March 9, 2015

Furniture for Sale, Chamber Announces Office Open House

For Sale: Furniture and Equipment

Last week your Chamber announced its office relocation to effective April 1 to 3352 Sherman Court, Suite 201 in Eagan. The new office provides many professional amenities including easy access from 35E and Pilot Knob Road, free parking, conference and meeting space, state-of-the-art technology, volunteer/member workspace, and growth and expansion for the coming years.

As part of our move we will be replacing some of our furniture. If you are looking for gently used office furniture (tables, chairs, desks, cabinets), let us know. A full list is available for review on our website or stop by the office. Additionally please mark your calendar for the Open House on April 30 from 4:30 to 6:00 p.m.!

Committed to Business... for YOU.

Workforce Development - Is this a Challenge Facing your Business?

A well-prepared workforce is vital to Minnesota's economy. However, we hear every day that employers continue to face challenges finding skilled workers due to changing demographics and skills gaps in the labor market.

Your Chamber's education and workforce development efforts focus on legislative and private-sector solutions to address both the immediate need for a greater supply of skilled workers and the overall strength of the education-to-workforce pipeline.

Here's our 2015 Legislative To-Do List:

Accelerate workforce training efforts by leveraging customized training and apprenticeship programs.
Help high school students earn college credit before they graduate by expanding dual-credit programs.
Continue efforts to reform teacher tenure to keep the best teachers in the classroom, regardless of seniority. (The GOP-led House last Thursday approved legislation (HF2) that would require school districts to consider performance, not just seniority, when laying off teachers.)
Expand high-quality charter schools, and reform struggling charter schools.
Restructure testing.

For more information, please contact Vicki Stute.

(Register today for your Chamber's Legislative Breakfast on April 3 when MNSCU Chancellor Steve Rosenstone and others will discuss the Future of Higher Education in Minnesota.)

State of the City Addresses Planned for March

Your Chamber is hosting State of the City Addresses in our local communities. Each mayor reflects on the past year and shares their vision for the future. This is a great opportunity to learn about the communities where you live, work, and play.

West Saint Paul: Wednesday, March 11th from 7:30am - 9:00am at Southview Country Club (239 Mendota Road East, West Saint Paul). Keynote by Mayor David Meisinger. This event is in partnership with the West Saint Paul Rotary. $13 per person, includes breakfast. Pay at the door. Click here to register.
Farmington: Wednesday, March 18th from 8:00am - 9:30am at Farmington City Hall, 340 3rd Street, Farmington. Keynote by Mayor Todd Larson. Free to attend.Click here to RSVP.
Eagan: Thursday, March 19th from 7:30am - 9:00am at the Market Hall in Twin Cities Premium Outlets (Eagan Outlets Parkway, Eagan). Keynote by Mayor Mike Maguire. Free to attend. Click here to RSVP.
Rosemount: Wednesday, March 25th from 7:30am - 9:00am at the Community Center Banquet Hall (13885 South Robert Trail, Rosemount). Keynote by Mayor Bill Droste. Sponsored by SKB Environmental. Free to attend. Click here to RSVP.

March's Breakfast With Champions to Focus on Social Media

Speakers Offering Free Social Media Audit for Attendees

Join us this for this month's "Breakfast With Champions" featuring speakers Bernie Laur and Melissa Budensiek from Hubbard Interactive. In this month's event, these speakers will be discussing the importance of social media, show you what a typical social media campaign looks like and perform a social media audit with ideas and strategies that your business can use today! As an additional benefit, all attendees will receive a free social media audit for their business. Click here to register!

Attendees will come away with:

An in-depth overview of the different social media networks and how to utilize them
Detailed instructions on how to optimize your current business profiles and how it benefits your business
A step-by-step audit on tactics you can use now to grow your brand online

Bernie Laur: Bernie Laur has been the Digital Sales Manager for the Hubbard Radio Group - Twin Cities since October of 2008. Since arriving at Hubbard, Bernie has been instrumental in launching points-based listener clubs for the radio stations, maximizing client gift card promotions and auctions, and, most recently, helping create Hubbard Interactive's Social Media Management and Marketing platform.

Melissa Budensiek: As the Digital and Social Media Consultant for Hubbard Interactive, Melissa Budensiek's position entails working with some amazing clients and team members to drive social media strategy and lead initiatives to identify new technologies and digital best practices.

Events Calendar

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
9	10	11 7:30 a.m. West St. Paul State of the City Address 8:00 a.m. ChamberNet Two Noon ChamberNet	12 8:00 Eagan Coffee Break 11:00 a.m. The WomEn's Conference	13
16	17 Noon Meet the Chamber	18 7:30 a.m. Business Owner's Roundtable 8:00 a.m. Farmington State of the City Address	19 7:30 a.m. Eagan State of the City Address	20
23	24 8:00 a.m. West St. Paul/Mendota Heights Coffee Break	25 7:30 a.m. Rosemount State of the City 8:00 a.m. ChamberNet Two Noon ChamberNet 4:00pm SMYPros Community Event	26 7:30 a.m. Breakfast with Champions	27
30	31	1 4:30 p.m. Why Not Wednesday?	2	3 7:30 a.m. Legislative Breakfast Series

It's Daylight Saving Time! Did you know?

Daylight Saving time begins this Sunday, March 10th. Contrary to popular belief, DST was not invented by Benjamin Franklin, although he did satirically and anonymously propose the idea to Parisians 1784. Eventually proposed and lobbied for by an Englishman, William Wilmett, in 1905, it was actually the Germans and their WWI allies that began using it first. The US was the last to follow suit. Source

Local Focus: Find Out What's Happening In Your Community

West St. Paul City Council meets March 9 - see the agenda.

Farmington Planning Commission meets March 10- see the agenda.

Eagan City Council Work Session meets March 10 - see the agenda.

Rosemount City Council Work Session meets March 11 - see the agenda.

Request for Proposal - WSP Business Liaison Position

The City of West St Paul is requesting proposals from interested/qualified individuals or firms for providing business liaison services during the 2015-2016 Robert Street reconstruction project. This project will require part -time physical presence in West St Paul during the construction project and phone/email availability during all other times to be able to respond to construction related issues that have an impact on local businesses on Robert Street. click here for a Request for Proposal packet.

Completed proposals are due to the above address no later than 4:30 p.m. on Monday, March 23, 2015.

Dakota County Resources and Tips for Job Seekers, Employers

Your Chamber is always looking for ways to provide resources for both job seekers and employers in our region. The MN Department of Employment and Economic Development has offered the following tips for job seekers, which include opportunities, links, and resources for job searching (and helpful links for employers as well).

1) Get Jobs Job Fair is Thursday, March 26th from 11 a.m. - 4 p.m. It is chock-full of employers who are hiring. For more information, including a list of employers and pre-job fair workshops, click here.

2) The River South Job Fair is Saturday, March 28^th from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The four participating organizations are Canterbury park, Mystic Lake, Renaissance Festival and Valleyfair. There are many full-time, part-time and seasonal positions available.Click here to learn more.

3) Jobs - 78,000+ jobs posted! Click here to view Minnesota Works, which is

free for both employers and job seekers to use.

4) WorkForce Center Events and Workshops- There isn't a cost to attend WorkForce Center workshops. For a menu of all workshops offered in Dakota and Scott counties, click here. Examples include: Resume Writing, Interviewing Skills, LinkedIn - Getting Started, Networking and more.

5) Meet With Employers- Numerous companies meet with job seekers in WorkForce Center resource rooms as "Business of the Day." For a calendar of employers and locations, click here.

Member to Member Business: Think About it!

As a member-based organization, your Chamber encourages member-to- member business. With over 500 members, DCR Chamber

represents more than 130 industries. When you're looking to outsource within your company, give us a call and we'll refer a member. As always, if you use a member's good or services let us know. We love hearing about it!

New Members

We welcome the following new members!

New Heights Physical Therapy

750 Main Street

Suite 206

Mendota Heights, MN 55118

Contact: Kari Lind

651.905.9000

www.newheightsperformance.com

Our physical therapy practice integrates Postural Restoration (PRI) concepts into a wellness and fitness program to meet our patient's needs and expectations. We pride ourselves in assisting our patients with a full continuum of care from initial injury to return to sport, work and life. Our PRI treatment philosophy focuses on restoring balance within our system so that we can function without compensation or pain.

We incorporate exercise programs to help our care to facilitate muscles that may be weak and inhibit those that are overworked and strained. We combine years of clinical experience, manual therapy, neuromuscular retraining, postural education and modalities to help guide or patients back to full restoration.

RE/MAX Advisers

11995 County Road 11

Burnsville, MN 55337

Contact: Debrah Safi

612.267.3018

Remax Advisors has been in business in Burnsville since 1994. We serve the greater Minneapolis/St. Paul area but focus on the Southern Metro.

We believe in striving to be the best through education, service and effort. At Remax our agents are in business for themselves but not by themselves.

We have outstanding agents and outstanding success.

Our company is also a proud sponsor of the Children's Miracle Network and work to bring a caring touch to all aspects of our company.

Chuck and Don's Pet Food & Supplies

1250 Town Centre Drive

Eagan, MN 55121

Contact: Sarah Jones

651.454.3458

www.chuckanddons.com

Chuck & Don's was founded by Charles "Chuck" Anderson and Don Tauer who met through their involvement in owning, training and showing dogs. The first location opened in Eagan, Minn. in 1990 with the mission to be the local destination pet supplies store with excellent customer service and a wide selection of products. Today, there are 23 stores in Minnesota, six locations in Colorado and one location in Wisconsin. Chuck & Don's mission is to enrich the lives of pets by providing the best products, service, and education for its customers. Chuck & Don's advocates responsible pet ownership and commits to meaningful corporate citizenship that makes a positive difference in the communities in which it operates.

Andros Medspa

750 Main Street

Suite 109

Mendota Heights, MN 55118

Contact: Dr. Rosario

651.222.3127

www.androsemedspa.com

At Andros MedSpa our mission is to provide a premier, first class experience that interactively finds solutions to achieve our client's individualized, desired aesthetic results. We accomplish this mission by having board certified, experienced surgeons, aestheticians and makeup artists and carrying top name brand products including purely organic brands that are great for your skin and the environment.

All injections are done only by our surgeons.

Dr. Rosario, the founder of Andros MedSpa has over 17 years of experience and has often been recognized as one of the top surgeons in her field being named Top Doc and Best Doctor for Women.

Come in to let us Enhance, Rejuvenate and Create your beauty!

The Travel Academy

3140 Neil Armstrong Boulevard

Eagan, MN 55121

Contact: Curt Armstrong

(952) 854-7161

www.thetravelacademy.com

The Travel Academy is the world's leading flight attendant and travel career training school. Founded in 1987 by Curt Armstrong, The Travel Academy has long been on the cutting edge of delivering the highest quality travel instruction and career placement services. With a powerful combination of strong curricula, experienced faculty, and on-site hiring assistance, The Travel Academy has helped thousands of people begin exciting careers in the travel industry as flight attendants, cruise professionals, travel agents, and many others.

We work with all students until they're hired.

Member News

News on what's happening with our members and in the community!

Your Chamber congratulates all of the women recognized with the 2015 Exceptional Businesswomen Award brought to you by SunThisWeek with a special shout-out to Chamber members Laurie Rieb Bolin, 360 Communities; Lisa Franxman, Anchor Bank; Ingrid Lindberg, Prime Therapeutics, LaVonne Nicolai, Castle Rock Bank; and Margaret Schreiner, Dakota Electric.

Thrivent Financial is hosting their March Movie Madness Event on Saturday, March 21, 2015 at 9:30 a.m at the Lakeville 21 Theater. Attendees are asked to bring a minimum of $5 dollars in non-perishable food items or a $5 dollar cash donation for the food shelf. In return, you will have the choice of viewing "Cinderella" or "McFarland USA" and receive complimentary pop and popcorn! RSVP by calling Germaine Beyl at (651) 463-1010 or by email.

Marco, Inc. announced that they have purchased Solbrekk, Inc., a business IT services company located in Minneapolis. With the purchase, Marco will be able to expand their hosted/cloud service offerings.

Dakota County Regional Chamber of Commerce

1121 Town Centre Drive, Suite 102

Eagan, MN 55123

651.452.9872

STAY CONNECTED