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Save the Date for our Annual Lunch! April 24, 2020
Location: Boyne Mountain, Matterhorn Room
1 Boyne Mountain Rd, Boyne Falls, MI 49713


Keynote Speaker to be announced in two weeks! Who will it be?!
Video of the Month

Shaggy's helps their audience experience their company with vlogs!

Check out their East Coast Demo tour Part 1 at Mt. Abram Ski Resort.
Skiing starts at 8:05 minutes in.
Company Spotlight


Congrats to Moran Iron Works!

Moran Iron Works Kayak Express honored as one of WORKBOAT Magazine's 10 Significant Boats of 2019
NLEA Board of Directors to review
Future Services Survey
NLEA remains flexible, yet focused on its mission
Andy Hayes, NLEA President
Later this month our board will review and discuss our recently completed NLEA Stakeholders “Future Services” Survey. With a 61% response rate, our board will have plenty of feedback on issues and trends that our stakeholders see on the horizon of the next 5-10 years. 

Since our formation in 1984, the NLEA’s mission has been simple: “To serve as a resource to businesses and communities to support the creation and retention of jobs.” Our strategies have changed over the years—adjusting to the ever-changing business climate—but we’ve always kept our eye on the target of retention and creation of jobs.
2020 NLEA Board and Officers
Board Chair: Bill Scott, CEO – Great Lakes Energy
Vice Chair: Robin Stanley, CFO – Industrial Magnetics 
Secretary: Jeff Lawson, Administrator – Cheboygan County 
Treasurer: Paul Bloom, CFO – Tube Fab Roman Engineering
Immediate Past Board Chair – Rick Diebold, Consultant
Andy Hayes, NLEA President
MSU Today: 2020 economic growth expected
for Michigan
Courtesy of MSU Today

Michigan State University’s Center for Economic Analysis sees further growth in the Michigan economy in 2020. This comes from the MSU Economic Forecast Model that tracks and projects the economies of the state of Michigan and the metropolitan areas of Detroit-Warren-Dearborn and Lansing-East Lansing.

The model forecasts employment and wages by industry, economic output and total personal incomes based on economic conditions and projections at the national and regional levels. 
Grant dollars available for outdoor activities
Jessica Lovay, Community Development & Grants
The City of Onaway was recently announced as one of the 2019 Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund Recommended Development Projects. The $204,700 awarded funds will be put toward their over $350,000 new Trailhead. Development of the Onaway Trailhead on M-211 will accommodate area residents and users of the DNR’s North Eastern State Trail. The proposed trailhead project includes family restrooms with universal access design. The project, located 0.25 miles north of downtown Onaway and roughly 5 miles south of Onaway State Park, includes a pavilion that will provide shelter to trail users and will also provide a location for a farmer’s market, picnicking, and many other activities.
Manufacture smarter with Lean Certification
Carly Bortz, Administrative/Communications
Has your organization gotten into a rut of inefficient processes to lost productivity? In the new year ahead, take the opportunity to learn how to facilitate continuous improvement projects in your workplace through the   Lean Manufacturing Champion Certification .

Organizations that participate in lean manufacturing training through   The Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center   will leave with the insight and strategy to implement lean methodologies to eliminate waste through continuous improvement.
Are you prepared for the unthinkable?
Buck Love, Business Retention & Growth
What will your business do in the wake of a disaster? Bojana Dobran offers a definition and purpose for   Business Continuity Planning in an article from July 28, 2018 :

Business Continuity planning is threat prevention or handling strategy. The purpose of this strategy is to list out all the potential risks or threats that may affect a business’s operations. Once identified, lay out the appropriate policies and procedures for what to do to mitigate these issues if they do occur. Implementation will ensure that your company will remain operational even in the wake of a disaster.
Eric Grandstaff, Broadband Consortium Staff Specialist & Consultant
The NLEA Broadband Consortium is working with its member counties to find ways in which high-speed Internet infrastructure (fiber-optic middle mile and gigabit speed wireless) can be implemented in rural areas that are not forecast to have such assets in the near future.
 
The NLEA Broadband Consortium’s Consultant, Eric Grandstaff, met with Antrim County officials at their regular evening meeting on Thursday, December 19, 2019, and addressed the full Antrim County Commission on broadband.
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