April 2016 Inside this issue: Election Platforms Member Spotlight New Members Events Review Celebrating Women Expert Advice Recommended Reading
CHAMBER at a glance
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a publication of the Brandon Chamber of Commerce
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Issues that Hit Home for Members
I
n February and March, the Chamber board took the first steps towards it’s strategic plan that will guide the direction of the Chamber and it’s executive for the coming years. Chambers across the country, and North America are tasked with figuring out where they fit and how they can find relevance in a rapidly changing business world.
lucky. We have a diverse board made up of successful people from a variety of backgrounds and industries. We have input from community leaders, business leaders, and politicians. We have data from our Business Leader Surveys. We’ll work through our strategic planning session and have a plan to execute that ensures that we’re relevant and tackling issues that hit home for our members.
It’s important that our Brandon Chamber remain true to our original While the Chamber is going through and founding this exercise to plan for principles. Our it’s future, I challenge all members expect us business leaders and “The challenge to be tackling the stakeholders in our lies in how the same issues that we community to think Chamber is to always have: about what we can all do, taxation levels, and the roles we can all remain regulatory burdens, play to help create and relevant while barriers to sustain that robust, doing this.” competitiveness. competitive economic Our mandate is to environment referenced ensure that Brandon has a robust, above. competitive economic environment that benefits our member businesses, Recent changes in oil prices and the our community and the families that ripple effects in southwestern live in it. The challenge lies in how the Manitoba show that we cannot be Chamber is to remain relevant while complacent, cannot rest on our laurels, doing this. cannot rely on past investments to pave the way to a prosperous future. The Brandon Chamber of Commerce is We need new industry, new business,
Jordan Ludwig, Chamber President
innovation, and increases in productivity and investment. None of this happens without the will of the influencers in our community shouldering forward and creating the Brandon of our future, Brandon 2.0. The Chamber, the City’s Economic Development department, the Province and each and every business person in our community have a role to play in the future of Brandon. The Chamber has a vast network of past presidents, board members, and engaged members with connections, influence, an appetite for risk and money to invest. We have a voice, and the most recent data from our Business Leaders survey says that our members want more economic development in our community. (Continued on page 6)