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It's hard to believe how quickly another year is racing by. With that in mind I want to remind our members of a few items to consider before the holiday rush takes our mind off of business and on to celebrations with family and friends.
It's that time of year to think about those businesses and individuals whose contributions to the Chamber and the community deserve recognition. Our Annual Meeting will take place on Friday, January 31st at the Four Points Sheraton in Norwood (mark your calendar). As always we will be presenting four awards based on your recommendations: Small Business of the Year; Large Business of the Year; Business Person of the Year and the Paul Smith Award for Outstanding Volunteerism. Please take a moment to consider whom you think might be a worthy recipient and submit a nomination for them. The form is easy to complete and can be downloaded here. You can view a list of previous winner's here. Our partners at Chamber PG are beginning their work on the annual printed Membership Directory and Community Guide. If you haven't been contacted yet about placing an ad in the guide, you will be soon. Or you could reach out to Kenneth Leonard at ken@chamberpg.com. The guide is distributed to all members and also to area hotels, town halls and libraries. You should also have received an email recently asking you to update your contact information so that it is correctly displayed in the guide. Please click the link to your member portal to ensure that your listing is up to date. Or you could login from the Chamber homepage by clicking the "Member Login" button. Thank you. Tom O'Rourke President and CEO The school buses are rolling again and so is the Chamber's Education and Business Committee.
Last spring we asked members to participate in a survey of Massachusetts businesses to provide information about the business community’s views on education, workforce and skill. The Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education, Associated Industries of Massachusetts and the Massachusetts Business Roundtable sponsored the survey and the MassINC Polling Group, prepared the report. Thank you to those who participated from our Chamber. The results of the survey are in and we wanted share them with you. Here are some of the key findings: • Employers are struggling fill positions in their companies, in part because of fierce competition in a hot economy, and in part because candidates lack the skills needed for open jobs. • Education matters to the business climate. “Access to a talented workforce” is the single most important factor in evaluating the state’s business climate. • Employers continue to see a gap between the overall performance of schools and the job the schools are doing preparing students for the workforce. • Business leaders want to focus their advocacy on improving the applied skills taught to students, hiring better teachers, increasing hands-on and vocational/technical education, and forging business partnerships with schools. Read the full report here The Chamber along other business groups throughout the state will be using results in our engagement with the legislature on a variety of issues including education funding reform, increasing student access to in-demand industry skills, and expanding opportunities for students to earn credentials and benefit from work-based learning opportunities. The Chamber's Education and Business Committee meets next on Tuesday, September 10th at 8:30 am at the Chamber office. All are welcome. Tom O'Rourke President and CEO The Chamber held its 125th Anniversary Celebration on September 19th at the Paul Revere Heritage Site in Canton. Fittingly, 125 guests turned out on a beautiful late summer evening to enjoy the festivities.
Current members, new members and some old friends we haven't seen in years, all assembled to commemorate the milestone occasion. A delicious menu was prepared by Northern Spy restaurant, who will soon be opening their new location within Paul Revere's original copper rolling mill on the site. A pictorial timeline was on display highlighting notable events and people in the Chamber's history. A video loop was played that also chronicled the Chamber's history and featured interviews with current and past leaders of the organization. All of this while guests enjoyed music from the Canton High School Jazz Combo. There are many people to thank after an event such as this. Namely our 125th Anniversary Planning Committee, our sponsors, the Paul Revere Heritage Commission, Northern Spy Restaraunt, the Town of Canton, Norwood Video, Matt McKee Photography, Rob Peters Entertainment and the Canton High School Music Department. To view our program and all of our sponsors, click here. On behalf the Chamber board and staff, thanks to all who made the evening so special. Tom O'Rourke President and CEO The Neponset River Regional Chamber was recently approved to join the AARP Network of Age-Friendly States and Communities
and the World Health Organization Global Network of Age-Friendly Cities and Communities. Wow, what does that mean? Basically, we will be leading an effort to empower each of the communities in our region to achieve recognition as an "Age Friendly Community". As our population ages, there are a number of ways that communities and businesses can adapt their way of doing things to accommodate an older population. The Chamber's Elder Care Alliance has recognized that it has a unique opportunity to positively impact the communities where its members both live and work. The Alliance, has for a decade provided information and education on aging, and access to supports and services, including their recently completed "Aging with Dignity" video series. The Town of Norwood has agreed to partner with the Chamber as the first community to move forward on this initiative (Dedham and Stoughton have already become "Age Friendly" on their own). Over time, with help from the members of the Elder Care Alliance, we hope to include all of our towns. In the coming months the Chamber will engage with various stakeholders within the town of Norwood and local businesses to begin identifying the best ways to address the 8 areas of focus that define an age-friendly community as outlined by AARP. The Chamber sees this opportunity as the next step in changing the landscape, and to provide a level of connection between the business community, municipal leaders and older adults that has not yet been developed. We are excited by the possibilities with our communities and members to advance the overall livability and health of our communities. To our knowledge we are the first Chamber in the country to lead such an effort. To learn more or to find out how you can participate, contact Elder Care Alliance chairperson, Sheryl Leary or myself . Tom O'Rourke President and CEO The NRRC is growing and we need your help. As a member, you know the value of a strong Chamber to serve as the voice of business and to provide a network through which you can grow your business.
We are asking chamber members to reach out to their non-member colleagues and business associates and invite them learn about the benefits of membership. Please bring a non-member business to our informational breakfast on June 14 where they can learn about the benefits of membership. There is no obligation to join, however a number of incentives will offered to those that choose to join. If you bring a prospect and they join you will receive $125 in Chamber Bucks! Light breakfast and coffee will be available. FREE admission for members bringing a non-member. Thank you for helping our Chamber grow into our next 125 years. Tom O'Rourke President and CEO The Neponset River Regional Chamber, along with over 100 other business, community, political and civic leaders from across the Commonwealth signed a letter delivered to Governor Baker, Senate President Spilka and House Speaker DeLeo recently calling for a legislative solution on school funding that includes measures that will close achievement, opportunity and skills gaps.
The letter came in advance of a Joint Committee on Education hearing at the state house last month where legislators heard testimony on several bills that have been filed dealing with school funding. “Simply putting more money into a system that is failing far too many young people would be reckless,” said Edward Lambert, Jr., Executive Director of the Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education, one of the lead organizations behind the letter and a partner of the Chamber. “Crossing our fingers and hoping to get better results is not a strategy. We’re hearing from folks all across the state who want to ensure that new funding closes achievement and skills gaps and who agree money alone won’t accomplish those goals.” The letter calls for new funding to be used effectively and efficiently stating that “Experience, research, and practice-based evidence (including evidence from bright spots of success in our state) have shown that just putting more money into the system – even when expressly for the purpose of addressing achievement gaps – does not get us improved outcomes.” Read the full letter. I hope by now that you have had a chance to check out our new website . We unveiled it at our 125th Annual Meeting at the end of January.
There are a number of new and exciting features about the site, so I hope you will take a moment to browse through it. I would like to point out two particular features today: the Job Bank and the Coupon center. For many years we have had members ask us if there was a way to post job openings on our website. Well now there is! Any member can go from our homepage to the "Membership" scroll down tab and click on "Job Bank" . Simply select the option "I am an Employer" and you will be directed to a page where you can quickly and easily add your job postings. You will need to login to the website. If you need your login credentials, simply contact Denise Flynne in our office. Best of all, there is no cost to post your positions, its included in your membership! The second feature is not new, but has been enhanced. Members wishing to offer discounts or special deals to other members, the public or both can do so easily on the website. Again, go from the homepage to the "Membership" scroll down tab and then click "Coupons" . From there you can click to submit your own coupons. Your offer can be limited to members only or members and the general public, or two separate offerings for members and others. You can add your logo and have the coupon link to your own website. You can also choose how long to keep the coupon active. People wishing to access the coupons can print them from the website and show them when making a purchase. We always encourage members to do business with other members and by using the Coupon feature, you can make that even more attractive to do. Give them both a try! Tom O'Rourke President and CEO 125 years ago today, January 4th, 1894, a group of businessmen (it was 1894) rang in the new year by creating the Norwood Business Association. The initial purpose of the group was to attract business to the young and growing town of Norwood. Much of the NBA's early work focused on improving the infrastructure of the community. The organization advocated for things like electric lights, electric rail service, concrete sidewalks and streets; all vital to attracting business. 125 years later we still serve as an advocate for improved infrastructure and amenities that make our communities desirable locations for businesses.
The NBA's first President was George S. Winslow, owner of Winslow and SonsTannery on Endicott Street in Norwood (now the Norwood Commerce Center and home to Winsmith Mill Market). Two of the Chamber's original members are still members today; Norwood Bank and Certainteed (formerly Bird and Son). In 1926 the organization was renamed the Norwood Chamber of Commerce and in 1988 it became the Neponset Valley Chamber of Commerce recognizing that its membership was much more regional than in the early years. In 1980 Elberta M. Lydstone was elected the Chamber's first women President. There is much more to the Chamber's rich history and you'll be hearing more about it throughout the year. We will begin a year-long celebration with our 125th Annual Meeting on January 31st. We will introduce our new board and officers as well present our Annual Awards to deserving members. In addition, we will be making a big announcement about our future as we look forward to our next 125 years. We hope you will join us for an exciting evening. Register Here. Meanwhile, our 125th Anniversary Committee is putting together plans for a celebration in September that will feature an historical perspective of the Chamber with support from our local historical societies and graphic design students from Blue Hills Technical High School. It promises to be the highlight of 2019. Best wishes for a prosperous and healthy new year! Tom O'Rourke President and CEO Chamber members make a difference in our communities in a variety of ways. First and foremost they provide products and services that people need and want for their own personal or business reasons. They create jobs that employ thousands of local people. They provide needed tax revenue to our communities. But most do much more than that through their community support of local organizations, non-profits, sports groups, cultural institutions and many others.
Each year, we get to recognize a few of those members whose success in business and support of the community stands out among others. We are currently accepting nominations for our Annual Awards which are presented at the Annual Meeting in January. I encourage you to consider nominating a member business or individual whom you feel is worthy of such recognition. Simply download the nomination form and return to it to the Chamber office. Several Chamber members were making a difference for local high school students last month at our "Business, Marketing and Finance Seminar" in cooperation with the School To Careers Partnership. The program was held at Canton High school and included 175 students from area high schools. Chamber members in the fields of business, marketing and finance shared with students insights into their professions; how they got to where they are; what a typical day is like; what they love about their work, etc. Students were given the opportunity to ask questions and even role play in a few instances. The student feedback was great and included comments such as: "Being able to connect with and learn from other people who are not teachers is so valuable." "Presenters messages of having a plan; be social (network); don't give up; recognize opportunity and don't be afraid to ask were universal and inspiring." The Chamber is grateful to our members who participated by sharing their time and wisdom with these young people as they begin to make decisions about their futures. You are making a difference. Tom O'Rourke President and CEO |
