Newsletter 
September 2019
Upcoming Meetings
Executive Committee
Tuesday, September 24
3:30 p.m.
Kingsford City Hall
Investor Update Meeting
Thursday, September 26
7:30 - 9:00 a.m.
Pine Mountain Resort
RSVP Here
Board of Directors
Thursday, October 17
7:15 a.m.
Systems Control
Companies Take Part in Manufacturing Day on October 4
Seven area companies will take part in the Second Annual Manufacturing Day event on Friday, October 4 at Bay College West Campus as a part of the Heavy Metal Tours campaign. The purpose of the campaign is to educate students and the community about the skilled trades and technical career opportunities that exist locally.

Lakeshore Systems, BOSS Snowplow, Systems Control, Loadmaster, CCI Systems, Verso and American Axle & Manufacturing will all offer 30-minute, hands-on activities that simulate the skills needed in todays’ manufacturing careers, along with important information about the career paths available. The event, in conjunction with National Manufacturing Day, will host 300 area high school freshmen students from six high schools in Michigan and Wisconsin.

Dickinson County boasts a high concentration of manufacturing jobs with more than 20% of the area’s workforce represented in the manufacturing and industry fields. A survey of area manufacturers, compiled by the Alliance, indicated the need for more than 1,200 new and replacement jobs over the next four to five years, supporting the need to raise awareness of the career opportunities with the existing workforce and with the workforce of the future.
The Alliance, Bay West, Northern Initiatives-Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center, the Dickinson-Iron Intermediate School District and Michigan Works! are all contributing time, treasures and talents to make this a successful event for the students. “We are looking forward to highlighting the variety of manufacturing careers available in our area along with the excellent wages and benefits these jobs represent. It’s a huge opportunity for young people to grow their skills and careers with these employers without the need to accumulate years of educational debt,” said Gina Wollner, Dean of Bay College West.

Manufacturing Day is just one of many events within a larger effort to educate the community on our workforce shortage and the opportunities that exist for young people. Heavy Metal Tours hosts Industry Open Doors, School Tours and a Manufacturing Camp as well. For more information visit heavymetaltours.com and mfgday.com .
Investor Update Breakfast September 26
The Alliance will offer an update at a breakfast meeting on Thursday, September 26 at 7:30 a.m. at Pine Mountain Resort in the Alpine Room. This update is for all Alliance Investors and for anyone interested in learning more about the Alliance. We hope you will join us!

There will be a light breakfast buffet served at 7:30 a.m. The program will start at 8:00 a.m. with updates from each of the Strategic Task Force leaders and an overall summary of the efforts of the Alliance so far in 2019. Please RSVP to info@daeda.org .
Lansing visit in October
Alliance Executive Director, Lois Ellis, will be in Lansing October 22-24 as part of our collaboration with the Marquette County Ambassadors and the Lake Superior Community Partnership. Visits with state leadership, the U.P. delegation and key department heads are planned. If your business has relationships in Lansing and you would like to introduce the work of the Alliance to them, please reach out to Lois so she can plan to make those connections during her visit.
Loyal to Local Participant Profiles
A new social media effort for Loyal to Local will include the opportunity for all business participants to submit a profile about their businesses. The profiles will be used to highlight local offerings on social media. The goal is to showcase and raise awareness of the goods and services that our local business community provides. The Participant Profile questionnaire can be found here as a Google document. We encourage you to include photos we can share on social media. Participants Profiles will be featured in the order they are received. Please contact Lois Ellis if you have any questions.
August Contest Winner
Congratulations to Jennifer Naylor-Johnson who was our August Loyal to Local social media contest winner! Jennifer selected Erickson Jewelers for her $50 gift card prize so she could purchase an item she had her eye on. Thank you to all the contest entrants and thank you for being Loyal to Local!  loyal2local.org #L2Lfirst
FY2020 Going Pro Talent Fund Announced
The state of Michigan opened the online application period for the Going Pro Talent Fund on September 12. These Talent Fund grants create public-private partnerships with employers to design training models that adapt with changing employer demand. Criteria for the grants include training that is short term, must lead to a credential for a skill that is transferable, recognized by industry, and must lead to or continue permanent, full-time employment. The Talent Fund program is administered locally by Michigan Works! Agencies across the state. The application period closes on October 2. Those interested can click here for more information.
NMU Program Highlighted at Bay West
On Wednesday, September 25 from 3:00 – 7:30 p.m. CT representatives from NMU’s College of Business will be available at Bay College West Campus to share information and answer questions about several online, career-advancing degree offerings targeted to working adults. All are welcome to drop in to learn more. 
Click here for more details.
How to Buy or Sell a Business Workshop
The Michigan Small Business Development Center will host a How to Buy or Sell a Business
Workshop on October 16 at the Holiday Inn in Marquette. Hear from consultants and industry experts that will share tips, tools, and tactics to help the success of your business transaction and the subsequent transition process. The workshop runs from 8:30 a.m. ET until 2:30 p.m. ET and includes a panel discussion with industry experts, networking, lunch and a Q&A session.
The session will cover:

• Transition Planning
• Intermediaries
• Valuation
• Due Diligence
• Financing
• Post-Acquisition Planning
• Change Management
• Maximizing the Value of your Business
...and more!
The program fee is $75, however a $25 discount is offered by entering the Code: COCbiz when you register. Visit sbdcmichigan.org for more information.
Dickinson Area Economic Development Alliance | 906-360-4653 | info@daeda.org | www.daeda.org