umbrellas in their closet and two in their car.

I’m a walking billboard that people can (and do) have a tremendous capacity to recover and thrive — together. So let’s hunker down, be cautious, and open the door to someone who doesn’t fit the mold.

David Armstrong is the founder of Hope In Recovery Employment LLC and HIRE Grounds, Rockford. His book, “Driving Nowhere Fast” is being finalized. Visit www.hope4hire. com or contact David@hope4hire.com.

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

18 | attracting top talent: Recruitment & job fairs

JUly 2018 • theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

Skills companies need most in 2018 In January, Linkedin named the top skills – both “hard” and “soft” – that companies are looking for in prospective employees, based on its data and survey results.

TOP SOFT SKILLS The top soft skills – those traits hard to quantify, but you know who possesses them — are the skills all professionals need. LinkedIn found that 57 percent of leaders in its survey said soft skills were more important than hard skills.

Of the 2,000 business leaders surveyed, the soft skills they said they would most like to see their employees learn were: 1. Leadership 3. Collaboration 2. Communication 4. Time Management

TOP HARD SKILLS LinkedIn mined data from its 500+ million members to identify the hard skills companies were working the hardest to fill as well as their related jobs and salaries.

1. Cloud and Distributed Computing. Platform engineer ($120,000), cloud architect ($135,000) 2. Statistical Analysis and Data Mining. Business analyst ($72,000), data analyst ($62,000), statistician ($90,200) 3. Middleware and Integration Software. IT manager ($95,000), systems integration engineer ($98,000) 4. Web Architecture and Development Framework. Web developer ($65,000), Full stack web developer ($77,000) 5. User Interface Design. UX designer ($85,000), web developer ($65,000), UI designer ($72,000) 6. Software Revision Control Systems. Web developer ($65,000), software programmer ($64,000) 7. Data Presentation. Graphic designer ($45,000), data scientist ($113,000), business consultant ($83,000) 8. SEO/SEM Marketing. Marketing specialist ($49,000), online marketing manager ($80,000), advertising manager ($61,200) 9. Mobile Development. Mobile engineer ($95,000), mobile application developer ($83,800) 10. Network and Information Security. Information security specialist ($96,000), cyber security specialist ($92,500) 11. Marketing Campaign Management. Online marketing manager ($80,000), digital marketing specialist ($52,000), digital marketing manager ($77,000) 12. Data Engineering and Data Warehousing. Software engineer

($95,000), database developer ($85,000), data analyst ($62,000) 13. Storage Systems and Management. Database administrator ($91,000), system administrator ($68,800) 14. Electronic and Electrical Engineering. Electrical engineer ($81,000), electronic engineer ($88,400) 15. Algorithm Design. Software engineer ($95,000), lead software engineer ($120,000), lead developer ($109,000) 16. Perl/Python/Ruby. Software engineer ($95,000), data scientist ($113,000) 17. Shell Scripting Languages.

Linux system administrator ($75,000), system engineer ($90,000), java developer ($80,000) 18. Mac, Linux and Unix Systems.

System administrator ($68,800), Linux system administrator ($75,000) 19. Java Development. Java developer ($80,000), web developer ($65,000) 20. Business Intelligence. Business intelligence analyst ($73,100), forecast analyst ($64,000) 21. Software QA and User Testing.

User experience engineer ($85,000), software test engineer ($80,000), quality assurance engineer ($77,000) 22. Virtualization. Network engineer ($82,000), network administrator ($65,000) 23. Automotive Services, Parts and Design. Vehicle engineer ($96,500), industrial designer ($63,600) 24. Economics. Business development manager ($99,000), auditor ($56,000), research analyst ($56,400) 25. Database Management and Software. Database specialist ($53,000), database administrator ($91,000)

Source: Paul Petrone, editor, LinkedIn Learning, Jan. 2, 2018

theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

JUly 2018 | 19

legislative Issues to Watch

Governor announces $11 billion infrastructure plan On May 29, Gov. Rauner announced the Illinois Department of Transportation Multi-Year Proposed Highway Improvement Program, a more than $11 billion plan for the state’s roads and bridges over the next six years, including $2.2 billion of state and federal funding in the upcoming fiscal year.

The FY2019-2024 Proposed Highway Improvement Program aims to improve 1,945 miles of road and 525 bridges maintained by the state. Major highway projects tentatively scheduled for fiscal year 2019-2024 in district 2 (comprising 10 counties in northwestern Illinois and cities like Rockford, Rock Island-Moline, Geneseo, Rochelle, Dixon, Freeport, Belvidere, Kewanee and Sterling-Rock Falls): For more information, visit www.idot.illinois.gov.

■ Interstate 39/US 20/US 51 from 0.4 mile north of Baxter Road to Interstate 90 0.3 mile north of Harrison Avenue Interchange in Winnebago County.

Resurfacing on 6.6 miles, fiscal year 2020-2024 ($22 million).

■ Interstate 74/US 6 (new bridge) over the Mississippi River in Moline. Iowa is lead agency, and Illinois will reimburse Iowa as work is completed for construction of the new bridges across the Mississippi River including lighting and construction engineering, fiscal year 2019-2024 ($164.6 million).

■ Interstate 74 from 0.4 mile south of Illinois 81 to 0.2 mile north of Illinois 17 in Henry County. Resurfacing, patching and cold milling on 7.3 miles, fiscal year 2020-2024 ($14 million).

■ Interstate 80 from Rock River to US 6 in Henry County. Resurfacing and patching on 3.1 miles and a new bridge deck, fiscal year 2020-2024 ($9.5 million).

■ Interstate 280 at the Mississippi River southwest of Rock Island in Rock Island County. A new bridge deck, bridge rehabilitation, bridge painting and engineering for contract plans, fiscal year 2019-2024 ($39 million). Illinois is lead with Iowa sharing equally in the costs.

■ US 20 (Rockford Bypass) from Simpson Road to Rock River and Illinois 2 from south of Southrock Drive to south of US 20 Interchange in Rockford.

Interchange reconstruction including a bridge replacement, reconstruction of 1.9 miles, traffic signal installation and lighting, fiscal year 2019 ($26 million).

■ Illinois 2 over the Rock River in Rockton. A bridge replacement, median crossover, engineering for contract plans and construction engineering, fiscal year 2020-2024 ($16.4 million). Approved for Illinois Major Bridge Program funding.

■ Illinois 251 over the Union Pacific Railroad 2.5 miles south of Illinois 75 and over Rockton Road 2.6 miles south of Illinois 75. Replacement of four bridges, engineering for contract plans, land acquisition and utility adjustments, fiscal year 2020-2024 (cost of $13 million).

Governor Rauner signs budget into law Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner signed the $38.5 billion spending plan for Fiscal Year 2019 into law on June 4. More than $1 billion in spending was cut.

The budget added almost $15 million in funding for the Chicago Rockford International Airport; a commitment made by former Gov. Pat Quinn but frozen

by Rauner when he took office in 2015. The airport had to undertake an expensive bridge loan to build the $40 million maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facility deemed critical to the airport’s continued growth as a Midwest cargo hub.

The budget also added $350 million for the new K-12 education evidencebased funding formula, directing financial support to schools across Illinois and reducing reliance on local property taxes.

Illinois’ colleges and universities received a two percent across-the-board increase for higher education operations, which will reduce pressure to raise tuition. The new merit-based scholarship program AIM HIGH will receive $25 million from the state and a matching $25 million from universities to retain Illinois students. The budget also funded at FY 2018 levels the Monetary Award Program (MAP) which funds low-income college students.

Sources: Senator Syverson’s Week in Review: June 4 to 8; Senator Stadelman’s Weekly Bulletin, June 7.

New Illinois laws for 2018 The state of Illinois has 217 new laws that took effect on Jan. 1, 2018.

For more details on any of the following, visit www.ilga.gov.

Probate Act – Children Born With Gametes as Heirs SB 883/PA 100-0085 States that an inheritance of a child born by use of gametes is limited to children who fulfill the following requirements: the dead parent’s gametes exist even if not an embryo at death; the child is born within 36 months of the parent’s death; the parent gives written consent; the dead parent has provided written consent for a child born with gametes; the administrator of the estate receives a written notice within six months of the parent’s death that state that the gametes exist, the person has intent to use the gametes, and the person has the intent to raise the child as their own.

Traveling Elephant Show Ban SB 1342/PA 100-0090 Makes participation in traveling elephant shows a Class A misdemeanor. Specifies that violations are subject to a civil penalty of no less than $500 and not more than $10,000 for each violation. The legislation does not apply to non-mobile exhibits, including zoos.

Spreading of Cremated Ashes SB 1586/PA 100-0097 Adds to the definition of “scattering area” as property used for outdoor recreation or natural resource conservation owned by the Department of Natural Resources and designated as a scattering area.

Non-Licensed Home Health Agency Referral Prohibition SB 1676/PA 100-0099 Prohibits hospitals, nursing homes, and health care providers that receive State funds from referring a patient to any home health agency, home nursing agency or home services agency that is not licensed under the Home Health, Home Services, and Home Nursing Agency Licensing Act. Early Childhood Program-Expel HB 2663/PA 100-0105 Prohibits daycare providers who receive state money or who are state-licensed from expelling children. Provides steps for planned transitions for children who exhibit persistent and serious challenging behavior. Provides that planned transitions are not considered expulsions.

Injured Police Dogs HB 2661/PA 100-0108 Makes changes to the EMS Systems

Act to allow emergency medical professionals to transport police dogs injured in the line of duty to a veterinary clinic, as long as there are no persons requiring medical attention or transport at that time.

Corn as State Grain HB 470/PA 100-0109 Names corn as the official State Grain of Illinois.

Police Trauma Training HB 1895/PA 100-0121 Adds to the police training curriculum requirements, training in effective recognition and responses to stress, trauma, and posttraumatic stress experienced by police officers.

Recreational Trails Programs Funds 2725/PA 100-0127 Provides that money received from the federal government under the Recreational Trails Program for grants or contracts obligated on or after Oct. 1, 2017, will not be considered for use as aid in construction of highways, and will be placed in the “Park and Conservation Fund.”

Dual Enrollment Notice for Qualified Students HB 2794/PA 100-0133 Provides that a school board shall require the school district’s high schools, if any, to inform all 11thgrade and 12th-grade students of dual enrollment and dual credit opportunities at public community colleges for qualified students.

Notification of Job Opportunities to Youth HB 2987/PA 100-0141 Requires a State agency with a job opening for an intern or student worker to notify the Department of Human Services, the Department of Juvenile Justice, and the Department of Children and Family Services. Requires DHS, DJJ, and DCFS to take steps to notify qualified applicants (those from foster care, homeless youth, or a court-involved youth) of the job opening.

Average Daily Attendance HB 3059/PA 100-0147 Requires school districts to report Average Daily Attendance data for each grade level served. Current law does not require grade-level data to be reported.

20 | JUly 2018

theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

in the news Members in the News

1. Carl Sutter

2. Jennifer Cummings

3. Debra Smalley

4. Scott Leiser

5. Chris Banks

6. Dylan DeVries

7. Lori Godfrey

8. Michelle Adams

9. Brent Scott

10. Joe Costello

11. Corey Engel

12. Elizabeth Ellison

13. Brittany Morris

14. Elaine Breck

15. John Hargrove

16. Paula Hayward

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

BOARD APPOINTMENTS Carl Sutter (1), P.E., C.C.S., M. ASCE, senior vice president, environment & infrastructure division of McMAHON, was elected American Society of Civil Engineers Geographic Region 3 Director by a majority vote.

John Pingo, Ph.D. BCBA-D, CEO, Goldie B. Floberg Center, was appointed by Governor Rauner to the Quality Care Board within the Office of Inspector General.

NEW HIRES, PROMOTIONS, RETIREMENTS Blackhawk Bank promoted Jennifer Cummings (2) to vice president – deposit operations.

Transform Rockford welcomed David Sidney as the new executive director, replacing Mike Schablaske.

Debra Smalley (3), PA-C, joined OSF HealthCare Medical Group - Guilford Square.

Fehr Graham hired Scott Leiser (4) as senior accounting clerk.

Specialty Screw Corporation promoted Brian Kitsemble to quality manager.

Upper Iowa University - Rockford Center hired Chris Banks (5) as its new admissions counselor.

17. Adrienne Walker

18. Xavier Whitford

CoyleKiley Insurance welcomed Dylan De Vries (6) as financial advisor and Lori Godfrey (7) as receptionist & staff support.

Michelle Adams (8) joined Midway Village Museum as assistant director of development.

Wintrust Commercial Banking in Rockford hired Brent Scott (9) as senior vice president.

Joe Costello (10) joined Des Plaines Office Equipment.

Two Men and a Truck hired Corey Engel (11) as general manager overseeing day-to-day operations in Rockford and assisting in Peoria and the Quad Cities.

Rosecrance appointed Elizabeth Ellison (12) as the new executive director at the Lakeview Recovery Home and Facility in Chicago.

Northern Illinois Vein Clinic hired Brittany Morris (13) as patient account specialist and Ashley Scott as office coordinator.

EMPLOYEE/COMMUNITY RECOGNITIONS, AWARDS Rockford Rotary Club presented its Service Above Self awards to: Elaine Breck (14), John Hargrove (15), Paula Hayward, (16) Adrienne Walker (17), Xavier Whitford (18) and Kristoffer J. Tumilowicz (19).

Caitlin Schoepfer (20), Rockford Lutheran High School, received the 2018 Jane Lyons Memorial Scholarship from the Rockford Park

19. Kristoffer J. Tumilowicz

20. Caitlin Schoepfer

District Board of Commissioners for girls who play golf and are pursuing an undergraduate degree.

Dr. Raymond Garcia (21), medical director, Rosecrance Health Network, received a Distinguished Teaching Award from the University of Illinois College of Medicine Rockford during its 2018 convocation ceremony in May. Boylan Catholic High School conferred its highest award, the Veritas, on Mary Buscemi Gavan (22), assistant principal of school relations. She retired this summer after 44 years as the most senior faculty member.

Mia Chase (23), 4-H youth development community worker, University of Illinois Extension, was awarded the STEM-sational Impact Award during the 2018 April 4-H All-Team State meeting in Champaign, Ill. The Kishwaukee Family YMCA named Brian Oster, president, OC Creative, as its Emerging Leader for the 2018 Y Community Awards.

Mike Robinson (24), media relations coordinator, OSF HealthCare, was recognized by Access Services of Northern Illinois for his 20-year commitment chairing the Springs Fling golf play day, which raised more than $300,000. theFranaGroup awarded two $1,000 scholarships in collaboration with the Crusader Community Health Foundation to Eddy Bourgen, East High School student

21. Dr. Raymond Garcia

22. Mary Buscemi Gavan

attending Rock Valley College this fall, and Paris Toney, Crusader employee attending Rasmussen College.

Linda Niemiec (25), vice president development, Crusader Community Health, received the Chuck Uram Lifetime Service Award for 2018 from the Rockford Cosmopolitan Club.

Dee Lacny (26), executive director, Rock House Kids completed training and received the Certificate of Nonprofit Management through the Northern Illinois Center for Nonprofit Excellence.

Kathy Schier, SHRM – CP, human resource manager, Specialty Screw Corporation, earned certification in human resources from the Society for Human Resource Management.

Peterson Meadows named employee Amanda Gray the recipient of the Golden Cross Award.

Golden Apple Foundation named its 2018 award recipients: Rachel Huetson (27), Nelson Elementary; Gabriela Nunez-Reagan (28), Seth Whitman Elementary; Katherine Koehler (29), Ledgewood Elementary; Ashley Schwabero (30), Prairie Hill School, and Lance Tuula (31), Whitman Post Elementary. Amber Miller, Johnson Elementary, won the 13th annual Puri Family Outstanding Principal Award. Officer Eric Thurmond, Rockford Police Department, won the Jan Jones Service Award.

Continued on page 21

23. Mia Chase

24. Mike Robinson

theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

JUly 2018 | 21

in the news Members in the News

25. Linda Niemiec

26. Dee Lacny

27. Rachel Huetson

28. Gariela Nunez-Reagan

29. Katherine Koehler

30. Ashley Schwabero

31. Lance Tuula

32. Heather Kelley

33. Kim WIlson

34. Dr. Michael Born

35. Allison Alexander

36. Bruce Graham

37. Jimmy Rozinsky

38. Maria Salinas

39. Shirley Geiser

40. Julie Burfoot

Are you a Member with 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 61101 41. Karla Rodgers

42. Brandon Latino

43. Todd Martinovich

44. Bonnie Arrington

45. Eve Whitaker

46. Matthew Quinn

(continued from page 20)

OF GENERAL INTEREST

Women conference in Houston.

Linda Colson, Belvidere Central Middle School, was named the 2018 Investing in Excellence Assistant Principal.

Dr. Michael Born (34), president and CEO, SwedishAmerican, A Division of UW Health, joined a group of top executives at Vizient’s Mid-Atlantic Conference to talk about today’s critical healthcare challenges in May.

Bruce Graham (36), Jimmy Rozinsky (37), Maria Salinas (38), Shirley Geiser (39), Julie Burfoot (40), Karla Rodgers (41), Brandon Latino (42) and Todd Martinovich (43), Spectrum Insurance Agency, Inc., completed the state-required errors and omissions class. Geiser, Bonnie Arrington (44), Eve Whitaker (45), Aimee Bermen and Jimmy Rozinsky took the ethics course and Martinovich the building

Heather Kelley (32), principal, V2 Marketing Communications, achieved Inbound Certification through HubSpot.

Meridian named Kim Wilson (33) as its May Employee of the Month.

Allison Alexander (35), financial advisor, Savant Capital Management, and co-founder of the firm’s Women’s Wealth Initiative, attended the fourth-annual Invest in

Deadline is the 15th of the month preceding publication

construction and estimating course through RESTORx. Salinas completed fundamentals of Social Security and Medicare through Insurance Career Training.

Matthew Quinn (46), community relations coordinator, Rosecrance Health Network, was interviewed on the Uh-PARENT-ly podcast from WGN Radio on the negative impacts of vaping and its current trend among high school students.

22 | JUly 2018

theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

business

Business Briefs V2 Marketing Communications completed a website, provided graphic design and created a toolkit for the Great Neighborhoods initiative of Transform Rockford.

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

Rockford Systems, LLC, demonstrated machine safety solutions at the Safety 2018 Professional Development Conference and Exposition in June at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center in San Antonio, Texas. It announced a distribution partnership with Unitrol Electronics, Inc., for sales, installation and technical support on the Soft Touch Pinch-Point Safety System to enhance worker safety and help avoid pinch-point injuries for spot welder and pneumatic riveter customers.

KMK Media Group launched a website for Mrs. Fisher’s Chips at www.mrsfisherschips.com with online ordering and chip trivia. It designed a marketing brochure for Oregon School District 220 telling its success story to those new to the community.

The Alliance gave Health Transformation Awards in May to: Brakebush Brothers, Westfield, Wis.; National CooperativeRx, Madison, Wis.; Rice Lake Area School District, Rice Lake, Wis., and Smart Choice MRI, Chicago.

Rockford Park District hosts its free Music in the Park concerts at Sinnissippi Park Music Shell, Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7 p.m., June 12 to Aug. 2. New this year is a VIP section: $15 for reserved seating; burger, bratwurst or hot dog; side; beverage and wait service. Also visit www.rockfordparkdistrict.org/ soundsofsummer for Live at Levings, Domingos en el Parque (Sundays in the Park) and Tunes on the Terrace.

Rockford Park District hosts its new Golf Outreach Daily Values Program for ages 5 to 18; focused on golf and life values, 5:30 to 7 p.m., Mondays, June 11 to Aug. 6, at Ingersoll Golf Course, or Wednesdays, June 13 to Aug. 8, at Alpine Hills Adventure Park.

Visit www.golfrockford.org or call 815-968-7529.

GrahamSpencer received Best of Show honors at the 2018 Northern Illinois Advertising Federation ADDY Awards for a second year for rebranding Big Grove Brewery in Iowa City, Iowa. In 2017 it won for rebranding for Prairie Street Brewing Co., in Rockford. theFranaGroup collaborated with Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation to make the Comprehensive Opioid Response with the Twelve Steps (COR-12™) model available to Federally Qualified Health Centers to address opioid use disorders. The foundation offers a four-day program of discovery, implementation and clinical training and one year of formal/informal clinical mentoring for clients to implement medicationassisted treatment in their opioid interventions.

Rockford Bank & Trust was named a winner of Merchant Bank’s “Originator of the Year” award for 2017 for outstanding annual performance and service to mortgage customers in April.

J.L. Clark, the International Women’s Baseball Center and Digital Hive Mind produced a collectable tin to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Rockford Peaches. Proceeds go towards the baseball center’s capital campaign to build a museum and training facility near Beyer Stadium in Rockford.

The Winnebago County Health Department and the City of Rockford merged environmental laboratories. It will continue to provide vector identification and testing for West Nile virus at no increased cost nor loss of environmental laboratory testing capability. Customers should submit water specimens to City of Rockford using water collection bottles and forms at rockfordil.gov. For questions call 779-348-7151.

The OSF HealthCare Saint Anthony Medical Center Wound Healing Center received the Robert A. Warriner III, M.D., Center of Excellence award by Healogics for patient satisfaction rates higher than 92 percent and healing rate of at least 91 percent in less than 30 median days, for a minimum of two consecutive years.

Rosecrance Health Network’s 2018 Rosecrance Foundation Benefit drew more than 800 guests on April 30 to Giovanni’s Restaurant & Convention Center. It included a performance by classic-rock band America.

Community Foundation of Northern Illinois awarded 164 scholarships worth up to $248,500 to local students in June. Since 2000, it has awarded $2,801,672 to students pursuing post-secondary education.

Rockford Mutual Insurance Company won the ValChoice® award for 2017/18 as A Best Value for car insurance in Illinois and Wisconsin, customer service, claims handling and value in products sold over a three-year period.

The cold winter might have caused the lack of fruit, blackish/brownish color on leaves and lack of flowers on some area fruit trees. Problems also might have originated from the previous season from Apple Scab disease. University of Illinois Extension Winnebago County advises to remove any fallen fruit, set up insect traps for apple maggot and clean up leaf debris.

SwedishAmerican Hospital and SwedishAmerican Medical Center/

Belvidere was among 16 hospitals and the only one in Rockford to receive the Excellence in Tissue Donation by University of Wisconsin Organ and Tissue Donation.

Keith Country Day School held a graduation ceremony in June at Rockford University’s Maddox Theatre for 37 seniors; who netted $5 million in merit-based scholarships.

Woodward, Inc., announced the closing of the transaction to acquire L’Orange GmbH and its related operations for an enterprise value of €700 million (US $811 million).

Three OSF HealthCare Saint Anthony Medical Center laboratories received accreditation by the College of American Pathologists: Saint Anthony Medical Center, Center for Health-Belvidere and Center for Health-Rock Cut. Visit WNIJ.org or the WNIJ app for content on an expedition by NIU faculty member Dan Libman and WNIJ producer Carl Nelson, who undertook the 320-mile Rock River Trail by bicycle over five days; exploring the historical, cultural and environmental features of the Rock River Valley.

The Music Academy students, faculty, parents and foundation board members traveled on a performance tour of Iceland, June 24 to 29. In Reykavik, they attended a reception at the home of former foundation board member Katrin Heidar and her husband Dr. Steinar Gudmundsson, a cardiologist who practiced in Rockford.

Rockford Regional Health Council hired MDM Consulting for strategic planning, using a relatively new process called Appreciative Inquiry to assess priorities, goals and long-term plans.

Per Mar Security Services is among the less than 10 percent of Honeywell’s dealers to receive Honeywell Platinum Authorized Dealer status for 2018, with certification in all aspects of sales and service of its security and fire products.

RAMP was accredited for three years

by CARF International for its employment services through a rigorous peer review process.

OSF HealthCare Saint Anthony Medical Center received the American Heart Association/ American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines – Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award for the most appropriate treatment by nationally recognized, researchbased guidelines. It received the Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite Plus Award for meeting quality measures to reduce the time between patient arrival at the hospital and treatment with the clot-buster tissue plasminogen activator, tPA; the only drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for ischemic stroke.

Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau announced that Rockford BMX hosted the 2018 USA BMX Midwest Nationals Friday in June; drawing more than 4,000 professional and amateur racers and fans for an estimated economic impact of $252,000 for area sites, attractions and eateries.

Digital Hive Mind completed a new corporate brochure for J.L. Clark showcasing its metal and plastic packaging options, metal lithography and manufacturing capabilities, and investments to expand the capacity of its plastics division.

The Jackson Charter School board approved several site improvement projects, including a new challenge course for student physical education, new in-school library, reconstruction of the school parking lot, replacement of concrete retention walls and perimeter fencing, upgrade of interior lighting and computer technology, and new white boards in each classroom.

Visit jacksoncharterschool.org for funding information.

SwedishAmerican Neuro & Headache Center offers the first non-invasive vagus nerve stimulator, gammaCore, for the acute treatment of episodic cluster headache pain in adults. The small hand-held medical device sends gentle, patented electrical stimulation through the skin at the neck to activate the vagus nerve.

Continued on page 23

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business

Business Briefs

(continued from page 22)

SwedishAmerican, a division of UW Health awarded $75,000 in foundation grants to local not-forprofit organizations based on effect on Swedes’ neighborhood and community: $17,000 to Rockford Area Habitat for Humanity for Midtown Home Rehabilitation, $16,000 to Youth Services Network for the Parenthood Promise program, $15,000 to Stateline Youth for Christ

for the Juvenile Justice Ministry program, $15,000 to The Salvation Army of Winnebago County for “Shirley’s Place,” and $12,000 to Mosaic in Rockford for its durable medical equipment distribution program.

Per Mar Security Services again received Five Diamond Certification from The Monitoring Association for meeting five points of excellence.

are working to make the county a Trauma Informed Community that recognizes the collective impact of adverse experiences, such as family violence, substance abuse, poverty, unemployment, mental illness, and homelessness, and fosters resiliency and well-being among residents.

Access the Trauma Informed Community Facebook page at “Winncotic.”

Winnebago County Health Department and community partners

The L.P. Johnson Family Health Center, a family practice and teaching

Membership Renewals Thank you to members who renewed with the Rockford Chamber of Commerce in May, 2018.

ABC Supply Co., Inc. - Rockford ABC Supply Co., Inc. - Roscoe Access Services of Northern Illinois Airgas Al Grace Appliance & TV ALPHA Controls & Services LLC Al’s Carpet Flooring & Design Center American Red Cross, Rock River Chapter Anpec Industries ARCO Machinery Movers LLC Astro-Physics, Inc. Behr Iron & Metal, An Alter Company Bourn & Koch, Inc. Brian Thomas Photography, Inc. Caraotta Chiropractic Orthopedics P.C. Carpenter’s Local 792 Cherryvale Place, Senior Living Chuck Brauer Trucking Inc. Cliffbreakers Riverside Hotel & Conference Center Comfort Keepers Connect Hearing Court Street United Methodist DeMuth Steel Products, Inc DHS Division of Rehabilitation Services Ege WorkSmart Solutions, PC Electrical Workers Union/Local 364 IBEW FBM Gypsum Supply of Illinois Fiberglass Innovations LLC FIELD First Community Credit Union Freed Plumbing, Inc. Gauerke Electric Company Goldie B. Floberg Center Gustafson’s Earthworks Inc. Hayes Beer of Rockford Hilton Garden Inn Holiday Inn Express - Rochelle Hulsebus Rockford Chiropractic Humana Huntington Learning Center Illumination.io Ingersoll Machine Tools Ipsen, Inc. JP Electric, Inc. Kinovate Heating, Cooling & Indoor Air Quality LM Sheet Metal & Service, Inc. Macianos Pizza (Perryville Pizza, LLC)

Marco Massage Envy Spa of Rockford Maxim Healthcare Services Meg’s Daily Grind Midwest Community Bank Mosaic in Rockford Mrs. Fisher’s, Inc. Northern Illinois Chapter, National Electrical Contractors Association NTS Technical Systems OSTI - Ogle County Physical Therapy OSTI - Belvidere Physical Therapy OSTI - Edgebrook Physical Therapy OSTI - Poplar Grove Physical Therapy Per Mar Security Plastic Parts International Inc. Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren P.C. Rock House Kids Rock River Valley Blood Center - 6th Street Rock River Valley Blood Center Perryville Road Rock Road Companies, Inc. Rock Valley Culligan Rockford Ambulatory Surgery Center Rockford Country Club Rockford Heat Treaters, Inc. Rockford Map Publishers, Inc Rockford Mutual Insurance Company Rockford Network of Professional Women Rockford Spine Center Smeja Foundation Stillman BancCorp N.A. Sunset Funeral Home & Memorial Gardens SupplyCore, Inc. Swanson’s Discount Vacuum, Inc. SwedishAmerican, A Division of UW Health The Atrium - Meridian Senior Living The Brian Boyer Group - State Farm The Salvation Army The Standard Todd Transit, Inc. Triangle Metals USA Two Men and a Truck Vape-N-Juice Widmer Interiors Zenith Landholdings, LLC

facility of the University of Illinois College of Medicine Rockford, has new hours, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., on Mondays and Thursdays, and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 1221 E. State St. Same-day/next-day appointments typically available at 815-972-1000.

Thinker Ventures is working with Mary’s Market Cafe and Bakery’s three Rockford locations on a new strategic marketing plan and ongoing promotions.

New Chamber Members ANGLER MOTORS INC. Auto Sales 4913 N. 2nd St. Loves Park, IL 61111 Kevin Graney 815-636-2973

EXPRESS EMPLOYMENT PROFESSIONALS Providing a full range of employment solutions 2477 Eastrock Dr., 61108 Matt Giebel 815-708-0991 www.expresspros.com/rockfordil

FIRST INSURANCE GROUP Insurance; Employee Health Benefits Chris Zion LUTCF 630-273-9041 www.firstig.com

HUNTINGTON NATIONAL BANK Offering a full suite of bank services along with specializing in government guaranteed lending through the use of both SBA and USDA loan guaranty programs Allen Neumann 309-255-3695 www.huntington.com

IP COMMUNICATION, INC. IP Phone Systems - Voice/Data/Video Networking Solutions 1521 Windsor Road, 61111 Zachary Hughes 815-986-0199 www.ipcmidwest.com

MCDONALDS - BEAR FAMILY RESTAURANTS Bear Family McDonald’s is famous for world class customer service, community service and of course burgers, fries and shakes.

1441 Kishwaukee St., 61104, 815-962-2100 3710 Auburn St., 61101, 815-965-5700 3858 Northridge Dr., 61114, 815-877-1775 3930 W. Riverside Blvd., 61103, 815-877-3028 Julie Travers www.bearfamiliyrestaurants.com

MIDWEST SMALL BUSINESS ACCOUNTING & TAX SERVICE Offering a broad range of services for individuals and businesses: tax, payroll, accounting and bookkeeping, QuickBooks training, insurance and wealth management.

429 S. Phelps Ave., Ste. 704, 61108 Carla Leikam 815-316-8726 www.midwesttaxservice.com

MINDY JOY PHOTOGRAPHY Wedding, Commercial and Portrait Photography Mindy Joy Nutter Young 815-985-4005

OMNI RESOURCES IT Software Development and Consulting 2367 N. Mayfair Road, Ste. 200 Milwaukee, WI 53226 Juan Godina 954-263-4015 www.omniresources.com

PLANET FITNESS Welcome to the Judgement Free Zone 6333 N. Second St., Loves Park IL 61111 Brianna Stewart 815-633-7202 2420 S. Alpine Road, 61108 Ryan Chosnyk 815-708-6707

PURI FAMILY YMCA Offering a wide variety of facilities and programs for individuals and families to come together to exercise, have fun, meet people and play.

1475 S. Perryville Road, 61108 Angelyn Grable 779-774-3675 www.rockriverymca.org

ROSE INVESTMENT PROPERTIES, INC. Flex Warehouse Space - Commercial Spaces to Rent: 400 Square Feet to 7,000 Square Feet 2500 N. Main St., 61103 Rickey Shroeder 815-980-6137

24 | JUly 2018

theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

on digital

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

Express Employment Professionals held a ribbon cutting on May 31 at 2477 Eastrock Dr., Rockford.

Chastain & Associates LLC held a ribbon cutting on June 6 at 6832 Stalter Dr., Ste. 100, Rockford.

White Pines Retreat Center held a ribbon cutting and grand opening on June 4 at 6712 W. Pines Road, Mount Morris, Ill.

Riverview Inn & Suites at Cliffbreakers held a ribbon cutting and open house on June 15 at 700 W. Riverside Blvd., Rockford; showcasing its completed renovations, including an upgraded ballrooms and 84 newly decorated and remodeled hotel rooms.

Hennig, Inc., held a ribbon cutting on June 19 at 9900 N. Alpine Road, Machesney Park.

Advanced Machine & Engineering Co. (AME) held a ribbon cutting on June 20 at 2500 Latham St., Rockford.

theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

JUly 2018 | 25

community

Community Events

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

JULY, 2018 Tuesday, July 3

Rockford Symphony Orchestra and Starlight Theatre at Rock Valley College present the ComEd Independence Day Spectacular, a patriotic pops concert with fireworks, 8 p.m. Tickets at 815-921-2160, www.rockfordsymphony.com or www.rockvalleycollege.edu.

Rockford Park District presents America, a performance by Rockford Concert Band, at 7 p.m., as a part of its free Music in the Park series at Sinnissippi Park Music Shell. Visit www.rockfordparkdistrict.org/ soundsofsummer or call 815-9878800 for the entire series.

Thursday, July 5

Rockford Park District presents a performance with six-piece band Back Country Roads at 7 p.m., as a part of its free Music in the Park series at Sinnissippi Park Music Shell. Visit www.rockfordparkdistrict.org/ soundsofsummer or call 815-9878800 for the entire series.

Monday, July 9

Center for Sight & Hearing offers Baby Sign Language classes on Mondays, July 9 to Aug. 12, 1:30 to 2:45 p.m., with instructor and

Rockford Statistics

interpreter, Donna Smith. Parents of children, 0 to 3, can accelerate verbal communication and foster bonding.

Register at cshni.org.

Tuesday, July 10

Mandatory orientation class to apply for the SwedishAmerican EMS department’s 2018/2019 Fall Paramedic Program, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., on July 10, 11 or 12 at the EMS building, 4120 Charles St. Open to high school graduates with a current EMT-Basic license from the Illinois Department of Public Health. Apply by July 20. Call Linda, 779-696-6082, to schedule mandatory orientation. Visit www.swedesems.com.

Wednesday, July 11

Alzheimer’s Association presents Understanding and Responding to Dementia-Related Behavior, 2:45 to 4 p.m., at The Atrium, 2885 McFarland Road, Rockford. Register at 815-4841300.

Midway Village Museum presents Victorian Summer Evening Village Tours, 7 or 8 p.m., on July 11, 18 or 25. Members free. Call 815-397-9112 for questions.

Thursday, July 12

Rockford Park District hosts a two-mile Scenic Walk and 1½-hour tour along the Rock River Recreation Path, 11 a.m., July 12, Aug. 16, and Sept. 13, starting at Nicholas Conservatory & Gardens, 1354 N.

Second St. Features 16 unique sculptures. Call 815-987-8858 or visit www.nicholasconservatory.com.

Saturday, July 14

Natural Land Institute presents the Wine & Brew at the Wetland fundraiser, 3 to 6 p.m., Nygren Wetland Preserve, 3190 W. Rockton Road, Rockton. Samples of wine and craft beer, cuisine from Toni’s of Winnebago, vocal harmonies by Truman’s Ridge.

Tickets at www.NaturalLand.org, 815-964-6666 or info@naturalland.org.

Tuesday, July 17

Alzheimer’s Association Illinois Chapter presents a free community talk, Healthy Living for Your Brain and Body: Tips from the Latest Research, 4:30 to 6 p.m., 3600 E. State St., Ste. 304. RSVP to Martha Byrnes, 815-484-1300 or mabyrnes@ alz.org. Kicks off the Walk to End Alzheimer’s at Rockford on Sept. 15 at Rock Valley College. Register teams/ individuals at act.alz.org/rockford2018.

Thinker Ventures host the seminar, Understanding Customers With Analytics, 9 a.m. to noon, on using and understanding your website analytics to make actionable improvements. Register at thinkerventures.com/events.

Friday, July 20

Alpine Kiwanis Club hosts BRAT DAYS, July 20, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and July 21, 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., at

Edgebrook Center, the former Menards at North Second Street and Route 173, and the Kmart at East State Street and Mulford Road. Drive-thru service at Menards and Kmart locations. Large orders (50 or more), call 815-979-5249.

Live entertainment list at www. alpinekiwanis-il.org.

Saturday, July 21

Trinity Day Care, Inc., hosts a community 15th Anniversary Celebration, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., at 215 N. 1st St., Rockford, with childcentered activities, lunch and celebration with staff. Call 815-986KIDS (5437) for questions.

Rockford Park District’s Atwood Center presents A Voyageur’s Voyage, part of the In the Outdoors series at 334-acre Seth B. Atwood Park, 2685 New Milford School Road.

Learn about life as a voyageur during the fur trade era of North America. Visit www.rockfordparkdistrict.org/atwood or call 815-966-8747 for groups of five or more.

AUGUST, 2018 Sunday, August 5

Rosecrance Health Network host its annual Recovery 5K Walk/Run, 7 a.m., starting and finishing at Rosecrance Berry Campus, 8616 Northern Ave., Rockford. Participants receive a medal, T-shirt, goodie bag and refreshments. Awards by age group. Register at www.rosecrance. org/recovery5k.

The City of Rockford infographics help residents and businesses understand the key metrics by which the City measures its performance.

City departments use dozens of statistics to track the quality, efficiency and effectiveness of critical city services. Slide presentations of these key metrics are posted monthly on the City website and released to the media and public.View the full presentation deck on the City website: https://rockfordil.gov/news/rockstat/

26 | JUly 2018

theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

Entrepreneurial persistence pays off!

NZ3 hair dryer Smart Nozzle

By Sherry Pritz Enderle, NIU EIGERlab As a 45-year beauty industry veteran, Adrian Vasquez, co-owner of Totally You Hair Salon, has seen countless fads, styles and related products come and go. But innovation is always in style. When Adrian joined the ranks of NIU EIGERlab’s FastPitch Competition winners in 2013, he was assured of the viability of his invention, the revolutionary NZ3 hair dryer Smart Nozzle. Since then, he has stayed the course to entrepreneurial success.

Proving the Market Part of Adrian’s daily routine consists of communicating with his clients, and stakeholders in his business. He has the unique opportunity to use his salon as a test market, and request that both his colleagues and clients do the same.

To complete his market research, he shared his invention with a select group of colleagues and clients, and was elated at the positive feedback. Its unique design assists with drying hair more quickly and smoothly. The hair dryer’s ergonomic design results in less fatigue, which is especially important for those working in the beauty industry.

As an official tester for Loreal, the world’s largest beauty company, esthetician and Salon Centric sales rep, Tammy Eurek shared that she’s totally

sold on the NZ3 professional hair dryer with 3-way Smart Nozzle. “I don’t care how many hair dryers they send me to test, there’s nothing comparable to the NZ3 system to dry, style and straighten my clients’ hair.”

Entrepreneurial Successes Five years later, with his design patent in hand, he deems his invention a commercial success! Adrian shared, “It’s been a very long road. With hindsight being 20-20, I believe I would have made some alternate decisions, but for the most part, the vendors I chose to partner with including NIU EIGERlab’s Center for Product Development and the Small Business Development Center were ideal allies.” If down the road, he elects to sell his business, Adrian realizes that the drudgery of the patent process was well worth his time and effort since it will result in a more attractive business opportunity.

Sage Advice Along the way, he’s always felt like a student on a life-long learning path.

When he is not running one of his two businesses, Adrian immersed himself in the entrepreneurial world attending workshops, reading blogs, books — whatever he can glean from other successful entrepreneurs. “I’d highly

Adrian Vasquez, co-owner of Totally You Hair Salon, proudly displays his design patent. recommend books on tape, etc. Do the groundwork by learning as much as possible about not only your product, but your competitors product,” shared Adrian.

In 2014 he was accepted to participate at the Invention and New Product Exposition (INPEX) -- the world’s largest invention trade show. INPEX provides a forum for inventors to exhibit their inventions and pitch their ideas with companies interested in licensing, marketing and manufacturing their new products. He felt fortunate to be accepted less than one year after participating in the FastPitch Competition. Meeting George

Foreman, a key person associated with INPEX, provided inspiration.

Where do millions of people turn to first to complete research or shop?

The Internet. “My last bit of advice is to embrace the 800 pound shopping gorilla, Amazon,” exclaimed Adrian. It’s the largest shopping center in the world.

Sherry Pritz Enderle is marketing & events coordinator/business development at NIU EIGERlab Innovation Network.

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

FASTPITCH COUNTDOWN: THREE MONTHS OUT! Join Adrian and other successful and aspiring entrepreneurs at the 12th annual FastPitch Competition on Oct. 3. NIU EIGERlab is pleased to welcome First Northern Credit Union as a presenting sponsor for 2018.

Would you like to associate your company’s name with this exciting event?

Call Sherry at 815-753-2192 to discuss sponsorship opportunities.

To learn more about NIU EIGERlab’s other programs and services, visit www.EIGERlab.org or phone 815-753-2192.

theVoice • rockfordchamber.com

JUly 2018 | 27

chamber

Upcoming Chamber Events

JULY, 2018

Wednesday, July 11

Ribbon Cutting & Grand Opening, 3 to 6 p.m., State Farm Insurance - Brian Pinkstaff, 3957 W. Riverside Blvd., Rockford.

Thursday, July 12 4-7 pm 308 W. State St., Rockford (Outside of Stewart Square)

Founders’ Day BLOCK PARTY Enjoy food and beer and live performance from Prime Time Live Band. Rockford Art Deli will do a live printing of an exclusive Founders’ Day design.

Sponsored by Rockford University

Thursday, July 26

Leadership Workshop - CoachLike Leadership, 8:30 to 10 a.m., at PURI School of Business - Rockford University, 5050 E. State St., room 124. Facilitated by The Anser Group and includes a light breakfast.

AUGUST, 2018 Wednesday, August 8 7:30 - 9 am Rockford University PURI Business School Bldg., Rm. 124 5050 E. State St. , Rockford

Breakfast BUZZ

David Knoup, Ticomix, Inc., presents Work Smarter Not Harder, on empowering your employees to get the most out of Microsoft productivity applications, such as SharePoint Online, including Office 365.

Sponsored by RSM US LLP.

Tuesday, August 14

IGNITE Adulting 101- City Council, 6 to 7:30 p.m., at Aero Ale House, 6164 E. Riverside Blvd., Loves Park.

Thursday, August 23

Advertisers Index advertisers Advanced Machine & Engineering Company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

Rockford Bank & Trust Co. . . . . . . . .11

Blackhawk Bank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Commerce . . . . . . 14, 16-17, 24, 26, 28

Brian Thomas Photography. . . . . . . .18 Dickey Staffing Solutions . . . . . . . . .16 The Global Leadership Summit . . . . .21

Savant Capital Management . . . . . . . .6 Schmeling Construction Co. . . . . . . .11

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

Mercyhealth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

Thayer Lighting, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

SEPTEMBER, 2018

Midland States Bank . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

Van Matre HealthSouth . . . . . . . . . . . .8

OSF HealthCare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

Wintrust Commercial

Thursday, September 6 11:30 am - 1:15 pm Radisson Conference Center 200 S. Bell School Rd., Rockford

Illinois Small Business Development Center . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

SCORE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 Stillman Bank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

Northern Public Radio . . . . . . . . . . . .26

Banking & Mortgage . . . . . . . . . . . . .17

Quartz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

The Workforce Connection . . . . . . . .15

EDUCATION OUTLOOK LUNCHEON

In the Education Outlook luncheon, RPS 205 Superintendent Dr. Ehren Jarrett outlines the district’s progress as well as other great opportunities, all of which are vital components in making the Rockford Region one of the nation’s top communities..

Sponsored by BMO Harris Bank (presenting); Humana , and SwedishAmerican, A Division of UW Health (gold).

of the Rockford Business Community

Chamber Staff / Call 815-987-8100 ...............................................Direct Line Harold “Bo” Boger, IL Small Business Development Center Director ...............................................................815-316-4301 Cori Currey, Membership Development Executive ................................815-316-4336 Einar K. Forsman, President & CEO .......................................... 815-316-4304 Heidi M. Garner, Chief Operating Officer .................................... 815-316-4312 Olivia Guzman, Administrative Assistant/Customer Service Rep..........815-987-8100 Doug Hessong, Director of Publications & Technology ................... 815-316-4338 Lynette Jacques, Vice President, Member Investment .................... 815-316-4317

Thursday, September 27 1-5 pm UW Health Sports Factory 305 S. Madison St., Rockford

THE EXPOSITION

Experience Rockford’s vibrant and unique business community at The Exposition.

The prime place for connecting, exhibitors and attendees alike can expect an energizing day of opportunity & exposure.

Sponsored by Comcast Business, Mercyhealth (gold); Vixen Productions (silver).

Phoebe Morris, Program & Event Coordinator.............................. 815-316-4302 Kristin Muehlfelder, Member Relations...................................................815-316-4315 Caitlin Pusateri, Vice President, Leadership Development ....................815-316-4337 Doug Rand, Accounting Manager/Controller ............................... 815-316-4316 Joan Sundvall, Membership Contact Coordinator ......................... 815-316-4320

Chamber Board of Directors & Officers EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Chairman of the Board Richard Zumwalt Z Resource Chair-Elect Michele Petrie Wintrust Commercial Banking & Mortgage

July 2018 Member Anniversaries Thank you to the members celebrating their anniversaries with the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

Treasurer Amy Ott Boylan Catholic High School

20-YEAR MEMBERS

10-YEAR MEMBERS

First Northern Credit Union Montessori Private Academy Rockford Art Museum Rogers Brothers Gavanizing

Black & Jones Attorneys at Law Horizons Inc. Ingersoll Machine Tools Reno & Zahm LLP USANA Health Sciences

Gleason Cutting Tools Corporation Northwestern Mutual

Rockford University . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Ribbon Cutting & Open House, 4 to 6 p.m., Edward Jones - Trina Bankord, Financial Advisor, 109 N. Show Place Dr., Ste. 1, Rockford.

Vice Chair Dan Ross Gallagher Williams-Manny

15-YEAR MEMBERS

Rockford Chamber of

5-YEAR MEMBER Motivate Personal Physical Rehabilitation

Are you a Member with 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

Immediate Past Chair Patti Thayer Thayer Lighting, Inc.

DIRECTORS Andrew Benson Benson Stone Company, Inc. Kimberly Blascoe Wipfli LLP Jan Bowman TLC Construction LaVonne Brown Savant Capital Management Paula Carynski OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center Samuel J. Castree Staff Management, Inc. Joe Castrogiovanni Giovanni’s, Inc.

Sue Schrieber Don Daniels SwedishAmerican, A Mercyhealth Division of UW Health John Schuster Rebecca Epperson Rosecrance Health Chartwell Agency Network Ira Grimmett UTC Aerospace Systems

Karl Swanson Rockford Bank & Trust Co

Tim Honquest Honquest Family Funeral Home with Crematory

Udaya Talwar Woodward

Jeff Hultman Illinois Bank & Trust Michael F. Iasparro Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP Elizabeth Lee Greenlee Textron

Kris L. Kieper Jean Crosby Machajewski Berkshire Hathaway YWCA Northwestern HomeServices Crosby Illinois Starck Real Estate Mike Paterson Doug Curry Mid-West Family Stenstrom Excavation Broadcasting and Blacktop Group Mark Peterson CBL Associates Cherry Vale

Jon Thompson Butitta Brothers Automotive

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

AUGUST VOICE SPECIAL SECTIONS Preparing for Success with a 21st Century Education For information on advertising, call 815

987-8100