I'd like to start by wishing all my fellow Chamber members a Happy New Year as we move into 2015. After serving on the Minneapolis Regional Chamber Board for the past five years, I am honored to take over the Chair role from Bill Jonason. As Chair these past two years, Bill led the Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce (MRCC) through solid growth, sharpened our operating procedures and policies, and put in place some new tools that will help this organization function efficiently and effectively going forward. Bill also revived the Annual Meeting luncheon, where we can gather to celebrate our success and tout this region's power and accomplishments. Please Join me for this year's lively event on February 19th. Thank you Bill!!

This organization will continue to be effective at both the local and regional level. Over the past few years, our area chambers in Bloomington and Northeast Minneapolis have enhanced their programming, community outreach and effectiveness on behalf of businesses in their area. At the same time the MRCC continues to engage in a variety of initiatives across the metro area, all designed to grow jobs and keep this market competitive on a world stage.

We will be heavily involved in the 2015 legislative session on the critical issues of transportation and workforce development. At the December 2014 Board meeting, the MRCC Board of Directors passed a transportation resolution calling for "sufficient new spending, combined with increased efficiencies, not only to maintain the current level of service, but also to expand it as necessary to remain economically competitive with other regions across the country." We are already working with MnDOT and the Met Council to craft an effective program knowing it means efficient movement of workers, goods and services, and a region that can compete for new jobs and businesses. 

We will build on the opportunities presented by the 2018 Super Bowl and 2019 Final Four events. We will work with our partners across the region to make the most of these events and to attract more international gatherings to our great community. Every study shows that once people experience Minneapolis-Saint Paul, they are likely to return.

We will continue to deliver the core services that our members value and expect. Knowing that many of you want access to the latest information, new prospects and government leaders, our three chambers will offer you the choice of more than 150 programs and events this year. No one matches the quality of our programs, and the staff assures me that this year's selection will be even better.

There is much work to do in 2015 and we are eager to get started. Of course, without your financial support and participation we would be powerless. Thank you for providing the power behind our efforts. And please, contact me directly with any questions or advice.

Laura McCarten
Regional Vice President 

• Three GPM lawyers, Sally Grossman, Sheryl Morrison, and Jessica Johnson, have received the 2015 Five Star Professional Estate Planning Attorney award. Based on peer recommendations and consumer research, the Five Star Professional award is presented annually to individuals in recognition of quality client service and care
• Sarah Duniway and Charlie Maier will become Managing Officers  on April 1, 2015.  Duniway co-chairs the firm's  nonprofit and tax-exempt organizations practice team, while Maier co-chairs Gray Plant Mooty's litigation group.  
• GPM attorney  Michael Cohen has earned the Certified Information Privacy Professional/Europe (CIPP/E) credential through the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP). Already a Certified Information Privacy Professional for the U.S., Cohen is now one of the few lawyers in Minnesota who holds certifications in both U.S. and European privacy.  
• GPM has been recognized by its clients in The BTI Client Service A-Team 2015: The Survey of Law Firm Client Service Performance as an unparalleled leader in client services. The latest rankings mark the fifth year in a row that the firm has joined this elite list of client service leaders.  
• GPM attorneys  Richard Braman, Carl Crosby Lehmann, and Kathryn Nash, were selected as 2014 Attorneys of the Year by Minnesota Lawyer. Braman was named posthumously for his work with The Sedona Conference, and Lehmann and Nash were selected as a team for co-founding trainED, a legal compliance training program for higher education institutions and businesses

Phyllis Karasov of Larkin Hoffman was recognized by the Twin Cities Cardozo Society with its annual Sidney Barrows Lifetime Commitment Award. Karasov joined Larkin Hoffman in 2012. The Sidney Barrows Lifetime Commitment Award was created in 2000, in memory of Sidney Barrows, one of the founding chairs of the Cardozo Society. This award is given annually to a senior attorney or judge in the Twin Cities who exemplifies excellence in their practice and community.  

The Opus Group has completed four projects for the Minnesota-based retailer Gander Mountain.  Opus built three new 52,000-square-foot Gander Mountain stores in Augusta, Georgia; Newnan, Georgia and Algonquin, Illinois; and managed renovations of the retailer's 96,275-square-foot store in Forest Lake, Minnesota. Opus has also completed The Inn at Shattuck-St. Mary's in Faribault, Minnesota. The renovation and expansion project repurposed a historic 147-year-old building on the school's campus into an inn with meeting and conference spaces.  

Enhanced Listing Opportunity

Click here for details. 

Did you know that over 31,000 people visit the Chamber's website every month? And that for as a little as $150 you can show off your company to thousands of potential clients? The Chamber now offers Enhanced Listings in our Online Membership Directory. Your company is immediately bumped to the top of your category in search results and includes a YouTube video, a photo gallery, 1,600 character description, 20 additional keywords and much more! 

You can check out the Minneapolis Regional Chamber's Enhanced Listing by clicking here and compare it with your listing in our online directory.

Contact Lisa Myhre at (612) 370-9137 or Rhonda Bernard at (612) 370-9121 today!

Bloomington Chamber Annual Meeting
Friday, January 9, 2015
8 to 9:30 a.m. / Radisson Blu Mall of America

Thank you to our sponsors: Mall of America, Northwestern Health Sciences University, Western Bank, Sanford - Brown College, Premier Bank and TRIA Orthopaedic Center

Meet the Chamber! Bloomington
Tuesday, January 13, 2015
7:30 to 9 a.m. / Bloomington Chamber Conference Room

DRIVE Roundtable: Incubating Entrepreneurship
Friday, January 16, 2015
7:30 to 9 a.m. / the Local

Thank you to our sponsors: Wells Fargo, Foley & Mansfield, PLLP, Cara Irish Pubs and Xcel Energy

Small Business Lunch and Learn: Affordable Care Act
Friday, January 16, 2015
11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. / Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce

Thank you to our sponsor: UPS

Critical Issues Forum: Transportation Takes Center Stage
Friday, January 23, 2015
7:30 to 9 a.m. / Radisson Blu - Minneapolis

Thank you to our presenting sponsor: Target
Thank you to our series sponsors: Associated Bank, Comcast, Mortenson Construction, Xcel Energy