Business Leader | Winter 2020

WINTER FALL2020 2016

Tapping the sun

Solar projects grow in Chippewa Valley

- Five generations in the workforce - DECA students learn the nut business - Local gyms spot 2020 trends SPONSORED BY

est.

2017

PRSRT STD US Postage PAID Permit #203 Eau Claire, WI

“ A S L O N G A S Y O U ’ R E H O N E S T, P E O P L E WILL RESPECT YOU. ONCE YOU LOSE THAT HONESTY, YOU’LL NEVER BE SUCCESSFUL.” -GEORGE L. RUDER

G

J A J

B wausau | eau claire | green bay ruderware.com

T

visit our blogs at blueinklaw.com

C B

2 | BUSINESS LEADER • January 27, 2020

P

EDITOR’S NOTE

Solar projects grow in Chippewa Valley

8

Gyms say longevity is current fitness trend

10

Five generations in workforce create challenges, opportunities

14

DECA students learn business by selling nuts

GUEST COLUMNS

Jeff West . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Andrew Cooper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Justin Vajko . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

13 17 18

BOOK REVIEW

19 CALENDAR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

BY THE NUMBERS . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Terri Schlichenmeyer . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cover photo courtesy of Eau Claire Energy Cooperative

CONTENTS

4

Sniffles then sneezing and coughing are increasingly common around workplaces as winter colds and the dreaded flu begin to spread.

Influenza began popping up in mid-December in Wisconsin and reports continued rising in January, according to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services. Prior years’ data shows flu activity can peak in February or March in Wisconsin.

One pesky bug can sweep through an office like wildfire, putting workers out of commission, cutting into productivity and straining morale.

While the onus to practice good health and hygiene ultimately falls on individuals, there are some small measures employers can take to help reduce chances of illnesses spreading.

• Use employee meetings, newsletters and bulletin boards to mention the prevalence of viruses in the community and ways to avoid them, such as more frequent hand-washing.

• Remind employees of sick leave policies and set the tone for when they should be used for seasonal viruses.

Do you want employees to “tough it out” if they feel up to work while grappling with a minor malady? Or would you discourage them from coming into the office out of fear it could spread to others?

• For employees that have face-to-face contact with a lot of people, provide them with hand sanitizer.

• Keep cleaning wipes around for employees to use on work areas, phones and computers used by multiple people.

• From a management standpoint, make sure supervisors have a good idea of which workers have the skills to cover for others in case people begin calling in sick.

• Some businesses hold flu shot clinics for employees in fall — an effective way to get your workforce vaccinated. If that’s just not feasible for you, make sure employees know how flu shots are covered under your health plan and places where they can conveniently get them.

Adults under 50 years old — the core of the workforce — have the lowest vaccination rates of any demographic in Wisconsin. Only about a quarter of working adults have gotten the flu shot this season, compared to Wisconsin’s average of 37%, according to state statistics.

While working-age adults may not be hit as hard by a case of the flu as young children and senior citizens, it often means spending days at home to convalesce.

A few small measures could prevent your business from becoming a ghost town if a pesky bug stops by.

Winter 2020

EDITOR - Andrew Dowd andrew.dowd@ecpc.com @ADowd_LT • 715-833-9204

GRAPHIC DESIGN & LAYOUT - John Balgaard MAGAZINE ADVERTISING & COORDINATOR

Alicia Rodgers alicia.rodgers@ecpc.com • 715-833-9237

Published four times per year by the Leader-Telegram. Copyright 2020 Leader-Telegram, 701 S. Farwell St., Eau Claire, WI 54701. All rights reserved. 800-236-7077. leadertelegram.com

COVER STORY

Sunny days ahead

Photo courtesy of Eau Claire Energy Cooperative Lambs graze next to the Eau Claire Energy Cooperative’s solar array in Fall Creek in this undated photo.

The cooperative’s solar subscription program included 238 customers in 2019.

Solar projects gain steam in the Chippewa Valley

By Sarah Seifert, Leader-Telegram staff

Interested in powering your dishwasher or charging your phone using the sun?

If you can’t install your own solar panels, there’s another option − subscribing to a solar energy program from a Chippewa Valley energy provider.

Solar power is also starting to light up the local business community too. Eau Claire area businesses, municipalities and organizations are beginning to mull larger-scale energy projects, from solar-powered art in public parks to ambitious renewable energy use goals.

4 | BUSINESS LEADER • January 27, 2020

One of Eau Claire’s newest design firms is even putting solar power at the heart of its business model.

Solar Forma, based at Artisan Forge Studios on Eau Claire’s south side, is aimed at designing infrastructure, large artwork and sculptures that incorporate solar panels. Its owners hope to create pieces that are both functional and eye-catching.

“When you take a building or scenescape and you drop solar panels into it, sometimes it’s not the greatest looking,” said Brian Graff,

e . .

Solar Forma’s president of business operations. “We try to incorporate them more into the architecture … to hopefully accelerate the transition to solar.”

Solar Forma began in March 2019. Graff and Greg Johnson, Solar Forma partner and owner of Artisan Forge Metalworks, hope to work on projects across the country and the world.

One of Solar Forma’s first projects might be their most memorable: Three steel troll sculptures, ranging from 4 to 6 feet tall, will be installed in Altoona’s River Prairie development in May 2020.

Staff photo by Dan Reiland Greg Johnson, left, and Brian Graff of Eau Claire-based solar design company Solar Forma pose on Jan. 3 in the beginning stages of a three-piece solar interactive sculpture of trolls which will be located in Altoona’s River Prairie development later this year.

When touched, the trolls − dubbed “sound sculptures” − are planned to emit solarpowered light and “low, rhythmic sounds,” according to a design overview by Karl-Johan Ekeroth of PINPIN Studio based in Gothenburg, Sweden. Solar Forma is collaborating with Ekeroth to build the trolls’ solar elements.

Graff acknowledges the challenges of designing using the silicon solar cells that form solar panels.

(The panels, which are typically made of silicon “semiconductor” material, collect energy by absorbing and converting sunlight, according to the Department of Energy.)

“People want the inspired designs, but they also want cost effectiveness,” Graff said. “We’ve had to set an operating goal that our more inspired designs won’t degrade the power generation capabilities by more than 10% of a conventional array.”

A Solar Forma project with the city of Eau Claire is also in the works, Graff said. (City leaders have indicated an interest in moving toward cleaner energy; in 2018 the Eau Claire City Council passed a resolution saying the city and community should use 100% renewable energy by 2050.)

“The tech has advanced,” he said. “As the technology has grown in its reliability and in its pervasiveness … people are more trusting of it to be a primary, highly-relied-upon secondary source of power.”

Solar interest The Eau Claire Energy Cooperative began offering subscriptions to their Fall Creek solar garden project in 2016.

About 238 people get some or all of their power through ECEC’s solar array, said co-op CEO and president Lynn Thompson.

The solar subscription model works especially because mounting solar panels on a house is a “20year investment,” Thompson said: “I think the largest barrier is just the long-term commitment. If you’re going to put, buy solar, you’re looking at a 20-year type of investment. Are you going to be in the same location for 20 years? For a lot of people, the answer is no.”

Thompson doesn’t have immediate plans to expand the subscription program, however.

“It took us over a year to get it fully subscribed, when we first started offering it,” Thompson said.

“People were interested, it was a new concept, and I think we got those folks interested in it on board early.”

Xcel Energy’s one-megawatt solar garden in Eau Claire produces energy that the company provides to some customers through its Solar Connect Community See page 6 January 27, 2020 • BUSINESS LEADER | 5

from Page 5

program. The Eau Claire solar garden opened in October 2017, and the program is fully subscribed with about 140 residential and business customers, said Xcel spokeswoman Chris Ouellette.

The solar garden model appeals to renters or people who don’t want to build, install and maintain a solar array at their residence, Ouellette said. The program isn’t limited to people who live in Eau Claire, or in Cashton or Ashland — other locations where Xcel also has solar gardens.

The twin 100-kilowatt, 360-panel solar arrays are expected to save the school district about $20,000 per year on its utility bills.

Half the panels were donated by Memorial alumnus Cal Couillard of the Couillard Solar Foundation.

An anonymous donor plans to contribute another 360 panels when the maintenance money is raised.

Staff photo by Dan Reiland Solar Forma shop foreman Aaron Meidl on Jan. 3 welds part of a solar interactive sculpture of trolls.

Couillard, who lives in Deerfield, said he hopes the project inspires Memorial and North students to look for careers in renewable energy.

Photo courtesy of Eau Claire Energy Cooperative Children touch solar panels at the Eau Claire Energy Cooperative’s Fall Creek solar array. The utility company began offering subscriptions to its solar project in 2016.

Growing interest in solar power is one of the reasons Xcel piloted the solar project, Ouellette said. It doesn’t hurt that technology advances are slowly making solar power cheaper and more efficient.

“The cost of solar energy has come down in the last five years. The price of solar — the panels, the actual equipment — has dropped about 60%,” Ouellette said.

Thompson agreed: “If you’re buying something like this, and it’s going to be around for 20 years, you don’t want to be too early to it.”

Panel projects ramp up Private businesses and public entities are stepping up to the plate for their own roof-mounted solar arrays.

The Eau Claire school district plans to mount donated solar panels on the roofs of Memorial and North high schools as soon as this summer, if it can raise about $250,000 to cover installation and maintenance costs.

6 | BUSINESS LEADER • January 27, 2020

“Look around and see it. We’re not moving very fast to solve their problem,” Couillard said at a December news conference in Eau Claire. “Having (solar panels) on their schools lets them know they can be part of this.”

Solar power will also get a shoutout at the Farm Technology Days 2020 event in Eau Claire in July.

Horseradish grower Huntsinger Farms, parent company of Silver Spring Foods, said in December it would install 288 solar panels on its Eau Claire farm this spring after being awarded a $29,000 Focus On Energy grant.

It will be one of the first farm solar installations in Wisconsin, generating about 144,000 kilowatt hours of energy per year, Huntsinger Farms said in a news release.

The farm, which is hosting Farm Technology Days 2020, plans to offer tours of the new solar field at the event.

Huntsinger Farms president Eric Rygg said in a news release the solar panels will “bring energy costs down dramatically.”

He added: “We hope that other farmers across Wisconsin will come and see the solar field during Farm Technology Days next year and discover how they can install solar on their own farms too.”

Contact: 715-833-9206, sarah.seifert@ecpc.com, @sarahaseifert on Twitter

- SPONSORED CONTENT -

RETIREMENT PLANNING

YOU CAN TRUST From large companies to individual plans, Trust Point’s retirement plan services team works in the best interest of its clients.

Davy Engineering has been trusted since 1929 to find solutions to complex infrastructure problems in the Midwest. The engineering consulting company does everything from street and highway design to water system planning to industrial development. Davy Engineering (and its Davy Laboratories branch) is still a family-run corporation, but it has grown from a handful of people to roughly 50 full-time engineers, biologists and chemists.

To handle the profit sharing and retirement plans for those employees, Davy Engineering hasfor more than 60 years-placed its trust in another local institution: Trust Point.

WE WERE ALWAYS COMFORTABLE WITH THE IDEA THAT THEY WERE LOOKING OUT FOR OUR BEST INTEREST.” – MIKE DAVY, PRESIDENT, DAVY ENGINEERING

“That means that the staff that we’ve worked with are professional, they’re knowledgeable, and we do think that they’ve always had the attitude that-before it was a buzzword-they understood what a fiduciary responsibility was,” Davy says. “And we were always comfortable with the idea that they were looking out for our best interest rather than trying to generate fees.”

From single plans to businesses like Davy’s to companies of more than 600 employees, Trust Point offers retirement solutions built on real relationships and the best interests of clients.

A COMPLETE SOLUTION

Trust Point provides an “allinclusive solution” for 401(k) plan sponsors (the people making the decisions) or employers, helping them with their investments, plan documents, record keeping, and everything else associated with a plan. Other institutions commonly send clients to third parties for various services, producing numerous contacts and limiting relationship development.

Education is encouraged and provided at least annually for all plan participants and one-on-one guidance, that is often utilized, is included with Trust Point’s plan.

LOOKING OUT FOR CLIENTS

Trust Point’s staff takes pride in serving clients, working under the motto that doing what is best for clients is doing what is best for the company.

As a business owner, you put a 401(k) in place for a reason. It’s important to utilize the sources that can help you and your employees get the most out of it.

Trust Point works closely to build those relationships and it takes on as much liability with plan sponsors as it can.

“I’ve always been convinced that we have a good relationship,” Davy says. “That we have good service, we have a good plan, fair fees, and we’ve never found a need to change.”

Learn how Trust Point can help your company’s retirement plan, call 715-461-7018 or visit www.trustpointinc.com.

January 27, 2020 • BUSINESS LEADER | 7

FEATURE STORY

for life Longevity is goal for latest wave of gym trends

By Ryan Patterson, Leader-Telegram staff

Exercise options change constantly, and for people looking to try new or popular workouts during the winter months, a few fitness trends have emerged in the area.

Many fitness center employees said strength training has increased in recent years, which is part of a general focus on the long-term benefits of physical fitness.

“Fitness is more than just sweating to lose body fat,” FitELITE co-owner Shane Beck said. “It’s a longevity thing now, like ‘I’m planning for as I age.’”

The Yoga Room owner Wendy Oberg wants people to apply workout techniques to their lives so they can increase mobility and flexibility for years down the road.

“The reason we do this is for functional movement,” Oberg said. “We do yoga today so that 10 years from now you haven’t lost your mobility, you haven’t lost your posture … It’s to maintain so that we grow old really gracefully.”

With better access to information, more people are aware of the importance of fitness and how it can improve different aspects of their lives. Jamie Hoover, Director of Healthy Living at the YMCA of the Chippewa Valley, said people have taken 8 | BUSINESS LEADER • January 27, 2020

Staff photo by Dan Reiland Jake LaCoste of Eau Claire lifts weights three to five times a week at the YMCA in Eau Claire. Local fitness experts are seeing an increase in people interested in strength training in recent years.

more ownership over their personal health and consider it an active part of their lives.

“People are starting to accept that exercise, in whatever modality it’s going to be, is a lifestyle choice as opposed to a hobby,” Hoover said. “(It’s) not necessarily that ‘I want to be able to squat more weight.’ It’s just, ‘I want to live my life and I want to live it better and I want to be able to chase after my kids or my grandkids.’”

Instructors said more people have emphasized wellness, a term with different definitions depending on the person.

Oberg said wellness happens “when you feel better and you can feel really good about who you are, so then you start to see the world through

that sweetness and you just treat everyone a little bit sweeter.”

Momentum Fitness co-owner Jim Breuer defined wellness as aspects outside of the gym that affect a person’s health. The three main areas are hydration, sleep and nutrition.

“It’s teaching your body how to work as one complete unit,” Breuer said.

Amy Erickson, owner of The Well and Latitude 44 Yoga Studio, defined wellness as different ways to make oneself feel better. She said wellness is personal to every individual and constantly changing.

Erickson said people have become more aware over time of actions to make themselves feel better.

“Paying attention to not only the physical body, but our emotional, spiritual well-being and exploration is a really crucial part in truly being well,” Erickson said.

Beck agreed.

“Wellness is the ability to live the lifestyle you want to live,” Beck said. “It’s helping people create habits … The purpose for moving is to live a fun, fulfilled, connected life, and be able to move and function on our own for as long as possible.”

Beck aims to have trainers serve as coaches, rather

than instructors. That means adapting workout regimens to suit the individual, rather than simply telling a person what they should do.

FitELITE co-owner Dave Hildebrandt said demand will always exist for large gyms full of equipment, but he said the growing trend appears to be more people finding a small community that best suits them.

Similarly, Hoover credited the increase in personal trainers with helping people improve their fitness.

Hoover said many people enjoy social interaction and forming subcommunities while exercising.

“Being able to have that connection and feeling like you have your own niche within the gym is pretty important,” Hoover said.

Breuer has seen an increase in group class participation and attributed part of that to the need for social connectivity. Going forward, Breuer sees more franchising of micro gyms but said there will always be space for large companies. He believes more people want to understand why they are working out.

“People will no longer be buying access,” Breuer said. “They’ll be purchasing, hopefully, results to a problem.”

Contact: 715-830-5838, ryan.patterson@ecpc.com

INVESTED VESTED in L Longevity.

Sue CO-Owner McDonough Mfg

Matt CO-Owner McDonough Mfg

ANNIVERSARY

Charter Bank Business Services

“The he bank we were with for over 100 years ept getting bigger and bigger, and it kep bec became apparent that there was a disc disconnect in the relationship...

Char Charter Bank was local, they knew us, w and wanted to do business with us so it was a pretty easy decision for our compan ompany to make the switch.”

Invest Your Trust in Charter Bank.

charterbank.bank/business | 715-832-4254 January 27, 2020 • BUSINESS LEADER | 9

FEATURE STORY

Across the generations

Staff photo by Dan Reiland Marshfield Clinic Health System pharmacy technicians Bonnie Kochendorfer, 36, left, and Clark Sheerar, 76, work alongside each other to prepare medication used in the hospital and outpatient clinic on Eau Claire’s southwest side.

Increasingly age-diverse workforce provides challenges, opportunities for employers

By Andrew Dowd, Leader-Telegram staff

Working side-by-side and wearing matching maroon scrubs, Bonnie Kochendorfer and Clark Sheerar are among the pharmacy technicians that fill prescriptions needed by patients at Marshfield Clinic Health System's Eau Claire Center.

Though separated in age by four decades, the pair who work in the bright, immaculate room in the lower level of the area's newest hospital have found their styles and experience complement each other.

Kochendorfer, 36, is a bit more adept at using technology in the pharmacy, but relies on Sheerar’s experience when she has questions about medications.

“I can do the computer stuff better, but that’s my guy when I need to know what something does,” Kochendorfer said.

Sheerar, 76, appreciates his co-worker’s work ethic and ability to help handle the workload when orders begin rushing in.

“She’s dependable,” Sheerar said. “If I need help, have a lot to do, she’s there and she does a good job.”

10 | BUSINESS LEADER • January 27, 2020

The duo are an example of an increasingly agediverse workforce that now spans five distinct generations, a result of older workers putting off retirement to maintain their income and keep busy.

Sheerar is in the age group known as “traditionalists” or the “silent generation” — the one that preceded the baby boomers. Kochendorfer is a millennial — the group that falls between Generation X and Generation Z, the latter of which is just now entering the professional job market.

Shaped by many factors including historical events, technology and social norms of their earlier years, each generation is slightly different. Their ideas of good employee benefits and working environments also can differ in part due to their age.

“The reason why we’re talking about it now is the dependence on millennials in the workplace,” said Dan Lytle, who has delivered dozens of presentations in the Chippewa Valley on challenges of a multigenerational workforce.

Changing picture

can clash with the ways of tenured, long-term workers.

His suggestion to employers is to focus on the outcome and be flexible in what it takes to get there.

The majority of the workforce is split between baby For example, an area hospital had trouble keeping boomers and millennials, with the latter’s share gaining medical assistants and sought his advice to improve as more people in the former generation get into their mid-60s and start taking Social Security. (Between the two employee retention. When probing the problem, Lytle found that management would chastise those workers is Generation X, but Lytle noted those people were from decades where birth rates were lower and now make up a when they’d bunch up and talk as it was viewed as social time and not productive. However, Lytle noted that smaller portion of the workforce.)

Senior citizens from the “silent era” aka “traditionalists” despite the group chats, the medical assistants were still getting their work done. have represented a shift in employment though they His suggestion to management was to create time when represent only about 5% of working Americans. The employees would be together, such as completing shift numbers of high school and college students working reports in a group. That would satisfy their desire to has been dropping, Lytle said, with retired people congregate, while also completing a task. supplanting a portion of those part-time workers.

“Challenge your perception of what productivity is and “They were there, they stepped out and because looks like,” Lytle said. people are living longer Managers in office they’re going back into the settings may feel like workforce again,” Lytle employers are only hard said of traditionalists.

Many workplaces are composed of five distinct at work when they are For Sheerar, working generations. These are the birth years of those glued to their desks at all as a pharmacy technician generations, as well as some of their common traits, 40 hours of the workweek. was his third career after as described by a Manpower news release: But Lytle argues that he’d been an educator and • Traditionalists or silent generation this idea of productivity school administrator at – born 1928-1945; values authority and top-down is becoming outdated rural schools in western management, hard working. as employees in many • B

aby boomers – born 1946-1964; workaholics, Wisconsin. expect some amount of deference to their opinions. fields can do their work “You have to keep busy,” • G

eneration X – born 1965-1980; comfortable with remotely just as effectively he said. authority, will work as hard as needed to succeed, as they could in the office.

He entered the field in yet seeks work/life balance.

Adopting outcome2013 and his co-worker, • Millennials – born 1981-1996; Feel respect must be based metrics is a Kochendorfer, became a earned, tech savvy, goal and achievement oriented. more objective way to pharmacy technician in late • Generation Z – born after 1997; digital natives, fast gauge productivity so a 2018 to switch jobs from decision makers, highly connected. workplace can become her previous job of working more flexible to meet their at a chiropractor’s office. employees’ preferred Whereas Sheerar and working methods.

Kochendorfer work well together, Lytle has met with Different ways of communication favored by each other businesses where expectations between different generation can also cause conflicts. generations have caused friction.

Older employees who are in management usually place a higher value on face-to-face communication as opposed to sending emails to employees, Lytle said. Meanwhile a younger worker may opt to send emails or text messages Lytle, who led the Eau Claire County Job Center to someone just down the hallway. before his current role as CVTC’s business development While older employees may view the electronic manager and head of the college’s Menomonie campus, communication as impersonal, Lytle said younger said younger workers tend to question the usual way of workers see the benefit of an email or text message doing things in the workplace. creating written instructions that can be revisited so “The old mantra of ‘This is the way we’ve always done there’s no confusion or need to repeat them. it’ – there are a lot of challenges to that now,” he said.

“Their engagement looks different than the previous “That’s where the majority of conflict is.” generation’s engagement and that’s where a lot of Younger workers who want to instill and implement problems lie,” Lytle said. their own ideas for processes to reach the desired outcome See page 12

Five generations

Different productivity ideas

January 27, 2020 • BUSINESS LEADER | 11

from Page 11

Benefits and values

After the economy lost jobs during the Great Recession, the ensuing economy recovery and retirement of older workers has led to a worker shortage. Companies hungry to fill their ranks are now trying to become known as an “employer of choice,” but that goes beyond simply offering good wages and benefits when others are competing for the same job candidates.

“They’re more interested in how do we improve morale and culture with the overarching goal of boosting retention,” Lytle said.

The local office of hiring firm Manpower highlighted the five generations working today in a July news release and advised employers on what they need to do to attract and retain workers.

“The main thing is to listen and be open-minded and flexible,” said Kim Peterson, market principal with Manpower, leading 27 counties in Wisconsin and Minnesota from her office in Eau Claire.

Different generations will have different ways to engage and motivate them, Peterson said.

Finding millennials to enjoy diversity in their work – learning different tasks, even if it just results in a lateral move in the same company – Manpower tries to satisfy their craving for variety.

“This new generation what’s engaging them is having something different to work on – adding onto their resume or portfolio,” Peterson said.

Keeping those employees interested in their work is one way to help retain them, she added.

“It’s quite different from the baby boomers for example who were more apt to work hard in their positions so their hard work would pay off and advance,” Peterson said.

Traits exhibited by different generations can also influence what employees are interested in when it comes to their benefits packages.

“The incoming workforce has a different value system,” Lytle said.

An extra week of vacation can be more valuable to a millennial than health insurance or even a raise, Lytle said, noting the generation’s desire for experiences like travel when compared to buying material things.

Not everyone believes that employees from different generations prefer certain benefits over others.

While she initially thought benefit preferences would vary by generation, Marshfield Clinic Health system director of talent acquisition Terri Newmier said many are universal.

“Employees of any generation appreciate PTO, work/life balance and flexible schedules,” she said.

The same goes for retirement plans and health insurance, Newmier added.

12 | BUSINESS LEADER • January 27, 2020

”They all consider those things when looking for a job opportunity,” she said.

Age is also not the determining factor that Newmier has seen in the ways that people shop for a new job. Like many other employers, Marshfield Clinic has shifted more toward online job postings while scaling back on print advertising and job fairs.

“We find the new types of candidates who respond to these new avenues aren’t from a specific generation, it’s more across the board,” Newmier said.

The next generation

The newest arrivals to the workforce – born after 1997 and dubbed Generation Z – are defined largely by having technology including computers and the Internet around them their entire lives.

Growing up in a world where communication and information are online and instantaneous, they’re apt to want things to move quickly and be interested in companies that have invested in digital technology, Peterson said.

Younger workers are adept at using social media and other online means to communicate.

“Connecting is probably their biggest strength,” Peterson said.

Aptitude with technology has been viewed as an asset, but Lytle notes that there are questions about this latest generation’s ability to communicate in a workplace without using an electronic device.

“Their ability to engage with folks is one of the biggest areas of scrutiny we hear about,” he said. One of the alternative monikers for this age group is the “ADD generation” due to the perception they have shorter attention spans.

Seeing opportunity

Though the age-diverse workforce can challenge employers to adapt to traits seen in the different generations, local experts say that will be outweighed by the advantages having workers of many different ages.

“There are a lot of opportunities to learn,” Peterson said.

Older generations bring their years of experience, ability to adapt to changes in their years and a well-developed work ethic, Peterson said. Younger workers bring fresh approaches to workplace tasks, as well as bringing creativity and an aptitude of technology into workplaces.

Despite challenges that can be posed by five distinct generations in the workplace, Lytle also believes it creates opportunity for employers.

“It’s a challenge, but it’s going to yield great outcomes if you give it a chance,” he said.

Contact: 715-833-9204, andrew.dowd@ecpc.com, @ADowd_LT on Twitter

Systems thinking

Control, predictability limits ability of employees to adapt to situations

CEO SPEAK Jeff West is the owner of Bear Down (www.beardowninc.com), an executive and executive team coaching company based in Eau Claire. He was formerly a founder and CEO of Silicon Logic Engineering. He also chairs Business Partners peer groups in northwestern Wisconsin. West can be reached at: 715-559-2195 or jeffatbeardown@gmail.com.

“In a system you can’t change just one thing.” LEE THAYER, LEADERSHIP COACH, AUTHOR

By Jeff West

In my previous article, “Arguing with Reality,” the idea of linear thinking was pointed to as one of the problems we suffer from when dealing with the reality of a situation.

Linear thinking is thinking only of the cause-and-effect of a very small number of the potential variables involved.

Thinking and acting this way often unleashes consequences that were never intended. So what’s happening here?

The world we live in is comprised of systems. Groups of two or more people, people and machinery, people and technology, etc. Simply put, everything is more or less connected to everything else. When we begin to see the “systems” operating around us our perspective to many of the problems we face changes.

Leadership expert Lee Thayer defines something called “dumb systems.” By this he means systems that produce dumb, inadequate or unintended outcomes. So if there are dumb systems, that infers there must also be smart ones.

Smart systems produce outcomes that are close to what’s intended and required.

••• Have you ever tried to fix someone when it might actually be the system they’re operating in that’s faulty? There may be nothing wrong with the people. It may be the system that’s dysfunctional.

Do you get mad and frustrated when someone in customer service tells you, “I’m sorry, that’s not our company’s policy”? The person may very well be a competent and nice individual who just happens to be stuck in a dumb system.

I’ve witnessed many “A” player employees leave companies because they became so frustrated in the systems they’re stuck in.

Have you ever hired someone that had a reputation for a poor attitude at their former company only to have them become a rock star for yours? Have you had a good person leave and then want to return to your company at a later date? What changed? It’s unlikely the people changed much, so what can we attribute it to? The system they’re working in changed. One business may be a very top-down environment while the other gives their people both the responsibility and authority to do their job.

••• Think of it as a spectrum. On one end is a very controlling environment. The goal here is predictability. At the other end of the spectrum is adaptability.

On the predictability end are businesses like McDonald’s.

A big reason you eat there is because you know exactly what you’re going to get no matter which one you go to.

Predictable.

At the other end of the spectrum think about the Apollo 13 rescue mission. Remember the scene in the movie where the carbon dioxide in the capsule was rising. The program lead at NASA dumps a bunch of stuff on the table and says, “This is what they have. Find a way to fix the problem.”

Adaptable.

Problems occur when we apply the wrong system for the results we’re trying to get. To predict the output of a system, it has to be tightly controlled. In exchange for that control you limit the amount of adaptability your employees have in any specific situation. Hence, “I’m sorry, that’s not our company’s policy.” A chance to make a customer-for-life was just sacrificed.

••• There are many examples of CEOs, vice presidents of sales, human resources directors, etc. coming into their new position and wanting to “put their stamp on it” immediately.

Without them taking time to understand the systems they’re inheriting, the results are often disruptive at best and tragic in the worst cases. However well-meaning their intentions are – without first seeing the systems in place and taking into account the ramifications of their new programs – the results are many times, and not surprisingly, far from what was expected.

Employee morale is often the first thing to take a hit. If the leader digs in their heals without listening to the concerns, they can turn a company with a reasonably good culture into an us-vs.-them culture in no time at all. Not exactly the result they were expecting.

••• Dumb systems are those in which the ownership of problems are misallocated.

Let’s say your customer service person is competent and has wide latitude to fix a customer’s problem. Do you think they have a better chance to please a customer rather than turning them into someone who complains about you to anyone that will listen?

Can you begin to see it’s often the system and not the people?

And many times it’s the system that has to be fixed first.

January 27, 2020 • BUSINESS LEADER | 13

COMMUNITY PROFILE Contributed photos North High School marketing students in Eau Claire packaged several flavors of nuts into 12-ounce jars and 4-ounce bags for the Roasted & Ready project.

DECA project gives North High students practical business experience

By Eric Lindquist, Leader-Telegram staff

"There's Nuttin' Better!" may have been the slogan for the company created last fall

by North High School marketing students, but it also could be an apt description of the experience the project gives participants.

This year's project involved students ordering, roasting, flavoring, packaging, marketing and selling nuts for Roasted & Ready Nut Co. "It was a great experience," said Austin Opatz, a student co-manager of the project along with 14 | BUSINESS LEADER • January 27, 2020

Aren Theisen. "It was fun to learn about all of the different processes of running a business."

North marketing teacher Jim Maier said the DECA program tries to do a major sales project every year to give students real-world experience in all different aspects of operating a company. More than 120 students were involved in Roasted & Ready from October through December.

Typically, Maier said, students, who make all

of the decisions, tend to be overly aggressive in their ideas about what their business can accomplish in terms of sales and profits. Maier wants students to learn from their mistakes and their successes and tries not to intervene until they come close to making a disastrous play.

But this year's crew was surprisingly conservative.

"This one took off like a rocket and they weren't really prepared for the numbers they got right out of the gate," Maier said. "They didn't up production and ended up running out of some products. I couldn't convince them to run with the wave."

As a result, he said, the project didn't make as much profit as it could have with a more aggressive approach.

"But they learned from that, and that's what it's all about," said Maier, the school's DECA adviser.

In the end, Roasted & Ready sold about 300 jars of roasted, flavored nuts, earned mostly rave reviews from customers and made a profit of about $1,500, Opatz said. All proceeds will be used for student DECA conferences and competitions.

Students ordered bulk cashews, peanuts and almonds from wholesalers, then roasted and seasoned them in North's new culinary lab. They packaged several flavors of nuts — including salted, cinnamon sugar, honey sriracha, buffalo wing and honey roasted — into 12-ounce jars and 4-ounce

.

North marketing students ordered, roasted, flavored, packaged, marketed and sold nuts as part of their 2019-20 DECA project.

bags before applying labels and decorative ribbons.

They sold the nuts directly to students, online via the school website, through roughly 20 local retailers they recruited to carry the nuts over the holidays and at booths during events such as hockey games and the Lazy Monk Christmas Market.

"I think it's a great way to learn about business," Opatz said. "There's not another program that does that. We really created our own business, and it was totally hands-on."

Past DECA projects at North have involved selling products ranging from grape jelly and salsa to candles and homemade dog biscuits.

"I want to give students experience they can actually take and use when they get out of North," Maier said. "I tell students all the time that you may not use some of this stuff this week, this month or even this school year, but you'll have it when you need it down the road."

Indeed, Maier said he takes pride in seeing former North marketing students operating successful businesses all over town.

"That's what keeps me going," he said.

Roasted & Ready participants will make a presentation about the project this spring at the state DECA conference, where the top finishers will advance to national competition.

North student Austin Opatz works a booth selling nuts late last year for Roasted & Ready Nut Co., a project created for the school's DECA program.

Contact: 715-833-9209, eric.lindquist@ecpc.com, @ealscoop on Twitter January 27, 2020 • BUSINESS LEADER | 15

16 | BUSINESS LEADER • January 27, 2020

GUEST COLUMN

Making retirement money last Withdrawal and reliance rates, multiple income sources are key to strategy

Andrew Cooper is a financial adviser at Edward Jones, 419 E. Clairemont Ave. He can be reached at 715-833-3986 or andy.cooper@edwardjones.com.

By Andrew Cooper Edward Jones Investments

It’s probably safe to say that many of us are concerned about having enough money to cover our retirement years.

In fact, some surveys have shown that we are more frightened of running out of money than we are of dying.

What can you do to help alleviate these fears?

Your first move is to create a retirement income strategy, and you’ll want to develop it well before you need to use it.

While there are many ways to develop such a strategy, you may want to consider these three key elements: • Withdrawal rate – Your withdrawal rate is the percentage of your portfolio you use every year during your retirement. So, for example, if you retire with a portfolio worth $1 million and you choose a 4% withdrawal rate, you’ll be taking out $40,000 per year.

Your withdrawal rate will depend on several factors – your age at retirement, the size of your portfolio, potential earned income, date at which you start taking Social Security and so on. Clearly, when deciding on a withdrawal rate, you’ll want to reach the “Goldilocks” solution – not too much, not too little, but just the right amount.

• Reliance rate – Your reliance rate is essentially the percentage of your overall retirement income that comes from your investment portfolio – your IRA, 401(k) and other accounts. It’s called a reliance rate because you rely on this portfolio for your income. The higher your reliance rate, the more you will rely on your portfolio to provide income during your retirement, and the greater your sensitivity to market fluctuations.

• Income sources – The more sources of lifetime income you have – such as Social Security and a pension from your employer – the less you may be relying on your investment portfolio to cover your retirement goals. However, many private employers have moved away from pensions in favor of 401(k)-type plans.

Social Security will only provide about 40% of your preretirement income in retirement, assuming your earned income is average for U.S. workers, according to the Social Security Administration. Consequently, you

may want to consider options such as annuities, which can provide lifetime income benefits.

It will take careful planning to put these three factors together in a way that can help you build enough consistent income to last throughout your retirement – which could easily extend two or three decades.

And there’s no single formula for everyone. For example, while an annuity could offer lifetime cash flow and help you reduce your reliance on your investment portfolio, it also involves fees and expenses, plus lower liquidity than other sources of income, so it may not be right for everyone.

Fortunately, you don’t have to go it alone when taking all your retirement income factors into account. You may want to work with a financial professional – someone who can evaluate your individual situation and then recommend retirement income solutions based on your appropriate reliance rate, withdrawal rate and potential income sources.

By getting the help you need and by following a suitable long-term strategy, you can ease some of the stress that comes from wondering if your life span might eventually exceed your financial resources.

1506 South Hastings Way, Eau Claire This article was written 715-832-3502

by Edward Jones for use by www.muldoons.com

OUR SUITS ARE HOT HERE!!!

Andrew Cooper.

January 27, 2020 • BUSINESS LEADER | 17

GUEST COLUMN

E e

What is your brand?

Values, reputation are beginnings of marketing strategy for businesses

By Justin Vajko Dialog Design Co.

There are two secrets I want to let you in on.

First: I watched “The Princess Diaries” back in high school. Why is this relevant? Keep reading to find out.

Second: Your brand is not your logo.

Your brand is your reputation. And branding is the act of shaping that perception in the marketplace through your story, your visuals and your communications. You can’t do branding well without first understanding what your brand is.

Many business owners have a brand naturally emerge from their personal value system and their passion — this is perfectly fine at first. But that only gets a company so far. What happens when the owner moves on? What happens when the sales team needs to communicate their value and starts promising things that aren’t what the company can back up?

That’s where knowing your brand helps.

So what’s your brand? And how do you shape your brand?

Let’s get back to my Princess Diaries confession.

In “The Princess Diaries,” a regular high school girl is perceived to be a nerd and an outcast in her school — that is, until it’s revealed she’s actually next in line to the throne of a European country. Her royal grandmother has professionals swoop in and spruce up her frazzled hair, overgrown eyebrows and frumpy clothes. Overnight, her appearance changes from nerd to princess.

She’s suddenly transformed from a forgettable outcast to an unmistakably beautiful woman.

Did she change on the inside? Nope, still the same.

Only now her incredible and quirky inner qualities were allowed to shine on the outside.

A lot of businesses are flying under the radar when they should be known as the best thing since sliced bread. Their appearance in the marketplace is frazzled.

They’re completely forgettable as a company because they look like everyone else, sound like everyone else and provide the same service or product as everyone else. They’re a commodity when they should be a market leader.

Branding agencies help businesses identify their strengths and the unique ways they solve problems for 18 | BUSINESS LEADER • January 27, 2020

Justin Vajko owns Dialog Design Co., an Eau Claire-based marketing, branding and website firm. Contact him via email at justin@dialogwith.us or visit the firm's website at www.dialogwith.us.

their customers and turn them into a compelling outsidefacing look and message that get them attention and desire in the marketplace.

So is your brand working for you or against you?

Here are five questions you can ask yourself about what your brand is doing for you. Answer each question with either poor, fair, good or excellent: •H ow well-known or noticed is your brand in the marketplace?

• How deeply and emotionally do people relate to your brand?

• How well do people understand your value compared to your competitors?

• How well do people believe and trust in you and your promises?

• How likely is someone to be motivated to purchase your service or product simply because of your reputation?

Once you have an idea of your brand, you’ll want to determine if that’s where you want to be.

Does your visual branding (logo, colors, etc.) look the same as everyone else’s? That’s a clear opportunity to change and emerge in the marketplace.

Are you known as the cheapest option and a commodity? You might need to rebrand in order to establish a more premium market position in your customer’s mind and eventually command higher profit margins.

Is your sales team struggling with long sales cycles because your buyers just don’t know your value? Hire a branding agency to create a plan that will raise awareness of the trustworthiness of your brand for your ideal buyers. You’ll be amazed at how a consistent look and message will help you build trust faster and speed up the sales cycle.

When you want to be the only company your customer considers in your market, work with a professional branding agency. They’ll help you identify how you can stand out — not by giving you a simple makeover, but by pulling out the incredible value inside of your company that, when the crowds see it, makes them go “wow.”

E c

B T

a n l y r m

t y m a c e b

c s R m d t t i y s a d u l

c a s

r

s

BOOK REVIEW

Email etiquette Ending use of ‘reply all’ is among effective communication advice from author

Title: “Kill Reply All: A Modern Guide to Online Etiquette, from Social Media to Work to Love” Author: Victoria Turk Pages: 216 Publisher: Plume (c. 2020)

By Terri Schlichenmeyer The Bookworm

Hit “send.”

That’s what you did when the boss dispatched an email. You replied honestly, hit “send,” and now the guy down the hall is mad, six people are looking at you funny, and they’re gossiping about you downstairs. You’re not sure what happened, but read “Kill Reply All” by Victoria Turk. Maybe your message sent the wrong message.

Coat off, computer on, coffee poured, and what’s the next thing you do when you get to work? If you’re like most, you check your email, deal with the messages, check again, deal with the messages, check again. In fact, studies show that the average person checks work emails nearly 80 times a day. And as the emails pile up, despite that we say we’re not bothered by the glut of them, we really are.

Email, says Turk, is not an optimal way to communicate. It’s efficient, but stressful; better than some methods but lacking when compared to others.

Rather than grind your teeth over it, try Turk’s method of “Inbox Zero,” if you dare – it’s a method of dealing with, sorting and eliminating all inbox emails to avoid the stress of unread missives; also remember that there are times when a reply to an email simply isn’t warranted. Learn to email like a CEO (unless you’re in sales); know your options (including oldschool methods, such as picking up a phone and actually speaking, or walking over to someone’s desk); practice compassion for your co-workers by using the “bcc”; don’t “reply all”; and never, ever leave a voicemail.

As for informal communication, know how to avoid confusing your friends, how to use chat apps correctly and learn why the inventor of the MUTE button should be handed a Nobel Peace Prize. And if you’re

thinking about creating a “work group” with a chat app, think again. Says Turk, that’s not a good idea at all.

Technology moves fast enough. Now, so do rules.

Make sure you follow what’s new with “Kill Reply All” because Turk makes sense of new rules to heed and faux pas to avoid in mostly helpful, usable minichapters.

Be aware, however, that some points may make certain readers rear back in horror. She is, for instance, not a fan of old-fashioned phone calls.

The good news is, nobody ever said you had to follow everything, right?

Likewise, nobody ever said you had to read everything, either, so feel free to skip around in this book if you want; the info on dating may be irrelevant, but amusing. Do be sure to look over the chapter on friendship, though. There, Turk – who is somewhat the Miss Manners of C-Suites – offers tips on communicating with pals, progeny and partners, and much of that instruction could easily extend to the office.

No more wrangling a bloated inbox. No more tangled message threads. No more angling for forgiveness on communication if you read “Kill Reply All.” For every businessperson who wants to do right and do better, this book will be a hit.

The Bookworm is Terri Schlichenmeyer. Terri has been reading since she was 3 years old and never goes anywhere without a book. She lives on a hill in Wisconsin with two dogs and 15,000 books.

January 27, 2020 • BUSINESS LEADER | 19

- Sponsored Content -

Call to aCtion: Review YouR estate Plan in light of the seCuRe aCt authoRs: attoRneYs linda danielson and KaYla MuRPhY The federal appropriations bill enacted into law on December 20, 2019 changed federal law in ways that may affect your retirement assets, including 401(k) plans and IRAs. Those changes, often referred to as the “SECURE Act,” may affect you during your lifetime and also the way those retirement assets may be distributed to your beneficiaries after your death. Significantly, the SECURE Act changes the timing and amount of tax to be paid by those beneficiaries when they receive the retirement assets, your ability to protect the retirement assets from the beneficiaries’ creditors, and the value of those retirement assets in the hands of the beneficiaries.

The SECURE Act contains many provisions; however, this e-alert summarizes only some of the key aspects of the SECURE Act as they relate to estate planning. Given the significance of these changes, we urge you to contact your Ruder Ware estate planning attorney to arrange a time to discuss this new law in detail, so that you and your attorney may take action to, if necessary, revise your estate plan to protect your beneficiaries and their inheritance of your retirement assets.

Changes Affecting you During life One component of the SECURE Act that will affect many people during their lives is a change in the age at which a person must begin taking distributions from a retirement plan. Under the prior law, most people were required to begin taking distributions from their retirement plans or IRAs when they reached age 70 ½.Under the new law, the age is increased to 72. In addition, the SECURE Act removes the age cap for funding traditional (nonRoth) IRAs, meaning that individuals over age 70 ½ are now eligible to make contributions to a traditional IRA. These changes may present an opportunity for people to take further advantage of the tax-deferred savings offered by retirement plans. In some instances, they may even present additional opportunities for funding a Roth IRA.Your accountant or financial advisor is likely in the best position to advise you as to whether and how you might benefit from these changes in the law. We encourage you to reach out to them to discuss your retirement strategy in light of the SECURE Act. Of course, you are welcome to contact any of us as well, and we will be glad to assist you in understanding how the SECURE Act applies to your circumstances, in coordination with your other financial professionals as appropriate.

After your Death Perhaps the most significant changes brought about by the SECURE Act, at least in terms of estate planning, relate to how your retirement plan may be distributed and taxed after your death. You may recall reading or hearing about the goal of “stretching out” your retirement plan after death. Under the prior law, it was possible to stretch the distribution of an inherited retirement plan over the life expectancy of a beneficiary, if that beneficiary was a “designated beneficiary.” This lifetime stretchout provided income tax free growth of the inherited retirement plan assets during the beneficiary’s life, deferred the payment of income taxes paid on distributions made to the beneficiary from the retirement account, and protected the retirement plan assets from most of the beneficiary’s creditors. The prior law permitted these advantages even for retirement plan assets left to beneficiaries in trust, as long as the trust contained certain required terms and conditions.

However, the SECURE Act has changed these rules to require that most designated beneficiaries will now be required to receive the entire inherited retirement account within 10 years following the death of the original account owner. There are several

20 | BUSINESS LEADER • January 27, 2020

exceptions; for example, a surviving spouse, minor children (but not grandchildren), and beneficiaries who are disabled or chronically ill are still permitted to take distributions over their expected lifetimes (though children who are minors at the time of inheritance must now take the full distribution within 10 years after reaching the legal age of adulthood). However, if the retirement plan is left to those beneficiaries in trust, they may not qualify for the lifetime distribution, depending on the terms and conditions of the trust.

The good news is that the SECURE Act does not change the method of designating a beneficiary or beneficiaries to receive inherited retirement assets. If you have existing beneficiary designations in place, those designations are still valid. What the SECURE Act does introduce, however, is a host of new considerations that you should consider in structuring your estate plan to maximize the benefit of your retirement plan assets and best protect your beneficiaries.

Unfortunately, Congress gave us very little warning that these changes were coming. Accordingly, estate plans that, through the end of 2019, offered a sound approach to planning for retirement assets, may suddenly no longer provide a good solution.For example,some of our clients may have current plans in place that leave their retirement assets to a trust known as a “conduit trust” following the client’s death. Generally, distributions of retirement plan assets to a conduit trust pass immediately from the trust to the beneficiary. Conduit trust plans were frequently utilized under the prior law because the distributions of the retirement plan would be stretched over the expected lifetime of the trust beneficiary but still retain the creditor protection provided by the trust arrangement. However, under the SECURE Act, that same conduit trust may now result in distribution of all of the retirement plan assets to the beneficiary within 10 years of the death of the original account owner, which may not be a desired outcome. Depending on the circumstances, other planning techniques may better serve the goals those plans are meant to achieve under the new rules. take Action If you have retirement plan assets, we recommend that you review your estate plan as soon as possible, to ensure that it disposes of those assets in the best manner for your family taking into account the SECURE Act changes. Any of our estate planning attorneys would welcome the chance to discuss these changes with you, answer any questions you may have, and make recommendations specifically for you. Please contact one of us to arrange a meeting or phone conference at your convenience, so that we can help you find the best planning solutions to meet your needs and those of your family.

Attorney linDA DAnielson

Attorney KAylA Murphy

F A C

F C C

F D c C C

F C 1 S J

F n C

M S c

M

CALENDAR CALENDAR

February - March Feb. 10: Business Plan Basics, course, 5:30-8:30 p.m., Realtors Association of Northwestern Wisconsin, 3460 Mall Drive.

Cost: $29. Register: successfulbusiness.org.

Feb. 11: Social Media Marketing Basics, class, 8-9:30 a.m., Classroom 234, CVTC Business Education Center, 620 W. Clairemont Ave., Eau Claire. Cost: $39. Register: cvtc.edu.

Feb. 19: Success for Breakfast: Identity Theft — Be Aware and Don’t Share!, presentation by community financial education coordinator Melissa Janssen of Royal Credit Union, 9-10 a.m., Chippewa Falls Area Chamber of Commerce, 1 N. Bridge St., Chippewa Falls. Cost: $15. Register: chippewachamber.org.

Feb. 25: Chippewa Valley Rally, annual Chippewa Valley Chamber Alliance trip to Madison to meet with state officials, 10 a.m.-6:15 p.m., Park Hotel Best Western Premier, 22 S. Carrol St., Madison. Bus transportation available. Cost: $79, before Jan. 31; $89, after Jan. 31. Register: eauclairechamber.org.

Feb. 26: Conflict Resolution for the Workplace, class, 9 a.m.noon, Room 100A, CVTC Business Education Center, 620 W. Clairemont Ave., Eau Claire. Cost: $89. Register: cvtc.edu.

March 5-6: Learning to Lead, course, 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m., Citizens State Bank, 375 Stageline Road, Hudson. Cost: $600. Register: ce.uwec.edu.

March 9: Start a Small Business in Eight Steps, course, 5:30-8:30

p.m., Realtors Association of Northwestern Wisconsin, 3460 Mall Drive. Cost: $29. Register: successfulbusiness.org.

March 12: Manufacturing Show, 3-7 p.m., Chippewa Valley Technical College Manufacturing Education Center, 2320 Alpine Road, Eau Claire. Info: cvtc.edu.

March 12-13: Critical Conversations, course, 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m., UW-Eau Claire — Barron County Campus, Student Center, 1800 College Drive, Rice Lake. Cost: $600. Register: ce.uwec.edu.

March 18: Lunch & Learn: Edvest College Savings Program, noon-1 p.m., Eau Claire Area Chamber of Commerce, 101 N. Farwell St. Cost: $20, chamber members; $40, nonmembers.

Register: eauclairechamber.org.

March 19: Chippewa Chamber Women’s Luncheon, 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m., Bye the Willow, 501 High St., Chippewa Falls.

Cost: $20, chamber members; $30, nonmembers. Register: chippewachamber.org.

March 19-20: Learning to Lead, course, 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m., Holiday Inn South, 4751 Owen Ayres Court, Eau Claire.

Cost: $600. Register: ce.uwec.edu.

March 25: Generations in the Workplace, seminar, 1-4 p.m., Classroom 117, CVTC Chippewa Falls Campus, 770 Scheidler Road. Cost: $89. Register: cvtc.edu.

42nd Annual

HOME&GARDENSHOW HOME February 21st - 23rd Friday 1:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.

Saturday 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Sunday 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

NEW LOCATION

Chippewa Valley Expo Center (5150 Old Mill Plaza, Eau Claire)

Tickets: $6 through Feb 20th / $8 at the Door Festival Foods • Menards • Green Oasis Children 12 & under are free

FEATURING: FRIDAY Senior Day FRIDAY Night - Live Music, Wine & Beer Tasting SATURDAY Demonstration Day SUNDAY Family Day 125+ Vendors Dream Backyard Grand Giveaway Scavenger Hunt with $250 Daily Cash Prize Ferguson Bath & Kitchen Gallery • iHeart Media • JM Builders, LLC KristyThiess, Your Real Estate Guide • Morrie’s Chippewa Valley Mazda WEAU 13 News

More Info: www.cvhomebuilders.com or 715-835-2526

cvtc.edu/WorkforceSolutions

LEARNERS TO LEADERS CVTC offers various seminars on leadership helping to advance area professionals. These seminars are designed to build leadership skills, improve productivity, and develop top-performing teams.

• Communication & Writing • Hospitality & Human Services • Leadership & Management • Marketing & Social Media • Project & HR Management • SHRM Certification

715-874-4676 • WorkforceSolutions@cvtc.edu CVTC does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, or age in employment, admissions, programs, or activities. General inquiries regarding the College’s non-discrimination policies may be directed to: Director of Human Resources • Chippewa Valley Technical College • 620 W. Clairemont Ave. • Eau Claire, WI 54701 • 715-852-1377 • WI Relay: 711

January 27, 2020 • BUSINESS LEADER | 21

Legacy gacy StoneS Ston est.

2017

coming Soon 2020

Order online at

Receive an american Flag and a commemorative pin at the dedication ceremony as a special thank you for ordering a Legacy Stone.

www.ecveteransfoundation.com

Custom-engraved stones are a $500, taxdeductible donation to the Eau Claire County Veterans Tribute Foundation. The proceeds go directly to the construction of the Veterans Tribute Park and the mission to educate the public about the cost of freedom.

Legacy Stones are solid gray granite, 12”x 12” square x 2”thick.

Please make checks payable to Eau Claire County Veterans Tribute Foundation and mail to PO Box 1422 Eau Claire, WI 54702

You can also choose from these five branch emblems at no extra cost. Please X out one line of choice above for emblem.

ArmY

NAVY

mArINES

AIr FOrCE

COAST GuArD

mErChANT mArINES

Enclosed is my tax-deductible donation of $500 for a 12” x 12” square x 2” Legacy Stone inscribed with the following letters. (No punctuation may be used.) maximum 5 lines with 16 characters per line.

SuppoRt

Name_____________________________________________________________________Phone_________________________Date____________ Address______________________________________________________City___________________________State____________Zip___________

Our HistOry. Our COmmunity. Our Veterans.

22 | BUSINESS LEADER • January 27, 2020

BY THE NUMBERS

WESTCONSIN SBA 504 LOANS

82,080

Homes sold in Wisconsin last year, which was just 0.1% below 2018’s total. This continued a “seller’s market” that began in 2017, according to the Wisconsin Realtors Association.

15%

Increase in patents granted in the U.S. last year when compared to 2018, according to IFI Claims Patent Services. There were 333,530 patents granted in 2019 with the top recipients being large technology companies including IBM, Samsung and Canon.

230

Jobs that will be lost in Eau Claire this year by the closure of Phillips-Medisize’s production facility in the city’s Sky Park Industrial Center. The Hudson-based medical device company stated in late January that it has openings at its other Wisconsin plants and will help displaced workers seek employment at those.

3.5%

Seasonally-adjusted U.S. unemployment rate at the end of 2019. The jobless rate started last year at 4%, but fell in following months to reach 3.5%.

$19 million

Estimated value of Menard Inc.’s expansion project in Eau Claire, which is receiving $500,000 in tax credits, according to the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp.

The project was the 14th largest in 2019 to receive state tax credits, which are tied to job creation and retention.

SBA 504 Loans Are you currently leasing space and ready to start building equity in a building for your business? Is there machinery or large equipment that can help you be more efficient or productive?

In partnership with the US Small Business Administration using the 504 Loan Program, we are able to offer business members up to a 25 year low fixed rate with as little as 10% cash down.

504 LOANS MAY BE USED FOR: Purchase owner-occupied commercial real estate and/or machinery/equipment Refinance owner-occupied commercial real estate Renovate or construct owner-occupied commercial real estate Projects in size from $350,000 to $20,000,000 WESTconsin Credit Union’s experienced Business Loan Officers are here to help you take advantage of this great loan program available to small businesses. Call (800) 924-0022 or visit your local WESTconsin office. *The terms and conditions are subject to final approval and may change at any time.

(800) 924-0022 | westconsincu.org

Federally insured by NCUA

January 27, 2020 • BUSINESS LEADER | 23

4 Ways to a

Better 401(k) Plan

Attract & retain

employees with a strong retirement package.

Have you recently evaluated what is important for your company’s retirement plan? The Trust Point retirement plan services team can help you design and manage a plan that fits your organization; one that is in your best interest.

Consultations are always free!

Want to learn more?

Contact us!

7 South Dewey Street Eau Claire, WI 54701 715-461-7018 www.trustpointinc.com

•

Save time with a competitively priced allinclusive solution

•

Easily understand the plan fees because they are 100% transparent

•

Reduce risk and liability - Trust Point operates at the highest fiduciary level

•

Maximize retirement dollars with unparalleled and customized participant education